Presse / Press
Echtdampf-Hallentreffen 2016 / 16.11.2015
What a turnout! The live steam community meets in Karlsruhe for
the 20th anniversary of the world's largest indoor steam meeting.
Spark plugs glow and plumes of smoke drift through the hall, enticing your nose with the beloved aroma of hot steam engine oil.
Nostalgic trains chuff and toot their way around the tracks, while
traction engine drivers crack jokes and entertain their audience.
Welcome to the jubilee meeting of steam modellers from 8th 10th January 2016 at Messe Karlsruhe!
The legendary Indoor Steam Engine Meeting in Karlsruhe is renowned as
the world's largest indoor event of its kind, offering visitors the greatest
variety of steam model engineering. Model trains circle the exhibition halls
on 5 inch and 7¼ inch tracks totalling a length of over five kilometres.
Live steam locomotives, traction engines, stationary steam engines, steam
ships and steam-driven model railways transform the Karlsruhe venue into
a hub of continuous activity. Here are the highlights of the jubilee event:
Very British: Live steam module layout in gauge 2
While gauge 2 steam locomotives have a large fan community of their
own in Great Britain and have developed quite a substantial market, they
are relatively unknown in continental Europe. But not for long, as we have
invited Tobias May to the jubilee steam meeting in Karlsruhe to introduce
this gauge to steam model enthusiasts! For the first time he will present
an impressive display segment from his layout which is still under construction. The topic this time very German: Deutsche Reichsbahn steam
locomotives and battery-run locos. Gauge 2 runs on a track width of 64
mm. It depicts - like the more widely known 2m - the so-called normal or
regular gauge in scale 1:22.5.
Very special: Gauge 0 layout from South Tyrol
Months before the event, Joachim Skudelny from beautiful South Tyrol
starts to design his layout and prepare his locomotives. For the 2016
steam meeting he is planning a 3-track layout on an area of 17 x 7 metres
with 10 points.
For his 9th birthday Joachim Skudelny's parents gave him a clockwork engine in gauge 0. Since then he has remained loyal to this gauge and has
constructed several steam engines as well as electric locos. He also makes
all the tracks himself. At home in South Tyrol, his garden railway with
some 160 metres of track attracts many visitors.
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Presse / Press
For the last six years his grandson has accompanied him to the event as a
guest driver. And other owners of gauge 0 locos occasionally like to give
their engines a run on his layout. For 18 years now Joachim Skudelny,
meanwhile 80 years old, has been taking part at the Indoor Steam Engine
Meeting as the only representative of gauge 0 with undiminished energy,
bringing his faithful team of helpers with him from South Tyrol.
Very famous: American lumber railroad loco "Shay" at Bear Creek
Think back to the year 1880. If we were in America we might meet a certain Ephraim Shay, who owned a large sawmill in Michigan. And Mr. Shay
had a problem - how to safely transport logs on the uneven tracks that
ran through the woods. This required a different type of locomotive to
those that had been developed so far - an engine powered on all axles but
at the same time as small and versatile as possible. Now we jump to the
year 2016 and meet Gerd Ziller. He is a passionate 'lumber railroader' and
among his exhibits at the Indoor Steam Engine Meeting we find: the most
famous invention of that very Ephraim Shay! This is the 6th time he has
brought his US logging railway to Karlsruhe. From humble beginnings it
has meanwhile developed into a complete railway landscape with the narrow gauge "Bear Creek Lumber & Railroad" in scale 1:6 presented in appropriate surroundings Apart from the self-made rolling stock the layout
includes numerous buildings and equipment such as a fully functioning
water tower. A particularly interesting highlight is the timber loading point
where everything is an exact copy of the original. Heavy logs are loaded
up onto the waiting wagons in no time. And all thanks to steam power,
and the very famous "Shay".
Very nice: Italian model engineers meet Bertha Benz
They say that behind every successful man there is a clever woman. This
is certainly been proven by Bertha Benz. After all, in August 1888 she
demonstrated to the world the serviceability of the three-wheeler car by
making the first long distance motorcar journey from Mannheim to Pforzheim and back. Love moves mountains! And with great love of detail a
group of Italian engine constructors have built two fully functioning models of the Bertha Benz three-wheeler. These models will not only be on
show on the display area at 'Echtdampf-Hallentreffen' but will also be
driven through the halls from time to time so that spectators can see
them in motion. Another addition and highlight at the 2016 show is a Fiat
crawler tractor.
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For several years the sector of stationary and functional models at the Indoor Steam Engine Meeting has been enhanced by the Italian model engineers. Between their appearances at two consecutive steam meetings
they develop new engines and for some time now also very complex replicas of vehicles. In the past there have been a Lanz Bulldog und a hot-bulb
Landini, and last year they fascinated the audience with models of the first
CATERPILLAR and a BEST crawler tractor. The models are always fully
functioning self-made metal constructions, with many of the individual
parts cast in aluminium and steel. The positive feedback that the outstanding Italian model engineers receive from visitors and other participants at the Indoor Steam Engine Meeting are always an incentive to design yet further new models, sometimes developed in the record time of
just one year.
Very charming: The "nutty" little tin plate railway
A little gem awaits visitors in the dm-arena: the charming raised surface
layout by Franz Holzapfel. He has been a loyal participant at 'EchtdampfHallentreffen' ever since the 2nd event in 1998. He and his team of friends
from Germany and Switzerland put together a splendid tin plate railway
layout in gauge 1, presenting many rare and attractive buildings such as
stations, depots, industrial plants, airport and harbour, and an impressive
collection of ancient original spirit locomotives, coaches and wagons by
Märklin, Bing, Bub and others. Discover the charm of the little 'nut excavator' railway with old Billerbahn models, or watch the shunting operations on the steam-powered traverser. This is a model railway such as our
(great) grandfathers played with - and it will appeal just as much to the
younger generation today! Franz Holzapfel and his team will be glad to
give competent information on the layout and its operation.
Altogether some 700 participants at the three-day Indoor Steam Engine
Meeting present over 1,000 steam models from all over the world on an
exhibition and activity area of 20,000 m². Very bright: glowing coals and
mystic lights greet spectators who stay to watch the night driving on Saturday.
All further information on the 20th Indoor Steam Engine Meeting can be
found at www.echtdampf-hallentreffen.de and
www.facebook.com/EchtdampfHallentreffen.
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Presse / Press
Event dates 2016
8th - 10th January2016
Venue
Messe Karlsruhe
Messeallee 1
76287 Rheinstetten
Germany
www.echtdampf-hallentreffen.de
Opening hours
Friday 8th January 2016
10 am - 6 pm
Saturday 9th January 2016
9 am - 6 pm in dm-Arena
9 am - 8 pm in Hall 3
Sunday 10th January 2016
9 am - 5 pm
Admission prices
at the ticket office
One-day ticket, adult: 12.00 €
One-day ticket, reduced: 9.00 €
(Children aged 9 - 17 years, pupils, students,
pensioners and other entitled persons with ID)
Family ticket: 30.00 €
(2 adults+ 2 own children aged 9 - 17 years)
Night-Hour ticket: 6.00 €
valid on Saturday, 9.01.2016
from 5 - 6 pm in the dm-Arena
and from 5 - 8 pm in Hall 3
Children up to 8 years of age free of charge
Photos for royalty-free use in publications can be found here:
http://www.echtdampf-hallentreffen.de/medien/presse/bilder-video-logo/
_________________________________________________
Contact: Messe Sinsheim GmbH
Phone: +49 7261/689-0 , Fax: +49 7261/689-220
E-mail: presse@messe-sinsheim.de
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