Western Region

HM169 Kato Class 800 Review Premium

Kato's Class 800 debut

Japanese manufacturer Kato isn’t a well known brand in British model railway circles with just one rolling stock product to its name for UK layouts. However, it has a new high-profile release for ‘N’ gauge: the Hitachi Class 800. MIKE WILD takes stock of this exciting new addition.

HM169 Swindon Rail Scene book review Review Freemium

Swindon Rail Scene

SWINDON has long held a fascination as a rail centre, especially in the years before the GWR’s famous Works closed. As this latest picture volume’s title suggests, the book aims to cover a significant period in Swindon’s railway heritage - 1971 to 1989.

HM169 PDF reader Feature Premium

Hornby Magazine July 2021

Welcome to the latest issue of Hornby Magazine - HM169, July 2021. Highlights of this issue include our first reviews of the Bachmann 4-BEP EMU for 'OO' and Kato 'N' gauge Class 800, Kernow Model Rail Centre's LSWR Road Vans and more plus John White's stunning model of Doncaster is one of three great layouts inside alongside step by step guides, inspirational features and more. Read the full magazine in PDF format here and check out our latest video content in the Video Features section from Thursday June 3.

Class 50s book review Review Premium

Last Years of the Class 50s

Strathwood Publishing's latest large format landscape book provides an ideal showcase for the final chapter of British Rail’s Class 50s in regular service, looking at the last 15 years or so of main line operations between 1980 and 1994.

'O' gauge GWR Siphon G next for Minerva

Minerva Model Railways has revealed that its next all-new ‘O’ gauge model will be a Great Western Railway (GWR) Siphon G.

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MUCH WITHERING

The garden presented the perfect place for STEVE BOON to develop an ‘O’ gauge railway on which he could run his collection of Western Region hydraulics. Here he reveals the story behind the line and how it was built.

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Oake

DARREN BERRY explains how this ‘OO’ gauge Western Region layout set in Somerset not only developed from an initial two-person team, but helped to encourage new modellers too. Photography, Trevor Jones.

VIDEO: Heljan GWR railcar for 'O'

Heljan's latest arrival for 'O' gauge is the GWR AEC railcar with 'Razor Edge' body styling. Join Mike Wild in the Hornby Magazine workshop as he demonstrates this new release and its functionality.

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The GWR railcars

The Great Western Railway is more often remembered for its fleet of copper-capped chimney steam locomotives rather than for technological innovation - but in fact the company was amongst the first to introduce viable diesel traction, in the form of a series of self-propelled railcars, as EVAN GREEN-HUGHES explains.

HM166 Heljan GWR AEC railcar Review Premium

HELJAN'S GWR RAILCAR

The Great Western Railway was amongst the first in the world to introduce self-contained diesel railcars for passenger services. Now the classic ‘Razor Edge’is available for ‘O’ gauge with the arrival of this brand-new model from Heljan – MIKE WILD investigates.