The two-car train, soon after completion in the mid-eighties. [Photo: A. Allum]

The Prototype:

The 1938 stock design was a result of London Underground's need to provide modern and efficient trains to handle increasing passenger numbers. It was the first tube design to have most equipment mounted underneath the car, giving it a greater passenger capacity than the earlier 'Standard' stock.
Trains ran as 3 or 4 car sets, with two Driving-Motor cars at either end, with an unpowered trailer (and in four car sets, a non-driving motor car) in between. These sets were often coupled together to provide longer trains.
During their lifetime, the 1938 stock trains worked the Bakerloo, Piccadilly, Northern, East London and Central lines. Although all were withdrawn from London Underground service by 1988, a number were transferred to the Isle of Wight and still operate services between Ryde and Shanklin.
A number of 1938 stock cars have also been preserved and London's Transport Museum maintains a 4-car set in working order.

Interior view of a 1938 car - as preserved at London's Transport Museum at Covent Garden, London.  [Photo: A. Allum.]

The drivers' controls from a 1938 train, set up here (at the LT Museum) as a driving simulator!  [Photo: A. Allum.]

The Model:

The 7¼" gauge 1938 stock was built by Fred Blois and first ran in 1987. Between then and 1995 it attended 136 events and carried over 46,000 passengers, as well as paying visits to permanent miniature railways.
After its last run in 1996, it was put into long-term storage at a motor museum in Sussex.

In early 2003, Fred offered to sell the two driving cars to Adrian Allum. Adrian had driven the tube many times and was eager to acquire it and get it operational again. However during April he discovered that the storage space he had earmarked for it would no longer be available and consequently he would no longer be able to buy the tube.

After hearing about these storage problems, Daniel Hill, a good friend of Adrian's and a member of the club that operates his model railway, approached his parents to ask whether it would be possible to store the tube at their house in Farnham. To his delight they were more than happy about the idea, and a co-ownership deal was agreed between Daniel and Adrian.

Because of the extra storage available, it was agreed that Daniel and Adrian would also buy the third car of the tube train, the track used for portable events and the trailer used to transport it.

The train has recently undergone a major overhaul which has seen it fitted with brand new wheels, axles, gears, motors, wiring and a new motor controller.
The train is available to run at portable track events such as fetes and exhibitions, as well as on permanent miniature railways. It can run as a two or three car set (though generally the third car is only used at events which do not also require portable track).

Work carried out on the train since overhaul::

Future work:

 
Left - The old control panel for the 1938 stock (shown while the body was removed). This has since been replaced with a hand-control unit.
Right - The new hand-held control unit. on a lead (which makes it much more comfortable to use).
[Photos: A. Allum]