SRman

Agreeing with much that has been said above, they had long lives, so just about any vans or open wagons from the early 1900s through to BR days would look appropriate. Mine is pulling a selection of pre-grouping wagons, mostly LSWR and GWR, as befits the Reading area where the Huntley & Palmers premises were. Technically, Reading was also an SECR outpost, so I could legitimately include some SECR wagons too (I think ... this is all conjecture on my part). I will also, at some time, put some BR wagons behind it. I have in mind to remove the Huntley & Palmers sign writing and leave it as a rather attractive 'generic' industrial loco, which will give me even more scope as to what is seen behind the drawbar!

They do look good, with my only reservation being the thickness of those front edges to the casings. I was hoping Hornby would fix that up on the production models. I particularly like the chimney detail differences between the two shown in Rails' video. I'm not in the market for these original condition locos, but will be buying one of the later condition ones (if they don't sell out before I get there).

That's nicely done, Mike. I haven't watched the whole video yet, but the parts I did watch got me in.

One more photo, this time posed on the layout.

A few months ago, I swapped an original Bachmann London Transport body from its split chassis onto a new DCC-ready chassis. The split chassis was converted to DCC some years ago and wasn't too bad a runner, albeit not up to the standard of the newer chassis. The LT swap left me with a heavily weathered BR black pannier body sitting on the old split chassis. I thought that this would not be a likely seller, so decided to have a bit of fun and make it into a might-have-been Huntley & Palmers loco (without logos as I may eventually remove the legend from the Peckett to make it more generic). I started by painting the pannier body in a rather lurid Revell blue. With the already red coupling rods, this didn't look too far off the H&P colours, although I was well aware it would need toning down somewhat. I was going to apply a second coat of blue but decided that for industrial use, a second-hand loco would probably have had the paint slapped on carelessly to give an idea of identity. Some white edged black lining from an LNER sheet of transfers applied to just the tank sides aided the identity change, together with an arbitrary number 8 on the cabside completed the main work. I touched up the black parts where I had gone over with the blue, then dry-brushed some more black onto the upper surfaces of the tanks and boiler, followed by a heavy application of black weathering powder. I have posed the pannier tank with the Peckett to show off the family resemblance in the liveries, even though that on the pannier is entirely fictitious. ​

Having bought a new Hornby Huntley & Palmers Peckett 0-4-0ST (probably the last one in Melbourne, if not Australia), I tested it on DC then added a decoder, using a TCS M1 wired to the 4-pin 'looping' plug. During that operation, I managed to lose the whistle, so crudely turned one up from some brass wire in the Dremel (shown earlier). That worked as a stopgap until I tried a second time and came up with something that looked a little more like a whistle. After I was happy with that, I weathered the Peckett using black powder. there's more to do but I think it looks more like a well-used example while still showing off the lovely H&P lined blue. A few months ago, I swapped an original Bachmann London Transport body from its split chassis onto a new DCC-ready chassis. The split chassis was converted to DCC some years ago and wasn't too bad a runner, albeit not up to the standard of the newer chassis. The LT swap left me with a heavily weathered BR black pannier body sitting on the old split chassis. I thought that this would not be a likely seller, so decided to have a bit of fun and make it into a might-have-been Huntley & Palmers loco (without logos as I may eventually remove the legend from the Peckett to make it more generic). I started by painting the pannier body in a rather lurid Revell blue. With the already red coupling rods, this didn't look too far off the H&P colours, although I was well aware it would need toning down somewhat. I was going to apply a second coat of blue but decided that for industrial use, a second-hand loco would probably have had the paint slapped on carelessly to give an idea of identity. Some white edged black lining from an LNER sheet of transfers applied to just the tank sides aided the identity change, together with an arbitrary number 8 on the cabside completed the main work. I touched up the black parts where I had gone over with the blue, then dry-brushed some more black onto the upper surfaces of the tanks and boiler, followed by a heavy application of black weathering powder. I have posed the pannier tank with the Peckett so you can all judge from the photos how well I have succeeded, or how far I have fallen short.

