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Great British Locomotives


EddieB
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I mean, a 45xx. Really? And is anyone going to coo with delight over an Inter-City 125 on their shelf?

 

Calling it "Random British Locomotives" might have been more descript, but I challenge anyone not to include the HST in a list of successes. But the Peak, however...

 

I've not gone through every type but it seems to be:

 

Steam- Lots.

Diesel- the rest

Electric- Where are they...?

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Calling it "Random British Locomotives" might have been more descript, but I challenge anyone not to include the HST in a list of successes. But the Peak, however...

 

I've not gone through every type but it seems to be:

 

Steam- Lots.

Diesel- the rest

Electric- Where are they...?

 

This rather sums up the R-T-R market they're copying - Electric locomotives are conspicuous by their absence.

 

I'm looking forward to the 45xx - I trust it will be copied from the Bachmann rather than the Lima version! (I think we can safely discount the Acro model as a source!)

Edited by Il Grifone
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A class 76 would be good, but can't envisage that unless the Olivia Trains one is used. I hope they don't use a named Class 45 for their choice (Part 17) - devil of a job to remove nameplates - a class 44 or 46 (not D163!) would be nice, especially since I have a spare Mainline chassis. I'm NOT an HST fan but a single power car ( in Black & yellow livery - see latest copy of MLI) would be a great unusual non-powered cargo. Will the series extend beyond no. 20 even?? Plenty of other suggestions will be forthcoming........... :scratchhead:  

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To be honest, for the price, I still feel like I'm getting value for money in the models, missing parts and smudged paint notwithstanding. To me they are only ever going to be donors for other projects and not standalone models, though.

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My own drawing list gives the following for LMS 3F 0-6-0Ts:

 

Model Railway Journal No. 9

Railway Modeller May 1980

BRM April 1997

 

Also a presumably illustrated article in Model Railway News (or whatever it was calling itself at the time) for Jan 1971.

 

The main visible difference was that the first fifty locos were built without 'keyholes' and were originally fitted with Ramsbottom safety valves. The 'keyhole' was to access the sandbox filler btw, not what the mag says about accessing the inside motion. Some locos (e.g. the original Somerset and Dorset batch) were fitted with screw reversers rather than levers but these later migrated to places where it was more use e.g. the ECML workings between Broad Street and Potters Bar.

 

 

When the Hymeks were on acceptance tests from Beyer Peacock Gorton to Derby, many of them appeared in pink primer.

Thanks for this. I have looked out the article in MRJ and it references further information in BRJ number 8 which has a useful table listing the differences. Their are 4 drawings in the MRJ article giving different elevations. Bizarrely I have discovered I am missing BRJ number 1 but have 2 copies of number 4.

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I looked at the subscription e-mail confirmation earlier (for my subscription number to have another go at them) and it has a schedule of fifty magazines. Do we want fifty models from them?

 

If we did, how far down the barrell would they scrape?  One universally useful loco has been the 08 Shunter type but they would probably end up cloning the Railroad (or the monster from Tri-ang) but what others - my tea has arrived so I'll leave it at that for now.

 

One thing that this magazine company may find annoying and expensive is if we all send our complaints to the freepost address instead of cheap and nasty e-mail.  If it is anything like the freefone system, the recipient has to pay for the call plus a connection fee, the more money it costs them, well, it may encourage them to behave better.

Fifty - wow! Don't suppose the e-mail gave a "squad list" , did it? I suppose the Western & HST are still in the academy waiting for a call-up to the first team, as it were. Heaven forbid the dreadful 08 from Triang-Hornby days is ever resurrected!! :no:

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I don't see why any O8 would be of Triang origin. As far as I can see, where a Bachmann model was available, this was used as the basis for the GBL clone, which gives us a reasonable starting point for mods.It should mean we get a decent D11 in a few weeks time.

If there are another 30 to come, for an ECML modeller like myself, that still leaves some interesting potential copies from Bachmann- A1 and A2, J39, V1,WD. No doubt other Regional modellers have their own list.

I should add that I have obviously been lucky in that I have managed to get the models I wanted from local shops without any major angst. As I am usually going to repaint and modify in some way, I,m not concerned with bits of overspray, etc. Personally, I,d be delighted to see this continue for what is, after all, less than the price of many a wagon.

