Ruston 48DS

One of the smallest locomotives in my fleet is this little Ruston 48DS. Built from an etched brass kit produced by TAG models many years ago, the body just fits over a Tenshodo SPUD.

Although the model was sold as suitable for a SPUD, the instructions only seemed interested in using the Bachmann "Gandy Dancer" as a power unit. Therefore I had to improvise, fortunately not too difficult in this case. I think in this case I ended up with the better unit. Gandy dancers are nice and ingenious but pretty much have two speed settings - stop and go.

Using the SPUD allows the tiny bonnet to be filled with lead in an effort to give the thing some weight. The cab too has heavyweight innards. Despite this I wish I'd been able to get my hands on some uranium or other heavy metal !

When I built the model I obviously wasn't paying attention properly as the eagle eyed will notice that the sides are the wrong way round. The doorway should be towards the front !

One day I will fix this. I've never been one for revisiting old models and reworking them, preferring to start from scratch. The 48DS was never my finest hour though and I do have a very nice drawing on the front of a book that shows the real thing in glorious green with a bit more detail. While this was a simple kit, in my enthusiasm to build it (I was young dear reader) it didn't get the attention it deserved.

There are also some very nice photos on the web.

In fact I've enjoyed these as much for the industrial background scenery as for the locomotive ! I reckon that these ought to give anyone contemplating a micro layout some food for thought. A locomotive like this, a couple of wagons and a shoebox - how much more space do you need ?