Looking at the High Level Kits Loadhauler gearboxes now. First up the plain Loadhauler.

The motor sits very low in the boiler. Theoretically there's clearance, but in reality I'd want more than that. And the back of the gearbox intrudes into the cab through the backplate. So that's not going to work.

Next is the Loadhauler Plus that has a swivelly extender section on the end.


With the extender level it won't fit, but with it rotated 20 degrees the motor is raised clear into the boiler and the whole gearbox is contained in the firebox with no intrusion into the cab. From the end view you can see that the top of the gearbox would project through the top of the boiler but that section of the gearbox can be cut back to fit. I did consider taking the top off the boiler and using some of the space in the saddle tank to accommodate the gearbox but the structure of the tank doesn't make that too easy. The drive extender hangs down a bit on a loco with small wheels (3'8" in this case) and I'm hoping the brakes and linkage will disguise it. There won't be a lot of room to add weight in the boiler but some can be placed in the ends of the chassis and some could be added to the saddle tank.

The Loadhauler Plus fits but there's one more problem to solve. The motor now sits well forward inside the boiler and it doesn't look possible to fit the body to the chassis if the cab and boiler are built onto the footplate as intended. I think the cab can be built on the footplate but the boiler and firebox will have to be built as a separate unit and fixed to the footplate with screws. That's looking like the best solution but it needs a bit more work on the details before I commit. I'll get round to actually building something eventually.