Innholdsfortegnelse for JANUARY / FEBRUARY / MARCH - 124 i Voie Libre international

Since their entry into service in 2010, the Allegra Abe 8/12 units used on the Bernina railway and the base network inaugurated the beginning of a standardization of consists on the Rhaetian lines. It’s awkward for modellers to collect no fewer than 14 three-body units whose only difference is the numbering. Apart from units 3510 and 3512 that were given an advert livery for ABB, it was not until the second half of 2025 that a coloured livery appeared on our model layouts. At the end of 2023, the overhaul of Allegra unit 3514 was almost completed, and it was decided to apply a so-called «souvenir» livery recalling the take-over, 80 years ago, of the previously independent Bernina and Arosa railways by the RhB. The pilot carriages were painted in…

20 of these wagons were built by SIG in 1970 (Haik-v 5101 to 5120). Designed for various loads carried on pallets, they featured sliding side panels and were the first of this type for the RhB network. They could run on all the routes of this railway, as well as on the FO and the BVZ, and could also be incorporated into passenger trains thanks to an 80km/h speed limit and the presence of an electrical connection for train heating. Two versions have been released again, 2278 103 n° 5113 in its original 1970S condition, and 2278 109 n° 5109 in 1980s condition with the period stretched logo. Addon parts supplied include the brake shoes, the brake hoses and the cables and electrical connectors. BEMO REF. 2278 103 AND 2278…

AN AMERICAN IN FRANCE In August 1914, Paris was on a war footing. By invading Belgium, the German troops had bypassed the fortified cities of Eastern France and were marching on the capital. The Viviani government had moved to Bordeaux and Paris came under the military administration of General Gallieni. He prepared the defence of the city by organizing an entrenched camp. The gaps between the Séré de Rivière forts built in the suburbs were filled with artillery positions. And in line with the customary practice of the French artillery, he planned to supply these batteries using 60cm gauge track. WHAT DOES 6-12-D MEAN? From 1840 to 1842, each type of Baldwin locomotive was defined by an alphanumerical code based on a few simple rules. The first digit corresponds to…

Like the first railways built out of Saint-Etienne from 1823 to 1828, this line was first and foremost designed for carrying coal. In 1826, Samuel Blum bought out the Épinac mines together with their glassworks, the local château and the surrounding estate. He founded the Société des Houillères et le Chemin de Fer d’Épinac on 5th October 1829. As the Blanzy mines shipped their own coal via the Canal du Centre, Samuel Blum opted cautiously to route his own line to the Canal de Bourgogne, despite the latter being located further away. The steel industries of the Seine and Aube valleys, served by this waterway, represented a very promising market. FOR OR AGAINST THE TRAIN Blum applied for a concession on 15th March 1828, and the Public Works General Assembly…

Rules In your workshop, on your workbench, you must have models and kits you have designed, built, modified, decorated… These models deserve to be presented, that you explain how you proceeded, a special way of working. Send us a short text, a few well-lit high definition photographs, an explanatory or technical sketch. Publication in the magazine will mean a free subscription (or extension of a subscription). Grab your tools!…

It is said that cats have nine lives; sometimes, layouts can have several also. Such is the case with Tim Somers et Joeren Nieuwlaat’s H0-12 layout, which is enjoying a new lease of life at the MSC Het Spoor club in SintNiklaas, Belgium. Tim and Joeren’s seaside layout, Saint-Amis-sur-Mer, had been withdrawn and was stored, unused, on the club’s premises. A few club members, secondary railway enthusiasts, had already visited the nearby Somme Bay, and were familiar with the metre gauge “ Bains de Mer” heritage railway between Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, Noyelles and Le Crotoy, operated by the CFBS association. With many documentary photographs in hand, together with sketches of buildings and of both railway and natural scenes, they put together over many working sessions a three-part scene evoking the Marquenterre area,…

These are new versions of the Saxon 750mm gauge 0-10-0 tank engines of the VI K, K 55.9 type, 99671 to 99717 series, in their late 1960s condition, assigned to Wilsdruff depot. Weighing 42.25 tons and running at 30km/h, they were assigned to heavy traffic on steeply graded lines. The first engine, reference 1006 873, N° 99 717, built 1927 by Sächsische Machinenfabrik, is supplied in simple analogue version, but can be quite easily digitized using a wire decoder. The second, reference 1106 835, N° 99 705, built 1926 by Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft Karlsruhe, is supplied with an ESU V5 decoder together with its Henning, and with working lights. This version displays slightly weather-worn markings and realistic blackened motion. The engine runs beautifully, smoothly and silently. The sound on 99 705 is…

Philippe Michel, the owner of Trains de Rêve, has released 3D printed «Decauville» mine skips. Nicely produced with fine rivets and both inside and outside engraving. The sets comprise one body, two axles and four wheels, also 3D printed. Simply fit the wheels onto the axles, and the axles into the chassis. These skips can be supplied for 0-16.5 or for 0-14mm gauge, to be specified on order. TRAINS DE RÊVE WWW.TRAINSDEREVE.COM PRICE: €29,90 EACH, OR €81 IN SETS OF THREE…

