Streamlined Trains

Every week or so I like to check the statistics on my site, partly to see where where my visitors are coming from and partly to check which pages are the most popular. It never ceases to amaze me at the popularity of the LNER and LMS streamlined trains sections. They are, by a wide margin, areas where visitors linger. I suppose it's because the trains are colourful and still give an aura of modernity. Both the silver of the Silver Jubilee and the blue and silver of the Coronation Scot stand out against the corporate liveries of their railways but with style.

Having said all that I look at the liveries of the present day railways and find them rather garish and consequently cheap looking. I was watching Portillo's railway series currently on TV and was not really surprised at the livery of the Northern Rail (is that right?) vehicles that were shown. Purple and Blue ?? What idiot thought of that combination? Less of a livery more of an advertisement. The idea of style seems to have gone completely out of the window and the responsibility for the livery handed over to those who successfully completed a one week course on public relations or media studies or some such.

Other railways fare no better with the use of garish colours that clash and go faster stripes. It was ironic last week when I read that stranded passengers had to rely on a steam hauled train to get them away - hauled by Tornado, no less. And all because an environmentally polluting tin can couldn't handle adverse conditions.

No commercial manufacturer, to my knowledge has attempted to produce a complete streamlined train. Hornby did an abbreviated version of Silver Jubilee, a locomotive and two coaches, that were just quick repaint jobs. The coaches didn't have the characteristic deep valences and, in my view, were just playthings although an enthusiastic modeller could have upgraded them to something decent.

So the modeller who would like a complete streamlined train on his/her layout has to rely on brass etched kits (not for the faint hearted), bespoke models (very expensive)or do what I had to do - scratch build. I would have thought that the introduction of a basic set to be augmented by further coach addons might be the way to go. Rather like Meccano did years ago when you could start out quite small and, as your enthusiasm grew, then add the "a" series kits thus building up to, if you wished, to the mighty Set 10. I actually wrote to Hornby about this but, as is usual in such cases, never had a reply.

Enough !!