My little lad enjoys watching this little blue engine.
After doing a search.
I have come across thomas in n gauge.
Has anyone got tomix loco's and how do you rate them.
Cheers
Porkie
Ive got a James, not run it for years but I seem to remember it being a bit sparadic... :-\...may be wrong tbh. Its bigest problem was that its way over scale. Great for the kids though! My nephew loved it.
EDIT: What about these?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Custom-Thomas-Tank-Engine-Diesel-10-And-Salty-Trains-N-Gauge-/400242773857?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item5d30540f61
Thanks fella :thumbsup:
I just missed that Item :thumbsdown:
May be I should have a look and see if its possible to repaint a farish loco
Tomix locos are super reliable and great runners so if you can get a set go for it :thumbsup:
There was one running today at the Cupar show, smooth as you like, it was done by the Granite City Railway Modellers, they may have more info
I've had my Thomas set for a number of years. Always a crowd-pleaser, and has been very reliable.
Available here...http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Plaza-Japan/Thomas-the-Tank-Engine-/_i.html?_fsub=15&_sid=169030440&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322
I've got three, Tomas, James and Percy.
I got them for my wee exhibition layout and for my kids who were quite young at the time.
The chassis quality is excellent - they would make a fine basis for a 009 project.
They are very robust. Bounce on carpets. If they do break they seem to click back together.
They are over scale to make it easier for little fingers to manage so you make have to watch for platform clearances.
I fitted a radio spy camera in the Sodar mail wagon that comes in the Percy set which proves popular at exhibitions.
Beware though kids seem to grow out of Tomas quite fast.
Quote from: burnt fingers on September 19, 2011, 07:21:04 PM
Beware though kids seem to grow out of Tomas quite fast.
The real models never had faces on anyway !
I think there is much wisdom in that comment - small children will decide any small blue train is Thomas, any DMU is Daisy etc, and larger small children can then grow out of Thomas but not out of the train.
Now when I was a little 'un the must have accessory was a level crossing to stage train crashes...
I have a old Farish Jinty repainted to look like Thomas, I could easliy repaint it to another livery now Im grown up! (I havnt due to its sentimental value) Might be a more cost effective route
Thanks for all your advices peeps..
Im watching a set on evilbay at the moment 8)
Thanks michael...
If I cant source one at a decent price, I will drop you a pm :thumbsup:
I've got all 4 they have done (Thomas, Henry, James and Percy) and they are fantastic runners. I have them just for the fun of it and the extra faces that come with percy can be altered to go on the front of my other steamers for a mock thomas day lol
Ollie
On ebay - 4 sets http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/N-gauge-Trains-Thomas-Friends-Tomix-/290611466726?pt=UK_Trains_Railway_Models&hash=item43a9cb11e6
click on his "see other items"
I concur on running. I have had a Thomas for some years and it is a fantastic runner at all speeds. It comes out at exhibitions when the youngsters are looking - to the chagrin of more traditional modellers. It will be in use on my club's layout at the Berkhamstead show on 8 Oct.
I also have a Henry but it is not usable on the club layout - it is sufficiently over size it will clout the automatic colour light signals. Which risks me vbecoming unpopular with the electronics wallah.
Quote from: oldrailbug on September 18, 2011, 09:03:36 PM
Tomix locos are super reliable and great runners
My crowd-pleasing Thomas has just stopped running. The motor is whirring away but there's no wheel movement. Can they suffer split gears? The gear train looks pretty complicated. Brian
Get yourself an old Poole Era Black 5 and a Fowler tender top and paint green for Henry, Stepney is done by Dapol, Duck by Farish, Oliver by Dapol and Mavis if you get a black 04 (paint one of the others carefully so as to not much up the wasp stripes) and the Etched Pixels conversion. Gordon is a Farish A3 with a Fowler tender. There are a couple of kits for Toby - a 2mm etched one being the nicest I think - and the Langley E2/2 for Thomas himself. I made an Edward out of a Farish Compound with the piston rod and cylinders removed. Percy and James are a little bit harded. One suggestion for James I have seen was to use the Hughes kit for the LBSCR K class 2-6-0 and leave out the cylinders and piston rods but the last one I saw on eBay went for over 200 quid - and was already made up and painted in Southern Green.
