First, I hope you all had a good Christmas break and New Year’s festivities. Perhaps time to enjoy the company of friends and family, or just some time to rest! At Masterpiece Models we start the new year with an announcement that we are resuming production of the Atlantics. The COVID pandemic and the world economic difficulties encountered as result of military action in the Ukraine disrupting trade flows increasing costs and weakening demand led to an extended pause in our Atlantic build programme. In the year that the Beachy Head H2 replica is due have its first steaming on the Bluebell Railway, we felt it was appropriate to restart the project.

We very much appreciate all of you who have kept faith in us and maintained your reservation deposits. Without your continued support we would have had to terminate the programme.

We have just concluded a new contract with our builder to make a baseline 85 locomotive programme with a target completion date of December 2024.

The planned programme comprises 25 GNR/LNER Atlantics and 60 LBSC/Southern and BR Brighton Atlantic locomotives. The more detailed breakdown at the date of writing is broadly as follows:

Marsh H1 ‘Atlantics’: 30 locomotives, 10 of which are reserved:

LBSC Umber	6 available
Southern Olive Green	12 available
BR Black	2 available

Marsh H2 ‘Atlantics’: 30 locomotives, 8 of which are reserved:

LBSC Umber	6 available
Southern Olive Green	7 available
BR Black	9 available

Please note that we are not planning to offer the Marsh H1 and H2 engines in Southern or BR Bulleid Malachite Green livery. 

Ivatt small boiler GNR/LNER ‘Atlantics’, 15 locomotives, 8 of which are currently reserved.

Ivatt large boiler GNR/LNER ‘Atlantics’, 10 locomotives, 3 of which are currently reserved.

The model illustrated on this web page is a pre-production pilot for the LB&SCR H1 Atlantic in umber livery. This is a starting point that has provided valuable insights, but many corrections, enhancements and refinements will be incorporated in the finished models.

For the Marsh H1 and H2 locomotives, due to restricted slot availability, we are offering maximum flexibility to choose individual locomotives in each category shown above This means that you will have maximum freedom to choose your desired engine as long as examples in your chosen livery are still available.

CLICK HERE FOR FULL DETAILS AND AVAILBILITY

We are still hoping to make a limited number (5) of the Bulleid sleeve valve modifications of H1 32039 Hartland Point that was used to test out the valve gear to be used on the ill-fated Bulleid Leader class 060-060 locomotives. Detailed technical information on this modified H1 locomotive is proving difficult to discover. We may have to work only from photographs as we did for some of the 28XX locomotives. If it proves possible to make 32039 in this configuration, we will increase production accordingly. We hope to be able to offer it in both Southern and BR plain black liveries.

If you want a particular locomotive, please make a reservation now as there is very little room to make changes as the production process has already started. In a tight timetable switching locomotive periods/configurations/liveries is heavily constrained.

Once again thank you all very much for maintaining your interest in this project.

John Borkowski

 

Christmas is on a Monday this year which leaves a larger non-working day gap than is usual. So today is my last-minute opportunity to thank all of you who have been in contact this year, whether in person, phone, email or letter. I know that for many of you 2023 has been a difficult, uncertain and worrying time which thankfully we have now got through. For me it has been big struggle with ill-heath throughout this period. Perhaps this third bout of COVID will help me now to make a bit of a recovery.

I would like to thank everyone for the cards and messages of goodwill which are really appreciated. Please take care and look after yourselves and all your families and friends. Ros and I would like to wish everyone a peaceful and enjoyable Christmas season and a very Happy New Year 2024.

In our next announcement we hope to bring you some interesting news. So, please watch this space!

John Borkowski/22 December 2022

Guildford Show Saturday December 2nd 2023
This is a late notice to thank all of you braved the cold and the M25 Junction 10 difficulties associated with getting to and being at the Guildford Show. The footfall seemed markedly less even than last year when the date clashed with the Warley Model Club show at the Birmingham NEC. Our stand was cold all day and the only occasion that I warmed up was in the afternoon in the Cafeteria upstairs. Still, it was very nice to see those of you who were able to come to the stand. We had a large display of locomotives including some second-hand ones in A1 condition. If you are in need of an A3 or A4 or Duchess please let me know.

