During the debate on a separate thread about the Society Heritage Collection, the subject of Philip Hancock's later models for the C&MR came up, namely the Jouef Decauville loco and 2 locos "bashed" from early 1960s N gauge Arnold 0-6-0's. None of these 3 are in the Heritage Collection, so anything about them is irrelevant to that topic.
However there appears to be interest, and I am in the fortunate position of having taken photos of all 3 of them at the superb Society 40th anniversary weekend at Kegworth back in 2013, when Malcolm MacLeod brought the restored part of the C&MR, Dundreich to the event, along with all the then known surviving locos and rolling stock, gathered in one place for the first time in many years and in full colour for the first time ever!!
So, as I mentioned in the Heritage Collection topic, I have opened a new topic in order to show some photos of the 3 locos for those that have an interest.
First of all, the Jouef Decauville loco "Joan"
As all who are students of PD Hancock's pioneering 009 Craig & Mertonford will already know, this loco was the 2nd to have this name, the 1st being an American HO scale Kemtrom Stubby diesel that PDH converted to 9mm gauge. This surfaced a few years ago in a very poor state and was completely rebuilt and restored by Rod Allcock. It is now in the Heritage Collection.
The 2nd Joan came onto the C&MR in the 1960's when commercial 009 (or HOe!) and N gauge first appeared. PDH had always wanted small 009 locos, which had previously been out of reach to everyone except a very few skilled modellers who were able to shoehorn (or even scratchbuild) the available motors into the tiny locos - David Mander, HB Whall and the recently "discovered" McMillan brothers come to mind - all of which are indeed represented in the Heritage Collection.
Back to the topic! PDH purchased a Decauville loco she was named "Joan" and put into service on the C&MR. The only photos that I am aware of that exist of the loco in its originally acquired condition were published on the cover of RM March 1975 and in the article itself, and initially was a repainted but otherwise unaltered Jouef Decauville 0-4-0T.
Here's a crop of Joan from a photo in the March 1975 RM article:
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FBsSriXR.jpg&hash=00d8f60baa49b647030a1a9999650380d2848882) (https://imgur.com/BsSriXR)
By the time she next appeared in a photo (RM April 1980) she had gained a brass dome and a flat plate across the boiler and tank tops, which we assume was a metal weight to help adhesion. Here are 2 of my own photos showing the loco with the modified boiler and tank tops, the first one in Dundreich fiddle yard.
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FWJvUbri.jpg&hash=3e9ea85f76ecef2c0809df1e9af8a9e33b991f9a) (https://imgur.com/WJvUbri)
Joan with a train of adapted and unaltered Egger short wheelbase vans. Another 1960's era addition to the C&MR fleet: diesel loco Christine is partially visible with her nose sticking out of the ramshackle shed. Another popular early 009 bash" - an overscale N gauge Lima Plymouth with a new cab.
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2Fd5vvvq9.jpg&hash=d3a7102433e3092890eae2d4d3fe7001540fd48f) (https://imgur.com/d5vvvq9)
More to follow!
Moving on to the 2 Arnold 0-6-0's
PDH always wanted to be able to have small open cab locos, which had not been possible until commercial N gauge appeared in the mid 1960's. He acquired 2 of the early Arnold 0-6-0 and found them to be very reliable runners. 2 new additions to the C&MR fleet resulted. Colin and Calum.
Colin appeared in several of the later C&MR articles in the modelling press and was a very popular little engine, several "inspired by....." models appeared on 009 layouts as a result! He retained the Arnold boiler but the cab and side tanks were fashioned from the body of an Egger no.2 loco, more familiar to modern 009 modellers in its re-birth (with better chassis!) as the Minitrains "Koppel". Partially out of sight at the back is another glimpse of the Lima diesel Christine and between the two is what Philip described as "the last loco for the C&MR" which is no. 10 Rhuairidh, which started off as an American 3.5mm scale Shay (manufacturer not known) and was brought up to match the 4mm (and a couple of 4.5mm) scale stock on the railway with increased cab and chimney and other cosmetic improvements. This loco is fully described in Philip Hancock's article in 009 News January 2000.
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2Flor5AcI.jpg&hash=1c6409cb1b0ff592fe02c3ff5cb76cfd18577eff) (https://imgur.com/lor5AcI)
Colin at Dundreich with a passenger train of 3 Egger tram coaches "upscaled" with clerestory roofs, liberated from Triang GWR coaches.
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FJHyT0WN.jpg&hash=4ccfd04fea4840c1de095bf71ef65bef2b581538) (https://imgur.com/JHyT0WN)
For reasons that we may never know, PDH never published photos of the other Arnold loco, except one very murky one in the distance in one of the RM articles. Calum's appearance at Dundreich which Malcolm MacLeod brought from Edinburgh to the Society's 40th anniversary weekend at Kegworth in 2013, caused quite a sensation amongst the many members present who had turned up, in some cases, purely because Dundreich was there! I took the golden opportunity to take several photos of Calum and release the details of this quirky and attractive little engine to the waiting world!
The loco is very different from its cousin Colin and the presence of the double buffers indicate that he may have been intended as a mixed gauge shunter in the sidings at Craig, where by now in the history of the C&MR, the North British Railway had made their presence very visible and had taken over about three quarters of the real estate of the station area! There are no double buffers on the rear of the engine, but inspection suggests that there might have been originally.
I do find this loco very tempting and may, just may, one of these days have a go at chopping up an old Arnold 0-6-0 that lurks in my chassis stash as a tribute loco – I am definitely not skilled enough to attempt an actual replica!
First photo shows Calum in front of Joan, which gives something of the scale of the loco against the familiar size of a Jouef Decauville.
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FwdTpouy.jpg&hash=71ebf08a59d1c4a59ed4473257dd0e8f37a0677a) (https://imgur.com/wdTpouy)
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FsBENaSH.jpg&hash=5bf01231dced45f4c71c296b151d46e4bc748a15) (https://imgur.com/sBENaSH)
(https://forum.009society.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2Fj3t3CSS.jpg&hash=bcb0e831a8e2386e46e0050693b9943b7909971d) (https://imgur.com/j3t3CSS)
I hope that this little selection is of interest to those who have an affinity with the pioneering years of 009 modelling in general.
Mick