Gem Jinty kits

[AdeV]

I've noticed a fair few Jinty kits by Gem on ePay recently, seemingly going for fairly small amounts of money. Obviously one needs a chassis of some description, but otherwise is there any particular reason to steer clear of them?

[Adam1701D]

I guess having a very good RTR model available has made the need for a kit somewhat redundant to most people.

[Portpatrick]

As Adam says, Farish have in the past issued a superb RTR model.  You might find one of those on FleaBay.  The GEM kit was good in its day. I built 2 of their Fowler 264T in years past - not perhaps for a first time builder. The Jinty may be similar - lots of small delicate parts? I cannot remember what Farish chassis it required.  Probably the one from their so called GP tank, also under their ex GWR 94XX tank?

[PLD]

The Gem Jinty used a modified Farish GP Tank chassis. As such it was compromised to fit the chassis, most noticeably in height of boiler/tanks, width and wheel spacing/wheelbase.
It was certainly better than the GP Tank, but very much eclipsed by the Poole Farish Jinty, which was in turn superceded by the Bachman Farish version.

More recently produced Gem kits in general also show the age of the moulds and aren't as crisp as the best white metal casters.

If you specifically want a cheap Jinty, I would look for a Poole Jinty. By the time you have found and paid for a GP chassis in anything like decent condition to go with the kit, it will probably cost at least as much for a poorer overall model...

[AdeV]

Thanks all, much appreciated.

I have a couple of GP tanks, bought in haste because they were cheap... But I've also got a couple of Bachmann Farish Jinties, so I guess I'll just use those...

Must admit, the Bachmann Jinties are incredibly detailed.

[PLD]

I have a couple of GP tanks, bought in haste because they were cheap...

there's still a lot of kits out there that do use the GP tank chassis, and aren't duplicated by R-T-R locos, so if they are in decent condition hang on to them...