John's mainly Industrial EM thread.

[Mayner]

Following on from Alan's prompt some info thoughts on the collection. I assembled most of theses locos while living in the UK between the mid 80s-90s, I originally assembled some of the locos in OO, adapting EM gauge after joining the Milton Keynes Model Railway Society during the early 90s. First British Outline kits tackled were a "Craftsman" BR 02 & 07 shunter kits around the time EAMES (Reading) & MRM (Kings Cross) closed in 1989.

Craftsman Kits:

The Craftsman diesels were mainly etched brass with whitemetal castings. Well designed/simple to assemble kits, only real drawback was that the chassis was etched in the same thickness of brass as the body rather than more rigid nickle silver though this did not adversely affect the running of the assembled loco/chassis as Craftsman used an ingenious 1 piece fold up frame spacer/motor mount which resulted in a rigid chassis structure which also helped mesh the gears ideal for a OO gauge loco. These were a relatively early etched kit with a cut out for the motor in the profile of the frames similar to Triang-Hornby & most kit chassis. I motorised both locos with the recommended Anchorage D11 open frame motor https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/336587881501 & Romford (later Markits) gears. I fitted the 07 with a 40:1 gear set & 02 with 50:1. I later converted both locos to EM and  re-powered the 07 with a Mashima can motor with a Branchlines 50:1 box for improved slow running on a Quarry/Ironstone layout which appeared at a number of Irish exhibitions and Warley during the early 2000s

I originally finished the locos in a freelance red livery with brass nameplates possibly inspired by Oxfordshire Ironstone locos. but repainted the locos into BR green livery before disposal during the early 2000. 

I haven't any photos of these locos, but certainly worth looking out for a Craftsman 02 or 07 diesel or their other kits (steam outline, DMU) in unbuilt or assembled form.

The Impetus kits:

Possibly another 'fallen flag" brand of kits, I bought a number of these kits while Robin Arkinstall operated the business up to gthe early 2000s.

First was a Ruston & Hornsby DE165 possibly because there was one at the Blue Circle Cement  Dunstable terminal former factory, originally assembled in OO later converted to EM.

I may have originally painted this loco Blue Circle yellow, but re-painted into my 'standard; green scheme about 30 years ago! Regular performer on Quarry/Ironstone layout.

Wheels are Mike Sharman 3', my usual 90s combo of a Mashima motor with flywheel and Branchlines slimline gearbox (ultrascale gears). leading axle rocking, my messy pick-ups pb wire soldered to sleeper strip superglued to the chassis!

 

The Hunslet based on 150hp shunter supplied to LMS during Mid 1930s now on Middleton Railway Leeds. Originally fitted with a large can motor driving a 30:1 Gibson gear set through 2:1 spur gears, the loco was re-powered with a Portescap RG4? compact motor-gearbox following problems with the original gear set. Usual combo of rigid chassis & Sharman 3' wheels. Though I would need to take a serious look at the flycranks and rods if the loco is to run again.

An afterthought in terms of the diesel fleet, I picked up an Impetus EE/08 replacement chassis kit (& a Manning Wardle) during a visit (from Dublin) to the Chatham Show during the late 90s.

Useful powerful beast, but never got round to upgrading or replacing the Triang/Hornby body picked up at some show or swapmeet.

Outside frames/footplate etched n/s with brass castings.

N/s frames, compensated chassi, Sharman wheels cranks laminated in etched n/s soldered to axles, this time a large Mashima motor and flywheel driving a High Level Gearbox possibly Highflier & usual messy pick ups.

 

Id always fancied a Manning Wardle widley used both on light railways and industrial sites, but seemed a challenging build in 4mm scale.

Loco now breaks down into 4 main sub-assemblies. Originally (cast whitemetal) smokebox was soldered to saddle tank, with lower boiler separate.

Motor with flywheel (possibly a replacement) with usual Branchlines Slimline gearbox. Cab roof is 'somewhere' in the workshop.

