Guildford Model Engineering Society



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A selection of engineering and railway websites, videos and talks.

Some links move to the Links page if there is a suitable category.

Cable Joint as it used to be done.

Stanley Steam Car.

Small scale coal firing.

Bamboo Railway.

Engine rebuild. I like the photography and music: Ford Flathead V8 Engine Rebuild Time Lapse.

Another engine rebuild. More tools and techniques: Remanufacturing a Packard V12 engine.

Nice bit of turning: Cube in a cube.

Funny to think of the prototype HST in the same context as other preserved locos: Prototype HST Start Up and Test Run and First Passenger Train.

A long one, but worth watching: How To Build A Jumbo Jet Engine.

Fred Dibnah: Laddering a Chimney, Part 1 and Laddering a Chimney, Part 2.

Interesting bit of history, although there's some suggestion that it didn't contribute as much to the war effort as previously thought: Op. Pluto.

Loco maintenance: Wash and Brush Up.

Plans to reopen the London Post Office Railway as a tourist ride: Mail Rail.

From Chris Phillips: FIAT S76 - Beast of Turin.

From Ian Carney: Car grinder!

From Ian Carney, precision mechanical engineering: Watch.

Ian Carney, amongst others, spotted this: Photos of the exhibits in the marquee at this year's Rally.

From Andy Sleigh: First run of the new club Bagnall.

From George Clark, Shinjuku, the busiest railway station in the world.

From Mike Sleigh, Plans to reopen the London Post Office Railway.

From George Clark, A nice nostalgic short video of a 2 coach train on the Cambridge to Mildenhall line in the 50s.

From Mike Sleigh, Engineering the London Underground.

From Tony Alderman, The wild abandoned railway in the centre of Paris.

From George Clark, How to make a steam locomotive, Princess Royal Class 6207 under construction.

From Kim Jackman, a fascinating account of film taken by an american pilot based in England during WWII, Spitfire 944.

Nick Ruddick, our member who lives in California, sent me the sad news that his club, the North County Model Railroad Society, are having to vacate their rented premises. Here's a report on a local news site. In the meantime, he's joined an N gauge club, located in this Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum.

From Chris Webster, Soul of A Railway, South Africa’s railways.

From Mike Sleigh, Historic model electric engine kits.

From George Clark, British Railways in WW2.

From Ian Carney, IC engine combustion.

What a nice trip for a sunny day, Chaloner on the WHR.

Model train delivers restaurant drinks.

VW car factory.

From George Clark, I'm outta here.

Also from George, Yes, the trap points are working OK followed by Oops, get the crane.

Thought this was interesting, Thermite track welding in the USA.

From Adrian Rogers, some stunning high resolution photos taken by American photographers in WW2: WW2 Photos.

From Kim Jackman, an interesting time lapse video: Blackfriars Station Project.

And another one from Kim: Snow Train in New Zealand.

Yet another from Kim with some time lapse video: Great Central Railway turntable project.

Finally, from George Clark, an episode of The Train Now Departing: Steam on the Isle of Man.

Model Engineering Website Sandown Park 2012, including models by Ian carney, Bernie King and Geoff Golding.

Another recommendation from George Clark, this collection of Railway Relic Films.

Photos of the abandoned slate quarry at Dinorwick: Dinorwic Dreams.

Made me smile: Silva Advertisement.

A couple of films about British Railways spotted by George Clark, The Railwaymen and British Locomotives.

From Tony Lake, How to derail a train.

You know the miniature gas turbine engines that visit our rally, well this chap collects the full size ones: Jet Propulsion.

I can't remember how I came across this one: How not to launch a brand new boat.

Finally, a nice bit of wood turning: Wooden Lampshade.

Ernie Noa, from across the pond, was a guest at our Rally this year. His short video: GMES rally 2012. Thanks Ernie; hope you enjoyed yourself despite the rain!

Also from Ernie, a snippet from the Bluebell Railway.

Anthony Kendall, another visitor, has posted up some good photos of our 2012 Rally.

