Hornby's 70th Westwood Anniversary | Ruined "Connie" Tank Engine Restoration

[@blinard1]

Really good series. No time limit. No gimmicks. Cheap loco, restored. Simple. More of this please

[@SueBobChicVid]

I like this format better than Salvage or Scrap. That series is different, but I never liked the rush. I understand that was part of the point of the series, but it just made me uneasy.

[@stuvix]

Agreed, much prefer the relaxed pace!

[@jeannedarcalterberserker8620]

Blimey, I didn't expect Sam saying crap today 🤣🤣 But seriously, this looks spectacular. Something I'd like to own. Fun fact the first locomotive I have repaired myself in 2019 from the dead was this very locomotive, Connie in blue, but mine had red wheels. I was gifted it for free from a model shop he said it's going into the bin if no-one takes her. I couldn't let that happen. I stripped her down and watching several of your videos, I got her back running and she's my pride and joy now. The first of a long line of locos I serviced and repaired myself. What a lovely piece of kit. I added some crushed coal to mine to elevate it from the other small engines I have. Hornby's cashgrab is quite terrible with these. I mean, the Dowlais Class D in the Midland and Great Northern orange used to be 50£ RRP, until I found one for 19.99£ at Rails (second hand) the other day. Just shows how unreasonable the value is. I'd pay 60£ for all three combined, but not 40-50£ for one. What a great video, Sam. While Salvage and Scrap may be over, this restoration is quite helpful if you show the process up close. Please do more of these.

[@SamsTrains]

haha it was necessary - Hornby are so frustrating sometimes! Ahh fantastic - and very interesting about the red wheels - was it a previous owner done that? So so glad that project worked out for you - well done indeed!! There's nothing more fun that putting broken models back into service :D Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@jeannedarcalterberserker8620]

@@SamsTrains Yeah I think what happened is the previous owner has swapped the chassis quite possibly. Because there are brass enhancements too. Someone must have loved that model and somehow it ended up in Switzerland in a model shop 10 minutes from me. That's part of the enjoyable experience for me. I have saved that locomotive from disposal which made me very happy when it jumped back into life. Only once I failed a repair because the insulator on the wheels broke on a Tri-ang Scotsman one day. Not gonna lie, I'd pay 50£ for this beautiful piece of work or even more. She looks wonderful with the blue lined wheels. Even better than the original, I think. What a great video to start my one week holiday. Thanks Sam. I've been watching since the Heljan Tango video and you inspired me a lot to service and repair old models which ended up in the siding, forgotten and broken.

[@robertsparks3685]

I really enjoyed this video. I love seeing these older loco coming back to life. I hope that you do more of them. Thanks.

[@Studio23Media]

I like this format so much better than Salvage or Scrap! I enjoy watching you just take your time fixing the loco.

[@historyotaku]

Always nice to see an old loco get restored. As you say it's not perfect and I do think that she needed a new base coat of purple to hide the scratches and damage to the body she's received over the years but I must say she's looking a lot better than she did before and I do love the additional touches, they make her stand out and just that bit more special. For a tip though for doing the lining on the wheels in future(here in the States we call them Whitewalls)I highly recommend using a paint pen, it requires a fairly steady hand but the results will come out much nicer.

[@bavarianbanshee]

He is good at masking, so if he masked it off, he wouldn't even need a super steady hand.

[@Taggart00]

I saw someone selling 3D printed interiors for these and the dock shunters.

[@lukejackson8741]

That’s interesting, I’ve always wondered why more companies/3D printers don’t do ‘detail’ packs for these older/simpler models

[@Pedro-lf4gr]

I have one of the 3D printed ones in my Dock Shunter , it certainly makes the model cab interior a lot more detailed .

[@cbrooks122000]

@@Pedro-lf4gr Where did you get it from? That could be so useful.

[@PeterJewell2]

@@cbrooks122000 -- It's an ebay seller: Secret Anorak Resin Models. Their dock shunter cab interior looks really good, and I've bought a couple. The Polly/Nellie interior does the job, but the back of the firebox is rounded, which looks wrong. It looks more like the side of a vertical boiler than the conventional round-topped arch of a small locomotive firebox. However, it dos provide an interior for the cab. Same company makes replacement chimneys and footsteps for these locos.

[@supersandman86]

Is anyone ever hoping James May see's these videos and want to make a cameo one day? In honesty he loves to restore old model trains too.

