Workshop Wren

A room of one's own is a well-loved cliche. Virginia Woolf wanted a generous space. Jane Austen made do with a desk in a passageway.  So it goes with a workshop. David X. Manners was a 20^th century editor of a craft and diy magazine for 20 years before he wrote ‘How to plan and build your workshop’ He admitted that as a general rule the more space the better but there were important qualifications.  Natural daylight, music, easy access, headroom and storage are far more important. Wonders have been done in a cupboard if it is the right sort of cupboard. In the era of ingenuity, it was possible to get the Shopsmith (a wood-working all-in-one) which fitted along the side of a garage accompanied by a workbench cabinet which folded against the garage wall. Even more ingenious was the folding Dorbak which could be hung on a cupboard door.

Little house in the big woods. A spacious yet cosy workshop has long been Malcolm's dream

All these starter workshops have their merits but they have left Malcolm even keener on purpose-built premises. His creative life began in a generously proportioned meter cupboard and progressed to my grandfather’s ‘shack’. Though not ideal, they gave him an idea of what he wanted. He wanted brightness and airyness, space round the machine tools and a clear floor. Anything dropped could then be retrieved by a couple of sweeps of a broom. Sarah in tuirn wanted it to be warm. Otherwise, any space would be unusable for half the year. Unless a certain temperature was maintained, anything stored would rot and anyone capable of movement would migrate somewhere warmer.   Space and temperature were among the luxuries which on reflection turn out to be wise investments.

Being parked. This is one vehicle you will find in the new garage. Wrightscale 16mm Wren

Thanks to cooperative neighbours, the workshop is large. This should give space for the range of machine tools which have overlapping uses. Malcolm could make do with one large and one small turning lathe, for example, both working at the very limits of their design capacity, but better and more efficient to have several, each working at its optimum.

There is another condition the workshop has to satisfy. It has to take a car.   So the garage has a clear space and suitable access for a car. When the space is needed for an assembly project, the car simply lives outside. Unlike the usual garage door, these doors are fully glazed, letting in precious daylight.

Vehicke ready to leave its garage. Wrightscale 16mm Wren

Unlike the neighbours, the planners do not admit to the existence of the soul. They were willing to grant permission for a garage-workshop, but not a workshop as we already have one.

Daylight is the greatest indulgence. We promised to concentrate the windows away from our neighbours and towards the view. Platitudes have been uttered about natural light lifting the spirits. They hide a greater truth. We perish without light and a view on to greenery. 

Here comes the paradox. Malcolm needed storage. Storage requires space, insurance and heating – the enemy, you might think, of light and room to move. Many have argiued that keeping stuff for repair and reuse makes little sense in the world of Amazon, Gumtree and ebay when new or second-hand possessions are only a mouse-click away.  Possessions generate negative income and anxiety, not to mention trip-hazards. 

But Malcolm is getting his storage. Even before the shed was built, he had acquired cupboards and display-shelves, massive items which are themselves a pain to store. His own collection of models will be going there, including items which have no value to anyone else. More than just mess and traps for dust, they add up to an expression of identity. What goes on in the mind is more than just a series of brain-waves, interesting as those may be. If they don’t involve hand and eye, not to mention sharing, memories gradually flatten out and cease to be. Life is incomplete otherwise.

Are you sure you have enough light? The folding garage doors double as windows.

The same applies to adequate headroom. Hours spent in claustrophobic conditions cramp the spirit. The same applies to music and a suitable chair for thinking through a problem.  Action may be possible in soul-destroying conditions but anything creative is not.

The workshop was erected from a kit on Monday 15th April. On that  day, the cathedral of Notre Dame burned. We are among the many who feel an affinity with that gracious cathedral so we are calling our own little place the Notre Dame Works - our own small tribute.

Why two Wrens? The answer is the answer any enthusiast will give 'I can't bear to part with either'

Of course, if Malcolm gets his stuff out of the house, Sarah will have more room for hers inside.