Bear in mind that many of Bachmann's later production models have 21-pin connections. I have used the Hornby TTS class 37 decoder in a ViTrains class 37 to good effect. As Mike indicated, there is no reason why the Hornby decoder should not work in any locomotive with a compatible socket. Alternatively, they should work equally well if using an adapter or hard-wiring into another loco.

Looking very good, there, Richard. A few of your photos are particularly useful for me, too, as I have to make up a cab rear for my kit to replace the missing part. Easy enough in plastic card but I wasn't sure of the details. Trying to find photos of the rear end of the real thing is like trying to find hen's teeth!

Funny thing is, I am not too worried about the gangway floor height (a piece of plasticard could beef it up a little), but I'm still not convinced the windscreen size is right (others have commented on this some time ago). If they were too small it would be a relatively easy modelling job to open them out a little, but if they are too big/too tall, that's much more difficult to correct. Don't get me wrong; I like what I'm seeing overall, and have two on order, and won't be cancelling those (unless I go bankrupt first). Regardless of the errors, I agree with John, above, that they are far better than anything I can kit-bash or scratchbuild myself.

I would think bridging a capacitor would cause a dead short, wouldn't it?

I'm fairly sure someone on this forum did so. It would certainly form a good basis for the CIG ... or a BIG, for that matter.

I got brave and weathered the Peckett, although only with some weathering powder for now. The effect can be wiped off or added to later, if I think it needs adjustment. I think it looks alright, with the bright colours toned down a little but not lost. The crude replacement whistle I turned up from a piece of brass wire in the Dremel is also visible. ​

I got brave and weathered the Peckett, although only with some weathering powder for now. The effect can be wiped off or added to later, if I think it needs adjustment. I think it looks alright, with the bright colours toned down a little but not lost.

Having lost the whistle from my Peckett, I turned up a crude replacement using a bit of suitable diameter brass wire in the Dremel, using a file to cut grooves and alter the widths of parts of it. It is by no means accurate, but it passes muster at normal viewing distance, and will be rather more robust than the original plastic one. John: I would be a bit reluctant to remove the body again, having already broken one wire replacing it the first time. The height of the top of the tank from ground level, with the loco standing on a table, is approximately 38mm. For the height from rail level, knock off 1mm.

One more of the Peckett and wagons for luck: The wagons behind the loco in the pic are two LSWR vans (Cambrian Kits), an LSWR gunpowder van (Dapol, but weathered by me), then two more Cambrian Kits wagons, this time LSWR 8-plank wagons with two different variations on the brake gear. I fitted a driver into the Peckett today, although he's not in that photo. I am very pleased with my purchase of the Peckett (you could say I'm "chuffed"!). I took it over to DougN's place yesterday, where it met up with Doug's MSC version. Both are beautiful models, full of character and lovely runners. They managed quite decent loads on Doug's gradients too. It's a shame I didn't think to take any photos or video of them at work there. I do know Doug seems equally as pleased with his purchase.

Do these count as Nellieboshes? Many years ago I wanted to have something that younger visitors to my layout could drive around and it didn't matter what happened to it. My answer was to modify a Triang Nellie/Polly/Connie into a sort of Thomas the Tank Engine groupie. I had two bodies, but only one of these had a chimney, with the other having been broken off at its base, so my solution was to cut the one good chimney half way down and donate the remains to the other body (more of which shortly). This chimney is now done as a short stovepipe style. I made a face for the smokebox front out of Milliput, then painted the whole thing in crimson, with red and gold lining. It still has its original Triang 'steam roller' wheels, but with the back to backs adjusted, it will run through the Peco code 100 points without protesting too much. It was unnamed but given an arbitrary number, and young guests were allowed to choose a name for it before running it. This one remains on DC analogue only. Now to the other body, which is still a work in progress. I decided with this one that, just for fun, I would detail it up a bit, with separate handrails and other details, proper round cab spectacles, and so on. It has Romford wheels fitted, and the X04 motor has been refurbished using a neo-magnet, with a view to converting it to DCC in the near future. It will gain BR lined black and a fictitious running number in the SOuthern Region series. There is no brake gear at all, so the undergear looks a little bare, but otherwise I am quite pleased with the way it is shaping up.