[@Ryu-san9]

This is my favorite video you've done in a bit. I love seeing step by step a loco going from ebay garbage to something to be proud of. I know it takes a long time but i hope you can do more of these! "Sams' Restorations"

I don't usually comment on this but as soon as you pulled out the sharpies my gut reaction was 'Oh no Sam please no!'. Speaking as an artist, you need proper paint pens like Posca markers, there are even fine tip and brush tip versions on those types of pens these days, It would really help with the detail work, they have the opacity you are looking for; most sharpies give a translucent effect, metallic ones usually being the exception. Hope this help for future projects! I find modelling and restoration content so fascinating and satisfying to watch, I would not be against more of this type of content from you, you did great with this one and the 'Salvage or Scrap?' series' but the no time limits and being able to see a project through fully definitely works better. Nice work either way Sam! ☺

[@OlivierGabin]

Agreed on Posca pen. I bought some for my works, they give a superb result easily.

[@davidstrains4910]

From the looks of the thumbnail it looks like a good overall restoration, haven’t got any of these triang 0-4-0 locos myself.

[@SamsTrains]

Thanks David - they are delightful old models - really enjoyed working on this one! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@aidanrossiter3295]

Great video. I remember these 0-4-0s from my childhood. I may be being a pedant here but, the blue one was named "Nellie", the red one, "Polly" (my first loco) and, the yellow version (rarest) was "Connie". Good to see it revived. Thanks, Sam

[@Madonsteamrailways]

The livery has come out very well, by the look of it!! And the rest of it seems to have turned out better than I expected!!

[@peters1127]

Excellent, please continue with this type of restorations.

[@OlivierGabin]

Superb work ! Taken individually, your techniques are not far above what an average modeller can do, but your giant plus is your idea to use the right one to get the best result possible. That's know-how cranked to 11 gentleman, hats off for you ! And the result is a nice little jewel after a thorough rebuild, love it ! You have talent for such things, I hope we'll get more in the future.

[@PaulinesPastimes]

I agree about the new Hornby versions, they just look wrong. Your version looks really good and just goes to show what can be done. The Johnson can motor won't fit into the body shell without grinding some of the inside of the body shell to make clearance. I have been re-motoring one with the can motor and also changing the gearing to the later worm and drive gear, which helps a lot. Tri-ang-Hornby did release versions of this body shell with the can motor but I can only think that they altered the tooling to make it fit. I love the coreless motor mount and gear adapter, you should market them. Excellent video. 😊👍

[@NWRJ_WStudios]

Interesting video Sam, you did a great job on restoring this. Cheers Jasper & Willow

[@SamsTrains]

Thank you so much! :D

[@Madonsteamrailways]

Well, Sam, by the time you’ve finished, Connie will look 100% better than she does at the moment. You’re doing a fantastic job of doing the old girl up!!

[@shedhead00]

Hornby have a cheek this is a triang locomotive. Lovely paint job sam.

[@ianjeffery6744]

The original blue 040T was NELLIE - but otherwise, a nice job! These were attractive little engines (the originals, I mean), based, I think, on the old LSWR C14 class.

[@SamsTrains]

True, but Nellie was No.7, this is No. 6, Connie, which was produced in the blue as well as the yellow! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@ianjeffery6744]

@@SamsTrains OK - I stand corrected! When Ah wor a lad, CONNIE was indeed yellow, and POLLY was red...

[@andrewhead6267]

These Triang origin models are fantastic value for money. You can even create a runner wagon with pick ups to improve running over points.

[@stuart48br]

Really enjoyable - very interesting to see the use of 3-D printing for the spraying masks. Worth watching.

[@kclassproductions]

You've done a great job with the nameplates and the overall decoration Sam! I love these sorts of videos; they are very entertaining.

[@Tonystrains233]

I like to see restoration projects like this no rushing no time limit just someone fixing trains I certainly love seeing vintage trains given some love especially as a postwar Lionel guy

[@datfloof2732]

Gotta love a fun lil restoration video.. im hoping to see more in the future :3

[@thatairplaneguy]

It was fun watching you rush to beat the scrap man but it’s also relaxing to watch you “restore” a model more than just adequately.

[@TS1402Ed]

I recently found a new version of "connie", hornby made her very bright yellow and into a basic trainset 0-4-0T like that smaller E2 that hornby uses for everything. But this was very nice to watch as it really shows how the model use to look, well besides the coloured wheels. Anyways great work!

