Whilst STW spares is a new company in 2026, its heritage goes back over 30 years.

The initial company that came up with the concept of supplying large scale steam models, in kit form, to the British market and overseas was Winson Model Technology (WMT) – back in the 1997. After growing too quickly and suffering with quality issues, WMT unfortunately only lasted 3 years until 2000 before going into administration. A group of venture capitalist loved the concept and purchased the designs and assets of the company, becoming Modelworks International (MW's). After working as machinist for both WMT and MW's, progressing on to Production Manager and later General Manager, on the demise of MW's in 2008, rather than relying and working for others, Dean Rogers paired up with the designer and good friend Steve Baldock to start up themselves, and Steam Traction World (STW) was born. Over the period until the collapse of STW in summer 2026. We estimate over 1600 models have been sold into the market, in kit form, with the majority built and completed. We certainly see a lot running around at rallies.

In the early years of WMT and MW's the range included railway locomotives, but for the past 18 years it has been solely focused on large scale road going vehicles – mainly traction engines, steam lorries and the Lykamobile full size steam car. Sadly, despite being profitable every year since starting, it has always been a challenge juggling cash flow, to keep the company financially stable. With manufacturing costs and materials increasingly becoming more expensive in the UK, some manufacturing methods inevitably became sourced overseas – most successfully in China and India. All designs, support and despatch with around 50-60%% of production was still organised in the UK, from the Daventry base.

One continuity throughout the whole period has been Dean, who along with the designer and his late partner Steve Baldock, who sadly passed away in 2018,  has been instrumental in keeping the company going since it started. Deans’ commitment to the company and his customers has always been 100%, and many of you will know him and recognise that. After over 15 years of running the company, he decided he wanted to step back and so in around 2023 put the company up for sale. It was eventually sold, but to owners who still wanted Dean to run the place, which was not his plan. Business suffered and after Dean left the company in late 2024 it never recovered so STW went into liquidation in on 3 July 2026.

An obvious call the liquidator made was to Dean, both because of his previous history and ownership with the Company, and the current premises are owned by him. Dean in turn called me, and we rapidly agreed to set up a joint venture – STWspares Ltd (17384401) – to buy the remaining assets of STW, mainly consisting of the designs and stock left in the factory – most else had gone, along with all the staff. Our vision is to support customers who have partially compete kits, by attempting to complete their models with parts from stock or potentially sourced elsewhere using the wealth of knowledge gained over the last 30ish years. Beyond this we aim to provide a stable base to supply spares and support to customers with the whole range of models in operation across the globe. We do not have any plans to get back into full manufacturing and supply of kits – those days have passed – but we are receiving interest from others to build the kits under licenses from the designs we now own.

On pricing, please be aware that the reason most of the companies have struggled it that it is not easy to make a sustainable business in model engineering, and most items end up being sold too cheaply and the company eventually goes bust. We will be trying to price fairly and on a basis which allows the company and supply to continue into the future. This will mean prices are likely to be higher than you have observed previously but producing small batches is expensive. Please do not think this is us making a fortune off the business – as Steve was fond of saying, the only way you make a small fortune in model engineering is to start with a large fortune!

Finally, about me. My name is Mark Draper, and I have been involved with and a supporter of the companies, and particularly Dean, for nearly 30 years. Along the way I and my late father have invested in the companies, occasionally worked for them and supported the team. We have also bought and built various models, of which I still own a 4” Burrell.

Dean and I look forward to supporting you for many years to come so you can continue to steam and enjoy your model. Thank you in advance for your business.
If an item is shown as out of stock, don’t be afraid to ask and we’ll do our very best to manufacture or procure it for you.

Please note: We have sole rights to all the designs, patterns and IPR of Steam Traction World and have a wealth of knowledge of their product range.