help please! Thompson B2 4-6-0

[Dave00]

Hi all, has anyone converted a Bachmann b1 to a B2? The bodies do look very similar! I know the real locos were converted from b17s. But the Hornby one would require a lot of work, so thought I would use a b1. Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks. 

[Daddyman]

Crownline did a conversion kit, including etched cab sides and footplate parts. It was designed to convert the old Hornby (now Railroad) B17 in the 1980s. The kit turns up sometimes on ebay, about £40 or so. 

 

EDIT: picture of one here (scroll down): 

 

Edited April 2, 2019 by Daddyman

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

It is quite a lot of work from RTR parts, and probably rather expensive from current RTR products, because you need the 6'8" driver mechanism of the B17 and a B1 body, cylinders and gear. And that just gets you the loco, the usual NER tender that these conversions received is something else again.

 

I quite recently saw a good looking B2 conversion from older RTR parts. The Bachmann split chassis B1 mechanism with the larger drien wheels from Bachmann's split chassis A4, made to fit inside a suitably modified B17 loco body from Hornby's old tender drive version. The loco was even a rough runner, JLTRT. But as the tender drive had been retained with traction tyres removed and pick ups through wired to the loco, (and the 4,200 gallon LNER std. tender body bashed into a lookee-likee for an NER type) it ran well enough and had effective traction.

[Stentor]

Dave,

Phoenix - Precision sell the former DMR kits for the B2s and sell the tenders separately for £40.

 

https://www.phoenix-paints.co.uk/products/dmr-lnerloco-4mm

 

// Simon

[John Tomlinson]

This sounds like the one that Graeme King did, and I agree looked very well.

 

Suggest you go to "LNER", then "forums", "modelling", then "Atlantic 3279", a thread of over 300 pages with an index at the start.

 

John.

 

Edit, the site is www.lner.info with Mr. King's thread.

On ‎02‎/‎04‎/‎2019 at 09:08, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

It is quite a lot of work from RTR parts, and probably rather expensive from current RTR products, because you need the 6'8" driver mechanism of the B17 and a B1 body, cylinders and gear. And that just gets you the loco, the usual NER tender that these conversions received is something else again.

 

I quite recently saw a good looking B2 conversion from older RTR parts. The Bachmann split chassis B1 mechanism with the larger drien wheels from Bachmann's split chassis A4, made to fit inside a suitably modified B17 loco body from Hornby's old tender drive version. The loco was even a rough runner, JLTRT. But as the tender drive had been retained with traction tyres removed and pick ups through wired to the loco, (and the 4,200 gallon LNER std. tender body bashed into a lookee-likee for an NER type) it ran well enough and had effective traction.

 

Edited April 3, 2019 by John Tomlinson
Clarification of post

[Steamport Southport]

If you start from a B17/6 and replace the cylinders and valve gear you would probably have a better start.

 

The B17/6 had a B1 boiler but kept the three cylinders. Whereas the B2 was 2 cylinder with larger cylinders.

 

 

Jason

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

17 hours ago, John Tomlinson said:

This (conversion based on a rewheeled Bachmann B1 split chassis mechanism combined with a modified Hornby B17 tender drive loco body) sounds like the one that Graeme King did, and I agree looked very well...

It was Graeme King's method that was followed, and proved pretty straightforward by the account of the friend who did the job. Not 100% accurate, but it is unmistakably a B2, to add a little variety to the loco scene.