My Oldest Loco

60103

Pooh Bah
I have 2 contenders for oldest loco on my layout. I don't know when they were made, exactly, as they were second (at least) hand when I found them.

First a cast FA. No manufacturer name anywhere. Sorry the first picture isn't the best. The othr picture shows the underside and you can see where the Zamak is starting to fracture.
 

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60103

Pooh Bah
The other loco is a British Railways N2 tank engine, ex-LNER, Exx-GN.
Again, not sure of manufacturer -- dealer said Triang but I don't think so. Not Hornby Dublo.
Note that it's clockwork. The lettering suggests sometime after 1948, but not much past the early 50s.
The N2 class ran suburban (commuter) trains out of King's Cross, and I think many started down in the underground system. The common load was 2 quad-arts (4 articulated coaches). ("600 Englishmen, hurtling through the rain, hating each other."):mrgreen:
 

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Squidbait

Recovering ALCO-holic
David,

Is the shell on the FA1 metal or plastic? It may be Lionel, but the drive looks more Varney-ish to me.

The steamer is definitely Triang. It's a model R51, released between 1951 and 1953.
 

Ray Marinaccio

Active Member
Hi David,
The FA is an old John English loco. If it were a plastic shell it would be a Hobby Line.
Lionel did buy the dies from these locos and used them (in modified form) to produce the shells for their FA loco.
 

60103

Pooh Bah
The FA is a very solid cast metal shell. The drive is an open frame motor on one truck, 2 gears down to the drive shaft and a connection to the other truck.
The coupling on the N2 doesn't look like Triang -- it's just a loop, closer to the pre-war HD, but without the prongs. It could take one of those shett metal hooks, L-shaped.
 

60103

Pooh Bah
Thanks squidbait. I was trying to remember that name. (I was tending towards Gaiety). I looked in my Triang book, but they showed one with early BR herald and Mk 2 couplings.
And now I know that mine is the later Trackmaster version, where everything became cruder.
 
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