Another of George Clark's Japanese finds, video of a notoriously busy level crossing in the centre of Tokyo used by the privately run Keio railway at Chofu station: Chofu Station in Japan. Although this level crossing may be fascinating for railway enthusiasts it is going underground like so many similar situations in Japan. The new underground station to be opened in August.

From Kim Jackman, Flying model of SR71. Nice!

From George Clark: Black 5 44932 filmed from a train pulled by 70013 Oliver Cromwell.

From Adrian Rogers, four early films of London: A ride over Westminster Bridge, London 1896, Colour on the Thames (1935), The Open Road, London (1927).

From Tony Alderman: "La bataille du rail" - Le déraillement.

From Tony Lake: The world's tiniest V12 engine.

George Clark always comes up with some good stuff. Here's: A GWR Castle at speed - 5043 Earl of Mount Edgcumbe racing alongside the M5.

Another one from Ian Carney. As he points out, once these are installed in a ship, you can never replace the large components: World's biggest diesel engine. I liked the steps leading down the inside of the crankcase!

How to build an aeroplane in 2½ minutes: Southwest Airlines, The Making of Florida One. Nice paint job.

And now for something at a slower pace: Behind the scenes at the Vale of Rheidol Railway. A really well done, professionally made, film.

A couple of items from Kim Jackman, both with a motorcycle theme: John Renwick and Ed Wallbank testing Epimetheus, the 1665cc Vincent and Norton Commando Transformer.

Another one from Kim: Robots that fly, fascinating!

Tony Alderman brought this one to my attention a couple of weeks ago. Fancy an exhibition quality 7¼"g Duchess and have deep pockets?: Auction (link may disappear at any time?).

An interesting one from Ian Carney: New boiler material.

This was forwarded by Mike Sleigh a while ago:
Dear Members of the GMES,
We’re submitting a big request to you today. After six years of development and construction work, we have opened our airport in May. We have also taken the opportunity to make a new HD video covering all of the Miniatur Wunderland.
After its completion, this new video looks really amazing. Our aim is to circulate it all over the world in order to fill as many people as possible on all continents with enthusiasm for our common passion. We can only achieve this with your help. The video will be on YouTube as from today, and we wanted to send this link first to you, the Model Building Enthusiasts! Miniatur Wunderland.

From George Clark, another of his far eastern subjects: Thought you may like this video of a 50 minute ride on a double deck Hong Kong tram. Fantastic city and wonderful public transport system but nothing like the frequency of trams I remember 40 years ago!! Hong Kong Tram Ride.

David Neish sent me this link to the Museum of Liverpool's page on Lion: Lion at Liverpool. The page includes two videos; one of curator of land transport, Sharon Brown, and one of OLCO members John Hawley and Jan Ford talking about their involvement with Lion.

David also spotted this film of the ex LB&SCR J class express tank locos Abergavenny and Bessborough: Brighton Steam in the 1930s.

A couple of items from Ian Carney, Drilling Square Holes and Glass Steam Engine.

From Tony Alderman, an aeroplane that flies like a bird.

George Clark's been looking at the Southern Railway Films. A couple of suggestions: Steam Days at London Waterloo and Brighton Shed in the late 1930s. Also, George has reminded me of this film which has been on my list to recommend: Vanishing Coal Mines of Pingxi Valley.

And finally, I was forwarded a recommendation from Chris Webster. Some cracking photos of US railroad subjects Lost Tracks of Time.

Another one from Tony. A short piece of video of two preserved steam trains running side by side on the main line Double steam action!.

Plus a railway advert (anyone know when this dates from?) HST v Class 37 Police Car! and Top Gear's take on a serious safety message Car hit by train.

Tony Alderman sent me this link. It's a really intriguing mix of art and engineering. Kinetic Sculptor Theo Jansen.

Forwarded by John Middleditch: This is video from a camera mounted in the rear cab of a US locomotive as it runs into a tornado. First there is the normal rear view from the last of three engines. Then you begin to see rain, and then, halfway through the video the trees begin to sway violently . . . And then "Stuff Happens". Train in a Tornado.

