Locomotive Annie

As daft as this sounds I just need to get my hands on a sample of Lego track and then I'm good to go.

Yes actually that is my plan. I was going to setup a board in my sunny courtyard with Lego, Enlighten, Banbao and Sluban track on it all dated and documented properly and then take photos at regular intervals. Weekly photos might be too close an interval, but on the other hand I don't want to make it too infrequent either so that it's impossible to tell which track type is doing better relative to the rest. What do you think, - weekly, fortnightly?

Wow! 100 Euro! That is expensive for the Freight set, - I'll never complain about the price for one here in New Zealand again. I really do need to finish writing up my reveiw, but I will say that the main train plate and battery box holder is an area that I'm not so keen on either. Building the loco itself was a lot of fun and the way it assembles is a great piece of design that makes for a very strong loco. Based as it is on a genuine prototype,- the HXD2 from the 'Harmony' series of Chinese locomotives built in conjunction with the French company Alstom, - the Banbao version faithfully copies a good many of the prototype's distinctive details, BUT the use of that particular bottom plate and battery box assembly does knock its appearance somewhat. That said I do like the Banbao loco a lot and I have a second set on layby so I can run two together in a lashup configuration. I have a good quality scanner so I can very easily take a scan of the Freight loco's instruction booklet and post a link to it if anyone else wants to do a build in Lego Bricks.

Thanks LEGO Guy Bri, - I don't know if I would try it myself, but it certainly was interesting to read the article. http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&js=n&prev=_t&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&layout=2&eotf=1&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.freelug.fr%2Fspip.php%3Farticle1220&act=url

Zephyr's rods have a very fine granular surface because they are made by 3D printing, but crude they certainly are not. These rods are very precise in their sizing and look absolutely spot on in every way. The price is what is is because they are a low volume production item and considering the wide range available; - which includes some fairly uncommon spacings and offsets as well as the more usual types, - I think they are very reasonably priced.

Wow, that LGV line is something else! Does anybody know how they built their trackwork because it's definitely no off-the-shelf item.

There's a delightful innocence of a simpler time about that set.

Not an original 7760 mind you, - I'm talking about an updated copy made from new bricks. If an original 7760 set came my way it would be treated with the respect it deserves.

Your loco shed looks really good Lazarus and I'm going to need to build something similar myself for my own layout before too long. I like the way you've done the roof as I think the original Lego roof is far too flat, then I suppose I'm used to the look of a New Zealand Rlys steam era loco shed and they definitely weren't flat.

I love the updated 7760 blue shunter just because it's such a classic and instantly recognisable icon. If I built one myself it would have to have a pantograph on it though since I don't do diesels. The trick with adding the centre wheels is a good one and I'm going to try that as soon as the PF motor blocks I've got on order arrive. Next trick will be to fit up some siderods, but I suppose that isn't impossible to do.

It's a difficult question when it comes to the classics. I like electric locos a lot and the pantographs and the associated electrical gubbins on the locomotives' roof is a distinctive feature. With MOCs it's not an issue since you can freely build whatever looks best, but a classic loco like the 7740 should be displayed in its original condition. A compromise could be to make a custom roof with updated pantographs for running the loco on the layout so it can fit inside loco sheds and the like, but when displayed away from the layout the correct parts are restored to their rightful place again..

You betcha life I do Seriously though I love the challenge of making bricks, tiles and plates end up looking like a specific type of locomotive. It's just that if a clone maker has a particular kind useful double sided brick or some other part that Lego doesn't make that finishes off a loco MOC just how I want I'd be nuts not to use it. Same goes for using a razor saw and hi-tech plastic glue to make a custom part for one of my locos. When I do this I saw up clone bricks though; - not a crime to saw up clone bricks in my book. True wrought Lego always stays pristine.

That sounds like a good idea Benn. We're coming into our Summer now so it should be a good test. I hadn't planned on doing anything significant with building a garden line until next year anyway so by the time I'm ready it should be fairly plain if the track can take it.

