Brassey

This shows the 388 as shorter overall due to the shorter cab that also sits further back on the footplate

What you have is an outside-frame Dean Goods which was a class in its own right: GWR 2361 0-6-0

Rather neat work Mikkel. Looking forward to the next instalment. Peter

The Dean Goods must be my favourite loco because, when I returned to the hobby after career and other life stages, I found that I'd acquired 4 Dean Goods chassis in the intervening years. My very first loco was a whitemetal K's Dean Goods many years ago so I guess in the back of my mind these chassis were destined for that. But I'd also acquired a number of Mallard etches too and a tender. If that was not enough, I then bought a High Level chassis and finally a Dean Goods kit from Martin Finney at Scaleforum who persuaded me to go for the working inside motion too! This Christmas break gave me some time to build another one of the chassis which is a Comet version that I have also built sprung using the Comet components. I've also included "dummy" inside motion that Brassmasters now supply with the Finney kits now in their stable. More detail for those interested is in my blog.

As mentioned in the previous blog, the next project is to try out a sprung chassis. This is partly due to my objective of achieving optimum running. This is the Comet chassis with their hornblocks and springs that I've had in the kit pile for years. It requires a massive leap of faith that the rods will line up with the wheelbase as there is no means of adjusting this unlike with soldered in hornblocks, such as High Level, that I used on the previous 2 Dean Goods. Despite this, I set the chassis up in my jig as usual and have used the latest dodge of Romford wheels on P4 axles to check things. These wheels are undersize but do the job. So far so good. The rear retainers needed quite a lot of fettling otherwise they were too tight to allow the rear hornblocks to move. This loco will have "dummy" inside motion as sold by Brassmasters for their Martin Finney kits. The body work will be mainly leftovers from my Martin Finney Dean Goods kit that I acquired with full working inside motion. I cheated with the Comet chassis by soldering a MF EM gauge front spacer to the front which include the means to attach the inside motion. The eagle-eyed will spot that I have included the front compensation beam and rear holes for beams in case I am not satisfied with the springing and need to revert to compensation. Here are the etches you get. The wires lying around are not included. Here is the front cylinder block and slide bars with bracket to attach to chassis And made up. There are some rather small detailing parts that have been added to this that I doubt will be visible once it's in the loco Here's the whole thing completely assembled and in the chassis retained by a 10BA screw. I've since added the wires for the brake hangers and the chassis is waiting for the paint shop

No the boiler does not come pre-formed in MM or Martin Finney kits. I have GW Models rolling bars for such jobs. See Malcolm's own demo in this video: The pitfalls I guess are recognising all the components for example, these are the set of etches for a MF Dean Goods. There are 2 different footplates, 4 different cab sides etc. The boiler is top left and comes with round top firebox attached which you have to remove for the belpaire version. http://www.brassmasters.co.uk/gwr_2301_etches.htm These are as good as it gets for kits but it may be easier to start with something simpler such as a London Road Models kit which has a pre-rolled or resin boiler. There won't be nearly as many parts.

That 1428 = 48xx Series. Built 11/1933 renumbered from 4828 to 1428 11/1946. Withdrawn 6/1959. The 48xx series were built to replace the 517 class which by 1932 were being scrapped. Glad to see you biting the bullett on a brass kit. However, I would not suggest starting with a Malcolm Mitchell 517 kit as that would prove quite a challenge due to the amount of fine detail.

Like many I started with white metal kits many moons ago. Then, if you wanted a Dean Goods for example, that was the only way to go. Etched brass is a natural progression as is scratch building certain parts if you want something different to what's in the kit. For example the Mallard 517 kit is only good for a later version; you have to be prepared to amend the footplate for the earlier narrower types and scratch build a new bunker. As Jazz says in his signature: you learn by doing. The only way to find out is to try. Soldering improves greatly with practice. Nowadays I have a lot of problems with glue!

1428 was changed to a long wheelbase in March 1899 so is likely to have had outside bearings from that date. It never received a belpaire firebox. Built with an R3r it received a R4s (roundtop) also in March 1899 and was withdrawn in October 1932. Source: RCTS

I have 3 x 517 kits: The first finished is an M&L/Mallard hybrid. Short wheelbase, inside rear axle boxes, open cab. Required some adjustment and scratch built parts. The second (almost finished) is based around the Mallard kit with a High Level 14xx chassis suitably shortened. Closed cab, long wheelbase, outside axle boxes. I can highly recommend the High Level chassis. Ditto tweaking above The third is a Malcolm Mitchell kit bought from David Geen before he retired. Will also be closed cab. In my kit mountain is also a Rod Neep 2-4-0 Metro etch and chassis described as a scratchbuilders aid. I also have a Wills Metro which will donate the castings All of these ran between Ludlow and Hereford pre WW1 on local passenger trains. Progress on all the above is stalled whilst I am currently working on a Comet sprung chassis with inside valve gear for a Dean Goods (and ballasting track!)

