Anyone identify a TT scale tinplate tender?

[handyman]

In a recent rolling stock buying spree, I came across this little(?) British Railways tinplate tender. See photos. Its definitely TT gauge as the back set for the wheels is 12.5mm. Its got a few dog-eared corners but nothing a bit of gentle fettlin' wont sort out, as the enamel paint hasn't broken, although the lining out looks a bit patchy and one of them 'Lions on an Ordinary' has been well rubbed. Its got a Peco or Simplex type coupling which carries a Meccano (Pritchard) Patent Number, granted in the 1950s, only four wheels as the space in the centre is occupied by a rather large weight.

 

The chassis pressing is very reminicent of TTR, but there ain't no other markings on it.

 

A trawel through the Hammond Tome failed to uncover its origins, so I thought its time to consult the oracles herein. Any ideas about possible makers? What was it likely hooked up to?

 

Hmm, tried to upload photos only to find they are too big & as its late, I'll try another time.

 

However, I'm hoping from my resume, some kind soul will be able to identify this tinplate tender.

[switcher 1]

Not sure about your thoughts being TT, as track gauge was 12mm for Triang 3mm/ft, could it be H0, 3.5mm/ft?

[Il Grifone]

Could we have a photo please, as it's rather difficult to identify otherwise?

 

A back to back of 12.5mm suggests Trix, but their steamroller wheels are distinctive, as is their version of the Peco Simplex coupling.

 

The Trix tender does have a weight in the place of the centre axle. Mine has no patent number on the coupling, but, since it is a 1940s LNER version, this is to be expected.

 

(This is the tender for the 0-4-0 locomotive or possibly an early Hunt or Compound.)

 

Pictures here

 

http://www.trix.co.uk/

[handyman]

Hullo David, thanks for the reply. I thought you'd be one of the first with your encyclopedic knowledge.

 

On looking at the TTR site, this tin plate tender looks very like the one attached to the '0-4-0 tender loco', plus a quick comparison, for size, makes it look like a HO 'model'. I was probably thrown by the wheel spacing which is definitely narrower than a HO or OO wagon.

 

The tender is no use to me as all my stock is either O, On30, OO or OO9 & I'm not likely to start a HO railway just yet! I'll probably add it to a lot of other HO items I'll be disposing of shortly, even though I have one or two TTR items in my OO rolling stock.

[Il Grifone]

Hullo David, thanks for the reply. I thought you'd be one of the first with your encyclopedic knowledge.

 

 

Thanks, but I wish!

 

Trix were never quite too sure of their scale. It varies from 1/90 to 1/76 in their own literature. It's also not helped by their practice of sharing components (or even complete models) between the German Trix Express (H0) and British Trix Twin (?) ranges. Scale is rather ambiguous term with most of their offerings anyway. I find that the buffer height and spacing is roughly 00 on the British models (the spacing is actually wide for 00). The tinplate goods stock is reasonably compatible with 00 on size, but the 'scale length' coaches are noticeably undersize. Later Trix (rather than Trix Twin) models are more or less to 1/80 scale (A serious commercial error - later corrected), but again the buffer spacing is 00. (Rivarossi's 'Royal Scot' is to the same scale*, but IIRC the spacing is H0). The 0-4-0s (and 0-4-0Ts) look decidedly 'chunky', due to the need to find room for a pancake motor, with a field winding and a bulky reversing relay, not to mention generously over-dimensioned wheel tyres and flanges.

 

* Up to around the time of their merger with Lima, all of their production (apart from the items of Pocher or Trix Express origin and their U.S. models) was to 1/80 (still described erroneously as H0) but with H0 buffer spacing with looks odd especially seeing that some are a trifle wide to get the mechanism in, which is why we have 00 of course.