Dave Bradwell does numerous castings for the J27, highly recomended as is his J26/J27 kit.

https://traders.scalefour.org/DaveBradwell/

2 hours ago, micklner said:

Dave Bradwell does numerous castings for the J27, highly recomended as is his J26/J27 kit.

 

https://traders.scalefour.org/DaveBradwell/

I have two Bradwell J27s and they really knock the Oxford Rail offering into a cocked hat.

As for the Bradwell castings, I took receipt of two sets of mould 4 at the weekend to replace the dreadful chimney and to convert one to a low dome (maybe both) on my Oxford models.

I'd much rather invest the extra time and money into producing a Bradwell J27 but at my age time begins to creep into the equation.

Lovely job Mark. I have early/late crest examples and feel they represent terrific value for money, run well and will pull a good load. I may titivate them in a similar manner to you, but for now I am happy with them. I hope the (round spectacle?) J26 appears, although with Hornby now in control at Oxford, I fear this well detailed and innovative budget brand will be subsumed. Shame, as their N7 is also a delight as is their goods stock.

Cheers from Oz,

Peter C.

Lovely work - For the money and as 45568 points out they cry out for just a little titivation that quickly transforms them..

A great model that runs well straight out of the box. I have added more coal to the tender. I recommend that the mechanism screws are checked for being tight before running. My model was OK but I have heard that some have had problems. It is a lovely locomotive and great value. Well done to Oxford models. 

I'm very happy with my three. Some minor modifications. 65892 has its chimney at quite a jaunty angle and needs to be straightened. 3 links to be fitted to all before weathering. 

I've experienced some minor pick up issues which were easily rectified so that running is good. I've tested one of them with a rake of 21 ton hoppers quite heavily loaded with liquid lead. It struggled to get 22 of these heavy hoppers underway, slipping quite convincingly. With careful start up these could be managed and once running the whole train looks superb.

Not as impressive as my two Bradwell J27s but for the price you'd be daft not to have at least one of them.

On 02/04/2022 at 14:23, RBAGE said:

I'm very happy with my three. Some minor modifications. 65892 has its chimney at quite a jaunty angle and needs to be straightened. 3 links to be fitted to all before weathering. 

I've experienced some minor pick up issues which were easily rectified so that running is good. I've tested one of them with a rake of 21 ton hoppers quite heavily loaded with liquid lead. It struggled to get 22 of these heavy hoppers underway, slipping quite convincingly. With careful start up these could be managed and once running the whole train looks superb.

Not as impressive as my two Bradwell J27s but for the price you'd be daft not to have at least one of them.

A rather nice lineup...

Is 65844 correct as 65817 comes from Oxford for the dome, boiler etc? I was considering renumbering to that one and thought it looked like the dome was right, but wouldn't call myself an expert.

Is 65892 fitted with a metal hook on the front? Did it take much to cut away space behind the bufferbeam? I've done the tender hook on mine, but not committed to the front yet!

9 hours ago, thetalkinlens said:

 

A rather nice lineup...

 

Is 65844 correct as 65817 comes from Oxford for the dome, boiler etc? I was considering renumbering to that one and thought it looked like the dome was right, but wouldn't call myself an expert.

 

Is 65892 fitted with a metal hook on the front? Did it take much to cut away space behind the bufferbeam? I've done the tender hook on mine, but not committed to the front yet!

Thanks for your comment.

I'm not an expert. We need someone like Porcy for that.

However, as I understand it, there were two boiler types. These were:

57     Superheated

57A   Saturated

The Oxford model is has a saturated boiler.

You can easily tell the superheated boiler because it has a longer smokebox.

So, with regard to boiler, I am satisfied that the model provided and 65844 are equivalent.

I think there were three types of dome. Round dome, low dome and NER tall dome. The differences are quite obvious. If my assumptions are correct, the supplied model has a round dome. The source information I found on the internet, for the period I am modelling, suggests a round dome for 65844. 

I'll PM you with images so as not to fall foul of copyright on here.

65892 has a Slater's etched brass hook and mild steel chain. These are sprung hooks but, as this will be mainly cosmetic, I cut the shank to a length so that no modification was needed with the chassis. The hook is just stuck in place with superglue.

I've done the tender in the same way. No need for sprung hook on the loco as coupling will be from the wagons, which are sprung.

I attempted to use the hook and spring provided but destroyed the three link on my first attempt trying to open it up to fit to the hook. An alternative would have been to cut a section away so the links could be fitted in the hole, then seal it up. I decided against that idea and went for a tried and tested method.

Thanks,

Bob

10 hours ago, thetalkinlens said:

 

A rather nice lineup...

 

Is 65844 correct as 65817 comes from Oxford for the dome, boiler etc? I was considering renumbering to that one and thought it looked like the dome was right, but wouldn't call myself an expert.

 

Is 65892 fitted with a metal hook on the front? Did it take much to cut away space behind the bufferbeam? I've done the tender hook on mine, but not committed to the front yet!

Hello Again,

I don't know how you renumber your locos but if this involves removing the body, beware, the reversing lever is bonded to the link inside the chassis. This is easy to separate. If you are not aware of this there is a chance you'll break the lever.

Bob

10 hours ago, thetalkinlens said:

 

A rather nice lineup...

 

Is 65844 correct as 65817 comes from Oxford for the dome, boiler etc? I was considering renumbering to that one and thought it looked like the dome was right, but wouldn't call myself an expert.

 

Is 65892 fitted with a metal hook on the front? Did it take much to cut away space behind the bufferbeam? I've done the tender hook on mine, but not committed to the front yet!

The tender variations is the issue that gave me the biggest problems when trying to select a subject from an appropriate shed.

65844 of York would not have been my first choice but I was looking for a relatively clean example as all others will be in a sorry state.

I understand 65844 rarely strayed from York as it was dedicated to an engineering works for most of its time there. 

Anyway, it's done now.

@RBAGE Thanks for the replies and also the PM with the photos. I would tend to agree 65817 and 65844 look to be of the same configuration.

Re the boilers I'm no expert, but my understanding is the Diagram 57 was the original NER boiler and this had a superheated version as well as saturated. Diagram 57A was the LNER version, which replaced the original and also came in both superheated and saturated variations. On 57A the bands and dome are different to 57. Whether you could tell visually on the actual boiler itself on the same boiler type between saturated and superheated I'm not sure, but like you say the superheated J27's had the extended smokebox.

I "think" from Oxford the 65837 model is a Diagram 57 and 65817 is a Diagram 57A, the boiler bands and dome being in a different position.

The final short dome you've fitted to 65892 and 65853 are fairly easy to identify. I'm less sure how to tell between the original NER dome and the round dome. I'm not sure if any of the Oxford models have the original NER dome. Possibly 65817 has the round dome and the other three available have the original NER.

Useful information re the body removal. I haven't attempted this yet, so that's good to know and be careful with the reverser.

65844 would be of particular interest to modellers in the North York Moors area. Before it was a York engine, it was at Malton and could be seen on the pickups to Whitby and Gilling/Kirkbymoorside. There are quite a few photos of it in books of the area.

I have just acquired a Oxford J27 . I have read the comment re the Reversing Rod (Thanks). I have removed the obvious front and rear screws , the Body will not budge . Is there another screw hidden somewhere else please ??.