If you are a Mr Martin Breakspear who called in late in the day on our stand, would you please contact me on 01737 242073 or 07484 617692 or email me on the following address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.  THANK YOU.

Weloe Rolling Roads
We have run out of Scale 7 rolling roads and we apologise to customers who are waiting for delivery. We have ordered more S7 and O gauge rolling roads from Germany which hopefully will come in January. We still have some O gauge rolling roads in stock available for immediate delivery. 

COVID-19
Having suffered all year from the effects Long Covid, last week, somehow, I managed to catch the latest version of the virus. I still have it now, so the deliveries I had planned to make last week and the beginning of this week have had to be postponed. I still hope to come out of quarantine at least towards the end of this week. If this is successful, I will try to make some deliveries on Friday (22 Dec.) and Saturday (23 Dec.). 

Advent
I hope that you are all busy enjoying this Advent Season preparing for and building up to the Christmas and New Year holiday period. We in the South East have had a few dry days and some occasional sunshine to lift our spirits. In spite of coping with Covid I have managed to find a few minutes of spare time to work quietly on converting a few O gauge wagons to Scale 7. My main interest has been in tank wagons of which there are very good examples available in both kit and ready-to-run form. Is anyone (manufacturer) willing to make a high quality 100 ton bogie tank wagon? Railway modelling can be quite therapeutic, especially when one has Covid!

 John Borkowski/17 December 2023

STANIER JUBILEE 4-6-0

Just a brief note to update you on developments on the Stanier Jubilee 4-6-0. The feedback from you about this locomotive has been very positive. We have examined the possibility of adding the standard Jubilee locomotives to the LMS/BR 6P/7P large boiler express passenger locomotives build. The end result is that following discussions with the builder we have decided to proceed with a limited programme of 25 (extendable to 35 should demand be sufficient) standard LMS/BR 5XP/6P Jubilee tender locomotives. These will be added to the 10 LMS/BR Rebuilt Jubilee 6P/7P tender engines already our production programme.

Among the standard Jubilee expressions of interest, a number of you have requested 5552 'Silver Jubilee' in LMS polished black with chromed fittings after it had switched identity with 5642. This locomotive posing as 5552 had a separate top feed, a 6’ 6’’ wheelbase front bogie and larger 9 ton 4000 gallon tender. In addition to those who have already made expressions of interest, we have decided to offer 5 engine more slots in this special livery The remaining Jubilee slots will be available in LMS Crimson Lake, BR lined Black or BR lined Green, with engine names available to choice. We can also make double chimney engines such as Bahamas (already requested) and Connaught.

The table below is designed to assist you in choosing an individual engine type:

Description	Name	Livery 1 / Chimney	Livery 2	Livery 3	Livery 4	Livery 5
5552	Silver Jubilee	LMS Polished Black	LMS Maroon	BR Lined Black	BR Lined Green, Lion-over-Wheel	BR Lined Green, later totem
Short firebox	Many names available	Single chimney	LMS Maroon	BR Lined Black	BR Lined Green, Lion-over-Wheel	BR Lined Green, later totem
Short firebox	Bahamas	Double chimney				BR Lined Green, later totem
Long firebox	Many names available	Single chimney	LMS Maroon	BR Lined Black	BR Lined Green, Lion-over-Wheel	BR Lined Green, later totem
Long firebox	Connaught	Double chimney			BR Lined Green, Lion-over-Wheel

28XX/38XX
Due to a run of recent orders, stocks of unsold 28XX/38XX are down to the last few locomotives. All remaining items are O gauge. We can still convert one more engine to Scale 7 if required for a small additional charge. If you would like an engine please make contact as soon as possible as when they have gone there will be no repeat production.

ORDER DELIVERIES
In spite of an initiative to increase deliveries I continue to be running behind my target objectives. Since I caught COVID-19 for the second time last Christmas I have been struggling with my health and thanks to some more recent help from the NHS I have been undergoing some tests. Hopefully this will lead to discovery of what is wrong, and how can things be rectified. Meanwhile I will try to get as many orders delivered over the next few weeks