What have you done with your Keyser kit

[RodneyS]

You could try Alan Gibson ones but I don't know if they will be the right size.

See  https://www.wizardmodels.ltd/?s=rivets&post_type=product&title=1&excerpt=1&content=1&categories=1&attributes=1&tags=0&sku=1&orderby=date-DESC&ixwps=1

[micklner]

Or:-

 

https://www.wizardmodels.ltd/?s=rivets&post_type=product&title=1&excerpt=1&content=1&categories=1&attributes=1&tags=0&sku=1&orderby=date-DESC&ixwps=1

 

You need to measure the ones you have for correct size needed.

[Coach bogie]

I  use fine dress makers pins from my wife's sewing box and solder.

 

Mike Wiltshire

[DavidStarbuck]

Thanks all for the prompt responses. I've ordered some from Wizard Models.

Edited December 26, 2022 by DavidStarbuck

[jwealleans]

What Mike said.   Brass dressmakers pins and a black marker pen to prevent solder going where you don't want it.

[cctransuk]

17 hours ago, micklner said:

Or:-

 

https://www.wizardmodels.ltd/?s=rivets&post_type=product&title=1&excerpt=1&content=1&categories=1&attributes=1&tags=0&sku=1&orderby=date-DESC&ixwps=1

 

You need to measure the ones you have for correct size needed.

 

The best valvegear rivets used to come with a two-diameter shank, and counter-bored at the narrow end.

 

The wider diameter, under the head, was a sliding fit on the outer rod, and the smaller diameter a tight fit on the inner rod.

 

The counter-bore simply required a tap with, ideally, a spring-loaded centre-punch, and the moving joint was made.

 

No solder went anywhere near the joint, which is the way it should be!

 

So where can such items be obtained nowadays? (I've quite a few more sets of Walcheart's valvegear to assemble yet).

 

John Isherwood.

 

 

[Barclay]

Finally finished the K's Coal Tank. It has an etched chassis, Gibson Wheels, Taff Vale Models Motor, High Level gearbox, and details from all sorts of places - Gibson buffers, Tri-ang safety valves, a scratchbuilt rear spectacle with Mainly Trains grilles, Markits whistle, twin hanger etched brakes from the scrapbox with rods from brass wire filed flat, smokebox wheel from the scrapbox, shedplate from an old Perseverance etch. Firebox backplate from London Road Models, cab interior plastic card, crew Airfix, transfers HMRS. I can't say using a K's kit was a particularly easy or cheap way of building this loco but it has been good fun to do and has kept me out of trouble for the best part of 6 months!

 

 

 

[41516]

I've got the mortal remains of a K's Coal Tank in the stash missing several parts (the bottom of the boiler being one), with the same mystery frames ready for a rebuild at some point. I don't really need one, but it's there to be built in exactly same spirit as:

 

42 minutes ago, Barclay said:

good fun to do and has kept me out of trouble for the best part of 6 months!

[hayfield]

This is what someone else has done with their k's kit, in fact I assume at least two people have had a go. I spotted this as an EM gauge non runner and cost just over £28 inc postage

I am hoping to show with this post a couple of things, firstly its worth looking closely at K's kit built locos, simply quite often they have been upgraded. Secondly it shows how easily K's kits can be bought up to modern day standards, both by adding additional details and upgrading the mechanisms. Just take a closer look next time 

 

      

 

I think it was initially very well built with a bit of added detail. I assume from the body it was built with the old brass bar chassis first to 00 gauge

 

 

Then it seems the splashers inside have been thinned a new Comet chassis fitted to EM gauge. As you can see the loco has suffered missing paint, buffer, front steps etc .

 

The main reason for buying this loco is the EM gauge chassis, a working motor and or wheels or gearbox would be a bonus.

