Returning now to that early catalogue, the stuff was quite advanced for the time, Bealman thinks. Certainly, the coaches were far from scale length, but the plastic bodies and glazed windows were light years ahead of the tinplate monstrosities with silver panels to represent windows that Hornby Dublo were offering at the time.

Plus of course the standard track was two-rail, and not that horrible 3-rail stuff also being pushed by Dublo (with tinplate ballast!). Of course all that 3-rail Dublo stuff is now extremely collectible and has a niche following, even to the point of entire layouts showing up at exhibitions, and I have no problem at all with that - I too enjoy the nostalgia. However, at the time as far as young Beaman was concerned, it was a no-brainer. His first electric train set would be Triang!



Impressively, as can be seen above, a working mail coach was available even then, and the Transcontinental range had already been introduced.

One thing that I liked, and still do today, is that although the bodies were plastic, at the the time the chassis and bogies were cast metal. Triang introduced a plastic chassis to their British stock in the mid-sixties, a retrostep I thought at the time, especially as it had a strange horizonatal bar connecting the pairs of wheels.

Here is the goods roster of the day:



Of course, even then, tension lock couplings are in evident. While ugly, they are undeniably effective. What impressed the young Bealman was that no special electrically operated uncoupling ramps were needed, as in the Dublo system. Just a simple spring loaded ramp which in the later Super 4 track simply clipped into the track anywhere you wanted (as long as it was straight!). With a bit of practice, shunting was a hands-free breeze. The metal versions shown here are more discrete than the modern offerings, too.

Motive power was a bit on the sparse side, though:



The time machine jumps ahead now to 1962, where things have changed considerably. I wouldn't waste too much time looking for Cuneo's mousey - I have a feeling it's hidden under the logo again! 

Plainline mentioned the Tri-ang book called "The First Ten Years...". So I dug out my copy (see photo).  Interestingly, the forward was written by Dr. Richard Beeching(!).

The chapter by Terence Cuneo on weathering was entitled "Creating Lifelike Models" and ends with the following advice:  "If you decide to adopt my suggestions for characterising your railway, please take the job seriously.  Don't rush at it.  Use your paint delicately and thoughtfully.  Remember, these models are magnificent in their own right - don't spoil them by slapdash work.  Good luck."

Mr. Cuneo also briefly mentions his old model railway - "a gauge 1 garden affair, American in style and steam driven throughout."

I have also included a photo of the table of contents for those that are interested.

A note on the back cover reads:  "RT-208 1962".

Ian
Los Angeles

Thanks for that, Ian!

There is reference to that very book and Cuneo's weathering of a Britannia locomotive just inside the above catalogue cover, and I'll be looking at that next. 

1962 was THE big year. Bealman was 10 years old, and had persuaded the Bealmother and Bealman Senior to get him an electric train set for Christmas. The eighth edition of the Triang catalogue was duly purchased, and studied intensely. I am now convinced, by the way, that Mousey is hidden beneath the title, although Cuneo's signing is visible in the bottom right hand corner, dated December 1960.

On the reverse of the cover, the book that Ian shows us in his post above, "Triang Railways - The First Ten Years...." is touted, along with Cuneo's weathered Britannia locomotive. There are also notes about the catalogue cover.



New items for 1962 were of course, Super 4 track - "far more realistic and cheaper too," smoke and Magnadhesion, exciting action accessories, scale length coaches, and new station buildings.

Bring it on!!!

I'm still happy to screenshot pages, but in the meantime this is taking ones mind off the outside world

Quote from: Bealman on March 29, 2020, 02:19:34 AM
The time machine jumps ahead now to 1962, where things have changed considerably. I wouldn't waste too much time looking for Cuneo's mousey - I have a feeling it's hidden under the logo again! 

I fear that you are right 

Heres nostalgia.1967

And at crewe.....was this the shot chrism blanked out asking if we should let bealman sleep

Quote from: chrism on March 29, 2020, 06:36:54 AM

I fear that you are right 

I hope he's not sitting on the track! 

