Matt Ditch Photography Blog

For a while now I've been working on a Hunslet heavily inspired by those used on the Howrah-Amta Light Railway. And I've very pleased to finally be able to share the model. Website eBay

 

  Last night the South Tynedale Railway published an image on their social media of the completed work to radically alter the appearance of historically important Thomas Green 0-6-2 "Barber".  The loco, pictured above  was built in 1908 by Thomas Green & Sons of Leeds and spent its entire working life on the Harrogate Gas Works railway. It was even used during the construction of the railway. "Barber" was named after Francis Barber who was the chairman of the gasworks. It is also thought to be the only Thomas Green locomotive left in this part of the world "Barber" was built with a cut-down cab to allow it to fit through a tunnel with a reduced clearance, hence the somewhat squat appearance. Prior to 2015 "Barber" was last steamed in the 1940s by which time it was worn out. The rear of the frames were extremely weak due to the lowered cab. And there were also issues with its regulator. The engine had been rebuilt a number of times during its...

  River Esk's 100th centenary gala 29/04/23 Here are my pictures from River Esk's 100th centenary gala on 29/04/23. As always the whole gallery  can be found here . But, below are a few of my favorites.

It's been a little while since I posted any new models. Well, today I'm very pleased to be able to share my latest creation.  Going back several years one of the first 009 kits I designed was for a Pre-War Sentinel. The model quickly became outdated as I learned new skills and improved my offerings. However, I always intended to re-release it at some point in the future. Over the last several weeks I've designed a completely new model from scratch, which I'm now happy to share with everyone. The attached photo shows my very work-worn-looking Pre-War sentinel trundling along with some wagons. The model is designed to fit a shortened Kato 109 or 108 chassis (Not included)  If you'd like your own the kit can be purchased on either of the below links Website  Ebay

  The Malton Colliery Wagonway was a narrow gauge railway that linked the drift mines around Malton Colliery with the main colliery. It was located near the town of Lanchester in Co. Durham. Please click the link below to watch the video

  Campbeltown and Machrihanish Light Railway Campbeltown and Machrihanish Light Railway - Argyll - 0-6-2T built 1906 by Andrew Barclay - 2ft 3inch light railway built in 1905 and closed in 1933 | The railway in its earliest form opened in 1876 linking Kilkivan Pit to a depot on the outskirts of Campbeltown. From here the coal was transported by road to the Campbeltown harbour. The railway replaced a canal which was built by in the late 1700s. The canal was closed and filled due to the inconsistent output from the pits it was built to serve. The primary market for coal from the pits were from locals, who only seemed to buy the coal in the colder winter months, meaning the railway was underused during summer months. Because of this, the colliery owners began to look for additional forms of traffic for the railway. The area was popular with tourists who arrived by boat and were transported around via horse & cart.  A light railway company (The Association of Argyll Railw...

 Event Recap:  Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway 60th Anniversary Gala - 'It's Still A Lot Of Fun' Over the weekend on the 10/11 of July the Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway held a gala to celebrate 60 years of the railway's preservation society. The gala featured a number of trains hauled by locos that don't normally work passenger trains. Such as Katie from the railway museum and Lister "Cyril"  "Katie" climbing Hollin How bank with a train for Dalegarth. Katie is normally displayed inside the railways Museum at Ravenglass. "Perkins" and a short train bound for Dalegarth entering Gilbert's Cutting. Recently overhauled "Black Prince" on display at Ravenglass. "Black Prince" is normally based on the romney hythe and dymchurch railway but has been overhauled at the nearby Old Hall Farm, Bouth. Fowler Road Locomotive 16263, "Talisman" A few minimum gauge steam locomotives were on display near the Museum at...

Andrew Barclay Grey/Glyder  Andrew Barclay 0-4-0WT (well tank) Grey/Glyder was built in 1931 for the Burnhope Reservoir railway near Wearhead. "Grey" was one of 5 well tanks built for use on the line by Andrew Barclay. The railway linked with the Weardale Railway from Darlington at the terminus of the line at Wearhead station. Here items used in the construction of the r eservoir  would have been transferred from the standard gauge trains to the narrow gauge ones. When the railway closed in 1937 many of the locomotives including Grey were sold on to Penrhyn Quarry railway in North Wales. Here the engine was renamed "Glyder". When the PQR closed, the engine and several others were sold onto private collections in the USA. Grey/Glyder returned to the UK in 2012 along with Avonside 0-4-0T "Durham/Ogwen". All the engines that were exported have now returned to the UK. In recent years  Grey/Glyder has returned to steam at Beamish and still carries a lot of its ...

5 little known Industrial railway sites along the River Wear A few days ago I was exploring my local area using Rail Maps Online . I noticed that since my last visit to the site a few railways had appeared in my area, I thought it rude not to go for an explore! I didn’t expect to find much at any of these sites as many of them fell out of use many years ago and have been reclaimed by nature, but I was pleasantly surprised…. Site 1. An unidentified shipyard on the North side of the River Wear I haven’t been able to find too much out about this site. It appears to have been abandoned around the 1930s. The buildings were on the left where the thick undergrowth now stands. On the right was a wharf, the remains can still be seen. On closer inspection of some old OS maps it would appear that the tracks ran along the wharf. I believe the railway system here was narrow gauge, but I was unable to find anything due to the boggy nature of the area. Site 2. Incline to a Quarry & another shipy...

 Railways around Chopwell Chopwell and Garesfield Railway  The Chopwell and Garesfield Railway was opened in 1899 by the Consett Iron Co LTD, although some parts of the railway date back to earlier waggonways. The railway carried coal from Chopwell Colliery and High Spen/Garesfield Colliery(Bute Pit) to Derwenthaugh Coke works (built 1928) and onto Derwenthaugh staithes on the River Tyne. Today the section of trackbed through the woods is called the “Old Colliery Railway Footpath”, which is where the following pictures were taken. A short section of track has been relayed on the former trackbed and a pair of 21 ton wagons placed on top of it. The wagon closest to the camera is painted in National Coal Board livery and the furthest is painted in Consett Iron Co Livery, to reflect the two owners of the railway. These are located a short distance from the main car park. This wood carving depicts one of the Kitson long boiler 0-6-0 Pannier tanks that used to work the line. This ...