 

As I have 8 of these already I both have too many and need to slim down collection so the body will be sold off, and I will add a k's brass chassis, these must be worth a tenner so will reduce the cost of the chassis, another reason for not keeping it is that it will be much easier to fit the chassis to an unbuilt footplate

 

I will also sell off the Alan Gibson gearbox, reducing the chassis cost further. I think the wheels have had it and I cannot check the motor until its freed from the chassis

 

 

On closer inspection the chassis initially had plunger pickups and I expect was well made, now it has wiper pickups which leads me to thinh there was an issue

 

 

I think a second or third person has tried to, or it may have been the etched chassis builder who has had issues with the running/quartering of the wheels and its strange that the brake gear is not painted. Anyway I think there are several issues with the chassis so I think the brake gear, wheels and plunger pickups need removing

[Graham456]

O! God ! I have only gone and bought another one.

visiting the junk emporium on the promenade in Watchet on Friday  their were three K’s kits ,a gwr  dean goods part built and a mogul nether with a motor,requiring handrails and painting and the mogul was missing connecting rods and crossheads, these were  early kits with the all metal wheels not the plastic centre sort sadly the mogul was badly quartered 

resisted the temptation at £15 each,

 but came home with a GWR AC railcar Nicely painted  non running also £15.

spent today fitting glazing such fun ! Made a bit easier by having to remove the bogies ,well the non powered one was all ready off and having fiddled and had a right caddal later the powered one was out, to get at the windows,

found the problem, the bearing on the armature was free in the magnet jamming the armature up,it’s all cleaned up and I await the bearing lock/seal to go off over night,

 I was quite surprised by how well the power bogie ran untill I realised I was going to have to glue up the bearing for a longer term fix, quite why ii am doing this other than I didn’t have one of these by K’s as I have a couple of Lima versions and two Dapol earlier types not to mention a two car set  kit to do one day

some one go and rescue the other two kits before I succumb 

Edited January 29, 2023 by Graham456
Auto correct not recognising train terminology

[russell price]

Is it the version with a single driven axle or both axles driven?? I have both types but both now have modified Triang  power bogies fitted. 

[Graham456]

On 30/01/2023 at 12:27, russell price said:

Is it the version with a single driven axle or both axles driven?? I have both types but both now have modified Triang  power bogies fitted. 

Well their you go !

didn’t know their were two versions of power bogie, mine is driven on both axels of the bogie,it doesn’t take much imagination to work out I have the better version 

I think the single axel drive unit if fitted with a triang serrated wheel (yes I know that would be hard,I am not recommend it)

would made a good track file the way it would slip.

still fiddling around with the glazing in the cabs you have to cut the glazing to a funny shape to fit the front windows and locating lumps  in the cab and triangular windows between the main and side windows,but the power unit is fixed and the motor bearing stays in place

 now do I bother with seats ? Or is that going way over the top for what was over classed by Lima never mind Heljan not that I have even seen one of them yet !

Edited January 31, 2023 by Graham456

[roythebus1]

Rummaging through my boxes of unfinished models, I find I have at leat 4 Ks Black Fives in various stages of completion. One has a brass bar chassis, 2 others have etched Ks chassis with Kean Portescap motors, the other has a missing chassis! All are missing various bits but I should be able to get 2 out of the bits and bobs. There's also an LMS 2-6-2 tank minus chassis, it may be K's, possibly Wills, and what i think is a 2-6-4T minus chassis. and a Met Railway Beyer-Peacock missing some bits.

 

I bought these back in the early 1970s for use on the MRC's layout, but they vanished and re-appeared about 6 years ago when we had to clear out mum's attic! Hence they were never finished.

 

It's interesting seeing the differences in the Black 5 castings, how they had been improved over time.

 

 

[Graham456]

Well I gave you all a week from telling you where you buy some cheep keyer kit built locos ! But back in Watchet today the Dean goods and mogel were still their, but have now moved and are now six miles from Watchet. And have joined the thirty six other K’s kits I have only one of which is unbuilt !

