RAIL RACING : Tom Nelson - The Final Chapter
From: "Jeff Davies" <j.davies4@ntlworld.com>
To: "gregory p holland" <vsrn@juno.com>

Subject:  Tom Nelson Rail Recollections
For Built with Passion.
Date: Sun, 12 Oct 2003 19:22:29 +0100

 Hi Greg,
            This is my favourite personality chapter, and I would like you to publish all of it on VSRN
because even people who don't buy the book I want to read how it all started.  The book was written
so we could record forever the story of how Rail/Slot started while some of the key people were still alive.
So the more people who read even some of it the better.

                    Best wishes,

                         Jeff.
**********************************

RAIL RACING –
Recollections of the early days.

    Tom Nelson.

    Southport is the focal point for the beginning of Electric Rail Racing, the model car racing we know today as slot racing,
and once briefly called 'sunken rail'. With such a period of time between the pioneering days of the mid 1950's and today it
is pleasing to find someone who played a part in our hobby's history, a person able to share his memories of those times.

    Tom Nelson was one of that original and unique group of people who created a hobby that today is world- wide and a source
of pleasure to millions. Educated at the same time as Colin Sinclair at King George V Grammar School, Southport he took up
aero-modelling and shared this pastime with Charles Fitzpatrick, Harold Griffiths and Bill Crusham.

They started with gliders and rubber powered flight before changing to petrol, diesel (compression ignition) and glow-plug
engines, as they became available. Tom recalls that these small engines became so powerful that the planes were launched
vertically, nose up/tail down, and upon release disappeared into the sky like space rockets. In competitions for the longest
duration of flight, competitors were allowed a maximum engine run of ten seconds else the plane was lost to sight.
Much running ensued in retrieving and if the engine timer failed to operate it was unlikely that the model would be seen again
that day and the owner would have to wait hoping for a card or telephone call telling him from where it could be collected.
If by chance it had caught a thermal then it could be miles from the take off point. As radio control came in many transferred
their interest to cars via an interest in railways. Modelling was paramount. Enjoyment came from sharing and discussing ideas,
passing on tips and overcoming problems.

    In the second half of the 1940's further study had to take preference over modelling. Tom continued his studies at Loughborough
College (now a University) qualifying as a craft teacher specialising in Metalwork and Engineering in 1948. The course complete,
National Service followed in the Education Branch of the Royal Air Force teaching mathematics to regular recruits and
commissioned officers preparing for promotion examinations, this was his lot for the next twenty-two months. It was during
this period that the Southport Model and Engineering Club(SMEC) was formed. Tom started off on a journey of forty-one years
teaching the 'young gentlemen' of Liverpool. Never the less he found time to join and take an active interest in the recently formed
club and acted as Honorary Secretary for several years.

    Here he became acquainted with Walkden Fisher, F.R.S.A. (Fellow of the Royal Society of Artists), a founder member of SMEC
who lived near the town centre at 34, Princess Street, a road in close proximity and parallel to Lord Street, a busy and prestigious
shopping thoroughfare. He specialised in the water-colour painting of landscapes and birds making the facial expressions of the
latter reminiscent of his friends, or so he said. When a local minister published the 'Eagle' comic Walkden became deeply involved
and produced the original drawings for centre spreads of famous railway trains and cars. These were drawn out four times actual size
so that every detail could be included before being photographed down to size. The only time he felt able to do the finer work was in
the early hours of the morning when the vibrations from the traffic on Lord Street, 100 yards away, ceased. Twice a year he would
spend time at a studio at Ascot where the 'set' for Dan Dare, the comic's hero, from which the other artists drew was located. This he
updated and refreshed as needed.

