Hornby A4 loco drive conversion

Having just dropped the blasted thing and made the problem of non-meshing of the gears in the tender even worse, I would like to dinf details of any loco drive conversions for Hornby tender-drive locos, especially the A4 (Flying Scotsman). I'd just barely got it to pull a reasonable train up 1 in 100, too. Tender drive is a complete pain. You can't even get intot he axles as far as I can see, the axles float and if they decide to sit at one end of their travel so the gears don't mesh right there's not a lot you can do about it.

I had a quick Google but didn't find what I was looking for. I'm sure I remember a post about it. Anyone got any ideas?

Thanks

Guy === May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.

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Reply to
Just zis Guy, you know?
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"Just zis Guy, you know?" wrote

Flying Scotsman is not (nor ever was) an A4 - it's either an A3 or an A1 depending upon whether you are modelling it as built or when re-boilered later in life.

Hornby are planning on releasing both versions along with an A4 with loco drive this coming year, assuming their 2004 Order Forms are correct.

You *may* find it a cheaper option to by new rather than try to fit an after-market loco drive chassis to your present model.

John.

Reply to
John Turner

Flying Scotsman is either an A1 or a A3. The old Margate produced LNER Pacifics used an old A3 chassis block dating from the days that A3s were loco driven so can easilly be converted to loco drive. On the other hand as Hornby are promising a brand new batch of Gresley pacifics with loco drive you might be better of waiting for a new one,

Mike Parkes snipped-for-privacy@mphgate.removetoreply demon.co.uk

Reply to
Mike Parkes

D'oh! I know dat! I be getting confused in me old age (40 in a couple of weeks).

Aha!

Maybe. It's not mine and there's a certain sentimantal attachment.

Guy === May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.

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Reply to
Just zis Guy, you know?

As above - senility creeping in. A3.

Guy === May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.

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Reply to
Just zis Guy, you know?

Comet models offer a kit for a chassis for the A1/A2/A3

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If you have the skills & time to assemble, it will produce a very good chassis. The couple of Comet models I've assembled have been excellent (*). You'll need to add wheels, gears and motor to their list of parts. I guess the total cost would be £60-£100 depending on the detailed spec of gears & motor.

However, you may find it easier to get the current one to run with its tender mech and wait for the new model which John Turner mentioned.

(* not really my scale, I dabble with the odd bit of 4mm when I get frustrated with scratch building in 2mm scale. )

Reply to
NC

Excellent, thanks. I'll talk to No. 1 Son and see what his view is.

Guy === May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.

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Reply to
Just zis Guy, you know?

John Turner twisted the electrons to say:

Ah, but if you take the view that it's an A3 because it was re-boilered with an A3 boiler then surely it is in fact an A4 since (IIRC) since it's now running around with a (modified) A4 boiler?

Reply to
Alistair Gunn

"Alistair Gunn" wrote

Would that not make it an A3½ then?

John.

Reply to
John Turner

Yes it does have an A4 boiler which makes it more like A3/1 in LNER classification terminology. Doesn;t the A1 to A3 conversion involve a bit more than a swop of boilers, Edward Thompson used it as an excuse to butcher Great Northern. The main thing about Scotsman is that as an A3 the only authentic numbers it can carry are LNER 103, BR E103 and BR 60103.

Mike Parkes snipped-for-privacy@mphgate.removetoreply demon.co.uk

Reply to
Mike Parkes

"Andrew Sollis CVMRD" wrote

Bye, bye! ;-)

John.

Reply to
John Turner

"Mike Parkes" wrote The main thing about Scotsman is that as an

Mike Parkes

Does this mean than no one on the main line can paint a Class 66 in large logo blue (as an example!) cause it has never carried it before?

It comes back to that age old fight about it didn't carry it in it's working life! Well Doh!, whats it doing on the main line now? Flying? (Scotsman) No, it's working a revenue earning service - With a new operator who has chosen the same livery as LNER did.

It's not a dig at you Mike, just a ??? in general.. I'll never quite grasp this liery thing!

Just as an asside (as I'm not old enough to remember) was there an outcry when Scotsman was fitted with 2 tenders? Not as per original?

:-) Andy

Reply to
Andrew Sollis CVMRD

No reason for them not to, after all the best livery that City of Truro has ever been seen in was Steam Railways lined black April fool. I was just drawing attention to the seemingly much misunderstood case of when it was an A3 before preservation.

Mike Parkes snipped-for-privacy@mphgate.removetoreply demon.co.uk

Reply to
Mike Parkes

"Mike Parkes" wrote after all the best livery that City of

I vaguely remember that. Was it just announced or actually painted... I bet it would look quite smart with red and white lining!

Continuing on the original paint scheme talk - how many other preserved locos have gone into non original colours? We have 2 on the CVR that I can think of... D2334 Class 04 was for a long time in Blue... A livery it never wore under BR as it had gone into private use before Blue came in..And D7672 Tamworth Castle Class 25. New in BR Blue, but painted into TT green when it became a celeb loco at Bescot in 1992!

It seems it's just the kettles people get all steamed up about painting in different colours!

Reply to
Andrew Sollis CVMRD

"Andrew Sollis CVMRD" <

That's because they are real locos. The other's are just boxes on wheels. :-)

It is funny how UK railfans in particular get all wound up about liveries. Fans of aircraft, for example, are always painting WW II aircraft in colours and squadron markings the actual airframe never (Could have) carried, and in high gloss rather than matte colours.

It's about time they all realised that back in the Good Old days, the bits and bobs that went into the shop as engine number XXXXX were not the same bits and bobs that came out carrying the same number.

-- Cheers Roger T.

Home of the Great Eastern Railway

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Reply to
Roger T.

In message , Andrew Sollis CVMRD writes

There was a piece in Steam Railway a while back which explained how they did it. One side of it was actually painted and lined, and then the loco was hidden in a shed while it dried. It was wheeled out for a quick photo session and then wheeled back inside the shed and repainted back to green as quickly as possible.

Reply to
Spyke

"Spyke" wrote There was a piece in Steam Railway a while back which explained how they

That's Cool! Better than last year when we rolled out NSR no 2 with BR Mk 1 Coaches for a TV crew to film. A man sat in the smoke box with a smoke unit while the whole kit and caboodle was pushed from the rear with the class 33, as the NRM won't let us restore the hulk of metal!

Andy Volunteer at the CVR

Reply to
Andrew Sollis CVMRD

It depends on if it is left or right hand drive. Add this to the equation and you limit your options even more :-)

Reply to
Laurie

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