Parkway departure

A WMR train departs Stratford-upon-Avon Parkway.

Calculators (17) : Boots 224

Boots (yes the pharmacists) released branded typewriters in the 1970s and 1980s, and also this calculator too. The Boots 224 Memory is a nice late 1970s machine with a square root and percentage functions to go along with the basic four arithmetric functions. As the name implies, the calculator has memory too and works fine, numbers displayed using an eight digit VFD display. This is in fact a rebranded Casio Memory B-1.

Churches (221) : St Mary, Sandbach

The parish church of St Mary in Sandbach, Cheshire was originally built in the early 16th century on the site of an earlier Saxon church, though by the mid-19th century it was in a poor condition. The church was completely rebuilt in the late 1840s, much of the original church being replaced or re-used encased in new material. The rebuilt church was extended though the rebuilt west tower was faithful to the original.

The church has a nave with clerestories, aisles and a side chapel. The architectural style is Perpendicular. An usual feature of the tower is that a footpath passes through it's open base. The church is built from red sandstone.

Model week : Electrical test

The track layout for my new ..er.. layout has been finalised. I ran my Class 33 over all the lines to make sure everything worked out. Next up will be to lift the track, ballast where necessary then re-lay the track. This is a different method to orthodox (and what i have used before), i always like to innovate. Lets just hope its a good innovation!

Passing Theale

GWR action.

Calculators (16) : Litton Imperial 1260

This is an impressive looking mains powered desk calculation machine from the first half of the 1970s (or perhaps 1976 as there is a sticker underneath it which says "July 1976", maybe when it was purchased?) The calculator has the standard four arithmetric functions plus percentages and a memory. It also has a slider switch to set the number of digital places. What RM and RV do i am unsure but perhaps something to do with the memory. Numbers are shown using a nice looking VFD display.

Although my calculator does switch on (or rather powers on - the switch on the side doesn't do anything) some of the calculations can go wrong indicating some bit rot but considering the age of this machine it works pretty well.

Wootton Wawen

Wootton Wawen is one of my favourite places, maybe even my favourite of all. So, i like to go at least once a year. I went yesterday to update my railway station photographs there though not a huge amount has changed since i was here last. Illness meant my stay was shorter than intended but i did get some nice photos, which you can see here.

Churches (220) : All Saints, Wellington

The parish church of All Saints in Wellington, Shropshire was built between 1788 and 1790 on the site of an earlier church (indeed several earlier churches) which had been damaged in the Civil War. Behind the three bay western front of the church, the first church in Shropshire built to have a monumental classical temple portico, is a nave, chancel and an apse. The nave has galleries, lit by two rows of windows. Above the west front is a tower.

The church is made from grinshill sandstone.

741

I've bought another dialphone, a GPO 741 this time. I now have four dialphones, which is impressive considering i don't have a landline! The GPO 741 is a wall mounted version of the classic General Post Office telephone, it only works when mounted on a wall due to where the cradle is. 

New school on the Cross City

The new order on the Cross City Line began yesterday as the Class 730 made it's long delayed debut. I thought i'd go and see it at Chester Road. The Class 323s will remain in charge for now though the end is coming!

West Midlands Places (15) : Northfield

Nowadays it is an outer suburb of Birmingham but until 1911 Northfield was a separate village and part of Worcestershire. There have been people living in the area since the Stone Age and later during the Roman occupation. Northfield itself was originally a Saxon settlement and was mentioned (as Nordfield) in the Domesday Book. St Laurence's church dates from the 12th century, the oldest surviving parts of the church being from about 1170.

Northfield was on the main road between Birmingham and Worcester which was later turnpiked. Northfield was a stop on the Bristol Road stage coach route. Apart from farming, nail making was a major industry in the village until the 19th century. In 1870 the railway station was opened and the village benefited from local employment opportunities including the Austin works in nearby Longbridge. However, as Birmingham expanded Northfield ceased being a largely rural village in north Worcestershire and became part of the city in the early 20th century.

West London trains

Yesterday i headed down to London to tick off a few more tube stations. In fact i reused my original plan which i had had to have shelved at the last minute due to engineering works on my previous trip to London a few weeks ago. My plan worked great, six more stations ticked off and also saw a few interesting things around Marylebone. You can see my photographs here.

Project Windsock

When i saw you could get a windsock for less than ten pounds on Amazon the only question is, why not? So, my windsock is now installed on the shed. What use this is for me is unknown, but i love it.

