I read somewhere just recently that Melbourne will be retiring all these trams from service over the next few months. They will continue to run the red restaurant tram and the free city loop services for tourists, but the death knell came when too many people complained about the difficulty of embarking and disembarking because of the steep steps. If that wasn't a problem, they had considered retaining several on a historic line such as along Chapel Street, but that won't be happening.
Some of these trams are older than me. They have always been a part of my life and it's sad to see them go.
An old friend who passed away some years back, kept himself alive after World War 2 by making very rough models of these trams in approximately O Gauge. He used half a jam tin for the rounded ends and flattened jam tins for the sides. The roof was a piece of 3 x 1 pine roughly rounded off. He spent all his savings having decals of the sides with windows made along with number and destination boards. The trolley poles were bicycle spokes and the wheels and bogies were part of the side decals. He then sat outside each of Melbourne's dozen or so tram depots at the time, making models for the drivers and conductors. Each person got a model of the tram they operated, complete with correct numbering and destinations. My friend applied these on the spot.
The old chap had a few decals left over from the war years and began making the trams again in the mid 80's. Gee, they were rough! Even so, he sold every one until the decals ran out. He told me that during the war years he sold a couple of thousand of the things, which gave him a good income for the time.