Overhead electric line problem. Ian Carney sent me this on an e-mail a while ago. I've now found a copy on YouTube: Train Sparking.

A nice piece of early film of the Southwold Railway just before it closed in 1929: Southwold Railway.

Always be careful when handling your loco (photo about 1/3rd of the way down the page): Bent Loco.

Some of you may have heard that Carl Arendt, who ran the website Micro / Small Layouts for Model Railroads, died on 4 March. His site is still 'up' and is a fascinating collection of photos and descriptions of small layouts from around the world.

From Andy Sleigh: Portrait of an Engineer Vulcan Foundry, Newton-le-Willows, in 1954. More on Vulcan Foundry.

From Nick Ruddick: MTH K4 Morning Express on the North County Model Railroad Society's layout.

From Jean-Paul Sabaton: JS Bach, Toccata and fugue in D minor on the Glass Harp.

From Andy Attwell and Mike Sleigh, a couple of Meccano-related websites: Meccano Magazines viewable as pdf files. I picked one and found that it contained quite a variety of interesting articles. Indian Meccano enthusiast and manufacturer.

GWR railmotor Nice to see it running.

Winners and Runner Up Made me smile.

San Francisco tram track renewal Great piece of time lapse photography.

Various small steam powered things From Ian Carney.

Swiss electric steam

Steam aeroplane

Not a steam train, but it does have an unexpected trick. (You can get English captions if you click the right buttons.)

Some film clips of the Lynton and Barnstaple Railway and Southern Railway.

View from an Engine Front - Barnstaple (1898)

Railroaders, Canadian Pacific Railway 1958 Thanks to George Clark. (If this film wouldn't load on the first attempt, it's worth trying later.)

Train rolls gently off the tracks: Central Ave. Derailment

Another film prompted by the recent snow: Ivor the Engine - Snowdrifts Who prefers Ivor to Thomas?

Finally, from Tony Alderman, this unusual piece of video Stairway to Heaven, climbing a transmission tower.

Brought to my attention by Neil Frost, video of the first train ever to run from Caernarfon to Porthmadog Harbour Station along the full length of the Welsh Highland Railway.

Given the recent snow, I thought this might appeal: Union Pacific 900082 Rotary Plow near Sharon Springs, Kansas, January 2007.

Ever seen a train lay its own track?

It'll be allright on the night, or will it?

Steam propulsion on ice.

A good selection of photos of our Rally Exhibits: Model Engineering Website

Travelling fitter on the ECML
Coal trains at Knottingley

Two more from George:
Thought you might be interested in the following colour film of 21C1 pulling the Golden Arrow.
And a 1930 film of the Leek & Manifold Railway. This latter film is on the BFI list which numbers several hundred archive films including street scenes which go back to the 19th century and a colour film of ships on the Thames in 1935.

A couple of wooden railways:
Martin Rindlisbacher's 80mm gauge railways at the Viktoria-Stiftung Foundation, Switzerland.
Video of a 14-inch gauge backyard railroad.

From Andy Sleigh:
Excerpts from National Geographic's "The Great Indian Railway" India: Running out of Steam (part 1 of 5).

From Reg Silk:
Hello Andrew, At one time I believe you were asking for photos, YouTube clips etc for the website. I thought you might like to consider adding this clip of Oliver Cromwell to the GMES website as I am sure a number of members would enjoy it.

From George Clark:
You may get fed up with me recommending Japanese videos but this one is a run on the bullet:
The Bullet Train "NOZOMI" Part1 Hakata-Kokura
It runs to 8 separate videos. Interesting for me as this is a class 500, there are only 2 sets left, which will be phased out by the end of this month. You'll note the driver comments on what he sees and the action he takes. I do believe his statement, 'Kankai OK', should be translated as, 'Visually OK'.

Also from George:
Here is another I can recommend, old films from the London Transport collection. The LGOC, route 107, film made in 1923 includes some shots of Guildford which start at about 8.5 mins in. London Transport Museum Film Collection

From Rod Nye:
Hello Andrew, Have a look at http://junkyardjet.com. And my wife thinks that steam is dodgy!

