Phil's Workbench

There's a spare corner in the barge, so I decided to fill it with a log burner.

I didn't manage to buy anything from the Elsecar show.

The Yorkshire Garden Railway show returned this year, to its spiritual home - Elsecar Heritage Centre.

A short video this week, but what a machine!

Spotted while on a photo shoot a couple of weeks ago - and it made me chuckle.

Some days, you just need to escape "the office" and go to watch the countryside pass by from the top deck of a vintage bus.

You might wonder why I'm posting about a stage show on a blog about toy trains'n'stuff.

Time to move outside the barge, and work on the stern.

What I didn't buy - a signal head for £400.

A chance spot on the Ian Visits newsletter presented me with the chance to tick off somewhere I've always wanted to visit, but never found the time - Acton Depot.

Some large-scale steam action at the Bala Lake Railway gala.

A final bit of the Stafford haul, which I nearly forgot as they have been rattling around in the bottom of my bag, are these railway paychecks.

Going for a stroll last week, I spotted this fence.

This issue takes a trip to Switzerland with the stunning 'Helvetia' Gauge 1 layout, proving that world class modelling can fit in surprisingly small spaces.

The "padding" on the beds and sofa in the barge is made from pieces of pre-cut MDF, to be covered by the builder.

As I picked up the 1/24 figure set, the guy behind the Stafford second-hand stall said, "I thought of you when I put that out!"

I suppose that I ought to mention that I managed to blag a free ticket for Stafford this year, by virtue of having given the exhibition organiser my old layout, "Edgeworth".

Yes, another video from the Groudle Glen Railway.

Sometimes, work means I have to do some odd things.

Lots of making going on in November's issue of BRM.

On the way to a photo shoot, I found myself running early, so I stopped off in the Nottingham district of Sherwood.

Finally, a bit of time to stick on an Inspector Morse DVD, and get back to working on the model barge.

We've just enjoyed the post-TINGS club open day.

...so I'm behind on my blogging.

The Class 14 "Teddy Bear" has, to my eyes, always been an attractive loco.

Ever a sucker for a bit of Manx tat on eBay, I won a couple of very vintage badges.

My quest to build all the 1980s and 90s Hornby "Made in West Germany" kits continues, with one of the lesser-known models, R486 Town Bank, in The Collector.

Spotted in the Cadbury factory, this is an interesting detail for an industrial scene.

As part of the Bournville Heritage Weekend, Andy Christie had organised a live steam railway in the St Francis of Assisi church, and asked me if I'd help out.

TINGS might have been a work trip, and I did buy a bit for future magazine projects, but it's a toy train show, so I can't resist adding to my stash, just a little.

The International N Gauge Show is always a bit of a work trip.

Maybe.

With Andy and Louise's BBC Gardener's World Live layout in the current issue of Garden Rail, I should show you this souvenir of the show - the Golden Fishplate.

I wasn't going to mess around too much with this kit, but once the sides and ends of the cabin were fitted, the corners didn't look very good.

Hat tip to Duncan Young for finding these wonderfully atmospheric shots, and arranging permission for me to post them here.

A small pile from the show this year.

Wales is lovely, but it's a long way away, and the roads are wiggly.

Just over a week ago, I gave a talk to the Lutterworth Railway Society.

People are always coming up to me and suggesting that it would be fun to put a camera in the front of a model train.

Visiting a wargaming store last week, reminded me that I took this photo when Melbridge Dock was on display.

It was all going so well.

This issue takes you behind the scenes of one of the most ambitious temporary garden railways ever built, the stunning BBC Gardeners’ World Live display created by Andrew Christie.

Located in an unfashionable arcade five minutes walk from Snow Hill station in Birmingham, Element Games is part of a chain, catering for wargamers.

Small shows are a happy hunting ground for me.

I wasn't really looking to visit a model railway show.

An unexpected monorail - that breaks down!

It's time to order my 2027 calendar - the 2026 one is filling up with all sorts of things, and bookings will soon stretch past December.

Plenty of Phil in the October BRM, and in some interesting scales.

Regular readers will know I'm a fan of dry-fitting kits together to spot possible problems later in the build.

Looking at the sides, I thought a nice brass rim around the edge of the windows would look good, but it would need to be perfect.