Railroad Crosti 9F

[31A]

The Crosti is indeed a hit and I think that bodes well for a version for the rebuilt version.

 

  If Hornby choose to release a rebuilt Crosti, then it may well be the last piece to complete the  jigsaw picture for the mid-sixties steam modeller, in that every class of steam loco in service during the period is available to an accurate standard RTR.

 

1967 and 1968 are covered,and may apply over a wider period,  How do the years 1964 1965, 1966 etc, fare against the RTR criteria?

 

What about the Standard Class 3 2-6-0 (77xxx)?

[The Stationmaster]

I'm pretty sure he meant the BR Standard classes.

Agree - but there are still a number of possibly significant gaps there although some of them can be filled by a bit of cutting & hacking etc should you particularly need to fill those gaps.

[bike2steam]

78xxx, 84xxx

[bike2steam]

Spot on Brian for the version modelled by Hornby. But when the Crosti gubbins was removed they reverted back to conventional ventilation of course.

http://bristol-rail.co.uk/wiki/File:Mangotsfield3.jpg

My Golden arrow version is after the removal of the Crosti equipment.

Neil

There's an excellent pic of a rebuilt Crosti on a passenger working in this book;-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Birmingham-Bristol-Portrait-Famous-Midland-Route/dp/1870754581/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1440844488&sr=1-3&keywords=birmingham+to+bristol+railway

[antrobuscp]

Many seem to consider that Hornby have pitched the Crosti 9F somewhere between their premium and budget ranges but I think they know exactly what they are doing on this one. 

 

It has been clear for some time that many fittings on the super-detailed locos beloved of collectors and enthusiasts are just too delicate for the "lads and dads" market. It is equally apparent that some of the "recycled" older tooling used to produce the Railroad range up to now is, by modern standards, unsatisfactory for either segment. 

 

The Crosti 9F is different, it is robust enough to be "played with" but a sufficiently good model to satisfy many of the rest of us, with or without a bit of tweaking. In short, exactly what many of those who comment on such things have been asking for. OK, the price is significantly north of £100 which would have attracted howls of anguish not so long ago. However, all but the most diehard critics seem to have got the message that future big, highly detailed locos in full passenger livery are unlikely to come out much below £150.

 

All-in-all, the Crosti shows us how Hornby have developed the two-level (Design Clever) concept of the P2 and 'Duke of Gloucester' into a single specification acceptable to a wide spectrum of customers. As a statement of what Hornby want Railroad to be, I find it very encouraging. However, it appears that the RRP of the next main range loco (the S15) which is, in many ways, quite comparable to the Crosti (size, livery, outside valve gear) will be less than £20 more, suggesting that the gap in pricing between the two ranges may be closer in future than we may expect.  

 

John

I very much agree with this. There have been comments back in this topic about the lack of brake rigging. Often this is a pain to fit, and yet the only time it is seen on a working model is when fitting it. The lack of brake blocks on this loco is not particularly obvious as the area is already crowded - but it may be on other models. Yes, this loco is a "nice" compromise - dare I say cleverly designed but without the "Design Clever" epithet. The only thing I personally dislike is the pony hung front steps which I could readily remedy. It is, however, a much better application of manufacturing economies than the half-baked tinkering with the models part-designed when "Design Clever" became the catchphrase.

 

Colin

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

You might get much of the effect of the brake hangers and blocks, by fitting them ahead of the leading coupled wheelset only, to eliminate the expanse of tyre on view when the loco is viewed approaching. Modelling on the Pareto principle: 80% of the appearance for 20% of the effort.

[Brian Kirby]

Let's all be honest with ourselves, new exciting and dynamic looking model(s) coming/comes on to the market, never been done RTR before, we're all bound to get a bit worked up. So much so, that most of us are happy to overlook the slightly more basic chassis under that top notch finescale body, whilst suffering that "must have" craving. I reckon, back at Hornby HQ, the decision makers were thinking of making something eye-catching for the 1950s/60s era, and spotted the Crosti gap. Now was it worth the extra expense of a brand new chassis, so that ALL of Hornby's 9F fleet could compete with the already existing and excellent Bachmann 9Fs? Maybe they thought they couldn't re-coup the required level of sales in this country, when everyone had already bought the Bachmann, and what's the point in making a copy of a Rolls-Royce, when you can still buy a Rolls-Royce for nigh on the same price? So perhaps a safer route was to pitch it slightly lower, using the existing loco-drive chassis, but with the appeal of the different and decently made body, just in case sales didn't take off? Give it two or three months, and the original Crosti novelty will have worn off, modellers will be looking forward to the next bout of excitement, the possibility of a de-Crostied Crosti.