    Tom well remembers Walkden seeking advice from Charles Fitzpatrick about a clear 'Perspex' dome for Dan Dare's spaceship
as he had moulded something similar for a six-foot wingspan glider he had built previously. Charles produced the half-sphere former
and matching die and assembled them with a sturdy lever onto a strong wooden box. In the kitchen of Tom's home, before he was
married, they heated the BC" plastic in the electric oven before hurriedly clamping it in place on the die-plate and applying their
combined body weight to the lever. After repeating the process several times they finally managed to get it to the required depth.
Dan Dare would be safe for another expedition.

    Walkden, meanwhile, supervised the building of a fully landscaped 'OO' Gauge railway layout in the clubroom which, when
completed, would take centre stage at club exhibitions. These were held each year in the Cambridge and Victoria Halls situated
in the very centre of the town. These continued for several years with entries and visitors from all over the country providing a
very necessary source of income.

    Few members knew of the existence of 'The Western Lines Railway', an Anglo-American layout based largely on the Atchison,
Topeko and Santa Fe Railway which was housed in the cellars of Walkden's home at 34 Princess Street and built over the years by
Walkden and a handful of friends. Viewing was by invitation only. Tom received such an invitation and was most impressed by what
he saw. The care taken in the construction and the attention to detail was unbelievable; and he had no hesitation in accepting an
invitation to join this small group whose skills and perseverance had made such a magnificent job of the track, points, slips and
double slips, etc. all made from scratch. The front cellar was nearly complete and the base and track for a main line station was
already in place in the centre cellar. A hole in the dividing wall would allow entry for the trains and be incorporated with the scenery.
Tom was given the job of building the station roof based on Lime Street Station in Liverpool. He remembers going to a glass merchant
for the 40" long by 1BE" wide strips of picture glass to clad the curved girder roof trusses which he had previously made using balsa
wood strip. A reminder of his aero-modelling days where he first met up with Charles Fitzpatrick who, years later, was to produce
1/32nd scale car bodies under the name of 'Classic' and 'Betta'. Each glass strip had to be ruled out into separate panes (1/2" x 1/4")
using a draughtsman's lining pen loaded with thinned cellulose paint as the ink. Locomotives and rolling stock were modified 'Hornby'
products. All but one of this select group of railway modellers became members of SMEC and showed total loyalty and support to both
clubs. Many other SMEC members would have liked to join the Western Lines and would certainly have been welcomed, but the
limited space would not permit an increase in membership and they were always conscious of the fact that they were in a private house.
Tentative plans were already in existence for spreading to the third, and last, cellar.

    'Gipsy Rose Lee', and her troupe of young female beauties, visited Southport, much to the disgust of the older generation at the time,
staging a show posturing nude but totally stationary on the stage of the Garrick Theatre. Having a layout herself at home in the U.S.A.
she sought permission to visit the Western Lines and was much impressed by what she saw. A reciprocal invitation to the show wasn't
extended. Shortly afterwards an approach from an American magazine, 'Mechanics Illustrated' led to a visit by one of their teams who
photographed the layout and published an article shortly afterwards.

    SMEC arranged special outings of both particular and general interest. During 'Festival of Britain' year a coach carried members,
their wives and friends to London one Friday night to visit the 'Model Engineer' exhibition, the Festival site and other places of interest
if time permitted. Saturday night accommodation was booked at the National Hotel, Russell Square and the group headed back to
Southport late on Sunday evening. Harold Griffiths, a most pleasant, lively and happy person despite his diminutive stature complained
of being rather tired on the return journey and was manhandled, in no uncertain manner, onto the overhead luggage rack where he slept
soundly for many miles.