Quote from: crewearpley40 on March 29, 2020, 06:53:06 AM
And at crewe.....was this the shot chrism blanked out asking if we should let bealman sleep

Yep 

Quote from: Bealman on March 29, 2020, 07:00:40 AM

Quote from: chrism on March 29, 2020, 06:36:54 AM

I fear that you are right 

I hope he's not sitting on the track! 

IIRC, some did have the mouse running along the railhead or sleepers. At least one had him sat on the front running plate of a loco (a King, possibly) and IIRC one had him in the secondman's cab window on a diesel.

The one that I have never succeeded in locating him is the 1953 Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Whenever I've found a large enough image to try I've failed because that painting, like the subject, has so much detail in or behind which the mouse could be hidden.

Quote from: Bealman on March 28, 2020, 10:39:33 AM
OK.... let's officially get this underway, before I turn in and watch "Hidden Figures" on DVD - yet another story of the period.

Before we move to the sixties, however, this little gem fell out of one of the catalogues. Unfortunately, the front cover is missing, so I can't get a handle on the exact year.



It does, however, have to date from the early to mid-50s. I can say this with reasonable certainty, as it shows Triang's "Standard" track, with the built in ballast base - just like the N gauge Kato track of today! Looking at some of my old Railway Modeller magazines of the 1957-1960 period reveals Triang adverts featuring Series 3 track, with black, widely spaced sleepers. This was replaced by Super 4 in 1962.

Many thanks, George.  This is an excellent thread; please keep your splendid posts coming.

According to my copy of the Tri-ang Hornby Book of Trains (undated but I think 1969), the clockwork 'N2' 0-6-2T shown in the illustration was only produced from 1952 to 1954.  So your suggested date is spot-on.  Interesting that Tri-ang chose an 'N2', as Hornby Dublo had one in its range since the very start in 1938.

Thanks again and best wishes.   

John

Thanks, John, I've learned something there! 

I think that in those days, there was a fair bit of competition between the two companies. That could explain the N2. 

Moving on. By Christmas 1962, a trainset had been selected. The trainsets of the day were pretty impressively packaged in didtinctive yellow and red cardboard boxes, as in the Lord of the Isles set below:



Let's face it, that's a pretty impressive set, with a passing loop, signal box and level crossing included! Both the loco and coaches are equally impressive, and the coaches showed up regularly in Railway Modeller issues of the time, as they were used by serious modellers for various projects.

BY 1962, steam loco wheels were no longer solid, but had see-through spokes, another cool advancement of the period.

However, the train sets did not come with a power unit, which was of course, an added expense. In defence of Bealman Senior, he went out of his way that Christmas. He purchased a Triang P5 unit, which was pretty cool - it had a 12V controlled output for the track, a 12V uncontrolled output for accessories or an additional variable resistor controller for double track operation, and a 15VAC output for point motors.

In testimony to it's ruggedness, it still is operational today on my existing Beal & Castle Eden layout, providing power for a transistorised handheld controller, and building lighting!

[smg id=4623]

There were some initial hiccups with it (more of that annon), but it was sorted.

The old man also had a baseboard constructed for me, 8'x4' which was actually a bit big for our upstairs flat, and it had to sit on the floor. Our town had a billiard hall upstairs above the pub which Bealman Senior used to frequent on the more than odd occasion. Anyway, they were putting new felt on the tables, so some of the old material ended up covering the baseboard! Also, the nearest 3-pin socket was in another room, so he got an electrician mate of his to put a really long mains lead onto the Triang unit, so it would reach into the other room. Pretty cool, really.

Anyway, the Lord of the Isles set didn't interest the young Bealman (I don't think the Bealoldie's budget stretched that far anyhow), and he selected the Britannia Pullman set on the same page above. You may notice in pics throughout this thread that there are ticks beside various items. These were items I ended up owning.

There is a tick beside the maroon Princess locomotive also on this page. That is an anecdote in itself. Stay tuned, viewer! 

Wow!!!!!! Your dad must of spent some good money George!!!

A green baize baseboard, and the extra wiring!! Absolutely fantastic.

Please tell us that Mr Bealman also spent hours of his time building and playing around with the layout as well!!