ONE of the star engineering exhibits on show at last weekend’s Solrail Workington Model Railway exhibition was a scaled-down version of a Barrow record breaker.

The live steam model of Furness Railway No 20 formed part of a display by West Cumbria Guild of Model Engineers.

The full-size version is the flagship of the Furness Railway Trust and is the oldest working standard gauge steam locomotive in Britain.

It was built in 1863 by Sharp Stewart of Manchester to work as No 20 for the Barrow-based Furness Railway.

In 1870 it was sold to Barrow Steelworks.

It was converted to a saddle tank locomotive and by the time it was withdrawn from service in 1960 it looked very different to how it started almost a century earlier.

It stood in the grounds of the George Hastwell Special School at Barrow for more than 20 years until being bought for restoration in 1983.

Among the railway layouts at the show included Curwen Bank which imagines a route from Workington across the River Derwent and Derwent Sidings which features a range of the private owner wagons from mines and quarries which were once a common sight on county railway lines.

The next major county show for model railway enthusiasts is at Kendal in January.

Kendal Model Railway Club hosts its annual exhibition at Kendal Leisure Centre on Saturday and Sunday, January 27 to 28.

The show is open on the Saturday from 10am to 5pm and on the Sunday, from 10am to 4.30pm.

Maryport Model Club has its show at the town’s Netherhall School on Saturday and Sunday, April 14 and 15.

It is open from 10am to 4.30pm on the Saturday and from 10am to 4pm on the Sunday.