If you take your time and work out where to go and where the best deals are, you can make some savings. I had my gas firing system come in for under £10 total cost for example by being able to obtain a gas burner off another loco then selling it on. That burner than got sold on for a good asking price, and the current burner was obtained through bartering. Keeping costs down.
In terms of motion, I can understand that oscillating systems can be a little risky but if you have finely engineered units, you can have s just a good run as an RH. This is where we've suddenly all climbed aboard the Roy Wood Models train as his cylinder units are worth their weight in gold.
My accounts suggest that the basic overhaul cost me about £305 all in for the mechanical/hydraulic performance I have on Swordbreaker today. My extended costs are on accessories [name and numberplates, overlays and tender kit] and also include 'losses' [e.g. £45 lost to Allan Briggs in parts] but that is another story.
In terms of overall costs for a Mamod/oscillator, spread the costs. And plan ahead. Some upgrades fgor the soft boilered basic loco can be recycled on a superloco, such as meth burners if you must, steel wheels, buffers etc but others are not, such as domes, whistles, 1/4 x 26 safety valves etc. So it must be considered at the beginning where you want to go- cheap, 'little engine duties' brass boilered, or superloco.
In previous editions of this discussion, it was asked of me: what were
my intentions when I started out on what was to be 'Swordbreaker' in July 2010 onwards? I said I'd get back with answer. Here it is.
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When I bought th engine, it seemed very nice and upgraded, almost to the max for a 'brass boilered' option. Lubricator, upgraded cylinders, water topup, an IP Safety valve, cab regulator control [also IPE] and a 3-wick meths burner for starters. Plus all the brass dressing which it has retained.
The only real upgrades needed of me were steel wheels and these were duly purchased in October 2010 along with a set of DS "gasflow" supercylinders. [I hadn't known then that its old cylinders were uprated pistons in an original housing].
So really, the upgrades I bought were 'transferable'. My original plan had been to fit these and run the loco as-was.
However two things stopped this.
1)The IP safety valve was knacked. It had been scratched in and glued inside!
2)The regulator worked but on the globe valve a thread wa on its last legs. It died. The cost of a new one from DS was prohibitive, and so a whole new regulator kit was going to be needed. £30 plus £10+ for a new safety valve?
I considered this and then considered the £40 would be best served put into the superboiler kitty. And that, is the evolution of how I started out.
As a note, the bust SV went for a fiver as an ornament and the regulator kit went for about £8 for someone to incorporate bits on. So, another £13 toward the superboiler....
). I don't think I've seen one in person yet.