From Tony Alderman:
Hello Andrew, Have a look at 765 & 1225 Doubleheader.
(A cracking video, best watched full screen with the HD option. I'm not especially interested in US railroads but this was a good one, despite gratuitous use of the whistle! Andrew)

From George Clark:
Plenty of nostalgia, terrible sound track but some good pictures of Waterloo: London's Termini in the Swinging 60s.
(Actually, I thought some of the music went quite well with the old footage. Andrew)

From Tony Alderman:
Nothing to do with trains but this video might amuse you: Fordson snow-motor This is a rare video of an invention that never went very far. Wait until you see the automobile version it is all on here. 1926 Snow Tractor. Talk about ingenuity! This is a 1926 silent film (on video) of a tractor-snow-machine invented by Henry Ford, shown here driving it. It's long (10 Minutes), but well worth seeing. Watch the whole thing. Note the "hat." Tony.

From Tony Rest:
Andrew, I was just saying to Martyn how good our clubhouse and site were, when I received my copy of “Live Steam” (an American Magazine) and saw an article on Train Mountain. It looks as though their steaming bay is about the size of our whole site on Stoke Park. It kind of out did our setup in a big way!! I think it would be worth putting that site on our web site. Train Mountain.
(A hugely impressive railway, but I was somewhat surprised at their train protection procedure and, I assume, little or no fixed signalling. Andrew)

From Andy Sleigh:
Some stunning miniature aircraft modelling. Click on the small pictures to see the detail.

From George Clark:
Andrew, not sure if many GMES members will be interested in this, a recently preserved steam loco in Japan. The bar on the bottom left increases the sound if moved to the right. As always ruined by the noise of the cameras of the coach load of photographers all clicking away.
(It's nice to see that steam loco preservation extends to the far east. Scroll down to "Full steam ahead for restored train along Kyushu tourist route". I had problems with download speed on this one. Let it run hesitatingly to the end, then re-play for the uninterrupted version. Andrew)

From Andy Sleigh, a nice railway story from BTF in two parts: Farmer Moving South, part 1 Farmer Moving South, part 2.

From Peter Brierley:
There is a most interesting website I have come across which shows many and varied small stationary engines, hot air, flame engines and 2 and 4 stroke i/c engines. Jan Ridders will provide plans on request f.o.c. Perhaps you would post the link on our website for interested members. Jan Ridders Modelbouw.

Video of Barrington Quarry the last rail-worked quarry in the UK.

Satellite mapping of Barrington Quarry railway. Just south east of this point is the main line connection. Panning northwards takes you to the quarry. There's more railway than appears at first glance.

This model engineering website has a glowing write-up on our rally.

How about this for a big model railway? LOXX, Berlin.

Not as big as the railway above, but still hugely impressive, I saw this 2mm/ft scale layout 'Copenhagen Fields' by The Model Railway Club at the recent Farnham MRC exhibition. Video on YouTube.

A couple of odd railway videos: Dodgy electric railway and Railway fun.

I went to Amberley Museum again, this time for their Railway Gala.

Courtesy of Jean-Paul Sabaton: Taking the hobby too far?.

From George Clark: Double header on the Lickey Incline.

From Andy Sleigh: A great set of photos of a marine diesel engine manufacturing works.

I went to Amberley Museum and took some photos at their Spring Industrial Trains Day.

From Neil Frost:
This may be of interest to others. Could you put the link on the GMES site! Rebirth for East Yorkshire railway .
The site that this item comes from is quite interesting and comprehensive.
Regards, Neil

For those with even a passing interest in industrial railways, the website of the Industrial Railway Society is worth a look. In particular, this Index Page contains links to some of their magazine articles. Here are some short articles about local(ish) lines: Longmoor Military Railway, Farnham sand pit, Midhurst brickworks.

From Brian Read:
If they haven't seen it before I can certainly recommend to members, its worth a look: Miniatur Wunderland. Claimed to be the largest working model exhibit anywhere.