    Regarding the span of BR mid-60s era models, yes everything is now (or will be soon) mostly covered, with just a few exceptions, as mentioned above. You can create an exceptable 84xxx from a Bachmann Ivatt tank, a 78xxx is a bit more difficult, as is a 77xxx. We need Bachmann to fill in these gaps (they've got most of the parts already from other classes), then they'd end up with virtually a full BR Standard house (apart from the Crosti of course).

 

                                                                                   Cheers, Brian.  

[Pandora]

I'm pretty sure he meant the BR Standard classes.

This link  shows BR standard gauge steam stocklist 21/Dec/1967

 

350 (ish)  loco of 7 classe types:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_British_Railways_steam_locomotives_as_of_31_December_1967

 

I cannot find any  lists for earlier years, nor can I lay hands on any Ian Allen "combined" for earlier periods

[toboldlygo]

Far from finished adding dirt and apologies for the picture quality (mobile phone)

 

 

Now to disassemble...

[stewartingram]

It has been quoted that the Crosti is (my capitals) AN ALL NEW MODEL. Can we clear this up once and for all - perhaps with someone who has a late version Railroad (normal) 9F to compare?

1) Loco body -obviously new.

2) Loco chassis - is this a totally new one, or is it from the recent motor driven revamped Railroad (normal) 9F? I know the latter has received favourable reviews, has it been re-used?

3) Tender body - I suspect this is brand new - unless a black version of one of the Brit bodies was used?

4) Tender chassis. Obviously new compared to the earlier Ringfield power tenders - but is it a stock item, from either the normal 9F or a Brit?

 

Stewart

Edited August 29, 2015 by stewartingram

[bike2steam]

78xxx, 84xxx

 

Silly me, fancy forgetting the Caprotti standard 5's - doh !! Pity Bachmann never got the hint, a more common sight than the Crustys. 

[coachmann]

The first thing I looked at was the driving wheels. They are new and bevel-rim. Great. Appearances, great. Regarding front steps, surely they could have been separate in a pack for gluing in place if the curves on one's layout allow. 

 

No one has mentioned running to my knowledge. If Railroad equates to hell-fire around the skirting boards, no one will ever notice. But for those of us with a BLT where running is a crawl at times and flat-out never happens, can anyone say if it runs slowly especially over points, slips and what not. Also has anyone got one running with a decoder?

Edited August 29, 2015 by coachmann

[Ian Hargrave]

Silly me, fancy forgetting the Caprotti standard 5's - doh !! Pity Bachmann never got the hint, a more common sight than the Crustys. 

But Hornby have "modelled" the Caprotti gubbins with the Duke Of Gloucester....and have a pedigree with Standards in their 75XXX 4-6-0,Brit and Clan. 73129 is available for scanning.. so why not ?

[Sweeps]

I've just cut away the front steps and the horrible coupling mounting bar and it make a big difference just need to glue some front steps and think of a way to fabricate some guard irons in front of the bogie wheels.

[toboldlygo]

It has been quoted that the Crosti is (my capitals) AN ALL NEW MODEL. Can we clear this up once and for all - perhaps with someone who has a late version Railroad (normal) 9F to compare?

1) Loco body -obviously new.

2) Loco chassis - is this a totally new one, or is it from the recent motor driven revamped Railroad (normal) 9F? I know the latter has received favourable reviews, has it been re-used?

3) Tender body - I suspect this is brand new - unless a black version of one of the Brit bodies was used?

4) Tender chassis. Obviously new compared to the earlier Ringfield power tenders - but is it a stock item, from either the normal 9F or a Brit?

 

Stewart

 

Chassis totally brand new as it has all the Crosti gubbins.

 

Tender is a BR1B, Brit ones are BR1/A and BR1D. Looks like a new tooling as it is clip fitted to the tender chassis which is also new.

 

Possibly the only things that aren't are the pony truck and the gears in the gear tower.

[Tim Hall]

Ran mine over some of my less used track, including a couple of Peco code 100 diamonds and plenty of insulfrog points reasonably slowly with no hesitation.

[Pandora]

Out of the box, the Crosti is a nice runner at slow speeds,  the model has a flywheel-fitted motor, I think it may be 5-pole skew wound too.

The itch which needs to be scratched: Is the Railroad 9F chassis compatible with the Crosti bodyshell?

Thinking of a rebuilt Crosti which must lose the under boiler feedwater unit which is probably cast into the new chassis block.

