Pierview

With the aid of the instructions kindly copied for me by Tom I have now completed my Westward kit. As shown, I chose the 74xx option with my subject being 7421, as allocated to Weymouth in 1953/4. It is always something of a chancy business when you buy obsolete kits on the second hand market because of the risk of components being missing. In this case I was fortunate in that all the major bits were there, although annoyingly the buffers, whistle shield and handrail knobs were not. Fortunately I was able to source suitable replacements. A previous owner had made a start on the chassis and included with my purchase were a set of plastic centre fine scale wheels and and an ECM motor and mount. Although these were all perfectly serviceable I chose instead to fit Markits wheels, Branchlines gearbox and a Mashima motor. These days High Level are my gearboxes of choice but as Chris Gibbon is temporarily closed, I used a Branchlines product instead. I modified the frames by soldering in triangular fillets to get rid of the X04 type motor cutouts. The only other Westward kit I have ever built was a Royal Blue coach back in the 1970's but I was very pleased with the 54xx/64xx/74xx kit. I found the castings to be very fine and flash free and there was a thoughtful amount of fine detail. I found it unnecessary to add much else apart from a bell on the left hand side as 7421 was a  Weymouth tramway  engine. The only thing that I didn't like about the kit concerned the cast brake shoes. These are intended to be glued into holes drilled into the frames but I felt this method of fixing was insufficiently robust and this proved to be the case as a couple came adrift during construction After this happened a couple of times I ditched them and fitted a set of etched Mainly Trains ones instead. An interesting little build and whilst

I could have achieved a similar result by modifying a Bachmann 64xx it's not as satisfying is it?

Barry

I can't help with the exact wheels you need but I have found similar 14mm coach wheels in my scrap box. I have 4 axles and you are welcome to these if  they are useful.

Barry

That's  a very kind gesture Jim and I would be happy to take it off your hands! The steps are not important as I would replace them anyway.  if you can send me an e-mail with the necessary details I will get the payment to you.

Best

Barry 

I am seeking a reasonably priced Tri-ang L1 body for a project to see it fitted with a scale chassis and replacement tender. I am not after a collector's item and the condition of the original finish is not important as quite a lot of remedial work will need to be done on the body. Scruffy is therefore quite acceptable but it must be otherwise undamaged.

Safely received  Tom and exactly what I wanted. Many thanks for your trouble and thanks also to the others who responded. I have no excuse for not getting on with it now!

Barry  

Hello everyone . This is my first posting on this forum although I have been following it for some time and have enjoyed seeing some great modelling. 

However to get to the point,  I acquired the Westward kit for the 54xx/64xx/74xx loco a few months ago from that well known on-line auction site. First impressions are that considering its age,  the kit is nowhere near as bad as some people have suggested and I am quite impressed with the castings.  Unfortunately the instructions are missing so I wonder if anyone has a set that they could copy for me? Most of the assembly seems self evident but the instructions will help with identifying small and alternative parts. Any assistance would be gratefully received!