Heljan Class 26 : Dundee Exhibition Purchase

At the Dundee Model Railway Exhibition on Saturday 19th October I spotted this Heljan Class 26 going for a good price.

[JanjyGiggins]

I found an Oxford Dean Goods today, second-hand but seemingly never used for £50 because it was a 'slow runner'. Couldn't resist that, and with what I've learned in these videos it was easy to service it and get it running absolutely fine (gummy old lubricant and a plunger connection that had slipped out of place). Wouldn't have known where to start with something like that a couple of years ago and now this is the second dodgy-but-not-really loco I've revived this year. So thanks!

[andrewrice]

That's a lovely looking loco Bill.

[stephendavies]

It's very satisfying to acquire a loco or piece of rolling stock that represents an actual item that ran in an area which is close to your heart.

[astolatpere]

Trains running on your layout have such a soothing sound, like real trains. Thanks for sharing!

[donniblanco]

Some Great Swag there Bill, V nice indeed - The Layout is Looking Fab mate, Could Almost be Mistaken for the “Real Thing” at a Distance - It’s been a Pleasure watching it all come together 👍🏻

[iandouglas]

looks a lovely loco - love the realistic 'clack-clack' rail sound as the trains go along.

[mikeking]

having a loco that ran or even just visited your area, are always a must in model form! That's why I have a Hornby HUsh Hush!
Nice to see that your layout has come along nicely!

[piers]

A very smart purchase. I'm glad you got a really good and apt purchase for your Scottish layout. Model railways can give us a great deal of pleasure sometimes when things go well

[mickeybarrass]

Looks very nice that 26 Bill, will fit on perfect on your layout. Might be worthwhile keeping an eye out for a Class 27s too, thet were also native to Scotland too. They were both nicknamed McRats. 24s, 25. 26 and 27s were all made by BRWC. The 24s and 25s were nicknamed Rats, the 26s and 27s were all based in Scotland, so were christened McRats. Bit of useless info for you.

[JerseyBill-xr]

Excellent buy with the Heljan Class 26, the farm shop building, The figures, and points for a pound. I'm looking forward to the work you will be doing on the layout and the two steam locomotives in for repair. Great running session and video, Jersey Bill

[forrestrobin]

Nothing needs doing to the 26 (secretly maybe you wished there was 😂). 350ma would seem ok to me, but then at the moment I’m only using Hornby Dublo stuff on 3-rail. The best of them draw that. I just converted a Lima Western to 3-rail and it draws around 250-300ma
I have fond memories of 26’s and the 27’s from my first trip to Scotland with a BR "freedom of Scotland" pass as a student back in 1983. Fantastic country, I didn’t get back until my 2019 road trip in my VW T4 camper. I love the place and the people. Looking forward to retirement when I’ll have the time to get back up there.

[alantraish]

Hi Bill nice 26. I have one in br green never let me down. Im just anout to fit the dreaded pick ups (after soldering wires on) on my hornby black 5 super detail. The whole thing been in bits. Motion jamming etc. Wish me luck!

[zodiac]

Now that is a very nice loco, great buy.

[darrenhillman]

Hi Bill!

You could do with some Sealion or Seacow ballast hoppers and a Shark brake van / ballast plough for it to pull when its not on passenger work!

Nice model. Always give you a nice warm feeling when you can grab a bargain!

Best wishes from Wirral.

[daviemaclean]

Nice find and in great condition. I have a couple of Lima Class 26s, D5300 and D5301 Eastfield, which run well. I think the cab pillars are a bit thick compared to your example, but I can live with that. .Probably a good bit older than your example too! Cheers

[martinarthur]

Got some bargains on the Sunday too. Well worth the run up to the show

[partickhillstation]

Very nice Bill. Might have told you I have a rake of West Highland Coaches which had been converted from Mk1 Lima coaches.
Will post a video about them

[propulsar]

Let's not allow the fact that it's working perfectly to stand the way of pulling the top off and looking inside.

[Planestrains-de]

I have one of the Heljan 26s, in Railfreight coal subsector livery, and it’s a lovely runner. It looks the part with a take of a dozen HAAs behind it. Like you, though, I struggle to see the lighting unless it’s running at full tilt which it’s never going to do with an MGR train behind it!

[russellbenton]

Yeah that 26 is very nice . I have a blue one . Heljan are bringing out a new model of it imminently and I quite fancy a Railfreight red stripe one but I think the price is £212/£177 discounted do we will see ! I think in reality the lights on the real thing were not that bright, mine are certainly not that visible .