Model Steam Engines, by Bob Gordon, 32 pages, softcover, is $11.95 plus shipping from Shire Publications Ltd., Reprinted 2010, ISBN: 978-0-85263-906-1, www.shirebooks.co.uk.
Another book in the Shire Classics line, “Model Steam Engines” describes how model steam engines work, outlines the development of the tools used to build them and investigates seven different categories of model engines.
Originally published in 1987, “Model Steam Engines” reflects author Bob Gordon’s love and respect for model steam engines. He says, “They are fascinating pieces of industrial history in which shining brass, gleaming copper and burnished steel have been fashioned by craftsmen to epitomise the prototypes they represent.”
With large black and white photographs and illustrations of 19th and 20th century mechanical art on every page, the reader can begin to develop a real appreciation of the time, patience and dedication that goes into creating these miniature marvels.
The book includes chapters on how a steam engine works, problems and practicalities of building steam engines, pioneers of model engineering, early, well-known model engineering firms (in the U.K.), and more.
For the model steam engine collector, it includes questions for which you should have answers in order to determine if a specimen is a “good one” that is worth purchasing. Though many different model steam engines are pictured, along with their historical information, monetary values are not discussed.
This is not a “how-to” manual or a price guide, but an investigation of the growth of steam engine modeling as a hobby.
Bob Gordon is trained as an engineer and has serviced steam-powered ships and worked with steam engines, as well as driven model steam locomotives. He has written two other books for Shire: “Early Electrical Appliances” and “Toy Steam Engines.”
Model steam engine resources include a list of a dozen items for further reading and several places to visit in the U.K. ?
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