    Another outing was made to the Northern Association of Model Engineers exhibition in Manchester and it was here that members
had their first glimpse of rail racing. The 1/12th scale model cars powered by 1cc. diesel engines were clipped onto a 5/16" diameter
steel rod securely fastened about BC" above the track surface. Cars were held onto this rail by four flanged rollers on a pivoted plate
at the front and a further two at the back to keep it in line. Three pairs of notches were filed out of the rod on a straight to allow secure
(?) location of the car after the engine had been started on a spinning drum at the side of the track. Drive to the rear wheels was
provided by a centrifugal clutch and once the cars were released the driver had no control whatsoever. The cars were noisy and
smelly but went like a 'bat out of hell'. Needless to say this caught the imagination of some of the group and a portable track and
cars were soon under construction at the clubroom. Although engineering machinery was completely lacking one of the members,
a coal delivery- man by the name of Halsall, allowed the use of the tools and equipment at his home workshop. The use of such
equipment was completely new to most of the members and much of the turning had been done for them. The track, with the minimum
of scenery, and cars were eventually completed and tested in time for showing at the annual exhibition at the Baptist Church Hall at
the junction of Chapel Street and Eastbank Street, Southport. Although it created interest among the younger visitors only the stout
hearted spent much time there; the smell got into clothes and hair and the scream from the engines met with little approval. The
favourite engines, the highest revving, were 'Elfin' diesels made in Edge Lane, Liverpool close to where Tom was teaching. This
proved very useful to members if trouble was encountered as they could be taken in during his dinner break, fixed while he waited
and, more often than not, with no charge.

    He wonders, now that he is of somewhat more mature years (74), what would have happened if one of these projectiles had come
adrift when travelling at speed and hit a spectator. Flat out was always the order of the day.

    This was, to Tom's knowledge, the first Rail Racing in Southport? How long could it last? Tea break on a Friday night was when
the 'Western Lines' discussed many matters and generally put the world to rights. It was inevitable that, as members of SMEC,
the recent exhibition would be discussed especially the feelings towards rail racing. Walkden was never impressed by speed unless
it was proportional to the scale of the model. He let his feelings be known in no uncertain manner when 'Western Liners' exceeded
'scale speed' on the model railway track. He would go ballistic if a chassis was run without a body shell but perhaps the most serious
offence of all was to hide his tobacco pouch in the mouth of a tunnel. Walkden invariably had a well-burnt 'Sherlock Holmes' pipe
hanging out of the corner of his mouth. He said little but that didn't mean that he wouldn't give it further thought when crouched over
his drawing board in the still of the night. His closing comment was " It might become more popular if it was to a smaller scale and
electrically powered" adding that 'it would give those who insisted on racing their locomotives on the railway track an outlet without
upsetting others'.

    And so it was, some weeks later that a length of wood on which a 3/16" by 3/32" brass strip was soldered to copper tacks driven
flush with the surface with a copper wire 3/8" away to the side similarly secured. From out of a box appeared a model to 1/32nd scale
of a Mercedes-Benz 196 complete in every detail and with Juan Manuel Fangio behind the wheel. Underneath a piece of sheet brass
bent into an inverted 'U,' was secured in the centre of the front axle, and a thin leaf spring with a brass foil triangle lining up with the wire.
Under the balsa wood body was a 'Triang' (Lines Bros.) 12v electric motor as used in model trains purchased at a cost of 10 shillings
and sixpence (52.5p), from Matt Kelly at the local Hobby Shop in Bold Street. A contrate gear vandalised from a child's 'push-and-go'
car purchased for one shilling and three pence (6p) was soldered to the back axle and motor shaft and a set of plated brass wheels with
spokes printed on celluloid inserts from a 'build-it-yourself' car kit adorned the outside. Other bits and pieces came from the scrap box.
A car built for less than a pound. The sample of track was powered from a spare railway transformer and the motor speed controlled by
a rotary variable-resistance as used on the trains.

    The Western Liners were 'hooked', plans for extending the railway into the third cellar were temporarily shelved and a trial rail racing
car track would be built on the pretence that, if it didn't turn out as expected, the base for the railway extension would already be in place.

