Locosnstuff

Welcome to Locosnstuff for 7mm Narrow Gauge

My Kits

All my loco kits are sold complete except for couplings.  All outside frame loco kits can be built to any gauge from 12mm to 16.5mm, inside frame kits only to gauges where axles are available, usually 12mm, 14mm and 16.5mm.  Some kits include jigs for assembling coupling/connecting rods and for quartering the wheels where required.  Assembly is by tabs and slots and all screws, bushes, motor, gearbox, wheels and axles are included.

Some outside frame kits and Power Bogies can be adapted to suit 10.5 and 9mm gauges by using a different gearbox.  The wheels I supply are to 4mm standards and may not suit your track but seem to suit normal OO9 and N gauge track.  Its best to email and ask to be sure.

Although most of my kits require soldering skills, you don't have to be an expert, beginners have bought my kits and produced good results.  The trick is not to look at the whole job which will seem daunting, but to take it in stages.  Each stage will be a lot easier to tackle if you only concentrate on that and think about the rest later.  Use 145 solder for the main body assembly and higher temperature electrical solder for the chassis and smaller parts.

If you have any problems with the instructions CDs, the full instructions and more can be downloaded from my other site set up specially for downloads.  Click on the DOWNLOADS button below to go there.  These are also available to anyone who wants to look a kit over before buying it.

Payment

At shows I can take payment by cash or card, also bank transfers or Paypal via your phone if you are set up for either.  By mail order I can take bank transfers from a UK account, not recommended from non UK accounts as the charges can be excessive.  Paypal is the best option for overseas customers and cheques are acceptable but slow.  I also have a Western Union account so I can be paid via them.  This will require a personal visit to a WU branch with cash and photo ID but its actually cheaper than Paypal and can be used in any country.  Its best to email first for details in any case.

Hobbymat lathe for sale

After many years of use I have had to upgrade to a larger lathe so my trusty MD65 is for sale, there are no problems with it, its just incapable of doing some of the things I want to do.  Over the years it has been regularly maintained, adjusted and oiled and has been upgraded with a new chuck and recently a new 3 phase motor with inverter and speed control.  The drive remains unchanged with 2 belts with optional ratios but now direction and speed is controlled with the inverter, the 2 knobs on the front panel are now redundant but were left in place to block the holes.  It now runs smoother, quieter and automatically brakes when turned off, rather than just coasting to a stop.

It comes with a relatively new HBM 3 jaw chuck with unused outside jaws, the original 3 jaw chuck and a 4 jaw that I have never used.  There is a fixed center, a tailstock chuck, an assortment of 8mm tools and suitable allen keys.  This is a metric lathe so all fittings are metric too, not a hybrid like some.  The one thing it does not have is a full set of change gears, it has just the one set that were fitted when I acquired it 20 years ago.  These gears are available as a full set from various sellers for around £50 to £60 if needed, but to be honest, screw cutting is a big ask for a lathe this small.  Amazingly I also have the original manual and the supplimentary guide booklet by Peter Jones that has some quite important dos and don'ts in it.  for those who have not seen one in the flesh, its size would be classed as a 6 x 12 and dimensions are 72cm x 28cm x 22cm, the inverter controller I had screwed to a shelf just above the lathe when in use.

Its available from 4th Sept 2022 for £400 but collection only, its heavy and not suitable for posting as it could be easily damaged if dropped.  If you are interested, email me and we can discuss it.  If it doesn't sell via this website within a couple of weeks it will go for auction on Ebay.

New range of Metric fixings

I normally use BA screws in my kits but these can cause problems for overseas customers, as the supplier has just stopped doing all the small sizes I need, now is a good time to go metric.  On the Parts and Accesories page you will find screws, nuts taps and dies in 1.0, 1.2 and 1.6mm, the equivalents of 14, 12 and 10BA.  I can get other sizes if there is a demand.

Kelant printing advice

A full set of printing instructions for the Kelant S400can be found at the bottom of the Useful Bits page

New chassis kits

An all new chassis kit for the Brack Models 7mm scale Bagnall Sipat 0-4-0ST, available from Shapeways.  It is under development and I have just built the test etches, release date likely to be early May.  It has been designed to be fairly universal so will fit any similar sized loco.  It has 2 stage 32:1 gearing, a 10/15 square 6 pole motor.  Here's the best bit, it can be built to 16.5, 14, 12, 10.5 or 9mm gauges so will be useful to the 5,5mm and OO9 boys as well.

Dimensions are length 59mm, frameheight above track 10.5mm and wheelbase 17.5mm.  The wheels are 9.5mm disc type with etched inserts to replicate the spokes and balance weights, I jig drill them before packing to take the crankpins.  Bagnall Price valve gear is included, as are plain connecting rods if this is not required.  The kit comes with a crank setting jig and full instructions.  As it is based on the design of my RAR chassis, it is also fairly quick and easy to assemble.

If this isn't enough, I am also doing an outside framed version, same parts but longer spacers, also for 5 gauges.  Both kits come with the wheel inserts and brakes but on the outside framed version they will barely show so can be left off if you wish.  As it has outside cranks, it will take a little longer to assemble.  On both types the cylinders are 3D printed and the crossheads cast nickel silver.

Surprisingly little needs to be done to the Sipat body to get the chassis in.  The cylinders need removing, as do the dummy frames at both ends.  The boiler cut out needs to be widened and lengthened but the gearbox clears the firebox and saddle tank, I designed it that way.  I removed the excess material with a grinding disc and a rotary cutter.  This material cannot be cut as its too brittle.

These are now available in both styles at £70 for a kit, please specify gauge, wheels and discuss motor options when ordering.  Below are pictures of a completed one in 16,5mm with a modified Springside Avon body.  It started out as an 0-4-0 then was adapted into an 0-4-2 using a spare Alco pony truck and a pair of 6.5mm OO gauge tram wheels.

Found on Shapeways - (search O-16.5 skip)

These wagons are 2 of a range by Tom Bell of Teebee models, there are a variety including a flat, low ends, high ends, slatted ends, slatted box and low sided.  All are based on a Hudson skip chassis and are available in 16.5 or O9 in packs of 2 for £15 to £26 depending on type.  My 8.5mm wheels drop straight in, well worth a look as they are very nice.  The 2 shown are the slatted and low ended types.

Locosnstuff is owned by Mark Clark at 12 Adelaide Road, Gillingham, Kent, ME7 4NJ, UK

I can be contacted at borsig1958@gmail.com any time or on 01634 575081 before 8pm