AIGUILLAGE & ACCESSOIRES This young brand is starting out in the field of rolling stock, and has announced for late 2026 the CFD breakdown train, in collaboration with REE. The set, sold in an «REE Les secondaires» box, consists of a crane wagon, a flat one and a box van. The models are mode of injected plastic parts, complemented by 3D prints. It will not be available from retailers, but exclusively from Aiguillage & Accessoires or REE. ARCHITECTURE & PASSION The Bourcefranc station concrete goods shed, in Charentes Maritimes, will be fully at its place in the goods yard of a secondary railway. The kit, ref. 873154, sold at 78 euros plus postage, consists of laser-cut and engraved technical card parts. The bricks are engraved in suitably coloured card. The…

THE MODEL Manufacturer: Gaugemaster Scale: all Ref. GMIA01 SOLO: €379.91 Ref. GMIA02 DUO: €434.90 Available from the LR Modélisme store Whether you are a DCC fan or faithful to analogue, this hand-held, wireless controller is what you need! It consists of a base station that delivers an electric signal into the track and its 18V transformer. A hand-held controller, with an interactive screen, a 360 degree speed dial and keypad, connected by Bluetooth. The controller, with a range of 50 metres, is powered by two AA batteries offering a two-month autonomy. Two options are available: the SOLO version for controlling one circuit. The DUO version for controlling two independent circuits. A complementary option for additional controllers can supply up to 10 circuits. CLASSIC ANALOGUE CONTROL The analogue unit supplies 100Hz…

On shows, the connections between the modules that make up the layouts are not always unobtrusive. However, it is not that hard to make them more discreet. 1/43.5 scale, which I model in, offers more scope for such improvements, but the recipes I describe can be applied to other scales, be they larger or smaller. THE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN MODULES Our show layouts consist of various structural components, that we have become used to naming «modules». They are often connected by bolts that leave a straight and often ugly-looking joint between them Concealing such connections must be thought out at the early stages of the layout design, and planned early during construction. It is easier to conceal joints in station areas, where there is a much wider choice of objects or…

A new version of the heavy carriages known as Stahlbauart, in a 1970s/80s livery prior to modernization, as they were used on peak hour trains or on mixed trains. Twelve 3rd class units were built by SIG from 1929 to 1933, their original maximum speed of 55km/h was increased to 75 then to 80km/h. B 2229, built 1931, carries the latest overhaul date of 13.7.83; 51 years of active service! A pouch containing the add-on railings, conduits, cables and connectors, is supplied. Sold with 12mm gauge axles, these carriages can be fitted with 9mm gauge axles. Take care all the same with the 330mm minimum radius, the accessories can get in the way, this is long and wide stock! BEMO REF. 3260 119 PRICE: FROM €72 TO 80…

Many enthusiasts answered the challenge jointly launched by the Bougnat Connection and Voie Libre: recreating a small corner of Colorado, with a two foot gauge line and highly whimsical trains running through it. All this on simple A4 baseboards, connected by short lengths or straight or curved sectional track, and placed on tables. The combination of 28 models, plus a fiddleyard, turned out to be a full 12 metres long, enough for the US-inspired trains in 00-9/H0-9 to have ample running space. Despite being quite simple, this principle enabled 25 modellers to each create at least one small universe (some were so bold as to build two, and rumour has it that it was possibly even more). Inspiration was found in a great many sources, ranging from history to geography,…

ULTRA-FINE! The U23 van in 1/87 scale is available in two versions: one with a tarpaulin, the other without. It is produced by two brands: Norev or Universal Hobbies (in particular for the Éditions Atlas collection: «L’Âge d’or des voitures françaises», n° 40), directly on the Norev website or secondhand. I opted for the model without a tarpaulin. On the tarpaulin-fitted model, the tarp is cast with the side planks, while the flat-bed is an add-on part. NOREV WEBSiTE https://norev.com/collections/3449-voiture-miniature-1-87 THE U23 MOTOR-TROLLEY AT THE TACOT DES LACS THE CHASSiS SUPPLiES: - Citroën U23 type van in 1/87 scale, Norev or Universal Hobbies - Roco or MinitrainS truck - Noch driver ref. 15244 - 1mm thick plastic sheet - (1) (18) (20) - Tramfabriek: 7 x 16mm motor (4) 7…

The first example, in H-09, is the work of Étienne Dubois who showed us his incredible underground and nevertheless clandestine distillery (VL nº 107), and, more recently, a small device shaped like a swivelling sector, to replace a turnout (VL nº 122). It was following the latter publication that Étienne built his microscopic depot. The second example, in H0-12, is a creation by Daniel Jünger: a railway running across a barrage. This new layout follows on from his incredible 0 scale narrow gauge tramway and funicular layout installed on a Breton island: Tomme de Mer (VL nº 105). THE MALAKOFF TRAMWAY Let’s kick off with Étienne Dubois’ latest creation, looking back to his small swivelling table that gave access to two tracks, by interlacing a straight and a curved segment.…