Bachmann Brassworks Class 03

[John R Smith]

 I'm looking for a bit of good counsel and advice here from you chaps. For my new O Gauge project I really would like a BR Class 03 shunter. A useful sort of locomotive which we did have down here in Cornwall. The choice in 7mm seems to lie between the DJH kit at £400 ish, or finding a Bachmann Brassworks one second-hand on eBay or wherever at probably not much less.

 

The DJH kit is just that, a kit, so I would have to build it and paint it, all of which I must say I find rather daunting (OK, let's be honest, very daunting). So far, returning to 7mm after a break of over forty years, I have built two wagon kits which I have found to be no fun at all, and started another one which I gave up on and put in the bin. I think painting little people is probably more my level, really.

 

If I could find a Bachmann one at least it would be built, painted and hopefully might run decently. But I notice that for some unfathomable reason the Bachmann 03 has no glazing in the cab windows (Why, heaven knows. Don't they have Plastiglaze in China?) Does anyone know if you can get the cab off and get in there to fit some windows?

 

As ever, thanks in advance for your input.

 

John

[Guest Q663368]

I'm looking for a bit of good counsel and advice here from you chaps. For my new O Gauge project I really would like a BR Class 03 shunter. A useful sort of locomotive which we did have down here in Cornwall. The choice in 7mm seems to lie between the DJH kit at £400 ish, or finding a Bachmann Brassworks one second-hand on eBay or wherever at probably not much less.

 

The DJH kit is just that, a kit, so I would have to build it and paint it, all of which I must say I find rather daunting (OK, let's be honest, very daunting). So far, returning to 7mm after a break of over forty years, I have built two wagon kits which I have found to be no fun at all, and started another one which I gave up on and put in the bin. I think painting little people is probably more my level, really.

 

If I could find a Bachmann one at least it would be built, painted and hopefully might run decently. But I notice that for some unfathomable reason the Bachmann 03 has no glazing in the cab windows (Why, heaven knows. Don't they have Plastiglaze in China?) Does anyone know if you can get the cab off and get in there to fit some windows?

 

As ever, thanks in advance for your input.

 

Hi John,

 

I bought the DJH model when they first came out. Far superior in my opinion to the generic Brassworks model. It has full cab interior and preformed glazing. Nice and heavy so a good hauler. Comes with decals and wasp stripes. You can also purchase it fully built from DJH in varies liveries, chimneys, air tanks, etc. If you so wish.

 

John

[two tone green]

I think Heljan will do a 03 RTR version. It's just been announced.

[Father Dougal]

 

I'm looking for a bit of good counsel and advice here from you chaps. For my new O Gauge project I really would like a BR Class 03 shunter. A useful sort of locomotive which we did have down here in Cornwall. The choice in 7mm seems to lie between the DJH kit at £400 ish, or finding a Bachmann Brassworks one second-hand on eBay or wherever at probably not much less.

 

The DJH kit is just that, a kit, so I would have to build it and paint it, all of which I must say I find rather daunting (OK, let's be honest, very daunting). So far, returning to 7mm after a break of over forty years, I have built two wagon kits which I have found to be no fun at all, and started another one which I gave up on and put in the bin. I think painting little people is probably more my level, really.

 

If I could find a Bachmann one at least it would be built, painted and hopefully might run decently. But I notice that for some unfathomable reason the Bachmann 03 has no glazing in the cab windows (Why, heaven knows. Don't they have Plastiglaze in China?) Does anyone know if you can get the cab off and get in there to fit some windows?

 

As ever, thanks in advance for your input.

Hi John,

I bought the DJH model when they first came out. Far superior in my opinion to the generic Brassworks model. It has full cab interior and preformed glazing. Nice and heavy so a good hauler. Comes with decals and wasp stripes. You can also purchase it fully built from DJH in varies liveries, chimneys, air tanks, etc. If you so wish.

 

John

Hi John,

The Brassworks 03 is a great model. The roof is easily removed by unscrewing 4 teeney weeny screws and then you can get to the cab to paint and glaze it.

My 03 was the first O gauge Loco I purchased- it has always run faultlessly.

Dougal.

