Thomas the Tank Engine Model

[roryglasgow]

A long time ago I downloaded a paper model of Thomas the Tank Engine by Takahiro Kojima. About a month ago I sat down and started putting it together. It's an amazing little kit, but it's a bit above my skill level. Still, I'm rather pleased with the results.

Here is a link to the web site where I downloaded it. You can also download models of James, Gordon, Bertie, and Annie and Clarabel. He also has models of various cars, structures and spaceships.

http://member.nifty.ne.jp/papermodel/

-Rory

 

[roryglasgow]

From the front... Note the cottage cheese sky!

 

[roryglasgow]

I thought it was kinda neat the way he designed the steps up into the cab. It's two pieces: one is the "front" side with the steps, and another sits behind it to brace it. It folds in a sort of accordian pattern.

 

[roryglasgow]

Those little lamps on the front and back were a dickens for me to put together with my clumsy fingers. The one here on the back is sorta smushed, but the photo doesn't really show it.

 

[roryglasgow]

BTW, I'm not sure of the scale of this model. It's bigger than N. It's probably around 1:120 (TT) or something like that. I don't know if he had any intention of making it a "standard" scale or not...

-Rory

 

[Tyson Rayles]

Rory I believe those "lamps" are the bumbers that railroads on the wrong side the big pond use with the hook and pin couplers. Neat kit!

 

[roryglasgow]

The black discs are the bumpers. The lamps are the little white boxes. One is located in the center of the bunker on the back, and the other is sitting above the left bumper (buffer) on the front as you face the engine.

The number and arrangement of lamps indicated the type and priority of the train: passenger express, slow freight, mail train, etc.

-Rory

 

[Tyson Rayles]

Durn, learn something new every day. So what priority is Thomas?

 

[Drew1125]

Whe Thomas isn't running his branch line, he has to "shunt" a lot of "troublesome trucks"!

 

[roryglasgow]

Yeah, normally Thomas works his branch line, which runs from Knapford up to Ffarquhar. On rare occassions, though, he can be seen on the mainline. According to the Great Western website, Thomas' lamp is in the position that indicates that his train is a "freight, mineral or ballast train stopping at intermediate stations."

Here's a link to the lamp codes:

http://www.greatwestern.org.uk/basic16.htm

-Rory