Edited by rowanj
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omis. Heaven forbid the dreadful 08 from Triang-Hornby days is ever resurrected!! :no:

 

I didn't realise this horror had ever gone away. :O

 

There was no real need for it either - with a little care (not a Tri-ang speciality I will admit) it could have been passed off as one of the shunters with jackshaft drive and inside frames.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Rail_Class_D3/7

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Have had a bit more time to add to this forum concerning 'great bolbous lumps' (GBL for short), Have now possibly found the origin of the gold stripe on the Earl Bathursts cab??

 

Whilst up in my loft have dug out an old copy of Ian Allans British Railways Locomotives circa winter 1962.                                             

Thumbing through, I noticed a painting of a King Class 6026 King John by V Welch. There in this picture are the gold lines on front of cab the King!!

 

Is this where GBL got their idea from?? Only a guess, just thought I would add this one in the mix!!??

On subject of the GBL saga, I  am glad I never took out the subscription to this magazine. There are indeed horror stories coming back via this forum.

 

About their Customer Services!!

 

Having been there myself with their so called customer services, and this was just to chase missing and broken parts to the Duchess/Coronation/Princess thingy at the very beginning of their publication I was slightly miffed by it all.

 

After the rather odd emails recieved from the Polish HQ(Amer Com) . I was passed on to Ringwood!!There was no answer and no solution to the mess at Ringwood, just very bizarre phone calls back to me. No real apology, but for me to take the Locomotive (or what was left of it )back to WHSmiths in Alton in Hampshire!!

 

Yep I was going to do that!!!!!! (just imagine look on sales staff there after months of selling me magazine!!!)

 

No, the 'Coronation' is stripped down and lingering at this moment sitting in a vat of Chloroxylenol (Dettol for short). This is an excellent plastic stripper and in the next few days will be heavily washed to remove the lingering paint and lovely clinical smell!!

 

I have a spray can of Auto ace primer(99p Shop) to mask any lingering smell if its still there of Dettol complete job of strip down.

This spray does the job, but beware do it outside or in very well vented room!!

 

The finished job on the Coronation will now be 46243 City Of Lancaster, in Black.

I believe this was the last one to run in streamline shape?? Have two very old photos showing her in really bad condition. So any bad things on body work could be covered up by weathering. Name plates will of course be the most expensive things, possilbly from my normal suppliers . All other parts missing will be scratch built. Transfers and other markings will be SMS or Pressfix.

 

As mentioned the awful 28XX went the same way, had bad problems with trying to clean up castings as I think these were dropped before fitting.! Must have been their excellent Quality Service they told me about on the phone!!!

This model looks the part now.The K3 is a mess but can be solved,started by placing plasticard between boiler and cab because of the big gap there!!!!

 

I have tried here to upload the image found in book , if it comes out you will see what I mean by the Gold Stripe!!

 

Will be back no doubt with some bits and pieces with Compound thats out next week. Oh yes and then the Standard 4 with interesting valve gear and 'skipping rope' speedo cable, looking at early release photos.

post-14209-0-12898600-1408266060_thumb.jpg

Edited by Uries15
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Here are 3 photo's of the GBL Evening Star, repainted to represent ER based 92178, the first double-chimney 9f sent new to the ER. All I have really done is replace the handrails and correct the really odd mistake to the cab sides., plus make any cuts needed to fit a Bachmann mechanism I already had. This was really straightforward, as there is a plastic "tray" under the boiler which comes away, leaving no need to carve away at the footplate and boiler .The hardest part is shaving off the moulded lamps at the front, best done by detaching the, in my case, loosely fitted smoke deflectors. I also need to refit the pipework under the cab, which came away from my clumsy handling. I'm still thinking about fitting ABS from plasticard which will only need a tank/battery box under the cab, some wire to represent conduit along the LH side footplate and a banger plate under the front coupling. Vac pipes are still to be fitted, I see.

 

The tender is a Golden Arrow BR1f , needed for most ER 9f. It's resin, so needs a fair bit of tidying up, but this is a simple task. You also need to fit handrails, ladder and lampirons. The chassis is an ancient Triang Brit.! I really can recommend Golden Arrow - fast and friendly service.

