Max Stafford's Kennel

Today sees me starting (after a slightly alarming bureaucratic glitch-quickly resolved!) two weeks’ holiday.

Nothing booked in terms of going away due to only being back in full time work since April so I’m going to just play it by ear.

Today though, after three very intensive months learning my new craft and readjusting to full time and generally going at something akin to warp speed since April, I think it’ll be wise just to park at the roadside, shut down the engine and just sit quietly.

A couple of light domestic chores, some dog walking with my convalescing pal and maybe a book are all that’s on today’s menu.

I feel like Iggy Pop on a come-down! 😂

Much as I like the great man I feel that something calmer is required musically today so here’s my tune of choice. 😊

As previously mentioned I attended the Perth Model Railway Show today; arguably the best show in Scotland today and always worth the trip.

I had a particular reason for looking forward to this year’s show as a long-anticipated book had its premiere at the show.

‘The Port Road – Dumfries to Stranraer, Portpatrick, Kirkcudbright and Whithorn’ has been a title long in preparation as its author, Andy Swan will testify as the idea for this book first germinated over 20 years ago.

Coincidentally, this was around the period in 1996 when my interest in this Railway first flowered during a camping and walking trip with a mate which took in the section of the line from Gatehouse to Skerrow and New Galloway to Loch Ken.

This was the second week of a holiday which had also introduced me to the joys of the Waverley Route and also set in my mind the idea of a move within my then work to Carlisle.

In retrospect that holiday was actually a pivotal point in my life, leading directly to where I stand today but I digress; this piece is primarily about this book, a true Labour of love by its author, Andy Swan, like me a member of both the Caledonian and Glasgow and South Western Railway Associations. Both societies have actively supported the production of this book and if you wish to purchase a copy, I recommend you enquiry of either association and better still join them, then you will be entitled to a member discount and a CD of extra material, such was the depth of information uncovered by the extensive research.

The book, published by Lightmoor Press, already well established as the ‘go-to’ publisher of the CRA’s titles is beautifully presented and bound in the same highly attractive style as such titles as ‘Caledonian Railway Livery’ by Jim MacIntosh and ‘Branch Lines to Strathearn’ by John Young.

The book comprises of 300 pages comprising fourteen extensive chapters , three appendices and index/bibliography sections.

There is history, anecdote and travelogue within the pages and some of the most wonderful colour drawings along with a host of excellent photographs, the overwhelming majority of which this reader has never seen in print previously.

The above photos aren’t of the highest quality but I hope they give a little taster that will encourage you to support this title by purchasing, especially via the aforementioned societies.

There’s much information about operations, construction, background history and politics, the latter having had great influence in the development of the Railways in this part of Scotland due to its status as a gateway to Ireland.

A very interesting section also concerns the creation of Cairnryan Military Port, familiar today to travellers and countless wagon drivers as the point of arrival/departure for the Irish ferries and fast Catamarans.

This can’t be considered a true review of the book since I’ve only read chapter one and two so far, but a brief inspection of the title confirms to my mind that it will be generally regarded as the definitive work on its subject and it deserves also to be considered Andy’s personal magnum opus; he’s certainly put a Herculean effort into its creation.

‘The Port Road; Dumfries to Stranraer, Portpatrick, Kirkcudbright and Whithorn’ by Andrew F. Swan.

Lightmoor Press with the Caledonian Railway Association and the Glasgow & South Western Railway Association, 2017.

ISBN 9781911038214.

Please follow my site links for the above two associations and consider supporting them by becoming a member; their custodianship of the memory of these two great Scottish railway companies deserves continued support.

Thanks.

Finally! Some modelling interest!

It’s long been a plan of mine to fill one of my display cases with examples of Scotland’s once extensive railway equipment output.

Above are two recently arrived models, both of great significance.

The blue locomotive is an example of the Caley’s ‘903’ or Cardean Class, generally regarded as that company’s flagship locomotive type.

The green locomotive is an example of the N***h B*****h Railway’s equivalent; the Reid ‘Atlantic’.

Both models were built from Cast kits, produced by GEM in the 1970s and now pretty hard to find.

Dimensionally they are a little compromised due to the limitations of 1960s/70s casting technology and also in the case of the 903, the fact that the kit was designed, as many of that era were, to fit on an off the shelf Triang/Hornby chassis.

No problem, I’m sure it will be possible to adapt them to modern finescale requirements but meantime, my priority is to finish Cardean in the correct lined blue livery; that shown is the earlier dark blue which isn’t correct for the 903s.

The Atlantic will be returned to the original NB lined olive livery and may well end up carrying the name Waverley if I can find suitable decals.

I’m off to Perth tomorrow so hopefully I will find the correct shade of blue for 903. It appears that Royal Air Force PRU blue corresponds the Correct BSC reference for Caley light blue so I’ll be keeping my eyes peeled at the Phoenix stand for a tin!