2004 May Exhibition

John Day could not manage another block-setter, but instead brought a delightful model of a Showman’s Engine.

David Northcott showed an early motor bus made from red and nickel Meccano and based on a similar model he had seen in the window display at M.W. Models.

David Hobson treated us to a wealth of models. He too had an early bus this time based on an design in one of the first editions of the Meccano Magazine and intended to show off some newly produced parts such as braced girders. He complimented this with some other vehicles of the period in the form of WW I tanks - a British, French and German example - all of which worked in some way. In fact the British one had its own stretch of wasteland that it was doomed to pass over perpetually, as it was the land that moved around not the tank! Finally he had a model of an early airliner in the form of a Handley Page HP42 in which you cold have flown to India in the 1930s with Imperial Airways.

English tank
French tank
German tank

Neil Bedford also had several models. He had tackled the 60s No.9 model robot which paraded the hall in a slow but sure manner. His mechanical beasts did not stop there as he also had a Konkoly designed horse and cart driven by a clockwork motor. However, his main achievement was a superb six-wheel drive chassis with independent suspension and remote control.

New member Paul Montacute entertained us with a fairground roundabout featuring galloping horses with which he has been entertaining children at local fairs.

Richard Smith brought the latest incarnation of his block-setter in late 70s colours. It now has its own bit of breakwater to journey over and is powered by a longer running battery.

Sam Medworth has been buying modern sets in the Crazy Inventors series. This time he showed us a bat that flapped its wings and a walking boat!

Ralph Clark never stops producing locos! This time it was a North American mid-19th century design called a Phantom that ran on 6ft gauge.

Ian Lane had been buying French magazines, which just happen to come with beautifully made reproductions of French Meccano O gauge locos and rolling stock under the name of Hachette. These, like a lot of consumer items these days, are made in China.

David Miller has been working on a transportable monorail and after a lot of fiddling managed to get it running on the stage. He is not the first, or even the only one at this meeting, to suffer from the ‘it went perfectly well at home’ syndrome!

Malcolm had an 8ft model of the Eiffel tower in blue/gold, the basis of which he acquired in the recent Doug McHard auction in Rugby. However, he had to dig deeply into his reserves of gold strips in an attempt to complete it.

David Miller won the fiercely fought Scrapheap Challenge 2004. The competition was to create a machine powered by a No. 1 clockwork motor which climbs a hanging sprocket chain. His design climbed the equivalent of at least 10ft. In doing so he retained the Scrap Heap Challenge Cup. His model is here.

Well done also to Veronica who, although she could not be at the exhibition, still managed to provide the cakes!