[daveymills]

You can also buy a kit-built and painted 03 direct from DJH. Although I noticed that the price of these has increased somewhat from last year - i recall about 100 quid extra now

 

http://www.djhmodelloco.co.uk/batch-built-ready-to-run/

[daveymills]

Here are mine. The green one is Bachmann, the blue one is DJH (I think !)

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/daveymills/19970276893

 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/daveymills/20434479940

 

 

 

[JeffP]

There's also going to be a better kit, from The Little Loco Company, see the thread on smaller suppliers.

[John R Smith]

Many thanks for all your input. The two comparison photos from daveymills were interesting. I didn't realise that you could purchase a ready-built one from DJH, but I am living on a pension so £950 for a very small shunter is not an option - I'd hope to do a whole layout for that! (and spread out over time, too).

 

John

[81A Oldoak]

John,

Here is my Bachmann 03. I acquired it on eBay and it is missing windscreen wipers that I am yet to add. It has a couple of sprung axles and has been fitted with DCC sound (DCC diesel sound is so much better than steam). It is easy to dismantle for the fitting of glazing and extra cab detail. I had previously bought the DJH 03 and it looked like a good kit, but I was disappointed that the chassis was designed to be rigid, which I consider a disadvantage on very short wheelbase locos. I didn't want to the hassle of modifying the chassis to fit hornblocks and cutting the coupling rods to provide some flexibility, so off it went to eBay.

 

Hatton's has a placeholder for a Heljan 03 on its website with no price. However, it is advertising the Heljan 05 0-6-0 diesel for £400.

 

Regards,

 

Chris

[John R Smith]

Well Chris, that looks really nice. I didn't realise the DJH was a rigid chassis.

 

They do look great in BR blue with air brakes, I always think. But too late for my period, sadly.

 

Thanks for the very useful info, and the picture.

 

John

[John R Smith]

An update on the Class 03 saga, and another request for help -

 

Well, one came up on eBay - Bachmann, green livery - so I jumped in with both feet and won the auction. This is a decision I might well come to regret (like so many others involving model railway gear), but the seller said it was brand-new in the box having been stored for years and so far I see no cause to dispute this. It's a tidy little loco, and after dismantling it to clean and lube the gears and bearings she has done clearance trials at Ponteglos with excellent results. After a few evenings on station pilot duty she is now running very sweetly, down to a barely discernible crawl if you so wish. Both the centre and the rear axle are sprung, so she rides very well through points and crossings. The all-brass construction gives the loco a very reassuring feeling of solidity, and I am not scared to pick it up for fear of breaking all the fine detail, unlike a lot of 7mm R-T-R stuff whose name we won't mention.

 

 

 

 

So far so good, but of course there is work to do, and more than I realised when I started this quest (those of you who know will have doubtless already spotted all the problems with Bachmann's version of the green-liveried 03). Most basic of all is the question of transfers, and this is where I need some help today. The loco will be numbered D2183 as running in 1965. I have the Fox transfers sheet 7002/11 for the BR totems, and these seem to measure up correctly for the cabsides at 17mm long. I also have Fox sheet 7005 for the numerals, which seems to be the only one available for the 1960s. But these are white and only just over 3mm high, whereas the photos I have of the '60s era 03s and of 2183 seem to show larger numerals (probably more like 4-5mm high) and they are yellow (or perhaps dark cream), not white.

 

So, HELP - where can I find the correct height/colour numerals and 'D' prefix (and preferably, the little dot that goes between them)?

 

John

[daifly]

Is it memory or colour film that makes these numerals seem cream? Here's a line up (including D.2183) in which they look fairly white in 1970.

Dave

 

edit to add Page link

[John R Smith]

Hello Dave

 

Many thanks for that. Yes, by the end of the '60s I agree they do seem to have white numerals, as in your excellent link.

 

But here is D2183 in June 1965 and to me those numerals look yellow, surely not white? (compare with the white handrail alongside).

 

 

What do you think?

 

John

[JeffP]

Cream, I believe. They wore loco green, so maybe would have had cream numerals?

[Marshall5]

I'm no diesel expert but I always thought that in green (or black) they had the same cream numbers as steam locos and the change to white came with the change in font as part of the new 'corporate image' in 1964/5.  For several years after it was possible to see locos in green but with the new white numerals.  Happy to be corrected though.

