Rapido Manning Wardles and the roof…

I wasn’t expected these yesterday but they Royal Mail declared their imminent arrival by email. Not a large delivery but a lovely surprise, the Rapido Manning Wardle L’s have arrived…Two of these are taken, but at the time of writing there are a handful of the model in stock at Rapido so if you’re quick, I can pick one up for you. Discount and available customisation services are listed on the Rapido Trains UK page. The detail is lovely and the model runs smoothly with a good amount of weight considering its size. The centre axle is lightly sprung and has plenty of side movement along with the jointed rods, meaning tighter radii aren’t such a problem.The open cab demonstrates the tool makers art and the skill of the Chinese workers in the factory. Lovely composition of prototype and the realms of achievable manufacturing. I haven’t a photo, but the gap between the front axles is open too, allowing a full representation of the valvegear. Lovely, and something I dreamt up for the second…