He is using 45mm commercially made track intended for garden railways and has gauged his loco to suit. Yes I think you are quite right Lazarus, - I think I'll just go for it and not worry about it. The place where I want to lay track is in a shady location and not in direct sunlight.

No, apparently that tubular housing is for the fan that drives the condenser. The loco was far too heavy and the condenser was far too inefficient so back to the makers it went where it was written off.

Well look at that!

The Armstrong-Whitworth Turbine-Electric Locomotive. An underwhelming failure by all accounts.

I have three of those coaches still in the boxes which I intend to assemble to use as an express set ; - not for use with my 8 wide NZR locos, but just as a rake of nice coaches I can run with any other 6 wide locos i might fancy building. My impression is that they are a really good design of coach and I personally like the printed curtains on the windows. So far with my forays into heretic clone territory I've found the clutch on Enlighten bricks to be very good unlike some makers such as Ligao and Wange whose bricks often fit together quite weakly and only serve to disappoint the purchaser.

Thanks for the photo tips Lazurus, I'll have an experiment and see if I can improve things. 'Try it again Harry,' says Olivia after her third attempt at trying to get the loco to start. Puss has been trying to do his best to tell them that the main switch is in the off position, but no-one seems to be taking any notice. Sorry, the review has been delayed as I have house guests at the moment, but as soon as I get a a clear afternoon to write everything up I'll post the Freight train reveiw before my keyboard even gets a chance to cool down.

I should hang my head in shame Benn because everytime I see your lovely Milwaukee Road S3 I can't help thinking of it as being the 'piano locomotive'. Marvellous to see the video of the new valve gear in action. Now I find myself trying to choose an NZR tank locomotive with outside valve gear that I would like to build. One of the larger classes, but not so large it wouldn't be seen on a sleepy little twiglet of a branchline..

And plainly is meant to be operated by short people I like it though, - I wish I had one just like it.

With 16mm scale railway modelling the trend has been for some years to move away from using track power and to run on batteries systems with radio control (though of course a lot of 16mm folk also run live steam locos as well thereby moving away from electricity entirely, but we can't exactly do that with Lego). By using r/c or i/c control with batteries on board the loco or another vehicle in the train, track can just be track again and loco wheels can get on with the business of rolling on the rails without worrying about contact wipers, spots of dirt or short circuts. It was for the same reason that I was always more fond of my clockwork locos than the electric ones when I was still collecting vintage tinplate trains. No need to constantly be going over the track with a hard pencil eraser to remove dirt spots or worrying about voltage drop or any of the other delights of using track power. For myself battery power using PF is a bit of a pain in that I like to build late 19th Century and early 20th Century tank engines that ran on 3ft 6inch gauge track and even with 8 wide models built to a nominal 9mm scale there isn't a lot of room for all the electrical bits. most of my locos will end up with a 4 wheel guards van permanently coupled behind to carry the battery and the PF gear, but that's Ok by me. I'd much rather do that than go back to using track power again. Something I did with one or two of my 16mm scale locos was have them setup for 'hand in the cab' operation where the electrical controls were on the loco and easily accessible for use while the loco was in motion. This works best with locos that run slowly of course and I used to really enjoy shunting a goods yard with a loco that was setup this way. Might actually try this with one of my brickbuilt locos if I can find a suitable prototype that allows for having suitably disguised switchgear hidden about itself.

I like it. Rail converted trucks were often used on the timber industry tramways here in New Zealand, - but without snowplows I hasten to add. They were mostly used to carry tools and as transport for workmen. I might use your MOC idea as a basis for a rail truck for my own layout so thank you for sharing

A small improvement the siderods arrived from Bricklink today.

Oooooo that 7735 Mail Car is nice too and would be a good subject for a retro-build as well Yours looks good in green Brickster. I had no trouble rounding up the red doors and the shutter hinge posts to go with them on Bricklink as for the rest of the bricks and parts I'll sit down with the list and all my storage boxes and see if I have everything else I need. I'm a bit torn between making it 8 wide to suit my MOC locos or leaving it 6 wide for the full retro experience. The designers of these old sets definitely had some great ideas and I will be on the prowl to find more cars and wagons to add to the build list.