Heljan Locos

[drewn]

Hi there,

 

 

I've owned three different Heljan locos and I have noticed a step change in the quality of each of the locos  :-

 

1. First was a Class 33 "slim jim" - this wasn't a great mover, with a stuttering motion on slow down. Also there  were some electrical issues. Now retired!

 

2. Second was a Class 26 - this was an improvement on the 33 and still runs on my layout. Possible improvements could be made on the lights.

 

3. Third was a Class 128 DPU - now this is impressive !  A lot of weight, a lot of power.  A great, smooth runner, good lighting and excellent details.  The price wasn't bad either - £59 out of Hattons

 

So basically I feel that Heljan is going in the right direction - not all manufacturers can say that!

 

Am I alone in my view or does anyone else feel the same

[Stevelewis]

In  my  opinion  Heljan  have  been  going  in  the  right  direction  for  many  years.

 

Looks  like  you  have  been unfortunate  with  some  of  yours!

 

I have  owned  many  Heljan locos  both  in   0  & 00 gauges,  problems  have  been  very  infrequent,  far  less than  some of  the other  manufacturers.

[forest2807]

I have several dozen Heljan locos and I can honestly say that the only bad runner I have is the first generation Clayton that has the well known issues with the gear tower. All my others have (touch wood) been faultless performers. Not bragging btw, just singing their praises!

[Legend]

There was the unfortunate incident of the Class 17 where the motor supplied was not fit for purpose. They resolved it by supplying new chassis to people eventually ( from memory 12-18 months) . It wasn't an isolated failure, how they could have tested that for any period of time and yet still decided to send them out to the public for sale I felt said a lot about their attitude .It certainly gave their customers and themselves a lot of grief. So ever since then I've had Heljan in a B- category. However having said that I have a 47 , 2 27s and a 26 and all operate very smoothly . One had an issue with gears but it was just that the drive shaft had come loose and I was able to sort it myself.

[PM47079]

I've got one of the original batch of 47s. Still runs smoothly and seems to get better with age. All I had to do is glue the cup on the motor spindles as they split. I also have the latest hymek which again is a cracking runner

[Hroth]

I've got 6 Heljan locos - a Class 16, two Class 23s, a Class 28* and two class 128 DPUs and, (touching wood) they're all sweet runners. If anything, the DPUs are vastly overpowered compared with their prototypes!

 

 

* I don't really have a thing about Pilot Scheme failures....

[Southernman46]

 

 

1. First was a Class 33 "slim jim" - this wasn't a great mover, with a stuttering motion on slow down. Also there  were some electrical issues. Now retired!

 

 

Check the wheels - some of the early stuff had wheels that oxidised but not particularly visibly - replacements can be had from Howes

[Ray M]

Apart from 2 of my class 47`s getting fatter,

all of my other locos, 14`s, 35`s ,52`s have all being brilliant models.

I think you may have had a couple of T`break specials.

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

...So basically I feel that Heljan is going in the right direction - not all manufacturers can say that!...

 The early 47s that I 'ran in' for friends were good enough in operation but took hours of operation to loosen up and become properly free running. (Never could bring myself to buy one though, unconvincing model due to excessive width which made for obvious errors in body shape at the ends; and a 'bulky' appearance which was the opposite of the 'neat and tidy' impression the class made at introduction when compared to the sprawling classes 40 and 44/45/46, and the positively 'on steroids' look of the class 55.)

 

The couple of 27s that I saw next were a considerable improvement, free running from the off and looked right enough. By the time Heljan came up with releases that interested me - starting with the class 15 - they had switched to nickel-silver wheels; these ran sweetly and the lighting arrangements were much improved. The class 23s are delightful runners, and likewise the 26/0, and both have a good lighting arrangment. And these three models all look very convincingly like their prototypes too.

 

Largely improvement from a decent start is my appraisal (the one reservation for me the DP2, a model I would have purchased if good, but simply unacceptable due to a deliberately introduced and unnecessary shape error).

[railroadbill]

Saw Heljan 47s on an exhibition layout some years ago now and they ran so well I just had to have a couple. In fact I had to introduce a "blue diesel" era on my  layout for them. The Hymek is excellent, 26 and 33 also fine, 23 a gem. All of mine have run very reliably with lots of use, including second batch Clayton, which is capable of very slow running.  The 47s have the best tractive effort of any rtr locos I've got, 34 coaches so far....  Even the older locos with brass wheels are fine if you keep them clean.  Big motors, heavy chassis is a good spec. So, in my experience, a good make.

[cheesysmith]

If your 33 is runing badly, I would investigate why. I have a 33/2 that my children have played with and used for over 6 years, and it still runs sweet as a nut. This is due to changing the early wheels for the later ones. And with the flywheel effect and heavy metal chassis, it should not stutter when slowing down. I have used the Heljan drive train in lima locos, so not having the heavy metal chassis, and these still exhibit the flywheel effect very well.

[Stevelewis]

Just  as  an  aside  to  this  thread,  it  should also  be  remembered  that  Heljan   are  not  just  UK  outline  manufacturers,  for several  years  prior  to introdicing  UK  models  they  were  producing  very  high  quality  European  items  with  the  main emphasis on  Danish models,   and  they  still do,    the prices reflecting  the  quality  of  course!

[JSpencer]

In general, I have had few problems with my Heljan, no better or worse than other makes.

 

My fleet (with issues in brackets):

1 class 14

1 class 15

1 class 17

2 class 23 (lights did not work on one end of one, lighting unit replaced, slight circuit issues on one when converted to sound)

1 class 28 (some bits fell off, having to be refitted)

6 class 33s covering all variants they have done

1 class 35

1 class 53 Falcon

1 DP2 (drive shaft pops out on occasion)

1 Lion

1 Kestral

1 Beyer Garratt

[muddys-blues]

....  Even the older locos with brass wheels are fine if you keep them clean.  Big motors, heavy chassis is a good spec. So, in my experience, a good make.

 

That's what I say to my wife about my physical prowess, but she doesn't see it that way 

 

I have some of Heljans 7mm stuff, and it is value for money when you consider against many of the kits, the RTR models in 7mm make a great starting point for super detailing.

 

Craig.

[Stevelewis]

That's what I say to my wife about my physical prowess, but she doesn't see it that way 

 

I have some of Heljans 7mm stuff, and it is value for money when you consider against many of the kits, the RTR models in 7mm make a great starting point for super detailing.

 

Craig.

 

I quite  agree  Craig  (  Not  about  the  first line of  the  post  that  is  beyond  my  remit!!)  but the  7mm locos   I  have   had   half a  dozen or  so  of  them  without exception absolutely  superb,  immaculate  runners,  excellent  value  for  money  and  they  hold  their  price  as  well!

 

When  you look  at  the   forthcoming A4  & A3 locos  ( note  the  order  of  preference!)   commissioned  by Hattons  for  just  £750   that  must  be   the  0 gauge  bargain  of  the  Decade?!!

[Signaller69]

I have an 05 shunter, a recent class 17 and two class 27s, not had a problem with any of them. The 05 is sublime in running quality and for the minute working head/tail lights. Certainly beats my new spec Bachmann 03. Prices don't seem to have spiralled compared to Bachmann in the past couple of years either. Dare we hope Heljan do more 1st generation DMUs? A class 100/114/120 would be nice. . .