About Us

PEEMS

In 2001 a group of people in Pickering got together to discuss how they could share their common interest in engineering, and, in particular, model engineering. As a result, PEEMS, its full name being Pickering Experimental, Engineering and Model Society was formed. Perhaps a long-winded name but it does represent the wide interests that members have! PEEMS is a far simpler name and is used throughout this site. It is not a single-focus club but encompasses ALL aspects of engineering, model or otherwise. This is the strength of the club as all members learn from each other about the wider aspects of engineering.

Membership is over 50 people and meetings are held at 7.00pm on the first Wednesday of virtually every month in the Hungate Centre in Pickering. Meetings are not held in January as the first Wednesday may coincide with New Year’s Day with all its attendant commitments. The Home page gives details of where the meeting room is.

The following is split into several sections, as follows:

  1. Meetings

  2. Visits and Events

  3. Members activities

  4. The PEEMS railway

  5. Exhibitions

  1. Meetings

Meetings start from 7.00pm with the official business beginning at 7.30pm. This gives chance to have a chat with fellow-members and hear what they have been up to before the meeting starts as well as after the ‘official’ business has finished. Whilst the calendar details events for the current year, overall activities include the following:

  • talks on a wide variety of themes with an engineering focus or interest,

  • ‘Bring and Brag’ nights when members bring items of interest to describe and explain and to answer questions from members,

  • Demonstration events when techniques are shown,

  • The ‘Mike Sayers Trophy’ evening. This trophy is awarded, by members’ vote, to the person demonstrating a level of prowess in model-making,

  • auction night.

Meetings are also an occasion to ask fellow-members how they approach specific model engineering tasks. There is a wealth of experience in the club and members can help with any problem encountered. This is an important aspect of the club and an important aspect for new members as they develop their skill and expertise.

The club also meets once a month at the club workshop. The workshop was established early in 2015 and has several purposes:

  • the equipment provided – Myford ML7 lathe, smaller lathes, drilling machine, workbench, grinding machine, measuring and marking-out equipment and general tools – enables people new to the hobby to make things with more experienced members guiding them,

  • members with limited equipment have access to additional items,

  • the club has been able to demonstrate machining operations to other groups.

An important element of this is the discussions that take place over a cup of tea – or coffee – when everyone’s knowledge is increased and when aspects of the model-making hobby are discussed. It is not necessary to be an active modeller to enjoy the engineering discussions that take place.

  1. Visits and Events

Visits undertaken involve going to places with an engineering base. The club has recently been to:

  • the Nissan car factory in Sunderland

  • Drax Power Station near Selby

  • The Rolls-Royce Open Day in Derby

  • The Real Aeroplane event at Breighton Airfield near York

Other visits have been to steam museums and local engineering firms. The club is always open to suggestions for visits as we wish to reflect the varied interests of all members.

Other events organised include garden parties at members houses where again there is an opportunity to chat about engineering matters in a social setting. Wives and partners are included in these events which are as much social as engineering. Allied to this is the annual dinner where again guests are very welcome.

  1. Members Activities

A wide variety of engineering interests are represented in the club, so there is something for everyone. The club is not a single-focus club, such as a boat club or a railway club may be. Rather it is a club for those interested in all things engineering, of whatever type. Having said this, interests encompass the following:-

IC engines, Steam (locos, traction engines, stationary engines and a record holding hydroplane) clocks, musical instruments, jet engines, Meccano, and several others.

  1. Exhibitions.

PEEMS has for many years exhibited at the main North-East exhibition at Harrogate putting on an impressive stand with a whole range of models – some of which can be seen in the menu item “Gallery” and has won the “Best Club Stand” award on several occasions.

From 2016 the exhibition has been held in May at Doncaster Race Course. This annual event is a major item in PEEMS calendar.