Useful Chassis for British H0 Loco and Railcar Projects

[Ian Simpson]

Simon's G6 body sitting on a Hornby Terrier chassis:

And sitting rather uncomfortably at the moment, as the H0 splashers are too narrow for the overscale 00 wheels.

[rue_d_etropal]

that shows how similar the G6 is to the O2. could remove rear axle and fit a bogie.

[47137]

23 minutes ago, rue_d_etropal said:

that shows how similar the G6 is to the O2. could remove rear axle and fit a bogie.

 

Push along? Both generations of Hornby Terrier chassis have the drive to the rear axle 

 

- Richard.

[rue_d_etropal]

2 hours ago, 47137 said:

 

Push along? Both generations of Hornby Terrier chassis have the drive to the rear axle 

 

- Richard.

had not noticed as I was just looking at a spare chassis I have.

 

easy, just reverse chassis , and remove brakes if bothered.

[Ian Simpson]

3 hours ago, rue_d_etropal said:

that shows how similar the G6 is to the O2. could remove rear axle and fit a bogie.

 

That was my next plan! The Terrier wheelbase is exactly the right size for the driving wheels of an H0 O2.

And yes, my mistake: it is Simon's O2 print, not a G6. I've just become so used to thinking of it as a G6. 

[rue_d_etropal]

Just now, Ian Simpson said:

 

That was my next plan! The Terrier wheelbase is exactly the right size for the driving wheels of an H0 O2.

And yes, my mistake: it is Simon's O2 print, not a G6. I've just become so used to thinking of it as a G6. 

I am sure I have seen something to say the G6 and O2 were near enough the same, body wise, and certainly close enough in an HO model.

[Ian Simpson]

3 minutes ago, rue_d_etropal said:

I am sure I have seen something to say the G6 and O2 were near enough the same, body wise, and certainly close enough in an HO model.

 

Certainly the same body length at 30 ft 8.5 ins.

(And rather to my surprise, the same driver diameter as well).

 

[rue_d_etropal]

THe similarity does not surprise me. Why design things different when a design can be shared  and cost reduced.

[47137]

I don't want to pour cold water on this but do bear in mind, the motor of the Hornby chassis is over the two undriven axles. You are going to end up with the motor filling the cab and most of the weight over the bogie not the driving wheels. Having said this, if you can fill the boiler with lead then hopefully adding the body will balance things up.

 

Ian can you fit EM wheels to get something narrow enough to go inside the splashers? Or maybe carve away part of the print.

 

- Richard.

 

[Ian Simpson]

Thanks, Richard. This is what we've got when the Terrier chassis is reversed:

 

For an O2 I'd need to cut away a bit of the underside of the boiler and the running plate beneath it to accommodate the worm drive, I think.

 

Yes, I will try to open up the existing splashers if I can, as the thought of rewheeling a chassis scares me rigid!

[rue_d_etropal]

another option might be to convert an old triang TT Jinty chassis. Easy enough to replace wheels with Romford ones. Wheelbase is near enough the same.

[47137]

Here is the chassis from the new Hornby Terrier:

 

There is a bit more room to play with vertically, and you get a better mechanism. This one runs perfectly.

 

- Richard.

 

 

[Ian Simpson]

Getting there ...

... but I hacked it about something rotten with a mini-tool:

 

[47137]

I'm sure this is what the mini-tools are for doing most of the time. Leave drilling holes to the pin vise.

 

This is going to be good - room for a cab floor and a crew too.

 

- Richard.

[47137]

I've updated the table in the first post to include applications of the two Hornby Terrier chassis to the LSWR G6 (0-6-0) and O2 (0-4-4).

 

- Richard.

[CloggyDog]

Sorting out a box of random chassis and bogies earlier, another option for re-powering the Lima 33 (or derivatves, especially if, like me, you have put it on a diet to get a scale width), is one of the various RTR OO 8'6" bogies, which scales to just under 10' in H0. (Interestingly, the Lima 33 bogies measure to 34mm exactly, so they are a scale 3" short in the wheelbase. No doubt to use an existing pancake bogie.  

 

I've found a Heljan 17 chassis, a pair of Bachmann 25 bogies and a Bachmann 158 bogie, all of which could be married to a suitable motor on a scratchbuilt chassis.. The 17 and 158 bogies in particular are quite low profile and would easily fit within the 33 shell. The RTR sideframes are easily cut away to allow mounting of the Lima sideframes. 