[@nigelcole1936]

Great video Sam, more of these please

[@theflyingshunter]

I don't understand how companies like Hornby are failing at the simplest details And you got Sam over here making only loco's look brand new At this point you could tell me Sam is a professional manufacturer, and I would believe you

[@MaxwellTheTrainFan]

Hello Sam . First off great restoration . And second off I hope to see more amazing videos from you in the near future .

[@scorpnz4433]

A workshop/toolbox tour never goes amiss.

[@blocked4239]

Great Video Sam! Prefer this format to the salvage and scrap series, keep up the good work.

[@tabletop_railway]

Great project, really enjoyed this one.

[@TheSaint491]

Like that burnished effect on the handrails, always adds a touch of class

[@djdaz72]

I’d recommend taking precautions using Beryllium Sam, I used to use it years ago in electronics. Had to wear PPE gloves etc.

[@MrSlartybartfast42]

You might just have given me the nudge I needed to finish my resto of a "Polly" 0-4-0. Unlike your Connie I was able to remove virtually all of the black paint from the body. I had to make a replacement set of left rear steps. For this I used a short piece of coffee stirrer which I superglued to a scrap of thin card. The card meant I could more securely glue the part to the body. I then filled the part down to the right shape using the opposite steps as a guide. For the rungs I positioned a line of baking powder and carefully added a bit of superglue which I sanded down when it was set. I air brushed the body with Humbrol Satin 174 and that is where a stopped! The body looks great with the satin finish!

[@Madonsteamrailways]

At least it was originally a Tri-Ang Hornby model rather than the latest version. And looking at her, Connie looks brilliant!! Well done!! I love it!!

[@myles7522]

An excellent project Sam and very enjoyable to watch too. 👏👏👍

[@dallanschowe8525]

Love your restoration/repair videos.

[@chiefchook]

Best video this year, Sam. Anyone should be able to follow your clear details if restoring a Tri-ang 0.4.0 . From memory I think the blue body was 'Nellie' as that's my one remaining loco still in her original box and working fine. 'Connie' was yellow but others have probably already mentioned that. Hope you can treat some other vintage locos in the same manner.

[@anthonydavies6021]

Very good addition to the Sam's Trains stable! I was impressed by your not gagging when removing all that hair a bit like clearing the plughole of other people's shedding. I would maybe spend a bit more on some finer masking tape such as yellow Frogtape if it were me, it might avoid the need for touching up.

[@davidford85]

I love these little 0-4-0s, I've bought quite a few over the years, including several that are just the bodyshells for modification. One I've modified (well modifying, since it's not finished yet) by fitting a trimmed Dapol Terrier 0-6-0 chassis to it, and another one I bought already modified mounted on a Hornby 0-4-0 chassis with outside cylinders. Both are gorgeous locos. Such a shame that the original tooling has been lost.

[@billmmckelvie5188]

An excellent video showing how to do a good restoration of a classic staple loco. The silver lettering is more B.R. proto-typical, so I wouldn't be too concerned that it is not in yellow lettering and in my opinion stands out more! Finally congratulations on turning the hairbrush back into its traditional pocket rocket status! It would be great to aee you chipping and fitting speakers to an old loco!

[@vivienneclaire3225]

I had one of these when I was a child. I think mine was called Nellie but it was the exact same colour scheme. Your video took me back to happier times. Thank You.

[@johnrugman52]

Yes me too. You are correct in saying that the bue one was Nellie

[@deephillips7864]

Polly and Co come out really good in LSWR, LSBCR liveries!! A really lovely model!!

[@jamesbyersmusic]

Fantastic job, well done!! Do update us at some point after the running in and any tweaks!! 🚂

[@andrewfrancis3591]

Nice job. Have you seen those £15 usb charged rotary tools. About a quarter of the size of a Dremel. Also not quite as torquey. I've had mine for 5 months, and have noticed a significant reduction in crawling round on the hands and knees.

[@johnmboon]

Champion show, well done.

[@jameshatfield1194]

great video Sam more of the same please my cup of tea went cold because i was enthralled watching

[@billybobbassman]

What a lovely job Sam. I am always happy to see a once loved/abused toy given a new lease of life so it can live it's best life all over again for others to enjoy (a little like our heritage railways) 👏👏👏🚂👍

[@2009theknight]

I think you did a fantastic job of restoring the locomotive, hats off to you👍🏻😃

[@TrentonLightninghammer]

Nice work Sam! Seeing as youre a design wiz, I recommend upgrading your coreless motor mount to incorporate one extra larger gear between the worm gear and the axel gear. This would greatly Increase that torque and slow speed running. You could then apply that to all of your old 0-4-0's and give them a new lease on life!