Another view of a pair of Wrightscale Wrens

Wrightscale Wrens in the box

We look forward to seeing friends old and new at the AGM, Peterborough this Saturday 6th April. We'll be bringing along kits for signals, WD bogies, Pechot wagons and cranes. We'll also have examples of Wrightscale locomotives.
We are also delighted to say that we'll be showing off some newly finished Kerr Stuart 0-4-0 Wren  tank locomotives. A big thank you to everyone who has patiently encouraged us along the winding road! Various things, family and professional, have been hampering us but at last our little beauties have seen the light.

16mm Kerr Stuart Wren models made by Malcolm Wright. He has painted them in a livery standard for the prototype. Green pigment was resistant to the heat and weather. Red buffer beams were important for safety and black the best colour for parts exposed to coal and lubricant.

Malcolm's affection for the Wren goes back many years. It was the first design he created after being drawn into the world of 16mm, then as an enthusiastic amateur. As they say, first love never dies!
There were many moments of perplexity. What is the true Wren and what the pale imitation? There are many adaptaions that were made, over the years and two families which both proudly bore the badge. These were 'old' type and 'new'.  Needless to say, some 'old' types were being produced after the new were introduced ... but that just adds to the colour.
We just love the history and so, here, once again, is a little bit of history to explain why the locomotive was the way it was. The Engineering company, Kerr Stuart Ltd of Stoke on Trent, realised that a new market had grown up for small industrial and military locomotives which could be easily moved to temporary works. If and when they were no longer needed, they could be moved on.
Continental manufacturers such as Jung, Henschel and Decauville were already supplying the market. Decauville, for example, was supplying small locomotives to Australian sugar plantations, in the British backyard. Another significant market were the French and German armies which had realised the potential of 60cm (the Continental equivalent of 2' gauge) for military supply. This is a whole other story!

A closer view of the rear. Wrightscale Wren in 16mm scale

Kerr, Stuart already had an 0-4-0 Buya class locomotive design which was adapted for 2' gauge. The design was streamlined for easier manufacture. It included advanced features for the time. Typical of these were the round connecting and coupling rods with marine style big ends. The narrow gauge forced other adaptations. The firebox had to be waisted to fit between the frames which in turn were increased in height above the axes. It had a very low centre of gravity - both a good and bad thing on rough contractor's track. A low centre of gravity has obvious advantages but when the boiler and cylinders are so close to the rail, damage inevitably ensues. Soon, a steel firebox was fitted as standard though a copper inner firebox could be supplied on request. As the locomotive was so light, the rear wheels tended to 'dig in' when it started, causing excessive wear to the back two wheels. Soon steel tyres were fitted as standard.
In 1915, the 'new' type Wren was introduced. This was now fitted with Hackworth valve gear, rather than the Stephenson's link. This made a number of modifications possible. The reversing shaft was moved to a place above the axle and the boiler barrel was raised. The cylinders were inclined which allowed greater clearance between them and the track; proper cylinder drain cocks were fitted. The frame was strengthened by a substantial angle riveted along its top length. I should like to think that we could tell old and new apart because of all these technical improvements but probably what everyone notices first is that, in spite of the reinforced frames, 'new' is lighter and more airy in appearance.

Light and airy, the Wrightscale 16mm Wren

Given all these improvements it is surprising to note that 'old' type models continued to be requested. Presumably the boss of these concerns had not directly experienced draining a cylinder straight through the front cover.Steam and water get everywhere to the detriment of human and machine. One thing was not improved. The cab remained so light as to be almost ethereal, and not much protection from the weather. The ingenious drivers lashed up home-made cabs from wood and corrugated iron.
The Wren was a standard contractor's cab for many years. 58 examples of the old type were made and 104 of the new type before Kerr, Stuart closed its doors in 1930. The majority were 2' gauge with some metric. Two locomotives with enclosed gear were made for a steam tramway in Brazil, to 915 mm gauge. Further 'new' types were made by the Hunslet Engine Co of Leeds between 1930 and 1941 and the story is not over yet. Statfold Barn has taken over the design and there are two on the stocks there.
We hope you understand why Malcolm loves this model so much. He has, in fact, produced more 16mm models  than Kerr, Stuart did 2' gauge. He will have one or two on the stand ready to chuff away to their new homes.