What's it all about?

This project was born out of a desire to have a mid-19th century loco and it was the lack of commercially available alternatives that forced me down this path.
FR 20 was built in 1863, is a rare survivor from that era and is currently the oldest standard gauge loco still steaming in the UK.
I'm not a skilled or experienced railway modeller but have found the desire to have a go at this project irresistible. So you are welcome to join me and follow my triumphs and disasters as I tackle this precarious journey.

Tuesday, 31 January 2012

Is it close?


Pausing at Lakeside on its home railway 
[image courtesy of Furness Railway Trust]


Starting with the basic Y9 saddle tanker, the first step was to see how much of the original model I could keep. Comparing the wheelbase, FR20 is 7ft 9ins or 31mm at 4mm to the foot compared to the Y9’s 33mm or 8ft 3ins. That’s 2mm difference but, for the purpose of this exercise, good enough. I could relocate one axle to get it spot on but I would have to tweak so much else it would make the job much bigger and may never get finished.
Next, there are the wheels. The Y9’s are 16.5mm, equivalent to 4ft 1.5ins while FR20’s are bigger at 4ft 9ins equating to 19mm. Fortunately I already had some the right size on a Hornby 0-6-0 tank loco. The question is, can they be made to fit the Y9? The only way to find out is to strip them both and try and mix and match the parts.


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