Hello from Fife (was Clacks!)

[Robin Mc]

Hello everyone,y name's Robin McHugh.
I'd been meaning to say hello for about six months, but you know how it is. I popped in yesterday and was pleasantly surprised to see Bill Woods greeting from Clackmannanshire and thought 'well, if not now, when?' I lived in Alloa, Clackmannanshire, for over thirty five years and have just moved along the Forth to Kincardine about three months ago.

Got the workshop up and running again and suffering from that feeling that everything is here, only where?

I model in 7mm scale, and currently occupied with an S7 build of a North British Railway Atlantic, no.510, 'The Lord Provost', coincidentally the prototype was the last Atlantic built for any of the railways on these islands one hundred years ago this year.

Like Bill I have an interest in the West Highland Railway but it really stops with the end of steam in the 1960s, but I might be persuaded to have one green diesel in the form of an NBL Type 2, just for old times sake.

 

[Martin Shaw]

Welcome Robin, nice to hear from you in this place. As others will tell you photos are the accepted currency so we will all look forward to your offerings.
Best wishes
Martin

 

[Robin Mc]

Meant to add these pictures of 510

 

[freelance7]

Welcome aboard Robin,

Paul

 

[AJC]

Hello Robin,

Welcome! What a stunning Atlantic!

Adam

 

[john lewsey]

Very nice work Robin

 

[Joe's Garage]

As above, welcome and what a beautiful model. I do like the cab details.
Julian

 

[Robin Mc]

Thanks, everyone for the kind words.
The Atlantic is a very traditional scratch build, no etching, CNC machining or 3D printing, just good old fashioned piercing saw, files and the occasional bit of turning on my trusty Unimat lathe. It's getting very close to the painting stage but currently the regulator handle is causing a bit of a headache. The last two NBR Atlantics were different from earlier batches and so far only one rather indistinct photo of 510's cab interior and backhead has been unearthed. Access to NBL Co's drawings, who built the last two, has been impossible due to Covid restrictions and the handle currently on the model is more appropriate for the earlier versions. I am hoping to get more information about this before the painted model enters service but it may well end up being a 'best guess'.
A couple of days ago I was adding the lubricator pipework at the front end and here's a couple more pictures that show something of this.View attachment 148932View attachment 148932 View attachment 148932

 

[Robin Mc]

Sorry, haven't got the hang of adding the pictures yet, here's the other side.

 

[daifly]

Go back to the post with three identical photos, select 'Edit' at the bottom of the post and delete two of them.
Put the cursor below the remaining photo and then select 'Full image' from the upload box at the bottom.
Then do the same for the third image.
Dave

 

[Robin Mc]

Thanks for that, doing this on my phone and it reacts to quickly sometimes!
Practice makes perfect hopefully.

 

[daifly]

Thanks for that, doing this on my phone and it reacts to quickly sometimes!
Practice makes perfect hopefully.

You're getting closer!

 

[Donald Campbell]

Hi Robin
Excellent models welcome to have you here at wt look forward to hearing more from you.

Donald

 

[Bill Wood]

Hi Robin,
I knew you were still around as I had often seen you in and around town. I do remember you from way back as I used to help out at the Model Engineer in Stirling along with Bruce Fairweather who sadly has since passed away. I was aware of his interest in kit built and scratchbuilt steam loco's. You have probably seen me hanging out with the Scottish Diesel and Electric Group at various exhibitions or on my own Glenfinnan layout.
Bill.

 

[Robin Mc]

Hello Bill,
I'm still in and around the town, working at Marcelle House several mornings each week despite having moved down the river a bit.
I had heard about Bruce.
Last time I saw your Glenfinnan was at the wee show at St Andrews although you had been relieved as operations manager, must have been lunchtime.
I'm hoping to get my WHL inspired layout, Strontian, dusted down and up and running sometime next year once all the house moving has eased a bit.
The Atlantic reached the painting stage a couple of days ago and I've started to dismantle it in preparation for a good clean.

 

[Robin Mc]

I finished the model 'The Lord Provost' a few days before Christmas. The painting, lining and finishing was something that I had been both looking forward to and dreading as well, although not at the same time.
I have built and painted a fair number of NBR locos over the years and often felt that they and other modellers' attempts at the livery ended up looking a bit garish. We're lucky enough to have a preserved NBR loco, 'Glen Douglas' that was restored to NB colours around 1959, so presumably some of those who saw it then may have been able to remember NBR locos in the immediate pregrouping period. Unfortunately 'Glen Douglas' is missing a major element of the livery in that it doesn't bear the dark green style band around the outside of the various panels.
The finishing of the model Atlantic is the result of some serious thought and experimenting aid by some portraits of the original and a very fine coloured drawing that was produced last year for the NBR Study Groups journal. It's therefore my interpretation of what I hope 510 looked like some seven or eight months after entering service in June or July 1921.

 

[AJC]

That's absolutely gorgeous, Robin.

Adam

 

[John Ross]

Beautiful job, such a shame that the a 12' to the foot loco failed to make it to preservation.

All the best
John

 

[Daddyman]

Very nice. Thank you for sharing it. I was pleased to see such fine model-making in the NBRSG journal.