Ray.

[John R Smith]

Interesting, isn't it. This is the sort of thing I took no notice of at the time and of course there are very few colour photo references for the period - especially of diesel locos. Looking back through my own photos from the 1960s there is not one of a diesel loco in colour or B/W, and back then I wouldn't have thought of taking a picture of one, it would have been a waste of film as far as I was concerned. Now of course I rather regret this . . .

 

Anyhow, from the few photo references I can find from the mid-'60s it looks to me as if the cabside numbers on these small diesel shunters may well have been the same as the steam ones, and cream, not white. Which poses a problem - I can get the cream numerals OK from Fox or Railtec, but no cream 'D' to match.

 

So I may well end up using the white ones and hoping nobody notices . . .

 

John

[lapford34102]

Quick response that I'll have to check but from memory

 

Some 03's were delivered with "cream" steam style numbering which had a non serifed "D", others had diesel style numbering in  white with  a serifed D. Just  tried to find a coupleof decenton-line shots but a lot of the green ones are preserved and not necessarily safe guides.

It sounds as if you have  white diesel numbers andneed the other style.Only source off the top of my head is http://tower-models.com/

HMRS Transfers  No 14, or here on their site a pic

http://www.hmrs.org.uk/transfers/transferdetails.php?transferid=1018   "D"s are bottom right

HTH

Stu

[railtec-models]

Interesting, isn't it. This is the sort of thing I took no notice of at the time and of course there are very few colour photo references for the period - especially of diesel locos. Looking back through my own photos from the 1960s there is not one of a diesel loco in colour or B/W, and back then I wouldn't have thought of taking a picture of one, it would have been a waste of film as far as I was concerned. Now of course I rather regret this . . .

 

Anyhow, from the few photo references I can find from the mid-'60s it looks to me as if the cabside numbers on these small diesel shunters may well have been the same as the steam ones, and cream, not white. Which poses a problem - I can get the cream numerals OK from Fox or Railtec, but no cream 'D' to match.

 

So I may well end up using the white ones and hoping nobody notices . . .

 

John

 

We've got some blurb on this somewhere which I can't put my hands on just now, but I recall it being a bit of a minefield. Some locos had 8" Gill Sans cream in the form Dnnnn. Some had D.nnnn (i.e. with the dot after the D). Some were 6". And then some were in the early BR typeface. At least, that's my _memory_ of it and it may not be 100%. As is often the case: it's best to work from photos of the real thing! This thread has also prompted us to add a pack for these to the (astronomical) list...

[Marshall5]

John, M.G. Sharp (are they still in business?) used to do a set, in their Clasp Decals range, of 'steam' numerals which had D's in it.  I've got an old set - they're waterslide and have a bigger film area around the 'D' than say Fox but you can have half a dozen if they're any use.  Can't guarantee that the cream is the same shade as your numbers though.

Cheers,

Ray.

[daifly]

John

If you don't already have it, a copy of Modern Locomotives Illustrated No.217 might be a good purchase. It covers, among other things, the 03s with many photos in colour. There is a particularly charming photo (also available from Colour-Rail) of D.2183 crossing a road on the Wenfordbridge Branch in 1965 with 'cream' cab side numerals. Photos of D.2171 & D.2188 ex-works in 1960 shows what can best be described as 'white' numerals. Make your own mind up!

Dave

[John R Smith]

Many thanks to everyone for your input. I have ordered the book, Dave, a very useful link, many thanks.

 

And it looks as if Railtec may be on the case - if so, this customer is ready and waiting.

 

Ray, many thanks for your offer - I am going to hang fire until I can establish exactly what is correct for 'my' 03.

 

Who would have thought a simple thing like transfers for an 03 would be so tricky?

