Track testing with TT wagons

Testing the test tracks track has presented us with an interesting problem - the Isle of Man wagons I've built so far has chassis that are distinctly average in quality, and I'm being generous here. The whitemetal body and solebars look OK but as far as providing something suitable for mounting the w-irons and hanging the wheels, they were rubbish.

This isn't a problem to a resourceful modeller. In my box of "stuff" is quite a lot of vintage TT, all with lovely 12mm gauge wheelsets. Looking at the wheels, the Triang version is a bit course but Peco did a lot better. These "Wonderful Wagons" have much narrower treads and the back-to-back is withing a smidge of that set by the gauge. They are certainly close enough for me to accept than as test vehicles.

Another advantage is that despite their vintage, there are loads of them out there. If the cardboard bodies get a bit scuffed then I'm not going to lose any sleep. The Mazak that it's attached to won't be damaged unless I hit it with a hammer anyway. Should I want to restore these wagons at a future date then the card is probably still to be found in Devon or at least on the 3mm Society second hand stand.

The pair of wagons are now whizzing around the trackwork as my Dad gradually refines the running. As laid there are a few lumps and bumps but with the help of the little Peco's, these will be ironed out. If only the chassis could be removed and put under a 4mm scale kitbuilt wagon !