Quote from: Sithlord75 on October 03, 2011, 11:23:23 AM
Percy and James are a little bit harded. One suggestion for James I have seen was to use the Hughes kit for the LBSCR K class 2-6-0 and leave out the cylinders and piston rods but the last one I saw on eBay went for over 200 quid - and was already made up and painted in Southern Green.
I think there are people who would actually fly to Oz and string you up if you did that to a Hughes kit 8)
For Toby the BH Enterprises kit is probably the easiest and as it is skirted can be popped over several chassis including the Farish DMU bogie or one or two of the tiny Japanese ones. The bigger problem with it as Toby and with some of the other kits is that white metal kits (or indeed in many cases brass ones) and small children are not a good mix, but for entertaining them it's a nice easy kit to throw together - basically ends/sides/roof, glue, detail. It's certainly buildable onto a DMU bogie by a relatively inexperienced kit builder. It's much too fat for the real W&U locos but it is a toy train we are talking about in this case.
Would Percy work as a hack up of something suitable on something like the Backwoods Miniatures chassis ?
http://www.backwoodsminiatures.com/x040chassis.jpg
That chassis looks to be a good start. I keep hoping for a Carley Pug which is the closest prototype I have found - a few mods would be required but nothing too drastic. After all, the look would be all that is needed for the under 10s!
I only have the Thomas one with Annie and C, excellent and smooth runners and would gladly recommend TOMIX to anyone.
We used to have Thomas & Annie & Clarabel, Percy & James on our exhibition layout. They were Tomix & they ran brilliantly. Unfortunately, the member they belonged to, no longer attends exhibitions with us. The kids loved em!! They only made a guest appearance when we spotted a suitable audience............. much to the annoyance of the rivet counters!! The tuts were audible!! But if youve read my other posts about our exhibition ethos, you'll see where were coming from.........
Anyway, another member spent ages modelling the Silver Jubilee, (full train), with articulated carriages. Its spot on................ but he used to get hot under the collar when the kids shouted, "Here comes Spencer"!!
Oh, we did laugh!! All that hard work.......... for Spencer!! :smiley-laughing:
However, going back to Thomas, we that heard certain individuals from the company that bought the Thomas rights, (their name escapes me), were doing the rounds at exhibitions..........& if they spotted a Thomas, they were insisting the model was removed from the layout........... or they were threatening all sorts of nasty legal things. We didnt ever get a visit............. & I dont know how true the story is, but it might be worth checking out before you run one of the little blue fellas in public???
Anyone else heard of that tale? Or is it an urban myth?? ???
Anyone know where I can get replacement traction tyres for the Tomix Henry? ... Mine shed one of its tyres (straight out of the box!) and so now limps a bit. Also it doesn't like R1 curves as the front bogie fouls the cylinders. If you go slowly it just about makes it but derails at speed! James looks better pulling Henry's coaches. Henry would look better with a train of teak Gresleys.
Percy is an excellent runner - I had it creeping along smoothly with the Fleichmann controller set on 5% - though it was only pulling the Sodor Mail coach. Amazing, considering it's just a short wheelbase 0-4-0.
Pity they haven't produced a proper Toby (& Henrietta), as Thomas is better suited to pulling James' troublesome wagons! Let's hope they're next on their production list.
A brake van would be nice too - I use an old Lima one at the moment ....