 The Dean Goods might acquire out side frames to make it something different (discounting the two other OSF Dean goods I have ) if I can acquire some outside frames from squires Some day, because these will help hide the worst looking part of the kit, everything below the footplate  which is why I got rid of one of these when mainline brought there’s out back in what was it 1982 ! At least this kit has romfords even if very early sort with the uninsulated are the plain rimmed type,

 it came in a short orange box which is only long. Enough for the loco  when built even though the lid picture shows loco and tender,it’s nicely stuck together with everything fitting with no horrendous gaps shame it’s not soldered, interesting the chassis side plates of both kits have white metal inserts rather than the brass tube spacers I am used to something to do with the age of the kit I suspect  as the instructions hint at these being near the same age as me

  The Mogal well I don’t know ?

it’s missing one cylinder as well as the connecting rods, I have a comet outside cylinder set I could attempt to fit but not for a long while,I am not short of things to yet having not finished the rail car yet, which looks better for having glazing, trimming a grape vine and beach hedge is getting in the way

Edited February 4, 2023 by Graham456
Double checked how many kits I have, now worried

[Graham456]

Gerrr ! What a fiddle to get the glazing in the cab quarter light windows or what ever you call the windows on a angle  between the main windscreen and side ones,thair are to many ribs or tabs on the casting joins in this area,wondering if glue and glaze might be a goer ? Never used it before it’s the only job left before I can put the bogies back in as I need the axcess

 by the way I said squires for new OSF for the Dean goods think I might mean south eastern fine cast/branchlines for old K’s castings,bigger problem is what motor,? Do I keep the mogul which after all is crude compared to modern RTR as a period piece with a K’s mk1 or if I can find one a mrrc 1001 slimline, as a better version of Keysers it would be better with a modern set up but I don’t think it’s worth the pennies, and the Dean goods would get a modern set up if a convert it to to the OSF type,but not as it is,as that sixty quid would go a long way towards a modern Dean goods which the sixty year old kit will never compete with

 

Edited February 8, 2023 by Graham456

[hayfield]

One of my friends turned up with a couple of gifts for me, a person he knows buys second hand collections to sell on, Items he does not want he offers to club members at knock down prices. My friend bought a box full of mainly o gauge items, he has kept what he wanted and has a nicely made K's J72.

 

The body is well made the chassis needs rebuilding, it has 2 sets of the newer plastic D shaped hole drivers (less crankpin nuts and a HP2M motor. No box but a double set of instructions !! Romford gears and a spare set of sprung buffers

 

I have had a couple of these and sold them on, however as I now am building a layout based on the St Katherine Dock Branch this loco could be used on a transfer goods train as the GNR had a goods yard very close

 

It would mean both backdating the livery and converting to EM gauge, I think both wheel sets and the motor will be moved on and the proceeds given back to my friend.

 

He also gave me an 0 gauge GWR Pannier chassis missing a pair of drivers, a motor and coupling rods, on the plus side a beautifully made compensated chassis 

[locomad2]

Picked this Crab up recently at a model fair, either a Wills or K's on a standard triang 2-6-2 chassis, nice body, chassis don't look right at the moment especially the smaller cylinder, however with the smaller wheels and X04 motor it's an excellent runner and has strong haulage capability

 

[MarkC]

8 hours ago, locomad2 said:

Picked this Crab up recently at a model fair, either a Wills or K's on a standard triang 2-6-2 chassis, nice body, chassis don't look right at the moment especially the smaller cylinder, however with the smaller wheels and X04 motor it's an excellent runner and has strong haulage capability

 

Nice. That's a Wills kit, on the RTR chassis it was designed for. That was how we rolled, as the saying goes, back in the 70s.

[hayfield]

 

A friend came around and gave me a K's LNER J72, I offered him £20 but he was insistent it was a gift, it had come in a job lot of 7mm items, some of which he sold off for slightly more than he paid for the whole lot

 

 

Anyway the body had been well built and painted, no box but instructions, a chassis with two sets of wheels and a HP2M motor plus a set of sprung buffers. Most of the chassis items are not much use to me as I model in EM gauge

 

Firstly I sold off the spare set of wheels and motor and was able to give my friend the £22 net they sold for

 

Next up I ordered a Mainly Trains J72 chassis and body improvement kit

 

 

Extremely good value with a double page sheet of instructions and diagram, they also do a J71 conversion kit

 

Just need to find time to build it

[jwealleans]

Scrubs up very nicely that, that's how I did my first one.   If you're keeping it, some of Arthur Kimber's castings when he's well enough to supply them, really lift it.

[Richard_A]

On 08/01/2023 at 16:00, Barclay said:

Finally finished the K's Coal Tank. It has an etched chassis, Gibson Wheels, Taff Vale Models Motor, High Level gearbox, and details from all sorts of places - Gibson buffers, Tri-ang safety valves, a scratchbuilt rear spectacle with Mainly Trains grilles, Markits whistle, twin hanger etched brakes from the scrapbox with rods from brass wire filed flat, smokebox wheel from the scrapbox, shedplate from an old Perseverance etch. Firebox backplate from London Road Models, cab interior plastic card, crew Airfix, transfers HMRS. I can't say using a K's kit was a particularly easy or cheap way of building this loco but it has been good fun to do and has kept me out of trouble for the best part of 6 months!

 

 

 

Can I ask which chassis kit you used for this please? 

 

I have bought two of these for a combined total of £30, both have working chassis but have no brake gear etc and I'd like to have ago at this kit building lark. 

[hayfield]

 

GEM made an etched chassis for this loco which by the end cost £50, I have a couple of other class GEM etched chassis they are very good but expensive in comparison with other makes. I think the business has a new owner and will be re-released

 

London Road models do a chassis @ £28.50 and is available, LRM are noted for high quality kits

 

https://traders.scalefour.org/LondonRoadModels/locos-tenders-chassis/lnwr/

 

In the past NuCast did a simple etched chassis, I think Perseverance also did one, but I doubt if LRM will release this as it will duplicate their own chassis (which is of a newer design)

 

No doubt others were/are available 

[Barclay]

2 hours ago, rka said:

Can I ask which chassis kit you used for this please? 

 

I have bought two of these for a combined total of £30, both have working chassis but have no brake gear etc and I'd like to have ago at this kit building lark. 

Hi it wasn't so much a chassis kit as a pair of etched frames, which came with the loco from ebay so I'm afraid I don't know their provenance. They are a good shape but there were no other parts, so I had to make a firebox, narrow the back end to give some sideplay, improve and re-use the K's coupling rods, and add brakes from an etch I had in the scrapbox. I would encourage you to build yours - the body is a decent set of castings and I think it scrubs up well. The only real modification to the superstructure was to make a new rear spectacle and cab roof, as the castings are quite thick.

 

 

 

[Richard_A]

59 minutes ago, Barclay said:

Hi it wasn't so much a chassis kit as a pair of etched frames, which came with the loco from ebay so I'm afraid I don't know their provenance. They are a good shape but there were no other parts, so I had to make a firebox, narrow the back end to give some sideplay, improve and re-use the K's coupling rods, and add brakes from an etch I had in the scrapbox. I would encourage you to build yours - the body is a decent set of castings and I think it scrubs up well. The only real modification to the superstructure was to make a new rear spectacle and cab roof, as the castings are quite thick.

 

 

 

Mine are ready built but not very well and as one is missing its' chimney I'm going to start on that one. 

 

Infact I have spent £300 on quite a few bargains like this recently, so I will be back with more questions. 

[hayfield]

23 hours ago, Barclay said:

Hi it wasn't so much a chassis kit as a pair of etched frames, which came with the loco from ebay so I'm afraid I don't know their provenance. They are a good shape but there were no other parts, so I had to make a firebox, narrow the back end to give some sideplay, improve and re-use the K's coupling rods, and add brakes from an etch I had in the scrapbox. I would encourage you to build yours - the body is a decent set of castings and I think it scrubs up well. The only real modification to the superstructure was to make a new rear spectacle and cab roof, as the castings are quite thick.

 

 

 

 

I believe these are the NuCast etched loco frames, which were used to replace the brass bar frames in ranges they brought like K's and other companies

 

Whilst not for this kit the previous owner was selling off various chassis on eBay as spares. The pair I bought required buying brake gear from other sources. These are/were quite basic but worked well and an improvement on the older brass bar type provided by K's

 

Another chassis option are the Alan Gibson miller frames, which can be ordered with either milled hornblock cut-outs or round axle holes  Ref LM1-12 (coupling rods are extra)

http://www.alangibsonworkshop.com/Spring 2022 catalogue.pdf