Eggerbahn #5

[Stephen Rainsbury]

I bought this loco last year on eBay as part of a bundle. At the time I assumed this was the wild west variant as it had the tender, but after reading @Brian Meldon's article in teh Jan 2014 009 news I now think that it is probably a 1970's Jouef #5 Steam Loco, and that somebody has just added tender. 

Does that sound about right?



This is the top if my lists of restoration projects for when we go into temporary accommodation.

It runs intermittently and even then not very well so it is going to be a nuts and bolts strip down and clean up. It looks quite clean inside, but I will probably give it new brushes and clip on a new magnet somehow just because of its age. If there is still a problem, I will look at fitting a coreless motor and flywheel.

The paint looks as if it was applied with a roller so both loco body and tender will be going in the dettol and re-sprayed.

Now this is where fate has stepped in. I am going to paint it red and give it the name plate "James" after my grandson of the same name, but this loco and James from "Thomas the Tank Engine" are both number 5, spooky eh? I haven't decided if the EB loco is going to have to go to make room for the plate, but I strongly suspect that it will.

I am going to paint the wheels on both to match the main red, but as this is going to be a spray I need to come up with a good way to mask them.

And I need to get a DCC decoder in there too some how.  Preferably not in the tender but that would allow me to use a larger second hand one that I have somewhere.

Edit: And there is a fine mold line on the dome that will have to go too!!

[cp.409067]

*

Others who are expert in these matters will no doubt be able to give chapter and verse as the original nature of this locomotive.

That said I would think this is a late example of the Spaghetti Western type.

(i)    It has the rear extension to the cab roof and therefore the appropriate three window back to the cab.

(ii)   The Spaghetti Western locomotives carried the No 5 on the cab side.

(iii)  That does not appear to be the correct original chimney.

(iv)  The cow catcher is missing from the front of the locomotive.

(v)   That this is a late example is suggested by the presence on the left hand side of the smokebox of the diagonal fault line in the moulding.


CP

[B.Meldon]

I can confirm the above.

It is from the French made Jouef production run from 1968 to 1972.

(The later 1980's versions do not have the fault in the moulding seen in this photo.)

The cab is from the Western loco, as is the tender.

The chimney is from the No5 (blue) loco.

I cannot see the front of the loco. This is needed to know if it has the Western loco boiler section with the cow catcher removed, the headlamp on the smokebox door and a non-egger coupling fitted or the Blue No5 boiler section with the original coupling and no headlamp on the smokebox door.
On these locos it is easy to separate the cab from the boiler section and swap them over. 

It looks like it is enamel paint. I would recommend using methylated spirits to remove all this before re-painting. Just leave the body submerged overnight in a sealed container (I use an old tupperware box) and then the paint should just peel off in the morning. I use wooden cocktail sticks to help remove it.

However being honest I do not think the work (and cost) involved re-painting, fitting a DCC decoder and changing the motor will be worth doing on this loco.
These versions of the Egger locos hardly ever run very well and they also ware out the gears and the chassis blocks quite quickly with use. Many have wheels that are moulded off center causing them to wobble along, the contact block can easily crack and brake, it is also worth making sure the back to back is correct as these are often wide to gauge, and if you try to correct it the wheels bind on the chassis block.
In my oppinion you would be far better off spending the money on a new Minitrains version that will run so much better and last far longer in service. There is an as new blue one on the 009 society sales at the moment for £100. Instructions about fitting a DCC decoader are on the Minitrains web site:
http://www.minitrains.eu/mt-dcc-5042.html

[Stephen Rainsbury]

(The later 1980's versions do not have the fault in the moulding seen in this photo.)

And now I am going to have to remove that!  ;D

The cab is from the Western loco, as is the tender.

The chimney is from the No5 (blue) loco.

I cannot see the front of the loco.

Unfortunately I packed it this morning and it would be a right faff to get it back out. I will look when we get to the temporary accommodation, but judging by photos, it isn't the western one as the smoke box door does not have the protuberance that seems to be in the photos.

However being honest I do not think the work (and cost) involved re-painting

Thanks for pointers, however for me getting something old and a bit cranky working is more fun than buying a loco. I am not actually that fussed about running or operating them, so it will probably just sit there anyway  :)

I can't access that link by the way, by anti-virus software is warning me of a potential virus, so I will have to find another way round that.

Thanks again

[B.Meldon]

Unfortunately I packed it this morning and it would be a right faff to get it back out. I will look when we get to the temporary accommodation, but judging by photos, it isn't the western one as the smoke box door does not have the protuberance that seems to be in the photos.

I can't access that link by the way, by anti-virus software is warning me of a potential virus, so I will have to find another way round that.

Thanks again

So it is a western loco cab that someone has put on a No5 boiler section.

In regards to the link try the main Minitrains page and then the Tecknik/Technics section and then the
'Installation of a DCC decoder into the Stainz locomotive' section.

http://www.minitrains.eu

[Stephen Rainsbury]

So it is a western loco cab that someone has put on a No5 boiler section.

In regards to the link try the main Minitrains page and then the Tecknik/Technics section and then the
'Installation of a DCC decoder into the Stainz locomotive' section.

http://www.minitrains.eu

I hate to think what I will find once I get the paint off, but that's half the fun, although I could do without having to remove that mould line.

I can get to the main page from this PC but not my other one, which has different anti-virus software. That is quite a nice way to mount a decoder, but still leaves teh elephant in the room of being able to see the motor. I might try cutting a figure in half vertically to create a "half relief" engine driver to see if that helps a bit.