:beers:
Quote from: GB No.9 on October 07, 2011, 11:05:03 PM
However, going back to Thomas, we that heard certain individuals from the company that bought the Thomas rights, (their name escapes me), were doing the rounds at exhibitions..........& if they spotted a Thomas, they were insisting the model was removed from the layout........... or they were threatening all sorts of nasty legal things. We didnt ever get a visit............. & I dont know how true the story is, but it might be worth checking out before you run one of the little blue fellas in public???
Anyone else heard of that tale? Or is it an urban myth?? ???
Sounds like rivet counters hit squad! :smiley-laughing: Urban Myth I think you'll find.
Quote from: sprichasm on January 16, 2012, 10:47:01 AM
Anyone know where I can get replacement traction tyres for the Tomix Henry? ... Mine shed one of its tyres (straight out of the box!) and so now limps a bit. Also it doesn't like R1 curves as the front bogie fouls the cylinders. If you go slowly it just about makes it but derails at speed! James looks better pulling Henry's coaches. Henry would look better with a train of teak Gresleys.
You could try Plaza Japan on Ebay. They stock all the Thomas range as well as lots of Tomix.
If its not on their website email them as they're very helpful chaps.
You could try Bullfrog snot from DCC Supplies http://www.dccsupplies.com/shop/product_info.php?products_id=3152 (http://www.dccsupplies.com/shop/product_info.php?products_id=3152) info on how to do it at http://bullfrogsnot.com/ (http://bullfrogsnot.com/)
Just measured Henry's driving wheels and I make the diameter of the tyre groove to be 11.9 mm. with the other drivers being 12.7 This would make the tyres 0.4-ish in thickness, I suppose. Might there be some suitable tyres from Minitrix/Fleischmann, etc?
:beers:
would love to collect all these and convert them to DCC. saw a few in shops but they where over priced IMO.
Also about the comment growing out of thomas quickly i never did, and still watch it if i catch it when its on. yeah okay i have now lost the Thomas Tank wallpaper but dont think the misses would approve lol.
Quote from: GWR-Kris on January 31, 2012, 08:59:48 AM
would love to collect all these and convert them to DCC. saw a few in shops but they where over priced IMO.
They are priced pretty much as you'd expect for "serious" rollingstock ... they are good precision models, not just push-along robust toys, after all. No reason why one shouldn't fit them with DCC, I suppose - plenty of room inside the overscale bodies!
Quote from: GWR-Kris on January 31, 2012, 08:59:48 AM
Also about the comment growing out of thomas quickly i never did, and still watch it if i catch it when its on. yeah okay i have now lost the Thomas Tank wallpaper but dont think the misses would approve lol.
At least you should be able to find "wallpaper" for your pc screen easily enough!
I have a nice one of Ivor the Engine for mine! But that's another story.
VBR
Chas
:beers:
Quote from: sprichasm on January 31, 2012, 09:37:48 AM
I have a nice one of Ivor the Engine for mine! But that's another story.
Ivor the engine thats not something i have not heard for years.
Try this:
http://www.smallfilms.co.uk/ivor/ (http://www.smallfilms.co.uk/ivor/)
:beers:
I'm envious of the variety of rollingstock available in OO (Hornby):-
Quote from: sprichasm on January 16, 2012, 10:47:01 AM
James looks better pulling Henry's coaches. Henry would look better with a train of teak Gresleys.
The existing "Henry's coaches" could be released as a set of 2 in a different livery: teak and/or green & white?
Quote from: sprichasm on January 16, 2012, 10:47:01 AM
Pity they haven't produced a proper Toby (& Henrietta), as Thomas is better suited to pulling James' troublesome wagons!
Talking of wagons - Sodor Scrap, Sodor china clay & Farquhar Quarries opens, Tidmouth Milk, Oil & Tar tankers would be quick relivery jobs for Tomix
Quote from: sprichasm on January 16, 2012, 10:47:01 AM
A brake van would be nice too - I use an old Lima one at the moment ....
Percy's Mail Van could also be reliveried as a more general purpose CCT too.
:beers: