Jake

The loco in the second video is a Breuer shunting tractor (Rivarossi). Its not British but I could't resist when it came down to £50.

Whats the chasis based on? is it similar to the Hornby class 06 , or do they do something different for the pug range. The 06 chasis has a preety cheap motor in it that you can feel the poles when you turn it. A dcc decoder makes it a tad slower and smoother, but im preety sure that the problem lies with the motor. The end result on your latest blog though looks fantastic. Its a credit to your skills.

The chassis is the same cheap one that's in all the Hornby beginner loco's, although I believe smokey joe is heavier than some of the other manifestations, it certainly runs better than some of the other loco's I have owned with the same chassis!

No, I have not as of yet come across anything that can be done to improve the chassis, short of a full rebuild. But having tried it on my inglenook It is possible to shunt, you just have to keep the wheels and track absolutely squeaky clean!

Looks to me like a kitbashed airfix pug with half a tank wagon grafted on to it.