Ken Ball

[Hibelroad]

Ken Ball, a founder member of the Macclesfield model railway group, died on 25 September. First and foremost he was a gifted artist who applied his talents to the construction of many fine buildings for model railways and worked tirelessly as a committee member and president of the group. A pioneer in the use of plastikard, he was always willing to enthusiastically explain his methods at show demonstrations throughout the North West and in magazine articles. A great figure in the model railway world who will be greatly missed.   

[Free At Last]

3 hours ago, Hibelroad said:

A pioneer in the use of plastikard, he was always willing to enthusiastically explain his methods at show demonstrations throughout the North West and in magazine articles. 

I remember seeing his use of watercolour pencils on plastic brickwork, explained in one of his fact sheets.
R.I.P. Ken.
 

Brick Finishes Ken Ball.pdf

[Andy Kirkham]

I had the pleasure of talking to Ken at a Wigan show nearly 20 years ago. I had always remembered his model of a shop that appeared in a (?) 1968 Railway Modeller bearing the name "A Kirkham" and I was able to introduce myself as A Kirkham in the flesh.

[Not Jeremy]

What sad news, but he must have attained a pretty good age I should have thought - 94?.

 

I absolutely loved, and still love, his "Fraddon and Tretford" layout, heavily featured and on the cover of the September 1973 issue Model Railways magazine I bought  when it came out.

 

 

It has so much going for it, a really clever design, super modelling, and displaying a great "artists eye".

 

It really caught my imagination and gave me a sense of the possible, in a way that few layouts have really done since, as I look back on it and everything else some fifty years later - cripes....

 

Ken was well known on many levels, with many articles and at least one book to his name, and much appreciated by very many, but in a funny kind of way doesn't seem to be as much of a "name" in this wonderful hobby of ours as he perhaps ought to be.

 

Either way, rest in peace Ken, a life very well lived.

 

Simon, aged 65 and 254/365 ths

[Merfyn Jones]

I got to know Ken back in the late 60s when I worked with GEM.  Regular visitors with a sales stand at Manchester show in December we met Ken and other Macclesfield members with their layouts.

In more recent years Ken used to holiday in North Wales often and he visited our club, Colwyn Model Railway Club, and joined us as a 'country' member and produced a number of buildings for our layouts, in plastic card of course, most of which we still have without the layouts.

Not seen him about for some time now.  He will be missed by many in the hobby for his friendship and expertise.

Merfyn Jones, Chair Colwyn MRC. 

[colin.divall]

Sad news indeed, but yes, Ken did reach the grand old age of 94. I met him many years ago at the New Mills & District show (which was always, and still is, held in Chapel-en-le-Frith...) where he was, of course, building buildings. A happy meeting for both of us, as I'd reached the stage where I'd realized I was never going to model Wimborne station at full scale unless someone else did (most of the) the buildings. Which Ken did over the next few years, taking particular delight in capturing the feel of a LSWR station, a great change from his more usual northern subjects. I think we were both pleased when one year at the New Mills show a visitor recognized the very distinctive up-side buildings at Wimborne.... and I was even more pleased when one year Ken allowed me to show one of my very few models of a Wimborne structure, a feed store in the yard, along with his own. The only down side was that Ken (and I think his wife, Margaret) were heavy smokers and it would take literally years for the models to stop smelling of tobacco! I shall miss him - and sad to think that he'll never see the 'finished' Wimborne, although I promise I'm still working on it....

 

Colin

[Enterprisingwestern]

3 hours ago, colin.divall said:

The only down side was that Ken (and I think his wife, Margaret) were heavy smokers

 

Yet he made 94, they don't make 'em like that any more!

A name I remember from the 60's and 70's magazine articles.

 

Mike.