Blog – Page 20 – 7mmloco.co.uk

LNER Gresley A3 class 4-6-2 no. 2744 Grand Parade

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold 27th May 201910th February 2023

LNER Gresley A3 class no. 2744 Grand Parade. I have recently acquired this lovely model from auction. It has been built and painted to a professional standard from the DJH kit. Judging from certain details, it could have been produced by one of the DJH factory team of builders themselves, although no certificates came with it as provenance. I am normally not a fan of DJH factory built LNER green models as I think their usual colour is too bright, https://www.djhmodelloco.co.uk/prodpage.asp?productid=3423 but this model is an exception as the colour is to my eyes very good for Doncaster green. Perhaps one built before they changed to the brighter green? Or perhaps produced by another very capable builder and painter? Powered by a motor with a delrin drive gearbox via plunger pickups. A modification to the bogie springing is all I have needed to make to enable it to travel around the Poachers test track without de-railing. This kit has been around a number of years now and I have built two others, Salmon Trout in LNER green and The White Knight in BR green. The kit is excellent and builds into a very proto-typical looking model. Fairly easy to build as well. You just need to shake the box of bits and they all fall into place. Just a shame that whoever the painter was, he originally made it no. 4480 Enterprise (very likely an example of the tail wagging the dog, or in this case the client wagging the painter). That loco was never a left hand drive loco whilst in LNER days. Carefully we have changed the cabside and buffer beam numbers to 2744 and the nameplates to Grand Parade, the name and number of one of the locos built at Doncaster in 1928 as left hand drive. As Peter Coster writes in Irwell Press’s fabulous “The Book of the A3 Pacifics” there were of course two Grand Parades, the first was destroyed in the Castlecary accident in 1937. This model depicts the second one, built in 1938 to replace the wrecked original loco. Mr. Coster writes that they “differ only in the boiler number and tender number” failing to spot that the second Grand Parade had steps behind the front buffer beam and the first did not.

GCR class 8B 4-4-2 Atlantic no. 264

Mick Bayliss Loco commissions 26th May 201911th January 2021

GCR class 8B 4-4-2 Atlantic no. 264. This model of a Jersey Lily has just been built by myself on commission from the Gladiator kit. The build was started on the 8th January 2019 and finished on the 24th May. Four and a half months and around 115 build hours. No major problems were encountered with building this kit, although to allow easier painting of the splasher tops, the boiler unit has been made to be removable. It has a non-working representation of the inside motion from the Laurie Griffin kit, an ABC motor and gear unit and the American method of power collection. Also many of the original white metal parts in the loco kit have been replaced with finely detailed parts of lost wax brass. Final testing was made at the Poachers test track on Sunday 19th May where it performed well with a seven coach train. She was handed over to Warren Haywood at Doncaster show for painting into fully lined Great Central green and crimson livery and Warren handed the finished model to a proud owner at Telford. Good going, less than 8 months from an unstarted kit of parts in a box to a beautiful working model locomotive, expertly painted in a complicated livery. A good team effort if I do say so myself.

LNER (ex NER) Y7 class 0-4-0T no. 982

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold 20th April 201930th January 2020

LNER no. 982 — LNER (ex NER) Y7 class 0-4-0T no. 982. Scratch built by Ron C. Pearsall Models, a diamond makers plate on the underside “RCPM”. Expertly painted by Larry Goddard and signed on the underside “Paintwork L.W.Goddard ’82” all giving provenance. Until I acquired this model it had not turned a wheel in 37 years since painting. Just needing a little light oil on the bearings and worm drive, TLC and a minor adjustment and it is as good as new again. It has been built using the split axle system, power collection to the motor being through un-insulated wheels and the main frames. A system rarely used since the introduction of Slaters type insulated wheels. It runs superbly.

LB&SCR Stroudley B1 class 0-4-2 no. 179

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold 26th January 201919th April 2022

Gladstone class no. 179 — LB&SCR Stroudley B1 class 0-4-2 no. 179. This model was bought off of Ebay, superbly part built, from scratch in brass. I do not buy many models from auction unless I can handle them and see them with my own eyes. But the build quality of this looked so good that I could not resist it. The tender was pretty well complete, as was the chassis and cab. All wheels (Slaters) were supplied and the boiler was supplied as a cut-out flat sheet. All I had to do was fit an ABC motor and gear unit, roll the boiler, make it fit (which wasn’t easy) and then make it all work. Doesn’t sound much, does it? But I can tell you it gave me some headaches. Warren Haywood has expertly added the paint for me. She runs like a dream, so all’s well with Ebay and well worth the risk.

The model is of course of one of the famous and very successful “Gladstone” class express passenger locomotives, designed by William Stroudley. When running in it’s original livery no. 179 was named “Sandown”, but after Stroudleys’ death, his successor Earl Marsh had it repainted in his own very attractive umber livery, without the painted name. It also carries Marsh’s design of smokebox door, continuous handrail over the smokebox and tender fenders. Otherwise she is in as built condition, including the very attractive brass cab side number plates, as running circa 1906.

