Month: December 2017

BR Britannia Class no. 70049 Solway Firth

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold
Solway Firth
Solway Firth
BR Britannia Class no. 70049 Solway Firth. Built, painted and now stripped by myself from the DJH kit with Alan Harris wheels and Severnmill name and number plates. Over the 10 or so years since building and painting this model, I was never satisfied with the colour of the green. I tried having it weathered, but still not truly happy. Hense I have made the decision to strip it and to give it to Warren Haywood for a professional finish. I’m confident that I’ll not be disappointed.

BR (ex LMS) Princess Coronation Class no. 46225 Duchess of Gloucester

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold
Duchess of Gloucester
Duchess of Gloucester
BR (ex LMS) Princess Coronation class no. 46225 Duchess of Gloucester. This magnificent model has been built from a Martin Finney kit, by a person unknown. The wheels are by Alan Harris and she has a Maxon motor & ABC gear unit and fully working inside motion. She is well painted in BR crimson lake with LMS style lining and has been given a light weathering by Warren Haywood.

LNER D49 (Hunt) class no. 288 The Braes of Derwent

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold
The Braes of Derwent
LNER D49 (Hunt) class no. 255 The Braes of Derwent. Bought from a Lacy, Scott & Knight auction in May 2017 as no. 288 The Percy. In LNER green with 3 rail and skate current collection. The paint had been applied by brush and although it looked reasonable from a distance, it didn’t stand close scrutiny. Looking through the paint however, it was clear and especially relevant that this coarse scale model had been very well scratch built. It looked like a D49. First of all the stripping of the original paintwork preceded the models complete refurbishment and conversion to 2 rail finescale by myself. Now expertly re-painted to LNER green fully lined livery by John Cockcroft. Current collection is by the American method. This is where the loco collects from one rail and the tender from the other. New insulated Slaters wheels have been carefully shorted by soldering thin wire behind a spoke on one or other side of the loco and tender. Consequently, this system works very well, however an insulated drawbar and fallplate are required. In conclusion, the purchase of a Slaters motor and gearbox unit and Severnmill nameplates completed the rebuild. One of my clients, James, had expressed a wish to me for a D49. A class that he remembered well from his spotting days. When I found “The Percy” at auction, I took a chance and made my bids with James’s words in mind. Most noteworthy he tells me the risk has certainly paid off. Maybe I should have kept it for myself? I wish I had. In the same auction and clearly from the same collection, were 37 other model locos. All unusual north of the country prototypes and all scratch built 3-rail. It seems that the previous owner (now deceased) lived in Carlisle, which explains his preference of Northern England or Scottish locos. A Caley 812 class was bought at the same time and for a description and images of this loco follow this link. Another example of a risky purchase that in my opinion has paid off. If only at the time I had the confidence (and the funds) to have bought more?

LB&SCR A1X Class 0-6-0T Terrier no. 678

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold
Terrier
LB&SCR A1X Class 0-6-0T Terrier no. 678. San Cheng ready-to-run, expertly painted by Ian Rathbone. This model was found and bought from the Guild Executors & Trustees Service. I have improved the coupling rods and crankpins due to the standard San Cheng crankpins being very unrealistic hexagon headed screws. This super little model is believed to have once been part of the late Roger Cornwell’s (MSC Models) collection.

LSWR Adams Radial 4-4-2T No. 125

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold
Adams Radial Drummond rebuild
Adams Radial Drummond rebuild
LSWR Adams Radial 4-4-2T No. 125: Scratch built by person unknown with Drummond chimney and twin slidebars. Purchased from Solent Railwayana Auctions. Original paintwork stripped and modifications made, including new gears and motor by myself. Re-painted into the lovely Drummond livery by John Cockcroft. This delightful loco runs very smoothly and easily pulls six bogie coaches. For comparison with another Adams Radial that I have in my collection, but with single slidebars and a stovepipe chimney, follow this link. Adams Radial stovepipe chimney

LSWR Drummond T9 class Greyhound no. 113

Mick Bayliss My loco collection
LSWR Greyhound no. 113
Greyhound
LSWR Drummond Greyhound T9 class No.113.

 

A top quality model, with fully working inside motion and opening smokebox door with internal smokebox detail. Built to finescale standards by Nick Dunhill, making use of the Martin Finney kit. Furthermore, the project was used as a test bed for 3D printing technology and its possible applications in O gauge.

Numerous changes have been made to the standard kit build: including making the spacing of the main frames above and below footplate level a slightly compromised, but consistent 29mm. Making prototypical frame stretchers to suit the new frame spacing. The fabrication of new smokebox front and backs. A new more prototypical ashpan has been designed and fabricated. A representation of the firebox front has been incorporated into the chassis. Loco and tender brake gear has been modified to give a more prototypical appearance. Side control and downward springing to minimise movement has been incorporated into the mostly scratch built bogie.

Additional detail to the inside of the cab: includes the the fitting of damper and cylinder draincock levers to the cab floor. The use of perspex rod for the water level indicator safety glass. Displacement lubricators are added to the cabsides. Finally and most noteworthy, wood veneer has been used for the cab floor.

Additional detail below the running plate: including injector, vacuum and lubricator pipes between the frames. Reversing steam rams and cylinder blocks with drain cocks, pipes and linkages are modelled to give an improved prototypical appearance.

Current pick-ups: are by phospher bronze wipers fitted to the tender inner chassis.

Number and worksplates: are by Diane Carney.

The loco crew: expertly hand painted by Mike Sheardown.

Superb loco and tender paintwork: with hand painted crests and lining is by Warren Haywood to give a fabulously smooth finish.

In conclusion, for a more detailed report on the building of this Greyhound refer to the Gauge O Guild Gazette Volume 19 no. 12, of August 2016 pages 65 and 66.

BR (ex GWR) Castle class No. 5018 St. Mawes Castle

Mick Bayliss My loco collection
St. Mawes Castle
St. Mawes Castle
BR (ex GWR) Castle class No. 5018 St. Mawes Castle, as running circa 1954. This model was bought by myself from the Guild Executors & Trustee Service in a 60% finished state. That 60% however, has been superbly scratch built, in nickel silver by a person unknown. (Apparently the model was from the estate of a Mr. Leadbetter of Liverpool). Rivets have been expertly marked out and punched by hand. Other marking out is still visible inside the firebox. The wheels at that time were a real mystery. The bogie wheels are an odd miss-match and to this day remain a mystery. Most noteworthy though, the others are of exceptional quality, but they gave me headaches as to how to make use of them. Metal construction. All of them seem to be insulated, but I’m not sure how. Telescopic axles with tapered pins to set the quartering. Unusual crankpins, one pair no more than blank pins. In conclusion, to enable me to complete the build in a way that I am used to, I replaced them with ones from Slaters Plasticard. St. Mawes Castle has now been completed by myself, with a Slaters motor and gear unit and with working representation to give movement of the valve linkages. Superbly painted by Warren Haywood. The name and number plates are supplied by Severnmill.

In conclusion, I tried to sell the unused driving and tender wheels at a Guild bring and buy recently……nobody wanted them. Consequently I took good photos of them and put them up for sale on ebay. Fortunately for me a very kind man put me straight as to their origins. I compared with photos in the book of the great man and immediately withdrew them from sale and have kept them, still unused. They are no doubt the work of James Stanley Beeson. How much more of this loco is Beeson we will probably never know.