I could be rather corny and start with the headline of “what a scorcher” but that could be referring to the weather. It was one of the hottest April weekends recorded which meant that for people simply looking for something to do they went to the beach or somewhere where they could make the most of it.
This was our sixtieth year show and diamond exhibition. In view of this we thought we would have a an event where we could share with friends and neighbours who came along to show off an excellent selection of models of all types. The result was that whilst we had a small drop in numbers, there was a very high satisfaction result from those that came.
First of all I must thank all our own members who took time and effort to bring along their finest and interesting. I would also like to thank the visiting clubs for the quality of the work they brought along and for manning their stands to answer questions and generally act as great ambassadors for the hobby.
Bristol SMEE and West Huntspill ME are old friends and set a standard for visiting clubs. Both provided fine models covering different aspects of the hobby. Westland and Yeovil MES demanded a good sized plot and filled it with a selection of showcase standards locomotives, traction engines, a Foden steam lorry and patterns for restoration projects. I had asked the visiting clubs to bring along the unusual. Tiverton did not let us down with an astronomical telescope; a fine boxed pair of recorders made in boxwood which played as well as they looked; a furnace and a replica cannon. South Somerset filled their stand with some gypsy caravans as well as a selection of locos etc.
Tone Valley Model Boat Club and the Blackdown Radio Controlled Model Boat Club both had larger stands this year and they used it to give a wider idea of the types of models they produce.
Special exhibits from visitors came from Graham Castle with an excellent display of models and cameos describing the history of the Clyde puffer and canals. There was also a display of working wooden models of various engines and engineering drives from Edward Addis. Despite the fine workmanship he is quite keen that they should be used to educate and was quite happy for them to be handled.
From TME Andy Webb put aside his gas turbine engine this year and brought his near completed chassis for his 7¼” LNWR Benbow compound. This was running on air enabling the Joy valve gear and it's smooth running to draw the crowds.
Outside Andy Cooke staged a grand show with several traction engines from TME and Tiverton. These attracted a good crowd throughout the weekend. All the enginemen worked hard and seemed to having a good time, even if they did look like a group of latter day mummers.
The trade was well represented with Reeves 2000, Axminster Power Tools, MEP, Tracy Tools, JB Cutting Tools, Western Steam and Cheddar Valley Models. Additionally HJH Tools and Noggin End Metals were very useful newcomers. They brought a wide variety of tools and materials from stock metal through cutting and machine tools to kits and components. Whilst sales on the day were lower, hopefully, people will buy from them during the coming year (please say you saw them at Taunton).
Publicity proved a problem this year. The change in date to avoid the Easter weekend meant that we missed the cut-off dates for the model engineering press. It seems magazines are sent to press earlier than many would imagine. Southern Fed put a moratorium on enclosing fliers due to additional costs of postage thus we had to mail individually all relevant clubs and societies within a 2 hour drive time of Taunton.
Selecting models from TME was not too difficult though it is clear that the database is out of date and should be updated soon. Problems with getting all the models I would have liked were doctors orders and transport, I fear will only get worse as ages advance.
Planning for next year has started. We hope to revert to the first weekend of April. There is space that can be filled in the main hall and I welcome ideas and views on what we could/should do for the future.
I round off with my thanks to all the exhibitors, stewards, the TME committee, the school (particularly the caterers - Bristol have noted this), all the visiting clubs and the traders for making the exhibition so good for the visitors. I look forward to seeing you all again in 2008.