You know by now that I enjoy weird stuff, and this loco is definitely oddball. Quite what well-respected firm DJH were thinking when they produced it I don't know. It's obviously based on an England class loco, as found on the Ffestiniog, but with a coal bunker and not the tender hauled by the real thing. Did someone expect that modellers would scratchbuild a tender - if so, why not put one in the kit?
Anyway, it's wrong, so I want to build it.
The body is part assembled, using epoxy glue. Whoever did the work has done a good job, so I don't expect to have to dismantle it. Instead, I can concentraite on sticking all the bits in the bag to it. Hopefully, not too bad a job (Famous last words?).
Underpinnings are also part assembled. K's type D wheels are included, but the plastic centres are crumbling, so I'll need to dig through the stash for some replacement Romfords. The axles should be the same size though, so this won't be a problem.
A motor, that at first glance looks like and X04 is in a Mashima box. It's 5-pole and with a slightly more spohisticated brush arrangement than the Tri-ang version, so let's see how it goes. My guess is that the sheer size of this was part of the reason for picking the prototype, plenty of space in the saddle tank!
Note: Matt, if you post that you have two examples that I could have bought for a song, I'm not listening...
5 comments:
Hi Phil,
DJH also did a side tank version, which seems to be styled after a "shrunk" version of an NWNGR loco...there's definitely a Spooner vibe about them.
Mine has a bunker made from styrene sheet, possibly to help with weight distribution?
Lack of a tender may, in part, reflect its semi-freelance design, and it's possible that a separate kit for a tender may have been offered (or just planned) to keep the price down and offer a choice.
I suspect the two locos use some common parts; I'll have a look at mine when there's time to dig out the box my 7mm NG stuff is in.
I picked mine up at Ally Pally a couple of years ago for £20. Though its chassis was missing, a brand new Tenshodo SPUD was included in the box, so I guess that's a bit of a bargain overall...though I wonder how long a SPUD would last under all that whitemetal, if that's what its previous owner's intention was!
Having had a bit of a chat about these on an internal club forum, they don't seem to have sold very well when introduced, not sure why. Freelance design, or perhaps not freelance enough? Too expensive for the market?
Now we've moved, I intend to join the 7mmNGA, perhaps an enquiry with them might yield some insight.
Whatever, they're an interesting little oddity from several decades ago, and I'll be interested to see what you do with yours.
All the best,
Simon.
It's certainly an oddball, which is why it appeals to me. Construction is going well, but it is very much of its time!
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My guess is that these DJH loco kits date from the late 1970s. Searching through Railway Modeller the earliest mention I find in DJH advertisements is as follows.
[1] March 1978, p.xxiv
" DJH N/G 'O' complete loco kits, DJH price £22.09".
[2] April 1978, p.x
"Our fabulous new 'O' narrow gauge kits ….. a choice of three locos and a small range of wagons."
[3] June 1978, p.xx
"NEW ''O' gauge narrow kits. Now available ….. There are four locos in the range @ £22.09 each, and a small range of wagons."
The accompanying photograph shows a side tank and a saddle tank with rear bunker. There is no indication of what the other two kits were.
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Whilst I may have missed something I found no other mention of the "O" scale narrow gauge range in other (and subsequent) DJH advertising in RM.
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As regards the 7mm NGA, that did not come into existence until 1980.
Narrow Lines, No 1 (dated 1 February 1980) has a "Trade Topics" column by Andrew Hastie in which he says this.
"DJH. Four loco kits are offered and all are 0-4-0 types ….. Retail price £27.85 each. Two are "saddle tank" types, a Festiniog 'Prince' and 'Ghillie' - similar but with an open cab and coal bunker at the rear. A tender kit suitable for Prince and 'Benjamin Disraeli' (below) is now available as an extra. The remaining locos are 'Benjamin Disraeli', a side tank with Prince style cab and 'Meteor' - a side tank similar to 'B.D' but with an open cab and rear coal bunker.
Rolling stock consists of a three plank open wagon, a five plank open wagon and a steel sided open wagon, all @ £2.30 and a coach/guards van @ £2.76 ……"
CP
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UPDATE
It has been brought to my attention, by my good friend Adrian Ponting, that I missed (translation the search system of the RM on line archive did not lead me to it) another relevant DJH ad in RM.
RM, January 1978, p.xiii has a full page DJH ad. This includes this statement -
"Now available from DJH is a fabulous new range of superbly detailed narrow gauge kits….. There is a choice of three locos and a small range of wagons."
- and a photograph labelled "NEW KIT" of a Festiniog George England style model loco with enclosed cab and tender.
CP
Matt. Please don't say that to someone who struggles to resist adding to his kit collection... :-)
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