 

Railroad 9F chassis + retooled Crosti bodyshell = rebuilt Crosti? Yes/No 

Edited August 29, 2015 by Pandora

[bike2steam]

Definitely yes, I've said all along that the rebuilt Crosti would be more popular than the original, the full size version covered a larger area.  I have a 'Railroad' 9F chassis under my 30 year old Crownline converted Evening Star body( yes the wrong firebox). 

[Brian Kirby]

I chopped off my "floating" front steps yesterday, and also got rid of the Tri-ang/Hornby coupling bracket, but kept the NEM socket. Now of course you could replace the whole lot with some flashy etched brass steps, but here's a cheap and cheerful way you can re-use what's provided (bearing in mind that the upper section was missing). Having sliced off the whole front section, i then separated the two step mouldings (which seem to be upside down anyway, with the dummy hollow cut at the wrong end?) and cleaned them up. Then using two pieces of Evergreen 6mm.'L' angle section each side, i glue one to the chassis (to take the Hornby casting) and the other to the underside of the body (it fits around the buffer, which is still sprung), this will represent the missing upper section of the step. I line things up carefully, then glue separately, the step is modelled in two halves, and will need to split apart when the body is removed. I think the height is about right (from piccies) and the steps/treads don't seem to stick out too far. Job done for a penny or two, only done one side so far, but the other side will be easier and take a few minutes, things will look better with some black paint. I could also add the inner diagonal bracing struts, as long as they don't foul any coupling bar. Two of the pics below show the body partly removed, to show how the steps split. The recess in the Hornby step should really be hollow, but i'm happy to leave that as it is.

 

                                                      Cheers, Brian.

 

[bike2steam]

So the Hornby version of 92023 has a Mansfield shed plate - that's novel. ;-)

[APOLLO]

I never saw a clean Crosti (or ex Crosti when I saw em). Usually thundering through Wigan on an oil tank train, filthy and smoky. The cry would go up "Crosti" as one went by. Later went to their lair, Birkenhead where they lived alongside "proper" 9F's. No engine cleaners were employed at Birkenhead (or if they were, they were on other duties !!).

 

A model of Birkenhead shed would be interesting, if you like 9F's, and a Crab & Stanier / Fairburn tank loco or two. Just heavily weather them, very heavily.

 

Here's 2 photos I took there on 1 July 1967. Mucky, fantastic place.

 

 

 

God knows what their numbers where !!

 

Get your tar brushes out guys n gals !!!

 

Brit15

 

 

 

 

[Sam Moss]

Received my two today. Also interesting to note is that the tender is geared up speakers etc so there could be a TTS sound version on the cards. The picture on the box also shows wires between the loco and tender which the actual model doesn't feature.

[coachmann]

Although i did not know it at the time, the very last BR steam loco I saw was a rebuilt Crosti returning light engine to Mold Junction. I was driving for McAlpine's during construction of the Abergele bye-pass at the time. But really the rebuilds are off-topic until someone fancies forward-engineering the Hornby model. 

 

Hornby seems to be doing very well with this model considering the real Crosti's only ran in one area (weren't they all at Wellingborough?) and ran in that condition for just three years. 

Edited August 29, 2015 by coachmann

[Hilux5972]

Although i did not know it at the time, the very last BR steam loco I saw was a rebuilt Crosti returning light engine to Mold Junction. I was driving for McAlpine's during construction of the Abergele bye-pass at the time. But really the rebuilds are off-topic until someone fancies forward-engineering the Hornby model.

 

Hornby seems to be doing very well with this model considering the real Crosti's only ran in one area for a very short time and few enthusiast of the time ever saw one.

I guess it's down to the novelty value of them. Never produced RTR commercially before so it's a niche market, just like the P2 really. Something different.

[Brian Kirby]

It's widely known that all ten of the Crostis were allocated en-bloc to Wellingborough, from May 1955 onwards, the last few arriving in July 1955. Here they stayed until their premature withdrawal, then storage and eventual rebuilding, after which they spread their wings. The only stray was when 92023 went for a short holiday to Carlisle Kingmoor for a few weeks, in November 1955, presumably on trial, although it was back home at Wellingborough by Christmas. My question is how were the new Crostis deployed from Wellingborough, working freights south to Cricklewood is pretty obvious, north to Corby steelworks with iron ore is another dead cert, but where else would they run to in the 1950s? I'd imagine a fairly tight rein was kept on these unusual machines, requiring specially trained crews. North to Toton is another possibility, but would they risk them further afield? Were they used on the east-west Northampton to Peterborough line, which crossed and linked with the Midland at Wellingborough? Has anybody got any storage and re-building dates for these locos?

 

                                                                     Cheers, Brian.