Revamped Roundhouse Beyer Peacock

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dougrail
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Revamped Roundhouse Beyer Peacock

Post by dougrail » Thu Jul 14, 2016 10:15 pm

Hi folks,

As some of you may be aware, I came across a very unique Roundhouse loco last summer and promptly purchased her after some serious negotiation with the bank [and a lot of overtime afterwards.]

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After purchase and run trials, she became a little celebrity for her unique looks, her smart turnout courtesy of Matt / Berry Hill Work's paint and lining, her impressive running capability and oddly, the chirping which she had - appropriate given that when bought she was named 'Robin'!
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She was a mix in looks of the 3ft Ravenglass and the 3ft Isle of Man Steam Beyer Peacock locos. Quite a few people had commented that she looked quite Manx, but I personally also knew there was a lot of differences, including having a chassis more akin to the Beyer Peacocks supplied to Welshpool...!


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I like to have prototypical seeming locos, hence why my Caradoc has gone 'Vale of Rheidol' as far as possible. It was decided that I would make my loco as close to a 'could have been' Isle of Man Steam loco as far as possible, as the IoM is my second most favourite line, beaten only by the Vale of Rheidol. :)

Some research was done. Serendipitously, I found a photo of IOMSR No.4, "Loch" with a)a bell-fluted dome and b) in a maroon livery!
This photo I keep on my phone whenever confronted by purists who tend to forget Loch carried this 1979 to 1991. [the same purists who would rather forget no 12 'Hutchinson' when it was blue, bigger and with a 'Mannin' style square cab (which I personally loved!)]
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~~~

Next up came the boiler research. Cab looked fine, but the IoMSR locos have their smokeboxes, then their domes near the front, followed by a saddle for the safety valves and finally a platform for the whistle. 'Vixen' had her boiler by the cab as seen above; in reality this was the centre positioning on the boiler on a standard 'Lady Anne' boiler. In its own way, it looked quite nice but for an IoM look, it wasn't right placed.


Vixen had received a lick of paint to the bare cylinders [previously black] in its matching Victorian Maroon. Thi is how the loco was prior to the rebuild. Again, a smart loco and I must stress nothing mechanically or hydraulically wrong with her.

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As a result, a new "Billy" spec boiler and matching Victorian maroon wrap was ordered from Roundhouse. Roundhouse, may I say, were absolute gold in sorting out my order. They do do the BT1 [Lady Anne] and BT2 [Billy] style boilers as kits with all the gubbins such as controls, gauges etc for nearly £300. However when I explained to them that I literally just needed the barrel for a transplant and that I had all the gubbins already, they were very pleased that I was using their parts and were able to arrange for a new smokebox handle, wrap and boiler-alone for under £100!

Detailing came next; firstly an Accucraft MONA was on display, open to the public at the Midlands Garden Railway Show at Leamington.
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I was able to take measurements and then by fortunate chance, a scurry through my archives found that I had photoed a loco dead-on when visiting the Island some five years ago...! [First photo below not mine.]
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~~~~~

The boiler ordered, promptly arrived within a week and the loco was carefully dismantled. The old boiler was lifted and examined;
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and the new boiler was fitted up to the piping, gas system and reloacted onto the loco. Just this alone transformed the look of the loco:
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The smokebox received its handles swap - the old 'clockface' being removed for he more IoM-a-like rounded wheel dart:
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Matt had kindly supplied a tinlet of the Phoenix Victorian Maroon; this was put to use painting the cranks [but not the wheels as they were inside framed; the cranks were the closest I could get to doing it IoM style]
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As well as the tinlet, at Llanfair I had purchased a set of RH cylinder covers intending for them to match the engine and immediately had handed them over to Mat to do on a 'no rush' basis. These were sent back to me upon asking and payment in the February - and while the loco was dismanled, the running boards could be lifted up to enable them to be slipped in and over the cylinders:
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The steamheating pipe into the smokebox had been foolishly scratched, so was treated to a full stripdown, etch prime and repaint into tough enamel.
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The loco was then reassembled, with new boiler and sorted fittings.

Before:
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After:
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The old boiler and wrap were then resold on to cover a majorly significant cost of the new boiler. I believe it is going into a 'Dacre' build.


