I have been waiting for a green cl 40 with indicator discs to be released which my dealer now has but he complained that they were very noisy. I was in too much of a hurry to actually hear one run but is this general of all cl 40's or just those recently released or maybe a dodgey betch.
I reported such a fault to Bachmann with the first batch of blue & green 37s which were nowhere near as quiet as the original lot of 37/5s. All I can say is that the ones I've subsequently put into traffic have turned out to be fine after a modest amount of running.
Without being 100% certain I'm fairly sure it has. The gap between the bottom of the cab front and the top of the bogie mounted buffer beam appears to be about as small as practicality would allow.
I recall, many years ago, the late John Arlott commenting on a Class 40 idling - and causing him some irritation - besides the Old Trafford cricket ground, during a televised Lancashire match. The eventual TV closeup of the loco was accompanied by him saying...."....presumably a member of the Grampus Class of engine.."
I was able to compare the old and new batches in glass cabinet (them, not me!) at the Ian Allan Bookshop, Manchester. The new models (D210 and 40169) are definitely a millimetre or two closer to the bogies and look much better for it! It's just a shame (for me) that 40169 is modelled without underframe tanks. Can anyone tell me how many 40s were like this and for how long, please?
Thanks, Mick. I've since been pointed towards a good article in the 1st issue of Modern Railway Modelling which lists 40s with the boiler tanks removed. Centre headcode examples were 145/152/169/177/180/183/192-196, with a browse of online pics adding 40170 to that list. Additionally, numerous withdrawn examples have been photographed minus tanks. It seems to have been a 1980s modification, once train heating boilers became redundant or unserviceable and so leaving the tanks surplus to requirements. 40145 was, of course, refitted with a tank in preservation as it now has a serviceable boiler.
Cheers, John (now reconsidering his requirement for 40169!!!).
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