Garden Railway Forum

Colours and specifications may change without prior notice by Mamod Limited under its policy of continual product improvement Some frustrated Mamod owners refer to this policy as 'Work in Progress'. I have not seen a Mark III since April 2016, and although I do not have a Basic Series Roundhouse lo...

Swift Sixteen does the correct 7 curly spoke wheels (I think Andrew is still using Binnie wheels with his kits, although he has 3D printed some as well). Those stick on weights are ideal Jim. I picked up a roll of lead roof flashing cheap some years ago, so just cuts bits off as required. The B Clas...

Nice to see how Andrew Mawer has organised the frets for these kits - I received my 3 x B Class & 1 F Class loose (Andrew is in the same 16mm NGM Group as myself). How do you find the acrylic bearings Jim ? I opted for supply my own wheels (Swift Sixteen), axles & bearings (HGLW), and it took a litt...

There are some details of an adaptor for the 4.5kg gas bottle on the 16mmngm Yahoo Group (attached here). Suggest you get in touch with Keith Bucklitch for more details (contact details on the 16mm NGM DVD). I use the camping gas canisters with an asian converter for EN417 fittings - B & M currently...

The C size adaptors have no additional contacts, as C batteries are nearly (0.5mm shorter) the same length as an AA battery. So it is dependant on the length of your AA batteries and the C battery holder. I have some 7DayShop AA rechargeable batteries which are slightly shorter than their alkaline e...

The Mamod Brunel is not based on any prototypical locomotive, and is certainly too large for SM32. Here's an early Mark I Brunel (on the current Mark III the engine unit has been lowered but the boiler/chimney is about the same height) running with slate wagons - https://youtu.be/JHmlCPxFo1o?t=8m53s...

My Silver Lady is currently fitted with a Hitec 40 MHZ FM system and I was actually rather hesitant to run it at all given the frightening experience of its last run. This is only the 3rd 40 MHz system I have experience of. The other two suffered from some glitching which was manageable, but have be...

Great selection of photos Doug - Thanks for sharing them with us. I can see the benefit of running manual locos there allowing ' hands free ' camera operation. On my visits to the Llechfan Garden Railway I've always run an R/C controlled loco. I had to ask a friend to take control of my R/C Silver L...

dougrail wrote:Chris -- bufferbeams blacking are being painted today.

Well done Doug. As I bring my locos out of winter hibernation I'm slowly painting up those that are still in red.

Chris Cairns

Hopefully 3rd time lucky posting a reply. Just so we are on the same page, I time a run from when the burner is lit, to when the gas runs out....... bring Alco up to 25–30 PSI & clear cylinders of water/condensate. Turn off burner & refill gas tank. Wait about 2 mins for gas tank to settle, light up...

Tip I was given regarding fitting water sight glass fittings, is to use drill bit upended (or piece of rod) the same size as the glass tube so you get the top & bottom fittings aligned correctly before fitting the glass tube. Also melt the ends of the glass tube in a naked flame to seal them - reduc...

Replaced the gas filler valve, and weighed my gas canister on analogue scales which gave approx. 20g, so no problem with the gas tank. Just have to accept that it does have a shorter running time, and if I need to run for longer whilst operating at shows, then stop for a convenient water/gas refill....

Briefly discussed this subject at last weekend's running day. What seems to be missing with some of these generic/unbranded servos is proper dimensions (not just the mounting holes), so you can work out a direct replacement for the HS 81 (or HS 82) when there is no stock of the Hitec servos availabl...

Here's my Alco front after 2 runs last Saturday. My sealant has reduced, but not eliminated, the condensate that now collects on the front running plate. http://i179.photobucket.com/albums/w283/CCairns_2007/Roundhouse/Alco%20Condensate.jpg The 2 runs were again just under 20 mins each, so no differe...

Glad I stopped by with this Topic as I've now got a couple of 'To Do' items completed. 4 x AAA battery holder now fitted to the Ragleth, replacing a 4 x AA battery pack, making it more accessible for recharging/removal. Finally cut an extra slot in the display board so I can now store this loco in 3...

Graeme, Many thanks for your comprehensive reply. The Alco was sold 2nd hand by a reputable trader, listed as ' Hardly Used '. However it was obvious that it had never been used since purchase from Roundhouse. It does not have a full body cast smokebox like the Billy one, or the Katie/Lady Anne one....

What would be the expectant running time for this loco? I’m aware that its gas tank (Type L?) has a slightly smaller volume (30ml) compared to a Type A (32.29ml) but the running time I’m getting is much lower than my Billy, Katie & Silver Lady. So I’ve adopted part of my Accucraft running technique ...

Hi Mike, Think you might have missed Don's ( Boustrophedon ) point of having the regulator servo mounted under the cab floor (do not see one in your Ragleth above). I have a preference to use loose cells for battery packs where possible. Here's my Accucraft 0-4-0T set ups - Caradoc - Fitted by origi...

I had a few problems getting the brass etched tub sides to fit with the cast whitemetal ends without leaving huge gaps I was recently talking with a fellow 16mm NGM Group member, and that's exactly what he said as well about his kit. Not seen one in the flesh - is this something that could be corre...

Many Association members do not bother to do an annual test, and even fewer record it There is currently no mandatory requirement to complete either to be covered by the Association's Insurance, and even less members (at least here in Scotland) paint a red line/mark on their pressure gauges either ...