Next up was the brasswork. These had been looked into before the boiler had arrived. Vixen was going to be the No.3 of the fleet and so I needed to find photos of the IoMSR's own no.3. Oddly, it was closer to home than I had thought and also I have a good friend who works for MOSI! A FB chat later and a favour gained, and within a few hours he had obTained head-on photos of both "PENDER" Chimney numeral and nameplate.
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Nameplate:
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I now had 2 of the required 5 letters for the font sampling. I was able to find online a photo of No 6, "PEVERIL's nameplate:
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With 4 of the 5 required letters, I approached Narrow Planet who were excellent in their consultation. Firstly they revealed that although they did their 'set menus' they could do anything provided that they wer e provided artistic reference - cue them being emailed the 3, Pender and Peveril plates photos. They then revealed that they actually had IOMSR font in stock, as not long before, another Lady Anne with a Billy Boiler had had a set made, also in IOM font - Thornhill. After some scale measurement and calculation, the sizes were given over to Narrow Planet. 10 days later, these turned up in the post.

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Very beautifully done. The '3's were bent on a bit of tube so that they would wrap around the locomotive's funnel. Once bent and gently heated, they kept their bend and thus were glued on using Loctite Hybrid Gel glue - a friendly, heat resistant gel glue which I use for my nameplates.
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The nameplates were cleaned and painted red background as per IoM tradition, before being placed carefully onto the loco tanks roughly where "LOCH" and "MONA" had theirs.

An interesting fact is that the width of the boiler/smokebox is in 16mm scale an exact representation of the 'medium boilers' that nos 10-13 were built with and that 5 and 6 were upgraded with at a later stage - thus I was safe again in using No.4 LOCH as a prototype - Vixen, tophalfwise, is most definitely a 'medium' loco along with possessing the larger, longer sidetanks tha the mediums and rebuilds had,

The loco was then taken to Matt Towell's Barley Pit Line and Works where firstly it was steamed up and run tested.
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The engine ran very well, save for a couple of leaks in the joins. These were corrected once home. Meanwhile at Matt's, discussio had began regarding a new whistle platform and the safety valves and the saddle, as mentioned on the Accucraft MONA. Matt was willing to make them as I could paint them. The platform was easy enough, and then a Roundhouse small bolt-on whistle was added. The safety valve saddle apparently took quite a lot of thinking and trial and error - and the effort involved shows. However it looks the piece magnificently now all painted up and on the loco. :)

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The whistle platform and safety valve bonnet are both sat onto the boiler using RH boiler bands which were also etched and painted. The little nib in the Blly boiler wrap to allow for a bolt, for a sandpot to sit on had bene covered up by the safety valve saddle, making for a complete-looking loco. The 'hooter' whistler which came with the loco was carefully removed, now replaced by the IoM whistle.

The loco, now complete, rebuilt and repainted and dressed, had already passed its running/steam tests and was invited to the IOM15M Group's exhibition stand to go on display!

First loco out at the Hall...
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On display on the IOM15m Group [with many thanks to our own Northsider for inviting me and permitting me to exhibit]
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The loco as well now has also gained a set of IoM Pairs bogie coaches, along with a customised guards composite - when out on duty, it holds the banner for the Isle of Man very nicely, especially as she and the train can go where scale IoM locos cannot go - on 32mm gauge.

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Coaching Stock...
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Eaves Green - or St Johns?
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Loco and Train
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With that, what was a lovely looking loco I was able to customise even further, much to my pleasure and gain a very attractive locomotive for the exhibition circuit.

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Post by SapperAnt » Sat Jul 16, 2016 10:36 am

She really has to meet her big sister! :D

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Dr. Bond of the DVLR
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Post by Dr. Bond of the DVLR » Sat Jul 16, 2016 4:34 pm

The loco looks very well at the head of those pairs carriages Doug.
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The railway which people forgot
(to build)

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dougrail
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Post by dougrail » Sat Jul 16, 2016 10:39 pm

SapperAnt:118981 wrote:She really has to meet her big sister! :D
Yes mate! I really do need to bring her to her spiritual birthplace and pose her on PENDER - "Little Pender, Big Pender." [sounds like a Father Ted sketch, doesn't it?!] Must sort that soon before the fall methinks; Manchester is nicest in the summer and early autumn.
Mr. Bond of the DVLR:118986 wrote:The loco looks very well at the head of those pairs carriages Doug.
Thanks for saying so Zach :) The aim was for an authentic[ish] IoM working-period train set and I think I have accomplished this. The three untouched coaches look good, and the customised coach adds an extra dignity to the rake. :)

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Re: Revamped Roundhouse Beyer Peacock

Post by LnBmad » Tue Feb 25, 2020 11:28 pm

i had almost forgotten what she was like before her rebuild mate!
If it can be made full scale it can be made 16mm

My line: http://gardenrails.myfreeforum.org/about7200.html

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