Main oddity this loco assembled with split frame chassis with plated MW wheels and 2mm split axle components supplied by Branchlines (when Andy Mullins owned business). Need to finalise arrangements for consealing the motor, replace the missing springs and find the cab roof. 

There are a few more locos but more than enough for a single post.

Edited Tuesday at 11:12 by Mayner

[Tullygrainey]

Thanks for this John. Very interesting. It's like looking at a little bit of the history of etched kits. I came to kit-building late in the day with the advantage that most of the truly grim stuff had already bitten the dust leaving only the better kits. Some pretty high spec bits in your locos - Sharman wheels, Portescap gearbox/motors and so on. Cutting edge when you built them I'd say.

 

[Mayner]

Final operational Industrial is/was a Dapol Austerity converted to EM with an etched brass chassis possibly Comet, rigid chassis, Mashima possibly 12X24 motor & Branchlines Multibox on Markits wheels, slow running powerful loco. The Dapol model was based on a loco fitted with the Hunslet underfed stocker with its distinctive modified chimney (fitted 1960s) hopefully someday I'll get round to fitting the loco with a conventional chimney.

Live axle pickups one side, pb wire soldered to short pieces of sleeper strip opposite side.

 

Now for something completly different, during the early 90s I started a side hussle assembling and selling large OO gauge DJH freight locos Austerity 2-8-0 most poular, but also 9F & Austerity 2-10-0 and 8F 2-8-0. (Very little suitable/durable available in RTR DJH produced a reasonable range of large/medium post grouping and BR 'Standard" types. The combination of etched and whitemetal construction (high quality castings), Romford/Markits wheels, Anchorage motors in combination with Romford/Markits gears was ideal for durable 'layout locomotives. 

Anyway one customer supplied a DJH 8F kit in part payment for an assembled loco and I ended up with an EM gauge 8F with Mashima motor and Branchlines multibox, power pick up is 'live axle" on the American system through the driving wheels on one side and opposite side tender wheels. Paint damaged touched up in matt in one area of the tender damaged by the cab doors.

I wasn't happy with the DJH tender chassis design (whitemetal block with brass keeper plate) and replaced with a etched tender chassis possibly Comet. 

 

Probabably the best composite brass and whitemetal locomotive kit the Comet Ivatt 2MT 2-6-0 introduced during the late 90s/early 2000s one of the mainstays on an Ironstone/Quarry layout exhibited at shows in Ireland and the UK during the early 2000s.

The experienced gained in assembling those Craftsman and Impetus kits proved useful during the early 90s in salvaging/finishing the TMD Midland Tank my first etched kit started almost 10 years earlier.

553 acquired a riveted smokebox, new buffers, smokebox door, chimney and safety valve castings, but is still the same kit started over 40 years ago!

Still retains the original brass chassis, Sharman wheels with Flexchas bearings, DS10 motor driving Sharman 40:1 box, with a keeper plate soldered up from brass/ns wire and strip which also represents the brake rodding (Slaters (plastic) brake shoes and hangers very useful.

533 still runs with a bit of a waddle, basically I haven't touched the wheelsets since I quartered and pressed the wheels on their axles all those years ago.

In a way this thread is a bit like a history of etched kits, though thankfully I managed to avoid the more challenging of kits, Sharman wheels were basically the go-to for small industrial and narrow gauge drivers and the best option for 21mm gauge and straight forward to work with compared with other brands crank pin integral with the wheel centre, tyres that did not work loose and relatively inexpensive. 

The emergence of the Branchlines and later Hi Level reduction boxes during the 90s was a big break through in terms of running. The Sharman gearbox was beautifully engineered but limited to a 40:1 reduction, though he did produce a similar 2:1 reduction box which does not appear to have been produced comercially.

I guess the next stage is to gradually 'conserve/restore' my collection of kit/built locos (both British & Irish) some of which have not been run/touched since placed in their display cases several years ago.

An EM gauge minimum space Light Railway/Industrial layout/diorama would be an attractive idea, but I already have too many unfinished projects/layouts not quite on the go at the moment.