According to Chris...

…there’s no room for one-upmanship in the modelling community.

Chris discusses the problem of ‘one-upmanship’ in the hobby.

It used to be said that the model railway hobby was ‘a broad church’. That was back in the days when pretty much everything had to made, either from kits or scratchbuilt. Today, the hobby is a good deal broader. Back then, gauges ranged from ‘OO’ up to Gauge 1. Now we have ‘T’ gauge, ‘Z’, ‘N’, and ‘TT’ before we reach the various gauges devised to make ‘4mm:1ft scale modelling more accurate than ‘OO’ gauge. Then there are the ‘accurate gauge’ versions of various other scales.

Usually, each of these has its own society to provide advice, a forum, and sometimes bespoke parts and models.

Long-time Model Rail readers may remember that I once expressed some thoughts about online forums, under the heading ‘Forum or against’. Today, railway modellers have lots more online options within social media. Model Rail’s Facebook presence with Skills Station and Modelling Monday, is one of many, providing an opportunity for modellers to exchange thoughts and ideas and to show their latest projects. During the prolonged pandemic, with clubs (at the time of writing in early June) still unable to open their doors, online exchanges of thoughts and information have been extremely important. But the ‘unsocial’ side of social media has never been far away and I’ve noticed a divisiveness creeping into comments where a poster has bemoaned the lack of a particular ready-to-run model. Perhaps the tooling for a new locomotive doesn’t allow for the particular version they wanted or the manufacturer has not produced a favourite number/name. The responses to such a post can often be dismissive, rude and hurtful. “Get a such-and-such kit and convert it yourself.” “Renumber/name it and be a proper modeller, not just a box-opener.”

It’s a pity that some folk have adopted this seemingly arrogant sectorising of the hobby into ‘real modellers’ and ‘box-openers’.

In truth, there can be no such distinction. I’ve heard some of the best scratchbuilders in the business – the epitome of the real modeller – happily admit that they couldn’t match the standard of finish and finesse of the latest ready-to-run. There’s a perverse one-upmanship – “I build my models. You just buy yours”.

So, inevitably I wonder into which sector do I fit? I’ve built a few whitemetal locomotive kits.

Most were long ago and I can’t single out any one as a resounding success. Few people made a success of them, and those who did, had exceptional perseverance if nothing else. On the other hand

I have shelves of ready-to-run models to which I’ve done absolutely no ‘real modelling.’

I have only scratchbuilt two steam locomotives in a lifetime. The first, built at the age of about 19, was Midland & South Western Junction Railway Sharp Stewart 4-4-4T No. 17. At that time I was captivated by the MSWJR. I was proud that I spotted an error in the published drawing and my model has a correctly shaped cab door cut-out. I was proud, too, of my hand lettering, there being no suitable transfers.

I had no building experience and used 1/16in thick brass for my chassis frames. I could not solder this with my 25 watt iron and resorted to heating the parts on top of the paraffin heater that was used to heat my bedroom.

It has never run and I’m not sure all the wheels are actually on the rails at the same time! Years later I bought an Albion Models etched kit for the GWR version of this locomotive, with the intention of using the chassis under my model. I’ve opened the box a couple of times and put it back on the shelf without even making a start.

My other scratchbuilt locomotive, the Hunslet 2-4-2T Torridge of the Bideford, Westward Ho! and Appledore Railway, dates from the 1980s by which time I might have had a quarter-century of scratchbuilding experience, but I didn’t. A club colleague had turned a brass chimney and dome for a project of his own. I borrowed them and cast copies. I embossed rivets into brass shim and made an altogether better job this time. Somewhere along the way I lost Torridge. I loaned it out for museum display and I’m not sure it ever came back. Or maybe I told them they could keep it. Anyway, Torridge now exists only as a couple of colour slides.

These days I get as much pleasure from a superb ready-to-run model as I ever did from my meagre scratchbuilding record, so does that make me a real modeller or a box-opener? Maybe, and proud of it.

It’s a pity that some folk have adopted this seemingly arrogant sectorising of the hobby into ‘real modellers’ and ‘box-openers’

Modeller CV: Chris Leigh

On a promise: A visit to a garden railway show at Peterborough Showground for Fathers’ Day.