What year is this formation from? 2nd class was obsolete on the GWR by 1912. Also the last vehicle is not written as corridor so the corridor portion was presumably linked together hence the break in the middle. Usually 2nd class were downgraded to 3rds.

Brassmasters did both and could well still have stock if you ask them. I got a Precursor through that route but got an Experiment via eBay. I'm still toying with the idea of a 19in Goods at some point.

The LNWR Society reprinted the Marshalling Circular for July, August and September 1910. This includes the North to West expresses. Copies sometimes come up on eBay They may have later copies including the LMS period in their archives at the Study Centre which is open to the public at certain weekends throughout the year. Some GWR records are also at Kew

Note the dominance of break composites; something not easily obtainable in model form. The Bradford section would probably have come off at Bristol so not run over he S&H Thankfully the local trains, which outnumbered the expresses, were shorter

Hi Bjoern I've asked the question for you but you may have been able to post a question via the guest book yourself. Please be aware that as David and my chassis are P4, there is more room between the frames to get a wider motor in which you may not have in OO. So a 14XX size Mashima motor might be out of the question. I think I used an old Sagami 1428 for mine. Peter Edited to avoid confusion between a 14XX motor and a 14XX loco!

I bought my Haff pen direct from them in Germany with no problem. BTW how are you getting on with your Finney Dean Goods?

FWIW I have a couple of Mallard 2,000 gall tenders and these came with scoop.

On LNWR locos there is a blower in roughly that position operated by the handrail.

Are these 2-6-2's? What about the chassis

Not too sure how far you have got with the 517 CKPR but Ricey either ignored or glossed over the fact that the footplate on the Mallard kit is too wide for an early 517. You may have read on my thread that I rose to the challenge and have built 2 which required cutting down the footplate etch and narrowing the side tanks. It can be done and I think it was worth it. There's a lot of an M&L whitemetal kit in this one but the side tanks and footplate are Mallard: This one has more Mallard bits:

The Church Stretton model railway group built a layout of that station. Here is their version of the old station building: I would question the window colours as these appear to have been white: B&E close up: This is B&E in LMS days. The running in board looks still to be in LNWR colours. The Pagoda shelter could be in GWR Stone 1 and 2. Interestingly on the stationcolours.com the writer states for LNWR Light Brown he would use Precision GWR dark stone! So essentially it is the same colour irrespective of which company.

Yes that is my photo; cropped from an early 1930's shot of B&E so in LMS days. The signal box window frames are predominantly white. Can't make out much else. (I do have a better shot of the next box on the line). The tall signal is LNWR and would still appear to be in LNWR colour scheme with a brown base. My interest is strictly pre-grouping so I know nothing of the LMS and have no interest in it due to how the Midland usurped the organisation to the detriment of the LNWR.

I doubt that any documentary evidence has survived. Responsibility for certain elements switched between the two parties over time. IIRC responsibility for the signalling and permanent way switched from the LNWR to the GWR around 1907. I could have read or might have assumed that in return the LNWR took over buildings as a result. Therefore buildings would have been repainted in the LNWR colour scheme of the time (if at all) probably up to the grouping. The LNWR used "buff" on buildings which would be hard to discern from Stone 1 and 2 in B&W photography particularly after weathering. The LNWR had a lot of wooden structures and their schemes pertained to that but those on the S&H are mainly brick or stone. I have some photos of Ford Bridge in which the woodwork would appear to be finished in chocolate which the GWR is reputed to have used for a brief period. Many years after closure under BR, colour photographs I have of Berrington & Eye show the booking hall still in GWR colour ways! Whether the GWR repainted the LNWR signals is also questionable though it might have happened. They certainly replaced worn out gear so the Signalbox at B&E got a new GWR lever frame. I am assuming that the box got a repaint too at about the same time but as I have no photograph of the box whatsoever I have no proof.

What I like about these LRM kits' design is how the upper hinges are part of the drop lights etch which helps considerably in applying the hinges. Only the lower ones need applying individually. (I've just spent the best part of a weekend applying door hinges but not on LRM kits!)

I don't have allocations for 1934 I'm afraid as it is out of my period. In 1912 (the period of my interest) the following were at Shrewsbury: ‘18in Goods’ 59, 339, 467, 533, 725, 727, 776, 1702, 1712, 2352. This is quite a complex subject to research due to the renumbering by the LMS and the random nature of how the LNWR allocated numbers. 59 for example never received a BF nor was its allocated LMS number (8504) ever applied before it was withdrawn London Road Models do an etched brass kit of the Cauliflower (as to did GEM in white metal). IIRC there is a choice between belpaire and round top versions.