MATT TAYLOR reports back to from the Glasgow show at the end of February 2017.
Firstly I want to say thank you to all our customers who visited our stand at the Model Rail Scotland at the Scottish Exhibition & Conference Centre in Glasgow. Despite the distance from Gaugemaster HQ in West Sussex (around 400 miles), we have attended this show on a number of occasions and always really enjoy our visit. This year I was on our show stand along with Craig Weatherley, Matt Lovell, and our Northern Trade Rep., Warren Kerfoot, who all regularly provide articles to RIGHT LINES.
A quick stop-off in Settle....
On the way to Glasgow we visited our friends at DCC Concepts in Settle, and they showed us around their new showroom which has now opened to the public. This facility showcases everything in the DCC Concepts range, with expert help always available to guide you in the use of their products. They also joined us on our stand at the show.
Inside the showroom.
After visiting DCC Concepts we moved onto the Glasgow Museum of Transport. A more detailed article about the museum will be published in a later issue of RIGHT LINES, but this image should whet your appetite:
Highland Railway Locomotive No.103 - Jones Goods Class, Built in 1894.
The setup of our stand started on Thursday, but this year we had an extra challenge in constructing a large Fleischmann layout which was restored by Robin Stanbury of Model Masters. This layout was originally built around 1987 and was used to showcase the Fleischmann brand around the UK and Europe. Apparently ten identical layouts were built to the same plans, but this is the only one left in existence, to my knowledge. The layout works on a block system and can run up to 21 trains at the same time.
The large Fleishmann layout, showing the multiple loops and many trains running at once - Click image for a larger version.
Over the show weekend we were able to get around 17–18 trains running. The layout came together really quickly and after a few technical hitches that we had to iron out before the show opened on Friday, the layout ran very smoothly throughout the weekend. We all took turns in running the layout and working alongside Model Masters we had an enjoyable weekend overall.
Looking across the layout to our stand opposite, stocking many popular items from our ranges and offering technical advice on our controllers.
Gaugemaster hope to be at Model Rail Scotland again next year, and our next show will be The London Festival of Railway Modelling at Alexandra Palace on the 25th and 26th March. You can see more details of shows that we will be attending on our Events page.