89-year-old model engineer puts beloved steam locomotive up for auction
After 12 years building his 5in gauge locomotive from scratch, Mike Stevens is reluctantly putting it up for sale
An 89-year-old model engineer is reluctantly parting with a steam locomotive he spent 12 years building from scratch after deciding that transporting and running the heavy engine has become too demanding.
Mike Stevens' 5in gauge locomotive, Colombo, is being offered for sale through Wolverhampton-based auction house Cuttlestones on September 17.
The locomotive is the culmination of Mike's 70-year passion for model engineering. He began building basic steam models as a schoolboy and went on to create locomotives, clocks and bespoke stationary, agricultural and marine engines.
His hobby ran alongside a 60-year professional career as a CAM and tool design specialist. His career included work on military aircraft including the TSR-2 and F-11 at Hobsons Ltd in Wolverhampton, as well as a role in the drawing office at PSM in Willenhall.
Mike later founded his own precision machining company in 1996.
He has been a member of the Kinver Society of Model Engineers since 1983 and has run Colombo at tracks across the West Midlands. The locomotive has also been displayed at venues including the NEC and Birmingham University.
Mike said running the engine had become "a young person's game" as the physical demands of transporting it to tracks became increasingly difficult.
However, he has no plans to retire from model engineering and still spends most days at his workbench, where he now concentrates on building smaller Gauge 1 engines.
He hopes Colombo will find a new owner who can continue to steam the locomotive and give it many more years of use.