Voie Libre international JANUARY 2015 - 80

It was just 20 years ago that a bunch of enthusiasts, brought together under the LR Presse banner, our publishing house known at the time as Éditions Loco-Revue, thought up a railway magazine like no other. A magazine that dealt with secondary railways, narrow gauge lines and whimsical trains. A magazine that gives ample space to dreams, to the pleasures of construction and to the joy of being a scale modeler. A magazine that takes us off the beaten track(s), helps us model with our hair down and shows us the (permanent!) way. Over the last 20 years, Voie Libre has become THE magazine for secondary railway enthusiasts. To celebrate this date, and help you keep up with us wherever you may be, we are now launching an English version of Voie Libre. This magazine is…

Trains d’Antan: a Pinguely 0-6-0 T French H0m enthusiasts are now familiar with Trains d’Antan. Over the last few years, this artisan has produced an impressive number of railcars, diesel locomotives, carriages and wagons of the former French meter gauge railway companies. But many modellers thought this range would not be complete until a steam locomotive was released. It’s time to cheer, as we don’t have much longer to wait. At the Expométrique/Euromodel’s 2014 show, the prototype of a Pinguely 0-6-0 T was running on the modular layout displayed by the GEMME. The locomotive demonstrated to demanding observers its ability to run over all types of track despite its very slim flanges. Its realistic speed also made a strong impression on visitors. It can be expected that many steam loco enthusiasts will fall for…

This is the name now given to one of the last remaining stretches of Romanian forestry railways, which runs up the valley of the Wasser near Viseu de Sus in the north of the country. This line was built in the 1930s to 76cm gauge to move wood from the felling areas to the processing and shipment zones. Trains ran empty up the valley, from the lowest point at ca. 600m altitude, to 1100m at the highest. On the way back down, with the log trucks fully loaded, there was plenty of work for the brake-men! This stretch is now preserved and steam-operated. http://www.railtv.fr/Players/RunVideo.aspx?Id=4037…

The layout at a glance •Scale: 0e (1/45) •Gauge: 16.5mm, corresponding to 76cm gauge prototype track •Control: digital •Dimensions: 4.3 x 2.6 m •Type: fiddleyard to fiddleyard It was at the very end of the Walferdange 2013 show in Luxemburg that the six Frenchmen who had attended the show, together with a Luxembourger, said to themselves: “How about building a layout together and displaying it next year?” There was just an hour left before the show closed, so an idea was urgently needed. Still, these chaps are never short of ideas. First decision: the layout would be narrow gauge, this was pretty obvious. Second decision: it would be in 0 scale and built in at least four different locations, and the gauge would be 16.5mm. Third decision: an original topic was required, something that hadn’t been…

Obviously, our visit is short, and it cannot be complete or completely objective. We have opted to show you a few creations that caught our attention. Gilles Fressonnet visited Châtellerault on our behalf, where he observed the many productions of French modellers. At Expotrains Luxembourg, the public discovered La Mocanita, which is the subject of an article in this same issue. The Walferdange show is traditionally open on the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and France. The ideal place to discover gems from elsewhere! As for RailExpo, the 2014 edition featured Italian and Spanish layouts, as well as two French creations which we will review later. Le Carrefour du pont, built by Gérard Huck, is a module that’s part of the GEMME’s H09 layout. Created specially for the Expométrique show, this pleasing scene…

This project is inspired by an extraordinary site on the Chemins de Fer de Provence: Le Fugeret station. After a short stop – the station is basic, with just three parallel tracks – the train resumes its journey. Beyond a straight and steeply graded stretch of track, the line curves to the right before entering a tunnel. At the other end, the scenery unfolds on our right and we discover below the station we have just left. But very soon we are back in the dark, with the engine running at full power on the gradient. Finally, we emerge once again into the open, with splendid scenery to our left and Le Fugeret station in the distance. Darkness engulfs us again. The third and last tunnel takes us into the…