WEST COAST CHAPTER - first meeting

Hi Guys

From the rail bender thread you'll know that Geoff kindly offered his "bender" to get the "Chemin de Fer Haute Charente" underway!

So Caroline and I plied our way North for two and a half hours today to meet Geoff in the Deux Sevres ....

After an excellent lunch we got to play trains ...

Geoff has a brilliant layout with a massive amount of US rolling stock and sidings and an indoor storage area ...

I only wish we could stay longer as he let me run "Zelda" (aka my much modded Edrig) and my Mallet.

This is a great venue for the CGT weekend and the local Chateau Hotel is superb!

Trouble is when Geoff has all his rolling stock out they pull 10 amps on lights alone of the total 12 amps from his Dimax system!

The good news is he's also into live steam ...



He did say it needed running in? I did offer to take it for extensive running on the CFHC but he declined

Blimy....He's got three times my entire rolling stock in that last pic.

I'm going there next weekend.

Huge thanks to Geoff, have bent my first six foot of track since getting home!

Guys, you're in for a treat in July!

Hope the planning next weekend with Carl goes as well as I know it will!

And Geoff please, two things ..

always refer to the cost of trains as "INVESTMENT"

and don't show any of the other ladies that bathroom (they'll all want one)!

Thanks again for an all too short visit (our fault).

Brian

Oh...

And thanks for putting up with Baguie and Bubbles, our two labrador x collies, I think they may be in kennels for the July meet! That is if there are any cats left in your commune!

(just as well we left the donkeys at home !!!!)



B

Had a pleasant afternoon running trains and chatting!
Many thanks to Peter (French Chuffed) who stepped in to help when T'interweb connection failed on Saturday, thanks.
The weather was kind and the company good, the cat is still up the the tree where the dogs chased it however.
I do not know the fat bald bloke with the dubious taste in shirts who appears in the pics?
The railway is basically a test track with mutiple sidings and loops, scenic work and landscaping will follow an extension and digitisation of points.
An Inspector is coming from Paris next weekend to make checks and finalise arrangements prior to the big day in July, time to paint the kerbstones and polish the coal.
Busy day today, first find out why Credit Mutual has changed all my bank details. Second explain to the Electrician that I would prefer the new power points where I want them not where is convenient to him. Third make sure the mason comes along to make the hole in the kitchen wall before the builder turns up with the new window but not too far in advance.

carl hibbs wrote:

Blimy....He's got three times my entire rolling stock in that last pic.

I'm going there next weekend.

The rule is that the man with the most toys wins

Apologies Geoff, I may have given a false impression of how little stock you have

by omitting the pics I took of your inside sidings.

Here they are (Carl, eat your heart out!) ....

Are you sure you don't need help running this Roundhouse in ??