Midland Railway class 4 Compound 4-4-0 no. 1009

Mick Bayliss Model for sale, My loco collection 24th January 201926th May 2026

Midland Railway class 4 Compound 4-4-0 no. 1009. Bought part built, basically from the well known and excellent Slaters kit, but with many additional features, for example the early type Deeley tender with straight edges to the base of the tank. Rarely modelled, but historically correct for the prototype. Only ten of these tenders were built and originally fitted to numbers 1005 to 1014. Now finished by myself and in full working order with wiper pick-ups and side springing to the bogie. The model is fitted with the excellent Ron Chaplin Gold gears and motor unit and has been superbly painted and lined with bow-pen by John Cockcroft.

BR(MR) Princess Coronation class Pacific no. 46245 City of London

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold 31st December 201830th May 2019

BR(MR) Princess Coronation class Pacific no. 46245 City of London. Very well built from the Gladiator kit with Slaters wheels and a very smooth, quiet and powerful Crailcrest motor and gear unit.
This model was bought from auction in a painted condition that, lets say, was not very sympathetic to such a well loved class of locomotive. It had originally been built to a professional quality and painted in British Railways crimson lake livery as no. 46245 City of London, complete with cabside yellow stripe. A condition that I well remember seeing the full size loco at Derby works open day in 1964. The model must have looked truly wonderful and would have been the envy of most O gauge modellers……….. until someone saw fit to overspray it in silver paint. Apparently for a film set. Fortunately and the one saving grace, they masked off the chassis, cylinders, wheels and motion of the loco.
Over the past few months I have stripped off all of the paint from the main body of the loco and tender. I have ensured that the model is now in fully working condition and repaired any areas and added extra detail that the model needed to bring it up to my own personal exacting standards. John Cockcroft has made a wonderful job of repainting (less yellow stripe) and she is now in better than original condition. As a passionate collector of fine scale models I am very proud to be responsible for buying and restoring to it’s former glory this fine model.

LMS (ex Caledonian Railway) Macintosh 0-4-4T no.15128

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold 6th December 201822nd February 2021

LMS (ex Caledonian Railway) Macintosh 0-4-4T no.15128. A top quality model. Built from scratch, signed and dated on the underside “Painted Larry Goddard ’79”. The wheels are cast metal with telescopic axles, pinned to set the quartering. Look at the profile of the spokes of the drivers. These are of Alan Harris quality. The motor and gears are a Buhler/JH unit. No provenance as to who the builder was, but I would lay a pound to a penny that this model made the short trip “down the road” from Geoff Holt’s workshop to be painted.

GWR (ex Cambrian Railway) 2-4-0T no.1196

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold 5th December 20187th September 2019

GWR (ex Cambrian Railway) 2-4-0T no.1196. This lovely little loco has been expertly built by Ray Butcher from the Agenoria kit and painted by Alan Brackenborough. It uses the superb ABC mini gearbox, has compensated suspension and as such runs extremely smoothly and is very powerful for such a small loco.

There were originally three of these small tank engines, built by Sharp Stewart in the early 1860’s and in Cambrian days they carried the names Magnolia, Gladys and Seaham. In 1922 they arrived at Swindon for rebuilding and didn’t the GWR make them look smart? Renumbered 1192, 1196 and 1197 they returned to the Cambrian system in 1923/4. This loco 1196 (shame it didn’t retain it’s Gladys name) was transferred to work the Hemyock branch for a short spell before returning to Oswestry to work the Tanat Valley line, until withdrawal in 1948 after putting in a remarkable million miles for such a small loco.

BR Standard class 4 4-6-0 no. 75068

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold 22nd November 201825th November 2018

BR Standard class 4 4-6-0 no. 75068. Very well built by a person unknown from the very good but challenging DJB kit. This loco was originally expertly painted by Conrad Cooper as 75069 in fully lined BR green livery as the loco had ran on the Severn Valley Railway in preservation. Bought on-line from an Eldreds of Plymouth auction via the-saleroom.com. Normally I prefer to handle and be able to closely inspect models before purchase at auction. But this day I must have been up for taking chances, buying Ingleborough, The Great Marquess and 75069 on the same day. The K4 and Peak have both proved to be excellent buys and well worth the risk. 75069 had however been well worked by its previous owner. It was what could be termed play worn, with lamp irons and handrails missing and steps lost. However the paintwork was still stable with few chips and the mechanics are good. I bought this model with the intention of having it repainted as an example of the class that is not preserved and that is exactly what I have done with the expert help of John Cockcroft, who has repainted her as shown above. In my opinion she now looks absolutely fabulous.

BR (ex LMS) Rebuilt Jubilee Class no. 45735 Comet

Mick Bayliss Locos now sold 22nd November 2018