 

On the basis that we don't count the cost of paint/transfers/wire etc, the chassis was £30 from Ebay and the Golden Arrow tender £16. So for under £50 I have a loco I'm happy to run on my layout for nearly half the cost of a Hornby Railroad version. And I enjoyed modelling it.

post-1659-0-08273500-1408268129_thumb.jpg

post-1659-0-81112400-1408268156_thumb.jpg

post-1659-0-49162100-1408268184_thumb.jpg

Edited by rowanj
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I didn't realise this horror had ever gone away. :O

 

There was no real need for it either - with a little care (not a Tri-ang speciality I will admit) it could have been passed off as one of the shunters with jackshaft drive and inside frames.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Rail_Class_D3/7

Was the Tri-ang chassis long enough btw - the 12003-32 batch were 31 ft 4 & half inch over buffers whereas the standard "08" was a mere 29ft 3in - does anycare really! That would be a challenge for the major rtr manufacurers wouldn't it? :paint:

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The vertical stripe at the front of the Castle cab is a line of brass beading, which if you do a Google image search of Earl Bathurst you will find is prototypical for the locomotive in its present condition. I am assuming the same is true of the King. The problem with the GBL printing is that it is somewhat inboard of the edge, whereas in fact it should wrap around the edge. It looks, in form, exactly like the brass beading on the splashers.

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Dear all on subject of Triang class o8 many years ago and in the absence of the better models that duly arrived, I obtained a Triang body. They had obviously adapted it to fit their then standard 060 chassis. I removed the excess length over the buffer beams and married it to an impetus chassis. I repainted it BR black as class 11 12043 . It wa originally in EM and sat for many years in my to do sidings to be converted back to OO. I have worked on it recently and will attempt to photo and post in due course. On the subject of this series, like most of us I cannot ignore this source of reasonably accurate bodies. I have as stated an extensive fleet of locos mainly of my modelled area and period.....Midlands LMR 50s and 60s however will always find room for "visitors". I have the catle awaiting the parts listed by The weathering man and an intention to model as a double chimney version. A K3 A3 an 28xx are all on display. I already have 3 compounds reworked Hornby on railroad chassis two bachmanns one in MR livery, but will still buy the GBL version and the class 4 tank. Sorry to ramble will attempt to photo and post some of these reworkings in due course including the high footplate Caprotti which is bits on my workbench

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Would anyone like to hazard a guess at which model the Peak will be based one. There are two choices, just hope they make the right one!

Cheers

Shane

Not really bothered, I'm just looking for something cheap to model the Macbeth Peak with....

 

EDIT: (D14, it's unlucky to mention its TOPS number...).

Edited by 298
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Was the Tri-ang chassis long enough btw - the 12003-32 batch were 31 ft 4 & half inch over buffers whereas the standard "08" was a mere 29ft 3in - does anycare really! That would be a challenge for the major rtr manufacurers wouldn't it? :paint:

 

I don't own a Tri-ang diesel shunter, though, since it shared a chassis, I would assume the body is the same length as their 3F 0-6-0T. Strangely I don't have one to hand to measure! The prototype is almost the same length as the diesel at 31' 4 3/4" (my source (Wiki) doesn't specify if over buffers but I think it is (I'll check). In any case, the discrepancy would not have worried Tri-ang (see their 3MT 2-6-2T). The chassis measures about 111 mm over (Mk II) coupling mountings - 27' 9". Allowing for the buffers this would seem a bit short, but the wheelbase is 2mm short for a 3F anyway.

 

I can remember seeing one of these sitting forlornly in Savona yard in the late seventies or early eighties. (I was on a passing train without a camera! :sad_mini2: ). By that time, it was mucky brown rather than green.

 

http://www.photorail.com/phr1-leFS/ne700.htm

Edited by Il Grifone
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On the basis that we don't count the cost of paint/transfers/wire etc, the chassis was £30 from Ebay and the Golden Arrow tender £16. So for under £50 I have a loco I'm happy to run on my layout for nearly half the cost of a Hornby Railroad version. And I enjoyed modelling it.

I paid the same amount for a tender drive chassis with cookie cutter wheels... don't drink and ebay.

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Not really bothered, I'm just looking for something cheap to model the Macbeth Peak with....

Is that the certain "Scottish " loco that we don't mention, but inadvertantly have(!). Hopefully the GBL version won't "replica"te the one we're all thinking for, if it is then my nose-end will be out of joint !!! :nono:  :jester:

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