Picked up 3 more brass engines for good prices. First one is an old Hallmark/Dong Jin Frisco 2-8-2, had some valve gear issues, poor open frame motor and was originaly missing the tender. I remotored it with a big Sagami can motor I had on hand, repaired the valve motion and we found the tender with a busted truck last night at the shop, I resoldered the truck and the model now runs well, its painted in proper Frisco colors and all. I have $25 in the engine, another $25 in the tender and the motor I had on hand already. Second engine is another Hallmark/Dong Jin ICRR 2-8-0 with bad drivers. The potmetal in the diecast centers is all swolen and splitting, otherwise its in excellent shape, unpainted with a nice patina to the brass. Its off to someone with a tad bit better ablity in brass repair to redriver and install and can motor and NWSL gear box. I got that engine for $25. Last engine I bought is an old PFM C3 flywheel shay, 120-150ton large 3 truck shay, huge Pittman motor with flywheel and 8 wheel pickup right from the factory. Why PFM didnt stay with the 8 wheel pickup and the flywheel between the motor and the gear is beyond me. These early shays run better than the later models right from the box with the genuine Pittman motor and extra pickups. I will be taking some pics this evening when I am at the local train club. Cheers Mike
Mike:
Ain’t it fun, LOL? The brass 'collector’s market seems to be kinda/sorta sliding toward some pretty good bargains, these days.
Though I can’t match your prices (you lucky devil!), I did just pick up a Denver & Salt Lake 2-8-2 at Caboose Hobbies in Denver that was a pretty good steal—it should be here by Monday. I was absolutely floored to realize that this little Mike was even modeled. It’s a Sunset and I don’t know the date, but I’ve had pretty good luck with Sunset over the years.
Even, if like you, I have to rebuild the mechanism, it’ll have been a bargain.
Again, congratulations on your bargains!
Tom [:D]
Mike,
Are you sure no guns are involved??[:D] It’s great to find unwanted brass and fixing it up. And like Tom said the brass market is really starting to fall. Look at some of the big names on Ebay and the loco’s they are selling. A lot of them are NOT meeting the reserves because people can get a bargen somewere else. Even if they can’t be fixed at $25.00 they would even make good roundhouse dummy’s, or even placed around the layout.
Mike
The one was an easy fix, didnt expect to find the tender, we thought it had been sold with another engine from the same collection. The 2-8-0 will cost me some money to get running again, The shay would have been around $250, which is a fair price considering it has loads of wheel wear and was not running when I bought it, along with missing the box. Yes its a great time to be a modeler that likes early brass. I can get two brass engines for what one of the new MTH diecast specials from China will cost me. Those look like a mechanics nightmare when they start to have issues, give me an old brass engine anyday. Mike