Model Shops Remembered

[BrianG]

Home of O Gauge has been mentioned previously, but before it became that it used to be Charles Covey Models. I remember that Charles, on chatting to me, discovered that I had travelled up to the shop from Burgess Hill in West Sussex. He told me that the model shop was his retirement hobby after he sold his Burgess Hill cosmetics manufacturing business Charles of the Ritz. Burgess Hill still has Charles Avenue and the factory site later became Ericsson Telecom.

 

[victorianman]

Did anyone go to H.A.Blunt & Son in Mill Hill Broadway, Middx.?

 

[Steph Dale]

Did anyone go to H.A.Blunt & Son in Mill Hill Broadway, Middx.?

Yep, fairly regularly actually when I was in my teens. Another one of those odd goldmines where even the most random request seemed to be rewarded...

Steph

 

[S7BcSR]

What memories this thread conjures up. Having just read it for the first time I really must have been a nomad through work as I remember going to so many of the shops mentioned.

However being brought up in Nottingham the first model shop I remember going to was Arkwright Street Models (close by Arkwright Street station) which was run by a deaf mute by the name of Gibbons ( I can't remember his first name) who had a really uncanny knack (well I thought so at the time, it was only later that I realised he lip read) of quickly understanding what you wanted. He also ran the local branch of the Ian Allen Locospotters Club and would usually be found on most of their trips. I remember buying my first pieces of Wrenn fibre-based track there. There was also Gee-Dees (who only closed about 2-3 years ago) and the model department in Pearson's department store which was run by the inimitable Mike Skidmore. I occasionally helped unofficially behind the counter here if I had no lectures at college. Then of course there was Millholme Models out at Woodborough and who I would help out with their stand at the Model Engineer Exhibition at the Seymour Halls in London after I had moved down in 1966. But the rest is another story.

I moved to Fleet in 1970 and can confirm that Barlows Sweet and Model Shop was on Lynchford Road in Farnborough about 150 yards down from the Queens Hotel. He did then move to Poole where it became Geoff Barlow's. Cove Models were initially on Cove Road between Fleet and Cove and then moved to Lynchford Road. There was also another model shop in the launderette under the Yellow Pages Building in Farnborough who sold predominantly early N Gauge who was usually open late one or two nights a week so that I was able to stop off for a chat and a purchase on my way home from work.
Rob

 

[Mike Garwood]

I don't know if this fits in here or not...

My Father introduced me to the world of railways as a very young boy. There was only one shop to go to in our home town of Cardiff and that was in Canton. Bud Morgans. One of those strange emporiums that had everything. Toy cars, plastic balls and of course model railways. Triang was everywhere. My first engine bought for me was a Britannia. 50 odd years later I still have it...sort of. It was the first engine to recieve a 'modern' upgrade. Comet chassis, Markits wheels with a Branchlines gear box with a 1224 motor (yeah, I know!). Later after we had moved to Cwmbran, we found that the Brit had a habbit of burning out it's XO4 motor and Dad used to take it to a place in Caerphilly to get the motor re-wound. Can't remember the name of that place though.

Mike

 

[paulc]

Being a norf london boy Southgate was only a few stops along the Piccadilly underground line and this is where Beatties was . One shop originally then a second which was solely for secondhand , a nivana for a young kid with his hard earnt money from delivering evening papers , I've never been an early riser .
Cheers Paul

 

[Graham Bustin]

I have been surprised that Victor's has not appeared. Their adverts used to appear in the Mags in the 60s/70s. Being a poor country boy, at the time, i was unable to visit until the 90s. What a mecca, if you had a deep wallet!.

Graham.

 

[Martin Shaw]

Home of O Gauge has been mentioned previously, but before it became that it used to be Charles Covey Models.

I used it quite frequently in the mid 80s though I think at that time it was run by a guy called Nick, and I think his wife, certainly spent a bit there. Dikitriki's LSWR van came from there I seem to remember.
Regards
Martin

 

[Yorkshire Dave]

I have been surprised that Victor's has not appeared. Their adverts used to appear in the Mags in the 60s/70s. Being a poor country boy, at the time, i was unable to visit until the 90s. What a mecca, if you had a deep wallet!.

When I worked at the Warren Street end of Tottenham Court Road in the 90s it was all too easy to hop on a 73 bus and alight at the request stop outside Victors. Then spend ££s on US and European models.

Then of course there was Hadley Hobbies in Middlesex Street (Bishopsgate/Liverpool Street).

 

[Lancastrian]

All I can remember, apart from Beatties (!) was a model shop on the corner of Newport St and Bold St in Bolton, whose name I cannot remember. I cannot even recollect a decent model shop in Manchester.

Ian

 

[Neil]

These days York only has one model shop that sells railways but in the sixties there were three and all within a short walk of each other. Starting at the Minster there was the Minster Gates Model Shop. Mike Cook who for years organised the Easter Show in York had a Saturday job there to supplement his teaching salary. Mike also ran the Castle Model Railway Circle, the club I joined when I'd be ten or eleven. If you walked for a minute down Petergate you would come to Precious's Toy Shop which had a good selection of model railway stuff.

​

From there five minutes walk up Goodramgate would bring you to the Monk Bar Model Shop where the model railway department was on the first floor.

Over the years a few more have come and gone. The two most memorable were stationed either side of Micklegate. On the left if facing uphill was 'Robin of Micklegate' who only sold second hand stuff but he had two rooms packed full, floor to ceiling of interesting stuff. I could disappear for hours in there on a Saturday. On the other side was a branch of Puffers, which had the potential to be brilliant but was unfortunately run by a complete and utter grumpy tw@t, who was rumoured to be an ex army officer. Tetchy at the best of times I saw him tear a strip off one of the shop workers who had given a refund for an un-buildable tender kit. I saw the kit after the rumpus died down and it was a shocker.

