Loco No. 9 - Alice

Alice is a loco that has been a very long time in the making. Some five years ago the new loco was commissioned by the company, but after delay after delay, it was thought that it would never ever be delivered!

Eventually though, in 2022, the little Quarry Hunslet made its appearance. Sadly this lovely little loco has proved to be completely unsuitable for the line and has been stabled in a siding by the engine shed for the past year.

Reality

This is one of those kits that you buy, open the box to look, scan the instructions and then put back in the drawer for another time! I had made chassis, but never a complete etched kit, and this one wasn't going to be straightforward. Some of the pre-shaped parts such as smokebox and saddle tank were obviously not correct and then I found out that some parts were missing.

Eventually I couldn't resist the challenge, remade some parts, adjusted others and then recreated the missing parts. I began to really enjoy the challenge as the build progressed.

Alice was completed and put on a rolling road to run in the chassis and everything seemed great, but .... This is such a small and very lightweight loco and despite putting lead in every place I could manage, running is a problem. The very short wheelbase, plus small wheels means that electrical pickup is poor on anything but flat track. The solution may be to permanently couple the loco to a wagon with extra pickups.

For the future.... shame because it's a lovely looking loco.