Palmy gets all steamed up
Things were hot and heavy outside Barber Hall at the weekend, but much lighter inside, for fans of everything rail-related. Palmerston North’s biannual model railway show, Rail-x, took over the hall on Saturday and Sunday, with hundreds visiting during the two days. People could ride a miniature working steam engine outside the hall, while clubs from as far afield as Tauranga set up various exhibits inside. The exhibitions ranged from British steam engines, complete with steam, controlled by switches, to multi-carriage locomotives coming in and out of garages at the same time, all sorted by one man with a tablet. Rail-x secretary Michael Hardman said there was a lot more to model railways than having a few trains. Sets had to be constructed, figurines painted and tracks carefully laid out to avoid a catastrophic crash. The Manawatu¯ club even built some miniature houses, complete with vegetable patches and greenhouses, for its representation of 1950s British rail, he said. It’s takes real creativity to put a set together.’’