Happily, Monk Bar Models is still going strong. Though it's fifteen years since I left York for Wales I'm still greeted as a friend when I pop in on visits back to see family. It's a brilliant proper model shop which has moved with the times and thrived. If you're in York I recommend a visit.

 

[MartinWales]

As a North Walian,I can remember a few-

Noney's on the Station square in Barmouth
The sadly missed Towyn Hobbyshop
Madoc Models In Porthmadog
Wenallt Models in Penrhyndeudraeth
Bala Model Shop
Celt Models in Bangor
Gwynedd Model Shop in Caernarfon
Platform 3 in Colwyn Bay
Railways Unlimited in Penygroes

All gone but not forgotten!

 

[Firehead]

All I can remember, apart from Beatties (!) was a model shop on the corner of Newport St and Bold St in Bolton, whose name I cannot remember. I cannot even recollect a decent model shop in Manchester.

Ian

I lived in Bolton from 1990 - 2018, I don't remember that shop. Perhaps it's before 1990. There is still Bolton Model Mart, which is now on the corner of Great Moor Street & Coronation Street, about 200yds from the one you describe. I wonder if the two are/were linked?

 

[Ian@StEnochs]

Train shop, Lumb Lane. Bradford. I bought and sold a few 2nd hand models there mail order but never visited until a few years ago when we were visiting the Film and photographic museum. I found Lumb Lane, not very salubrious and shop! Unrecognisable. I wonder what it looked like when it was open.
Ian.

 

[Lancastrian]

I lived in Bolton from 1990 - 2018, I don't remember that shop. Perhaps it's before 1990. There is still Bolton Model Mart, which is now on the corner of Great Moor Street & Coronation Street, about 200yds from the one you describe. I wonder if the two are/were linked?

Hi,

I'm going back to the late 70's/early 80's, there was no Model Mart on Great Moor Street back then.

Ian

 

[Lancastrian]

Train shop, Lumb Lane. Bradford. I bought and sold a few 2nd hand models there mail order but never visited until a few years ago when we were visiting the Film and photographic museum. I found Lumb Lane, not very salubrious and shop! Unrecognisable. I wonder what it looked like when it was open.
Ian.

Ian,

Was the Bosch-Fernseh B type VTR machine on display ? I remember taking that up in a van from TVC in the early 1990's !

Ian

 

[alant]

What memories this thread conjures up. Having just read it for the first time I really must have been a nomad through work as I remember going to so many of the shops mentioned.

However being brought up in Nottingham the first model shop I remember going to was Arkwright Street Models (close by Arkwright Street station) which was run by a deaf mute by the name of Gibbons ( I can't remember his first name) who had a really uncanny knack (well I thought so at the time, it was only later that I realised he lip read) of quickly understanding what you wanted. He also ran the local branch of the Ian Allen Locospotters Club and would usually be found on most of their trips. I remember buying my first pieces of Wrenn fibre-based track there. There was also Gee-Dees (who only closed about 2-3 years ago) and the model department in Pearson's department store which was run by the inimitable Mike Skidmore. I occasionally helped unofficially behind the counter here if I had no lectures at college. Then of course there was Millholme Models out at Woodborough and who I would help out with their stand at the Model Engineer Exhibition at the Seymour Halls in London after I had moved down in 1966. But the rest is another story.

I moved to Fleet in 1970 and can confirm that Barlows Sweet and Model Shop was on Lynchford Road in Farnborough about 150 yards down from the Queens Hotel. He did then move to Poole where it became Geoff Barlow's. Cove Models were initially on Cove Road between Fleet and Cove and then moved to Lynchford Road. There was also another model shop in the launderette under the Yellow Pages Building in Farnborough who sold predominantly early N Gauge who was usually open late one or two nights a week so that I was able to stop off for a chat and a purchase on my way home from work.
Rob

That would have been Jack Gibbons. I don't remember Arkwright Models but knew Jack from the East Midlands Festiniog Railway Society. As a young teenager myself and a friend used to occasionally help Jack with his stand at shows. I seem to recall his business was then called Attenborough Model Railways.

 

[PMP]

In 1981 this ad appeared in the Railway Modeller.

I applied, got the job, and if you bought stuff at ‘Kings Cross Models’ between July 81 and 85 there’s a good chance I served you.

 

[Ian@StEnochs]

Ian,

Was the Bosch-Fernseh B type VTR machine on display ? I remember taking that up in a van from TVC in the early 1990's !

Ian

Hi Ian,

It’s quite a while since I was there enjoyed but quite honestly I don’t remember anything specific. It is easy to forget just how big and bulky a lot of early equipment was.

I did spend quite a while viewing clips of old film and remember really enjoying an early colour movie of Clyde steamers. Interesting to see how fast they approached the pier then, especially in light of the Waverley accident on Thursday last!

Ian.

 

[JimG]

Interesting to see how fast they approached the pier then, especially in light of the Waverley accident on Thursday last!

Hijacking the thread a bit more..., I read the other day in relation to theWaverley's "bump" that paddle steamers have to approach a pier at a good speed to maintain steering. In ships with screws, which are in close proximity to the rudder, steering effect on the rudder is maintaind from the water flow from the screws. In paddlers, the only flow round the rudder is from the motion of the hull and the steering effect reduces to zero as the hull slows down. So the practice was to approach at speed then stop or reverse engines to provide braking from the paddles. That, I think, would be quite a skilled action.

Even further hijacking, my father recounts tales of steamers from rival companies racing to be first into a berth on a pier in the Firth. That would be flat out until the last minute.

Jim.