Another one from Ian Carney, this website by Alan Stepney has photos from the 2004 and 2005 GMES rallies (and quite a lot of other interesting stuff).

Not exactly a recommendation but, since I've made a start on my garden railway, I thought I'd publish the associated website www.bllr.org.uk (also added to my Mugshots entry). Perhaps I prefer making websites?

From Ian Carney, a series of videos on Machine Shop Practice.

From Andy Sleigh: Southern Steam Days at Guildford. A good selection of steam locos at Guildford in the last years of main line steam.

Still a classic: Snow. This, and many others, is best viewed by clicking on "watch in high quality" and then the full screen button (just above).

Also on the snow theme, a short clip of a steam-powered snow blower in the US.

My original link to this great piece of video has disappeared but here's a lower resolution copy Narrow Gauge Steam in China.

Also repeated is this nice bit of old silent film of The Leek and Manifold Light Railway.

Railways are not just for summer; steam shows up particularly well at this time of year: 16mm garden railway, Tanfield Railway in the snow, US railways in the snow (great scenery).

Some video of gravity trains on the Ffestiniog: one, two, three, four, five.

Audio Slideshow of Brunel's Achievements on the BBC website.

A video by Andy Sleigh of the 2008 Live Steam Model Railway Show at the Kew Bridge Steam Museum. You'll have to forgive the squashed picture; some incompatibility between Andy's widescreen camera and YouTube.

Some good photos by Andy Sleigh of the 2008 Live Steam Model Railway Show at the Kew Bridge Steam Museum, including some of the GMES 16mm layout.

Several British Transport Films in one Google Video file. I've not watched them all, but the start points are: 0:00 Work in Progress, 25:30 Service for Southend (electrification), 35:30 Wash and Brush Up, 1:00:00 A Place in the Team, 1:22:00 Let's Go to Birmingham. Work in Progress ... I particularly like Wash and Brush Up.

A steam hauled test train on a newly rebuilt section of the Welsh Highland Railway.

From Andy Sleigh, an album of photos taken at the Great Dorset Steam Fair plus a few of the Moors Valley Railway.

Also from Andy, a video of Canadian Pacific being brought into the arena.

A few more of my holiday snaps on flickr: Swanage "Railway at Work" weekend.

Willard Wigan: Includes a short video, Titanic.

The Princess Royal Class Locomotive Trust Some of the finest locomotives in preservation: Duchess of Sutherland, Princess Margaret Rose and two BR Standard Class 4 Tank Locos.

S.S.Shieldhall, Britain's largest working passenger & cargo steam ship, based at Southampton.

A nice video of the 2008 Rally by Andy Sleigh. (You'll have to excuse the odd aspect ratio.)

This unusual experimental loco by one of our regular French visitors can be seen at the Rally: Photo, YouTube video. It has a pulse jet, driving a turbine and runs on LPG or vegetable oil.

I have started to upload a few photos to flickr to see how it goes. Vale of Rheidol, Aug 2007.

A biggish diesel engine.

Stop, listen and LOOK BOTH WAYS before crossing the line.

Three short videos of the GMES 16mm layout at the National Garden Railway Show in March 2008: One Two Three.

A couple of photos of a derailment Photo 1 & Photo 2. It'll take more than a traversing jack to get that back on the line!

And what happens if you forget to let the air into a tank Photo 1, Photo 2 & Photo 3.

The basic soldering guide

Video of a GMES SMSEG meeting by Andy Sleigh

Conservation of a miniature triple expansion marine engine model

The model engine undergoing cleaning

Bamboo Railway

Weshpool & Llanfair Railway Leaves on the line

The Knack

Rail Video.net Videos of Swiss, German and other European railways, including some long cab rides.

Beyer Garratts in Queensland (1950s?)

Dave Watkins' 16mm loco "Frog"

Minimal Clearance

No Clearance

Australian Model Engineering

GMES 2007 Rally by John Sowerby

An amazing example of CNC machining

A Garrett working hard on the Australian 2'6" gauge Puffing Billy Railway.