The Railway Children Return - 4F Loco.

[10 Class]

Hello everyone.

R30221, "The Railway Children Return" - 4F Loco, is in the shops in Australia for AUD $215.00.

This seemed too cheap to me, however, i am lead to believe, that it is a tender drive ex Airfix loco?

Hornby 2022 catalogue list's it as a 5 pole motor, however, retailers tell me it is 3 pole motor.

Does anyone know if these loco's are any good, please?

I have a Hornby R2138 "The Colliery Set" and i think apart from livery, it is the same loco etc.

Has it been re-tooled at all?

Any help would be appreciated. (Before i buy one.)

Thanks in advance.

[Going Spare]

The 4F was changed to loco drive back in 2011 (Service Sheet 378) so it is most unlikely, I would have thought, for it to revert to tender drive for this latest release. The catalogue, website, retailers and reference sites are at odds as to whether the motor is a 3- or 5-pole unit but as it has a thin flywheel fitted, it might well be 3-pole.

[Bulleidboy]

This site says it is a 3-pole motor, but as GS says it could be 3 or 5, depending which site you look at. Also it is fitted with a DCC decoder socket, which I cannot imagaine they would fit to an old tender drive loco.

Hopefully someone who has one will give us the answer.

[ColinB]

Shame this wasn't posted yesterday, I was at the Keithley and Howarth Railway where they had the model in the shop. It is of no interest to me so I didn't bother picking one up to look at it.

[Anglia998]

Hello 10 Class

R2138 was a limited edition Pack, marketed by A.B.Gee in 1999. This makes it very unlikely to be the same loco. as in R30221

To the best of my knowledge, R2138 never appeared in a Hornby publication.

Sorry, but I don't have any further information.

[JJ73]

Hiya

Good news - I have just order it & will be delivered to me in the next 6 business day & then asper usual - I shall do a review of it on my YT Channel!!! So when I receive it, you can watch my review!!! 🙂🚂

[10 Class]

Hiya

Good news - I have just order it & will be delivered to me in the next 6 business day & then asper usual - I shall do a review of it on my YT Channel!!! So when I receive it, you can watch my review!!! 🙂🚂

Good stuff.

Looking forward to your verdict on the loco.

Much appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

10 Class

[JJ73]

Should be delivered to me in the next 12 hrs...then I'll do my review of it & then I'll up-load it!!! 🚂

[JJ73]

Right I've now done my Review & up-loaded it to YT - & here it is - thanks in advance - Enjoy 🙂🚂

[atom3624]

Thanks for that JJ.

Confirmed as Railroad quality loco-drive 0-6-0, but with tender pickups, which is a nice addition.

Hornby generally - not always, there have been exceptions - puts 3-pole motors in the RR models.

It should give good and reliable service.

Al.

[Going Spare]

Yes, from the maintenance sheet it appears to be as per the 2011 upgrade - i.e. loco drive, tender pick-ups and DCC socket, but unless someone is prepared to dismantle the tender, it does not appear to have been further improved to provide for a speaker even though sound is mentioned.

[JJ73]

No Probs - Also just noticed on the bottom of the LMS Class 4F No. 43924 page on the Tech Specs - it does actually says :-Motor

3 Pole Skew wound 🚂

[10 Class]

No Probs - Also just noticed on the bottom of the LMS Class 4F No. 43924 page on the Tech Specs - it does actually says :-Motor

3 Pole Skew wound 🚂

Hello everyone.

I watched the video by JJ, on the "The Railway Children Return - 4F. I thoroughly enjoyed the video, which clarified one of the questions which i had asked about the 4F.

Well done JJ!

I have subsequently purchased R30221, from the local retailer for AUD $230.00.

It was apparent from removing the 4F from the box that it was Loco Drive, as the Tender was very light, and the wheels spun freely.

A test run was given immediately and it performed perfectly at all speeds in both directions, and was reasonably quiet as it went along the straight test track.

As for a 3 pole or 5 pole motor, i am still unsure, as the 2022 Hornby catalogue, clearly states on page 67 - Motor: 5 Pole Skew Wound, Tender Drive. (Maybe too much copy & paste by Hornby)

I could not find any reference to the "3 pole Skew wound" mentioned above in the instructions, which came with the 4F.

I don't really care one way or the other, as the loco preforms satisfactorily just the way it is, and i'm not dismantling it just find out the motor type. It was merely an observation on my part.

The motors are probably interchangeable in any case.

Anyhow, it's a nice little loco for the collections.

Thanks for the interest.

 

 

[JJ73]

Hello 10 Class 🙂

Thank you for watching my vid (& every folk who did!!!) glad you 'thoroughly enjoyed the video' 🙂 Glad I helped to answer about where the Motor is - tender or Loco Drive!!! (It's in the Loco!!!) Have fun with your new Loco 🙂🚂

[Simmo009]

As fast as I am aware, 3 pole motors tend to be parallel wound (is that a term?) I.e. the poles are in line with the shaft. The 5 poles are at an angle to the shaft, hence skew wound. So, if the winding wires are aligned with the shaft, it is likely a 3 pole motor. Or you could just count the number of poles. But with modern enclosed motors, the chances of being able to see either of these clues is very slim.

[ColinB]

Hornby tend to use 3 pole motors with a flywheel so that explains why it runs so smoothly. I cannot understand why they bother, we all know by now the price of a 5 pole motor from China, so given the price, why are they bothering to cut corners. They don't make enough to make much of a difference financially. The irony of it all, is if they standardised on one type of motor they could get the number of units up and find that they could get a 5 pole motor for the price of a 3 pole. I am not even sure that adding a flywheel to a 3 pole doesn't negate any savings on the motor. Most 3 pole motors perform ok, it is at the slow speed where you notice the difference.