GWR 2721 Class 0-6-0 Pannier Tank 2732, Hornby with DCC, Lamps, and Custom Detailing

Описание: Popularized by a character in a children's railway stories series, the GNR pannier tanks went through many evolutions and changes during their working lives. This one, produced by Hornby, is an open cab 2721 Class, a precursor to the ubiquitous 57XX Class.

Hornby's tooling for this model was a little older, and the detailing was not particularly fine. I did extensive paintwork on the model to highlight the details, most noticeably the cab and backhead. Keep in mind that when I received the model (second hand, and not running), the only things not green or black were the safety valve cover, chimney cap, and buffer beams. I detailed the weather sheet, full backhead, added the reversing lever, coaled the tender bunker, and added links for the front coupler.

I also fit a DCC decoder to the locomotive, and installed one of my custom LED lamps in the appropriate designation position on the buffer beam.

Also of note is another custom LED lamp I fitted to the toad brake van at the end of the train. This plugs into a commercially available system which uses a coin cell battery and has a motion censor so if the train is stationary for more than 90 seconds, it powers off the light. I prefer this system to track power pickups as there is no chance of shorting or flickering for the lamp, it's equally happy on DCC and DC, and the LED has such little power draw that a battery lasts for years. The only change I made to the system was adding an interrupt 2 position on/off switch; since I transport my equipment to and from the club, this keeps the battery system shut off during the long car trips while the brake van is in the box. I've been meaning for years to fit similar systems to some of my coach stock as well, it works great!