Hi, well it is about six weeks since the Hunslet first batch reported progress.  Alas ten days over Xmas were lost, two days to festivities, eight days to flu.  January though has seen progress -  the back of the job is broken.

We now have eleven chassis mechanically complete and all running well forward and reverse on air.

Once the chassis run on air the course to the finish line is clear cut.  The next job is to make the gas tanks/burners/ pipework and control valve.  When this is fitted to the frames, the footplates can be assembled and fixed, followed by fettling the smookebox casting and fitting it too, then make the boilers, steam pipework, regulator and other boiler parts. I hope to have this done in the next couple of weeks.

Once the footplates and smokebox are on,  it is clear where we are heading.  They really do begin to look the business.
Sarah's book;  Colonel Péchot - Tracks to the Trenches, is selling well. It has been available now for a month.  I hope you have all been loyal and ordered your copy.  It has been favourably reviewed in Heritage Rail.  Roy Link (author of the exceptional and newly published WDLR Album) gave it a very generous review in the Narrow Gauge and Industrial Modelling Review too.