 

I'll have a go at fabricating new chassis for the 26 I'm working on using the 158 bogie and a suitable motor I have to hand. 

[47137]

I've added the Terrier commissioned by Rails of Sheffield to the list.

 

I don't have one of these engines so I am guessing the dimensions of the wheels and wheelbase, but somehow I expect they are correct for its prototype. This model has blackened wheels and a Next18 DCC socket, these might swing the balance over buying a new Hornby model to cut up.

 

- Richard.

[47137]

I have had my Hornby Ruston 48DS in bits to put in a decoder. This chassis ought to be suitable for a range of H0 critters - 10 mm wheels, 21 mm wheelbase:

 

I fixed the DCC socket on with superglue to take this photo and the whole assembly was a shade under 28 mm high above rail level. This is the budget Zimo 617N decoder.

 

(This made the assembly too tall to go back inside the Hornby body, so I had to break off the superglue and leave the decoder and its socket loose on a bit of a tilt).

 

This chassis is a much better runner than all three Tenshodos I have had; obviously there is a price premium to pay but the unwanted parts would probably sell on eBay.

 

- Richard.

[47137]

I wonder if this little Jouef engine would be useful for its chassis?

 

https://www.pierredominique.com/art-71273-locomotive-vapeur-030-sncf.html

 

I like the distinct extra spacing between the rear axles. Experience with the Electrotren model suggests it is easy to remove the outside cylinders.

 

Of course, if someone already has one of these I could add the details to the table.

 

- Richard.

[rue_d_etropal]

22 hours ago, 47137 said:

I wonder if this little Jouef engine would be useful for its chassis?

 

https://www.pierredominique.com/art-71273-locomotive-vapeur-030-sncf.html

 

I like the distinct extra spacing between the rear axles. Experience with the Electrotren model suggests it is easy to remove the outside cylinders.

 

Of course, if someone already has one of these I could add the details to the table.

 

- Richard.

it is same as Electrotren version, which can usually be picked up here easily. Various versions, just different bodies. The different spacing of rear axle can be useful for some locos but for many an equal spacing would be better.

Also as it is a model of a Spannish broad gauge loco, it is nearer to 4mm scale width, so cylinders are further out., but I think buffers are spaced for standard gauge not broad gauge, but that might be correct for Spannish stock.

As with many continental locos, therr might be a problem with height of motor for British HO. 

Wheel size is 14mmso ideal for lococos with 4ft wheels. Front to middle spacing is near enough for a Terrier, pity the rear axle to middle is not same, but gven low price might be worth it.

 

[HSB]

I bought one version of these locos a while ago to convert to 5.5mm scale narrow gauge but  I stood it on my H0 layout with a couple of wagons first.

The width over the tanks is quite wide and is a tight fit over the mechanism.

 

[47137]

On 07/07/2020 at 13:30, HSB said:

I bought one version of these locos a while ago to convert to 5.5mm scale narrow gauge but  I stood it on my H0 layout with a couple of wagons first.

The width over the tanks is quite wide and is a tight fit over the mechanism.

 

There is a version of the Electrotren model with a saddletank body and this fits into the British outline. So I think the chassis is worth remembering, even if it for only a relatively large engine.

 

I do like the idea of a 5.5mm scale project ... were you modelling a 3ft gauge line or did you change the chassis for an N gauge one?

 

- Richard.

[HSB]

It was for a 3' gauge loco. 16.5mm obviously works out at exactlly 3' in 5.5mm. Slightly off-topic but here's a picture of the rebuilt loco:-

 

[47137]

13 hours ago, HSB said:

It was for a 3' gauge loco. 16.5mm obviously works out at exactlly 3' in 5.5mm. Slightly off-topic but here's a picture of the rebuilt loco:-

 

 

Surely we are allowed to go off-topic when we are showing models we have made? I think this really looks the part. You have sent me off to the Internet reading up on 5.5 mm scale, I imagined it was all history but it looks like a really nice size to work in. And you can run the trains on 16.5 mm gauge track, so as an experiment in model-making you don't need to build a layout. Have you got a link to your 5.5 mm project?

 

- Richard.

[Moxy]

Further thread drift - you may already have seen this, but the 5.5mm Association is here.

 

Well worth joining.

 

Moxy