Eastern Steel and Iron moves East

‘Eastern Steel and Iron’ is a model railway layout that is the work of a group of members of the Stirling and Clackmannanshire District Model Railway Club. It presents a condensed snapshot of the iron making stages of a large integrated steel plant somewhere in the north eastern United States set in the 1950s/60s when rail traffic dominated. The layout features a blast furnace and coking plant, power plant, coke load-out, ore grading and sintering, coal tar by-products, engineering shop and background buildings representing an open hearth steel plant and rolling mills. A lot has been incorporated in a relatively small space.

This is just one of the layouts that will be on display at a new exhibition in Edinburgh, where the Edinburgh and Lothians Miniature Railway Club (E&LMRC), will be holding their first model railway exhibition for many years in the Senior School Assembly Hall at George Watson’s College, Colinton Road, Edinburgh, EH10 5EG on Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 June 2024.

This new exhibition will be open between 10 am and 5 pm each day and will feature 13 layouts from across Scotland in five different scales/gauges. Six traders and two societies are also supporting this new venture. The Club’s secretary said: “It’s great that Eastern Steel and Iron will be moving East to help showcase the hobby in our Capital. This layout was apparently conceived out of a desire to do something different, and the team have built a great model in a relatively small space that conveys a very industrial setting”.

There will also be a chance to operate one of the layouts yourself thanks to the Dundee Model Railway Club, who will be bringing Dain’s Yard: a small layout to allow you to practise your shunting skills.

The venue for this new exhibition is fully accessible for all and there will be an on-site café serving a selection of hot and cold food and drinks to allow you to make this a great day out. There will also be a raffle with over £400 worth of models from Popup Designs and Rapido Trains UK as prizes, with the star prize being a Great Eastern Railway tram pack – will you be the lucky winner? The prototype was the inspiration for Toby the Tram Engine in the books about Thomas the Tank Engine: a character known to and loved by millions.

Tickets can be purchased on the day at a cost of £8 for Adults (16+), £3 for Children (5-15), and a Family ticket (2+2) will cost £18. However, advanced tickets can be purchased on-line at a discounted price through https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/elmrc until 31st May 2024.

Full details of the layouts and traders that will be attending are on the club’s website at https://elmrc.org.uk/elmrc-exhibition/

If you are interested in taking up the hobby, membership of the Stirling and Clackmannanshire District Model Railway Club is open to all. The club meet in Menstrie, just outside Stirling, in well-equipped and spacious clubrooms catering for 00, 0, N and H0 and the club attends several shows each year with one of their layouts. As well as discussing membership at exhibitions they attend, you can also contact them via Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/StirlingMRC) or by sending an e-mail to s[email protected].