Garden Railway Forum

I actually asked Roundhouse much the same question as the manual wasn't clear - the answer that came back was that there shouldn't be any problem if left for less than 3-4 months, but I didn't ask what it was that could go wrong! TonyW - if you mean a displacement lubricator then the reasoning is qu...

Abiogenedis,

Thanks for the tip - am looking into it!

It is still possible to replace the MSS wheels on the loco, though. I'm not buying replacements* until I have more clarity on this, which I don't as yet. *Note that my issue is that the original wheels on my ancient Mamod loco (the basic type now sold by MSS) have worked loose on the axles, and when...

Normandin, Don't despair! There's a solution out there. Problem is, I'm not sure what it is... It's a confusing subject. I've found a definite problem, which has been independently corroborated by Dream Steam. However, the video posted on the thread I started appears to show no problem. The issue ap...

I think you may have a problem there if the loco has the as-built MSS wheels (and if you mean Peco rather than Piko) - see the thread I started in the Mamod & MSS subforum: https://gardenrails.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=44&t=11359 But the subject seems rather uncertain so I couldn't swear to ...

(Off topic) Wow - raised track, tight curves, no side fencing and a manual MSS loco. Not sure I'd be so brave!

(On topic) It's curious, but as I say, Dream Steam must have amended their website for a reason.

Chris Cairns: Thanks for your past and present responses to my posts. "Does the same occur with Peco Setrack?" I don't know. My garden track is a circuit of Peco flexi only apart from a single Peco point, which if memory serves has a 3'3" turnout radius (and causes less of a problem t...

To clarify, the issue is that MSS wheelsets will negotiate the fixed curves from both MSS and Mamod which are 2'6" radius, but will bind on Peco SM32 flexitrack at less than 3'6" radius. My old (c.1990) Mamod SL3 is quite happy with its original wheels on my Peco flexitrack bent to 3' radi...

tom_tom_go: The MSS loco and rolling stock *are* the old Mamod products with a few minor changes (including the dome and the wheels - see my next post!). If I've understood it correctly, at some point Mamod lost or sold the rights to their traditional designs, and now offer a new range. This explain...

Update on the Dream Steam webpages for MSS locos and wheelsets: "Please note: If running this product on Peco track, its tyre and flange profile means it requires a minimum radius of 3 foot 6 inches to avoid binding. This issue is not evident on the MSS or Mamod 2 foot 6 inch fixed radius track...

So... am I just lucky that I'm having no problems with the original sight "glass" on my ancient SL3 which I've been running since April with a 20-25psi safety valve? Can I expect future issues? I have actually purchased an MSS replacement as the water level is difficult to see, but I haven...

Chris - Brilliant! Many thanks.

Bit of a random question this, but I'm thinking of ordering a number of loco nameplate pairs including one pair that I hope one day might be used on a Brunel, but before that on something rather more modest. So I'm curious to know the maximum length of nameplate that could be mounted on an as-new Br...

Chris - yup, that's what seems to be the problem and what I'm doing about it. Got to say that it's at least noteworthy that, apart from one location on a curve where it always seems to stop (I'm thinking it'll make a good place for an outer home signal!), my ancient Mamod can pull two vehicles aroun...

Well, I found the time and the results were... interesting. In short, defective near-30-year-old Mamod wheelsets with loose wheels resulting in cranks settling at about 180 degrees work, while brand new MSS replacements don't, because the flanges are too tight on the rails. Presumably performance wo...

Graham - excellent suggestion; why didn't I think of that? (Answer: because I was preoccupied with thinking that it was my intervention that was going to cause problems.) At first sight that *might* explain it. The new MSS wheelsets seem to have thicker flanges and possibly a larger "front-to-f...

So, I guess this has now turned into something of a cautionary tale... On further investigation, I found that the reason I hadn't been able to squeeze the frames close enough together to release the front wheelset was that one of them was catching on a bit of metal that hadn't been cut off when I fi...

Chris, Thanks for that (I assume you mean that the dismantling I've described is the usual method). I built an SL1 kit back in the '90s with high hopes for it accompanying the SL3 in my parents' garden but it never worked properly - wouldn't steam and was front heavy. While I had cut down the cab, i...

Yes - bringing this little Mamod down from the loft caused a chain of events resulting in our small garden layout! If I can find the time I might do a write up of the railway on this forum. I've got no problem disconnecting the pistons from the crank pins, but the issue seems to be that in order to ...

Thanks for the reply. I did search through the forum but although there was much debate about the type of wheelsets to use (and I'm sure my choice would meet with disapproval from some!), I didn't find anything saying what you did with them... Anyway, I can work out what to do, but was wondering if ...