    The cellar at the back of the house was 'L' shaped with the nearly square base. The driving positions were to be at the bottom of the
upright looking down a long straight. A tight circular bend brought you back parallel to the long straight with a left-handed turn taking
you into the square part where the cars went through another 360 B0 incorporating a raised crossover bridge to the end of the lap. In the
middle of the square was a cut out where a marshal sat during races to replace derailed cars. Harold Griffiths had now joined the
'cellar dwellers' along with Colin Sinclair, Bill Rimmer and Charles Fitzpatrick who had now become Tom's brother-in-law. It was Harold
who usually occupied the centre track position. He didn't restrict the view of the cars too much, was very agile and had leant to absorb
the insults appertaining to his inability to replace cars quick enough or in the right order. Always a thankless job!

    On the three-lane track construction progressed steadily, scenery to 'Fisher' standards was being added and more cars were appearing.
Walkden, bearing an uncanny resemblance to the Mercedes Team Manager(Neubauer) in stature, manner and appearance added a
Mercedes 163 (Alberto Ascari) and an Auto Union (Tazio Nuvolari) to his stable and later a 300SLR. Arthur Moore, a Post Office telephone engineer, settled for a Maserati (Prince Bira). Colin Sinclair exhibited superb craftsmanship in building and detailing an E.R.A.
(Raymond Mays?) which other drivers were wary of damaging when it was on the track. Harold Inman, a sales representative for 'Pel'
tubular furniture tried his hand at a Lancia-Ferrari while Tom built a 'Vanwall' in the hope that it would have more success than the full
size one. Alas it was not to be against the might of the Mercedes. It was sometime later that Stirling Moss crossed the finishing line first
at Aintree in a pea green Vanwall, watched by the 'cellar dwellers' from the corner of Tattersalls roof stand alongside the BBC TV camera.
Tom over-painted the nose on his model a similar green to commemorate Stirling's success. It did nothing for the  performance of his car as
proxy driver Alban Adams once found out! Influenced by Stirling's win in the 1955 Mille Miglia he then built a Mercedes 300 SL coupe.
The top moulded from a piece of thick clear celluloid and glued to the balsa wood lower body. Window frames bent from wire were carefully
glued in place and allowed to dry before the spaces in between were gradually built up with a paste made from clear cellulose paint and talcum powder. A lengthy and painstaking process before the painting and the fine detail could be completed. An experimental swinging front axle was
tried and seemed to help track stability but it was no match for the maestro's (W.F's.) cars. A friend at church happened to mention Tom's
interest in the new hobby to a leading technician who worked at the local factory of Mullards, producers of radio sets, etc. He asked if he
could see the car and Tom sent the 300 SL jokingly suggesting that he apply his expertise and tune it for him. In return, some days later,
a hand-written document on how the motor could be made to give higher revs and greater power with formulae using such terms as gauss,
brush pressure, air gap, etc. accompanied the car. He had tuned the motor as far as he could without physically altering it. Performance
can best be judged in a race. For several meetings the 300SL was the 'King of the Track'.

    Intent of retaining the 'crown' for as long as possible Tom took considerable time in physically altering, and hopefully improving, the
'Triang' motor. Carefully setting up the armature, commutator and shaft in a lathe he skimmed the outside until it ran perfectly true.
Obtaining a piece of fine-grain cast iron, from a damaged surface plate, he machined the frame, magnet holder and pole pieces in one
piece allowing only sufficient clearance for the armature to rotate. After assembling it he put it to the test and found so much power that
he couldn't stop the shaft when gripping it with his fingers. Expecting great things he rapidly replaced the motor in the 300SL with the
new one and prepared to show the others the 'way home'. Yes it ran beautifully smoothly and went round bends at full power with never
a hint of leaving the track. Unfortunately instead of more speed he had power in excess. The motor would have been fine on the
'Western Lines' pulling long freight trains up steep gradients, at scale speed, but in a model car race....! Motors were changed back,
one being consigned to the waste bin, and the 300SL failed to win another race. Was it trying to tell him something?

