Entry is simple, all you need to do is write a short review of a model train you own. You can also help out other modellers by leaving feedback and ratings for model shops you have used in the past. Share you experiences good and bad for a chance to win.

You can get full details of the competiton here: Competition Details & Rules Closing date for entries is the 21st December and winners will be notified within 10 days.

To enter you are required to sign up as a member - free and easy - and then answer the following question:

Which of the following was not a BR Clan Class locomotive? 1) Clan Macbeth 2) Clan MacLeod 3) Clan Cameron. Once you have signed up, you can enter the competition on this page. Closing date for entries is the 1st May 2009.

Hornby Class 20 Diesel

To enter you are required to sign up as a member - free and easy - and then answer the following question:

Many British freight trains formerly had no “continuous brake” so the only available brakes were those on the locomotive and the brake van. Because of this shortage of brake power the speed was restricted to… 1) 25mph 2) 30mph 3) 35mph. Once you have signed up, you can enter the competition on this page. Closing date for entries is the 1st April 2009.

Ten winners will be picked at random from all the correct entries. Each winner will receive one family ticket, which will allow 2 adults and up to 3 children free entry to the exhibition on either the Saturday or the Sunday. As with all Hornby monthly competitions you are required to sign up as a member to the Hornby website. This will allow Hornby to email you newsletters and keep you uptodate with new releases and competitions.

Once you have signed up you are required to answer the following question: First opened as “The People’s Palace” in 1873, Alexandra Palace provided the Victorians with a great environment and recreation centre. Just sixteen days after it’s opening, the Palace, which had already attracted over 120,000 visitors, was destroyed by a fire in the dome. In what year did the new palace reopen? 1) 1875 2) 1885 3) 1995. The entry form can be found here.

Closing date is the 9th March 2009.

Hornby Railroad BR Green 9F 'Evening Star' R2785

To enter you are required to sign up as a member - free and easy - and then answer the following question:

In what year was the National Railway Museum (York) established? 1) 1975 2) 1976 3) 1978. Once you have signed up, you can enter the competition on this page. Closing date for entries is the 1st March 2009.

My plan was a simple one, fix the last 3 plywood tops to the base framework and then set about trying to lay the outer loop of my track plan - i.e. get something down so I can play trains Sadly this didn’t quite go to plan, what with my illness, the wife being home (wife distracting me) and the lack of cork underlay, it didnt happen.  Then I had to set the printer up to work off my laptop where the xtrkcad files are stored, this took about an hour. So come 14:30, having had some lunch I grabbed my wallet and headed over to Church Street Models in Basingstoke. Now I had a specific shopping list of things I had to get which was:

• Cork underlay
• Flexi track - lots
• Couple of Peco SL-88 Right Hand Large Slips
• Metal track joiners

However, as usual I didn’t come back with just the things I wanted. Church Street Models is one of the those places where I want everything, so I came back with:

• 11 Metres of Flexi track
• 3 rolls of cork underlay
• only 1 SL-88 (ordered the other)
• 3 packs of track joiners
• some track pins - I use the to hold things in place while glue sets
• Pack of 3 Hornby Tope wagons - 25% off rrp
• pair of Bachmann Intermodal wagons for my brother - 25% off
• New Hornby R2701 Intercity HST
• 4 Peco point motors

So having spent a good hour chatting with the owner and selecting my purchases I headed home. By the time I got home it was about 16:45 and one of the kids was back from nursery so the garage was a no go zone for the remainder of the day On the brightside though, tomorrow is a new day and I have no work again, woo.

Here are some pictures of the completed boards, just need to brush them off and tidy the rest of the garage up before I start laying track etc. I really would like to get some track down and powered tomorrow, just hope the man flu holds off.

Helmsman Limited Edition Controller

Details on entering the competition including the question and all the rules can be found on page 80 on their January 2009 edition. Closing date for entries is the 28 Feb 2009, answers on a postcard!

This year the entries have been split into two categories, club layouts and individual layouts. All of the layouts have featured in the magazine over the last 12 months.

My personal votes have go to the club layout of Grimsby Town Modellers Group. Their layout ‘Yarborough’ in 00 gauge which is a modern era, post modernisation layout set in 2000-2008. My favourite individual layout has to be Pete Harvey’s ‘00′ ‘Dudley Road’. Set in 1980’s British Railway Blue era, the layout and Pete are both great inspirations to me as a ‘beginner’. Pete is a thoroughly nice chap and has time for anyone.

As an incentive to enter there are some goodies up for grabs in a free prize draw competition. First prize: Maunsell ‘King Arthur’ 751 Etarre plus six Maunsell carriages and a ‘Van C’ in Southern Railway livery. Second prize: GNER Class 43 HST power cars plus five Mk 3 carriages in GNER colours. Third prize: BR Railfreight grey Class 20 plus a six Railfreight vans. Closing date for entries is the 23rd Feb 2009.

Full details of the competiton can be found here.

The entries are as follows:

Club Layouts

East Ranford
Dewsbury Midland
Chilcompton
Hinton Parva
Wellbridge
Sutton
Groombridge
Wouldham Town
Compton
Crawford Bridge
Netherhall and Fletching
Bwd Udersfelde
Yarborough
Thurston
Wartime
Culreoch
Halston Junction
Victoria Road

Individual Layouts

Condicote
Claydon
Ditton Heath
North Leith Citadel
Harford Street to Mile End Gate
Cwmfelinfach
Wiveliscombe
Bleakhouse Road
East Lodge
Dudley Road
Fenchurch Cutting
Great Wakering
Two square
Market Roundham
Bishop Wearburn
Sarum Road
Addiston Southhaven

• Smooth Planed Timber which comes in packs of 6. (L)2100 x (W)44 x (T)18mm
• 4 x 40mm wood screws - I bought a 500 pack from B&Q, very reasonable
• 4 x 40mm nuts with bolts to bolt framework sections together.
• 6mm Brazil Ply. This stuff comes in huge sheets, so I get B&Q to cut it down to 2′x4′ strips for me.

That’s all the ingredients I used, I couldn’t tell you how much of each I used as I lost track. The most expensive part is the timber, it came in at about £9 per pack and I used a lot as I was also using it to make the legs, which I did by screwining 2 lengths together into a kind of L shape. The first image below explains this better.

All that’s left to do at the moment is attach the plywood tops and brace the legs to stop them moving left and right when they are knocked. Then the plan is to get the tracked laid and wired before getting the tools back out and building a backscene to separate the main running line from the hidden sidings at the rear, that’s another post though.

Track layout planning is pretty much there and is being discussed on this thread. I am toying with the idea of losing the ‘depot area’ and really make it a nice mainline run with a station at the bottom. It has been pointed out that the layout bears resemblance to ‘Dawlish‘, something which wasn’t intentional.

R2743X BR Green Schools Class 4-4-0 'Brighton'

As previously, to enter you are required to sign up as a member - free and easy - and then answer the following question:

How many stations does First Great Western operate? a) 196 b) 227 c) 210. Once you have signed up, you can enter the competition on this page. Closing date for entries is the 1st Feb 2009.