A short video of the Peckett passing through Newton Broadway. https://youtu.be/PpusqUkXi7A

I have actually managed to dislodge and lose the whistle from mine, while messing around fitting a decoder. The hole in the cab roof is clean, so it hasn't actually been broken off. For the time being, I have fitted half a turned brass Bulleid whistle, until I can either find the original (on the workbench or in the carpet somewhere!), or get something better. I have uploaded a short video to YouTube of mine running on DCC. I have posted the same link on my layout topic too, so if you view it here, there's no need to download it a second time there.

That's quite ingenious.

Somewhere, buried in my collection of older items, I have a Wrenn (ex-Hornby Dublo) van in Peak Peek Freans livery. Maybe I should put together a tea-and-biscuits train; Lyons tea comes to mind as a livery for a van or container for the tea part!

When Hornby's Peckett locomotives hit the shelves in the UK, I was tempted but thought I really don't need one, attractive as they are. The Australian market barely saw them at all, then the UK ones all sold out, so I thought I was "safe". Then last week, a friend in Brisbane messaged me to say he had located and bought one from Metro Hobbies, here in Melbourne. What was even more surprising was that the price was a shade under $AUS150 including postage. I promptly informed DougN, who lives only a short distance away, because I knew he was after one. He popped over to our local Metro Hobbies shop in Box Hill, but they informed him the models were at the city branch, but they would get one sent to Box Hill for him to pick up. That was last Friday. He got the MSC one and picked it up on Tuesday. I jumped in on Saturday morning and ordered the Huntley & Palmers version for postal delivery to my address, and that turned up on Wednesday. I must have got my order in just in time, because the Pecketts all reverted to being for pre-order on Metro Hobbies' website later on Saturday morning. I checked it on DC, then ran it on the rolling road for a while, still on analogue. It ran beautifully, quiet and smooth. I switched the Underground tracks to DC and ran it with a load. It again ran beautifully and also surprised me with its power, handling 14 kit-built wagons easily, and only struggling slightly on a curve with a 15th, rather stiff wagon added. Tonight (Thursday), I fitted a TCS M1 decoder with shortened wires, utilising the existing 4-pin connection by soldering the decoder wires to the metal pins in the plug that acted as the looping device for the track feed wires to the brushes. The fit was good, with the decoder sitting in the space Hornby aliowed at the front of the mechanism, with space to spare (but only a tiny amount!). The chassis worked fine on testing on DCC but, unfortunately, I didn't watch the path of one of the brush wires when replacing the body. The trapped wire broke, so I had to open it all up and repair the break, before Blu-tacking the wires to prevent them moving, and replaced the body again. This time all went well and she runs very smoothly now on DCC. Here are a few photos, with the first one showing opening the box, and the other two in service on DCC with the 15 wagon train - you'll have to take my word on that as only the first couple of wagons are shown! Of course, the loco will benefit from a little judicious weathering, and I may even remove the Huntley and Palmers lettering at some stage, but for now I am quite pleased with my handywork.

I checked mine: one side at one end only had a very slight gap. The rest appeared fine. I can't see why there is even a slight gap on mine, but if you can, check the chassis on yours to see if it has bowed slightly. Otherwise, check the plastic cowl mouldings to see if they have become slightly dislodged.

That NCB one does look nice. DougN and I have collared a couple of reasonably priced examples locally: I ordered the Huntley & Palmers one, Doug the MSC one, both at a shade under $AUS150 (less than £75) each. It looks like we got the last ones as they were marked for pre-orders after we bought them. Incidentally, there are some very nicely weathered examples in the other Peckett topic; I will be using some of those for my inspirations when I get round to weathering mine.

Yeah. Save the vapourware for putting into some steam locos later!

Don't forget to remove that steel rule from the tracks before powering on, Peter!