Churches (219) : Holy Trinity, Coventry

Holy Trinity Church in Coventry dates from the 12th century and is the only complete medieval church in the city. The church is large and is Perpendicular in style. The tower has a seventy-two metre high spire, one of the highest non-cathedral spires in the country. The church has transepts, a chancel with chapels and the nave has north and south aisles.

The church is close to Coventry Cathedral.

Model week : Back on track

The new layout project is starting to take shape, although much of it will reuse my huge stockpile of N gauge stock and supplies i did need some new track and that arrived yesterday. I was able to set up the planned layout on the new board and ran a quick test train using my Class 33. Now i am finalising the track layout and once that is done i will look to make it permanent. With this layout i am trying something different. I am going to mark where the ballast needs to go, then remove the track and lay the ballast, then i will put the track back and nail it in place. A different method to how i have done it before, we'll see how it turns out!

Typing on a Leader II

At the moment this is the latest typewriter in the collection.

West Midlands Places (14) : Elmdon

Elmdon is a village in Solihull, notable for being the location of Birmingham Airport and a Jaguar Land Rover factory.

Elmdon means hill of the elms, the village is listed in the Domesday Book but remained a sparsely populated estate until a turnpike road was built through Elmdon. The centre of Elmdon was near the parish church of St Nicholas, which was built in 1790, and the now lost Elmdon Hall but moved due the turnpike. The hall survived until 1956, though in it's latter years had a variety of uses and occupants including the Home Guard in the Second World War. The hall was demolished and it's lands largely turned into Elmdon Park.

Elmdon Airport was opened in 1939 though quickly became a Royal Air Force airfield due to the war. Post-war it eventually became Birmingham Airport, the old village was demolished during the building of the runway! In 1946 Rover opened a factory in Elmdon, the factory having it's origins in a factory built in preparation for the pending war in the late 1930s, and during the war made aero engines. The factory later became Jaguar Land Rover's Solihull plant and currently makes Range Rovers and the Jaguar F-Pace

Birmingham Museum Collection

I didn't go very far this weekend but i did go to somewhere i've wanted to go for a while. Every year the Birmingham Museum Collection, where exhibits not on display in the museum are stored, holds an open day. I always manage to miss it... until now! I was surprised at how great the collection was, and the number of old computing and telephony exhibits. Birmingham could have a great science and technology museum to display all of these items, if there was any money for it! You can see my photos here.

Churches (218) : St Mary, Highley

The parish church of St Mary in Highley, Shropshire dates from the 12th century. The nave and chancel are Norman, a west tower in the Perpenticular style was added in the 15th century. A vestry was added to the north of the church in 1903, the church being restored in the 1880s.

The church is built from buff and red sandstone. The church house (see below) is a timber framed building which dates from the 16th century.

Reading day 2

Last Saturday was the big day of my Reading trip, a full day on the railways armed with a rover ticket! Unfortunately, my carefully made and timed plan fell apart immediately as the line from Newbury to Bedwyn was blocked due to flooding but i quickly adapted and i managed to visit eleven new stations (mostly in Berkshire but a couple also in Hampshire). This is most a record for me for a single day! I also visited the lovely Kennet & Avon Canal in both Woolhampton and Aldermaston. I really enjoyed my trip and certainly will be returning to Reading in future years.

Departing Lidlington

On the Marston Vale Line.

Reading trip day 1

Usually, i go to Guildford for Easter but this year i decided to do something different and went to Reading instead (don't worry, i've booked to go to Guildford in a couple of months!) On day one i did some exploring along the line to Bracknell as well as in Reading itself, which has a rather fine Minster church. You can see my day 1 railway photos here, plus the non-railway Reading photos are here.

West Midlands Places (13) : Halesowen

Halesowen is a market town in the west of the West Midlands though has been part of Shropshire and later Worcestershire in recent centuries prior to 1974. Halesowen is listed in the Domesday Book as Hala, it was renamed Halas Owen after the manor was given to the Welsh prince Dafydd ab Owain by King Henry II.

By the 1220s Halesowen was a market town and was listed as having a population of 600 in 1300CE. The town grew in the Industrial Revolution, becoming a centre for nail production. Coal mining was also important to the local economy, by the early 20th century Halesowen had 130 mines.

Halesowen became part of Worcestershire in 1844, being an exclave of Shropshire. The town centre was greatly redeveloped in the 1960s. However, retail in the town declined after the opening of the nearby Merry Hill Shopping Centre in the 1980s.