   The last Friday of every month was always race night; the outright winner invariably being Walkden. His Mercedes cars were so much
faster than the other cars on the track that you couldn't even catch them to try to overtake. He must have spent hours running motors
and gears in at slow speeds using a mixture of '3-in-one' oil and metal polish - Brasso. He experimented with brush and pick-up pressure
until he couldn't improve any further; his efforts certainly paid dividends. However a way was found to slow down his progress. If when
entering the bend at the end of the long straight and your car was on his inside, a quick spurt on the controller would throw the rear of
your car out and nudge him off the track sometimes delaying the other driver as well. Apologies were always tendered, of course, but he
just waited for the opportunity to do the same in 'return' elsewhere on the track. 'All's fair in love and war,' or so they say!

    At what stage they started calling themselves the 'Auto Rail Racing Association' - ARRA - Tom can't truthfully recall but it was
about May 1958 that the first reference appeared in the pages of 'Model Maker'. Walkden, Tom, Arthur Moore and Harold Inman
had been invited to lunch at a hotel in Worksop by Mr Laidlaw-Dickson, then editor of 'Model Maker' magazine who had somehow
got to know about their activities and was eager to learn more. Tom suspects that Walkden could have been the source of the 'leak',
however many times the subject was raised it was denied with the usual wry smile. Articles in the magazine followed over the next
few months, other groups became interested, visited the ARRA track and went away and built their own. Ideas were freely exchanged
and interest in the hobby was spreading; was it here to stay? It was during these early stages that it was considered advisable to
produce a set of rules governing the building of cars and the conditions under which they should race. These were formulated by
ARRA and named the 'Southport Standards'. The number of tracks steadily increased and the Model Aeronautical Press - M.A.P -,
publishers of 'Model Maker' decided it deserved a magazine of its own and called it 'Model Cars'. Tom wrote several articles for
this magazine; lightweight wheels in April '61, chassis construction in Nov. '64, a guide to metals in June '65, and a series on joining
metals in July '65. A report on the 'Red Rose' Trophy race in 1961 between ARRA and the Aintree Model Racing Car Club followed.
A rather strong letter defending Rail Racing when a correspondent, a Mr Owen of unknown abode, transferred his affections and
fell into the 'groove' and felt that he had become superior.

    The lightweight wheels which Tom made came about after seeing cars at competitive meetings shedding wheels at critical stages
and thus missing out on what was almost certainly a win. The commercial wheels which modellers were using were made from brass
with standard right-hand threads for the axle to screw into. Axles had to be threaded to suit and the wheels needed to be locked in
place by a nut. Avoiding a 'drunken' thread on an axle is difficult without proper equipment and the lock nut looked unsightly.
Ideally of course two of the wheels should have had left-hand threads but even those could have vibrated loose during a race.
Aluminium alloy wheels with a brass insert pressed in could be soldered in place and be much lighter. On non-driven wheels the
insert provided a good bearing surface. Better performance and an end to wheel shedding.

    He was persuaded to make wheels for others and later, with the availability of 'Pitman' motors from America, brass bearings
for soldering into the over-sized holes in the back bracket to take an axle. These were made in lunch hours in the departmental
machine shop at school. Production ceased when demands on his time (pupils) became more pressing. He didn't make his fortune;
the small charge he made barely covered the cost of materials and postage. Likewise the articles for the model magazines did not
result in any great improvement in his standard of living; payment was thirty shillings (A31.50) per printed page.

    Roy Denholm ran the Aintree Model Racing Car Club in a cellar under a workshop belonging to the family business near the
Aintree Racecourse. Roy was one of the Denholms of 'Denholm, Rees and O'Donnell', a leading ship repair company in Liverpool.
Fortunately, for others rail racing car enthusiasts, his cars did not have the same robustness as the ships his employees worked on.
He and fellow members of the Aintree Club organised a 'Le Mans' type race for teams of three cars and drivers at their track in 1961.
The race was to be run non-stopover a period of two hours hence the title 'Deux Heures du Mans'. Part of the race was run in total
darkness; the only light coming from the scale lamps at the side of the track and the head and rear lights of the cars. Laurie Cranshaw
was Chief Marshal in charge of racing on the day. The ARRA team of Bentleys, managed by Tom, came fourth. Talk about 'eyes
sticking out like doorstops' after the race! All very friendly and great fun on a track ARRA visited from time to time, occasionally winning.

