I'm sure there will be at least a few New Zealander's on here who knew of the handle and persona LocoJohn (of local online seller Trade-Me fame in recent years) John Nelson and more so his multiple brick and mortar Hobby City sites around Auckland and ex Forbes and Davies Ltd. motorcycles etc. N Scale champion, and railroad, bus, car and eternal Motorcycle enthusiast and supporter, importer, retailer, sponsor, mentor and family man LocoJohn recently succumbed to medical problems. He passed away at Auckland Hospital Monday evening 25 September 2017. A service to celebrate John's life will be held at St George's Anglican Church 19 Ranfurly Road, Epsom on Tuesday 3 October at 11am. Notice in Thursday last NZ Herald. With Family Permission, Dave W ________________ PS- The layout and collections have been broken up for disposal per Johns desire. Photo of Johns beloved 'Tokyo' section of the multi-level layout although he modelled everything- British, New Zealand, Japan and US and enjoyed running multiple eclectic trains around the 400+ feet continuous loop double main and branches. And the bare boards of a decade ago (2007). And, not the track cleaner...
We all face the inevitable and none of us wants to be in a hurry. Condolences to the family and friends of a great guy. May we find peace with his and our lose. Salute Big John.
I can relate to the Siamese on the layout I have 3 of them and a brown and white tabby they love to lay on the layout and the workbench
Gentlemen, Thank you for the kind words from around the hobby-sphere. While John (born in UK but resident in NZ since 12 yo) wasn't an online entity (or member here), many of us/ his friends would send him links to topics and subjects sure to please/ annoy and interest him from around the web. He had a wicked sense of humour and wasn't afraid to push boundaries, which made him an admirable sounding board and mentor for so many subjects as he had so many opinions... always in the nicest possible way. The support and kindness he gave people has been immeasurable. The 'tremors' he suffered (not drink caused because he was a teetotaller) meant he was unable to complete detail work, and thus myself and others assisted with his layout scenery, modifications and maintenance upkeep whenever necessary. Thanks again, Dave
Actually Wingnut one of two Tonkinese- the layout being dubbed the TPW- Tonkinese Pacific Western (sounded grande but still didnt cover the modelling aspects. And yes, they too ate, slept and gnawed their way around like they owned it. I could never convince John to keep the door shut and them out, so many layout repairs from minor to major were required from time to time. Dave
I'm sorry to hear about John's passing, he sounds like a great guy. I will pray for him and his family. Joe and Cynthia Lovett