 

John

[Andrew P]

An update on the Class 03 saga, and another request for help -

 

Well, one came up on eBay - Bachmann, green livery - so I jumped in with both feet and won the auction. This is a decision I might well come to regret (like so many others involving model railway gear), but the seller said it was brand-new in the box having been stored for years and so far I see no cause to dispute this. It's a tidy little loco, and after dismantling it to clean and lube the gears and bearings she has done clearance trials at Ponteglos with excellent results. After a few evenings on station pilot duty she is now running very sweetly, down to a barely discernible crawl if you so wish. Both the centre and the rear axle are sprung, so she rides very well through points and crossings. The all-brass construction gives the loco a very reassuring feeling of solidity, and I am not scared to pick it up for fear of breaking all the fine detail, unlike a lot of 7mm R-T-R stuff whose name we won't mention.

 

Class 03 2183-1.jpg

 

Class 03 2183-2.jpg

 

Class 03 2183-3.jpg

 

So far so good, but of course there is work to do, and more than I realised when I started this quest (those of you who know will have doubtless already spotted all the problems with Bachmann's version of the green-liveried 03). Most basic of all is the question of transfers, and this is where I need some help today. The loco will be numbered D2183 as running in 1965. I have the Fox transfers sheet 7002/11 for the BR totems, and these seem to measure up correctly for the cabsides at 17mm long. I also have Fox sheet 7005 for the numerals, which seems to be the only one available for the 1960s. But these are white and only just over 3mm high, whereas the photos I have of the '60s era 03s and of 2183 seem to show larger numerals (probably more like 4-5mm high) and they are yellow (or perhaps dark cream), not white.

 

So, HELP - where can I find the correct height/colour numerals and 'D' prefix (and preferably, the little dot that goes between them)?

 

John

I wondered who'd won it, you lucky man, it looks lovely.

[John R Smith]

An update. Thanks to Dave, today a copy of "Modern Locomotives Illustrated" No 217 dropped through my letter box. Brilliant! No less than half the mag is devoted to the Class 03 shunters, with stock lists, tons of photos, even a guide to the cab controls. So I should be able to drive the real thing now . . .

 

There is also, as promised, a great pic of D.2183 crossing the road at Dunmere in 1965 when she was down here in Cornwall. Despite being only three years old at this point she does look rather dirty and down at heel, poor thing, and according to the magazine was withdrawn in 1968 after only six years service, which is just ridiculous when you think about it. Unlike some others she was not saved for industry or preservation and was cut up in 1970.

 

Anyhow, I can see quite clearly in the pic that the cabside numbers are cream and also large with the dot between the 'D' and the numerals. I have another photo of a different loco which is almost exactly at 7mm scale in the print, and measuring off that I make the numbers 5mm high or a scale 8 inches. So my very tentative findings are these -

 

It looks as if the class 03 locos were all delivered from Swindon and Doncaster in the green livery, initially plain but after 1960-ish with yellow and black wasp stripes. Some of them had the 8 inch steam era numerals in cream with a dot between the 'D' and the numbers. But some of them had the smaller (6 inch?) numbers in white, not cream, with the condensed style letter 'D'. Hence the confusion. And of course, as luck would have it, "my" loco has the big cream numbers. I think I can get the numbers OK, but because they are steam engine numbers there will be no letter 'D' to match them.

 

Anyway, the magazine is great, and thoroughly recommended if you are interested in these little engines.

 

John

[auld_boot]

Is there any mention in the magazine of this oddity, D2122 is fitted with what looks to me like a bell (on the bonnet just in front of the cab)

 

http://www.miac.org.uk/class03.html

 

 

EDIT:  Seems this 03 wasn't alone in having a bell, this is news to me!

 

Class03_with_bell

[81A Oldoak]

Is there any mention in the magazine of this oddity, D2122 is fitted with what looks to me like a bell (on the bonnet just in front of the cab)

 

http://www.miac.org.uk/class03.html

 

 

EDIT:  Seems this 03 wasn't alone in having a bell, this is news to me!

 

Class03_with_bell

D.2122 was fitted with a bell in front of the cab  for working around Swansea docks having replaced the assortment of similarly fitted 0-4-0ST steam locomotives. Some 03s carried bells for running on the Weymouth quay tramway as shown here: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=weymouth+03+diesel&client=firefox-b&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjpsLjepvjMAhWGF8AKHaMVDHIQ_AUICSgD&biw=1920&bih=943#imgrc=5d-krPPqoI0TFM%3A If you ask nicely we might be able to supply a spare bell from the Minerva E Class Peckett 0-4-0ST.