    It was then that disaster struck the 'Western Lines'. Dry rot was found in the cellars in which the railway was built and this had
penetrated into the walls of the house. The whole layout, many years of devoted work, was stripped out and burnt so that the property
could be  professionally treated. There was no way that it could be rebuilt to the same standard and, since the venture into model car
racing, it had rarely been run or serviced.

    Discussion took place and it was reluctantly accepted that this unfortunate happening could be for the best. Slot racing now had a
substantial following and by knocking the two cellars previously used by the railway into one, enough space would be available to
build a superior slot car track for four cars. The completed track was featured in 'Model Cars' during 1964 and was applauded
for its stunning scenery, an electrical timer for consistent starts and reliable lap-counters. An Open race was held each year.

    It was at this stage that many of the 'Western Liners' began to realise what a monster they had created and lost interest.
The hobby became commercialised. It was possible to buy all the parts for a racing car ready finished and the satisfaction of
designing and building had gone. Yes, the cars got faster but became projectiles bearing less and less resemblance to the full
size versions. Competition became intense and winning was paramount in competitors minds. This unfortunately 'killed-off' those
who got as much pleasure, if not more, from building the cars as from racing them. It was bound to happen especially when toy
makers got into the act. That's progress (?).

    It's at this time that Tom, now an experienced teacher several steps up the professional ladder and father of two children,
got involved in night-school work and external examinations. One night a week was spent teaching Engineering Theory and
Practice at Old Swan Technical College, Liverpool and another on practical work for City and Guilds qualifications. Two years
later he was asked to take over another course at night for qualified engineers wanting to gain qualifications necessary for entry
into the teaching profession; this he was able to do in his own school workshops. When such a way of entry into the profession was
stopped he was persuaded to run classes for qualified teachers of engineering on the more advanced techniques of engineering
machine work. With the start of the Certificate of Secondary Education Examinations he became Chief Moderator for the Northwest
Region in Engineering Workshop Theory and Practice eventually being responsible for the examination over the whole of the British
Isles. Later, for the first six years of the General Certificate of Education he held the same position. Age was beginning to tell; he tired
of driving many hundreds of miles each year to sort out problems in schools and examination centres to ensure that the standard of
the examination remained constant and so he retired.

    Relaxation became Crown Green Bowls and gardening, a pastime more refreshing and much healthier than the dank cellars
of model railways and car tracks.

    Walkden becoming disheartened soon lost interest as standards fell and stopped racing but allowed the track to be used
'coming down' from upstairs on fewer and fewer occasions until he passed away a few years ago. His charming wife, Peggy, the lady
who provided the tea and biscuits for the 'cellar dwellers' for many years, allowed those still involved to continue using the cellar
until the time came for them to move elsewhere and build another track.

    Now, when Tom's youngest grandchild, Daniel, gets out his 'Scalextric' and challenges him to a race many happy memories come
flooding back. It is good to know he says that what was started by those 'cellar dwellers', six keen railway modellers, many years
ago is still giving pleasure to 'children' of all ages.

    Tom, the last of the 'Western Lines' and 'Auto Rail Racing Association' members, with early conscripts Charles Fitzpatrick and
Colin Sinclair, are the last to be able to recount the early days of rail racing. They are still much alive and kicking although their
engines have lost power and the 'knock and creak' in their bearings is getting much more audible. It is their intention to avoid the
'chequered flag' for as long as possible.

    On their behalf, Tom sends car modellers and racers, everywhere, their very best wishes.

    Happy racing to you all.

    -o---o0o---o-

    Tom Nelson,

    4th October 2003