[@rodericfindlay4147]

A fine piece of engineering. Well done, Sam

[@LKBRICKS1993]

Excellent really enjoyed the restoration taking a old Loco and restoring it.

[@shortlinestudios]

Awesome video Sam! I always love watching your restoration videos, they end up being so satisfying in the end and they are great to listen to in the background when working on things!

[@metrotechguru5863]

A really nice job, Sam. I really like your restoration jobs. Very entertaining to watch an following your decision making with what to do and what not to do. Good on you mate.

[@darreno9874]

I enjoyed Salvage or Scrap and would love to see it return one day, but this was great a more in depth restoration. Nice one Sam God bless you both

[@corjansen1958]

Well done video about this restoration, I like these kinda projects to watch and learn from.

[@dukey306]

Really enjoyed this. I take that you have found out by now that Connie was actually yellow!! The blue one is Nellie - still got mine from the sixties upstairs!!

[@SamsTrains]

Nope - this is a blue Connie! Lots of people correcting me, but they’re wrong 😂

[@dukey306]

@@SamsTrains - in which case I apologise wholeheartedly. Every day is a chance to learn something!! BTW - I thought the way you achieved the lining was brilliant.

[@johnrugman52]

A very good job done, much patience must have been needed

[@juliannaudimanche1094]

One thing I always wanted to see you do is some good ol' kit bashing! Something like making a LNER P1? I think that would be lovely.

[@SamsTrains]

That would be fantastic! Though personally I much prefer scratch builds - I love the reward of creating something from nothing! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@lapiswake6583]

I love this. Tempted to do something similar myself, as my first experience with a Triang Nellie was about a year ago, and I kinda want my own.

[@CaNNoN1981]

Hi Sam As much as I used to enjoy the scrap man videos, I must admit I do prefer the restoration videos were you're able to take your time and really apply some thought and care into the project without the added pressure of a time limit, top stuff and keep up the good work. Russ

[@ryanf6427]

Great to see these old gals get some love. I restored my old BR black one as a ficticious NER 0-4-0 shunter. I gave it the full works with a modern replacement motor for the X04 motor and used it as a test bed for learning to upgrade an old loco to DCC functionality. It's a tight fit with the HM7000 sound decoder, speaker, stay alive and extra weight, but it eventually all squeezed in and now it runs around the track as my most "fully functional" loco, even more so than my latest releases (as i dont buy them already sound-fitted due to the price). Last thing i have to do is shave off a small amount of the wheel rims as, being so old, they're deeper than modern ones and can derail the loco over my modern points.

[@fastline_productions]

excellent work here as always sam, keep up the good work :)

[@KortechUK]

A nice result. I always thought Nellie was the blue one though. I have the the original red one, "Polly". It was the second loco I was bought by my parents when I was a child in the early sixties. The first one was a B12 which I have put new wheels on, an Airfix 5 pole motor and weathered. Polly is still original.

[@davidhinks8384]

Hi Sam, you've done Connie proud and such a shame Hornby didn't take so much care with the heritage of the brand for the anniversary. You've inspired me to spend some time on my own model which I've had since 1974. Hopefully the XO4 motor can be brought back to life. Cheers!

[@CerberiRedWolf]

That's incredible, an amazing transformation. The only thing I wish we could've saw was a deconstruction of the old motor. Idk, I've always enjoyed seeing how they ticked and how far I could go in saving one, if at all. Either way, incredible job Sam.

[@brmh1667]

To me blue will always be "Nellie"! A lovely name on a lovely little engine. I loved my Nellie. Along with a "Jinty" they were both so useful.

[@stephenrussell-clark8329]

Fabulous video Sam, really enjoyed it, wish I had your workbench but I am definitely going to try out your ideas! I still have a blue Nellie which runs well and a plain black version which I believe came from an old train set.

[@normanhammond4243]

i still have mine that i had as a child, the blue was Nellie the red was Polly and the yellow was Connie. they still have their names on them. so its great to see one being restored many thanks

[@TenCJones]

That loco looks gorgeous Sam and you're right about it being more fun and way more cheaper than Hornby's "Con".

[@DavidScholz-bu1ix]

NICE RESTORATION JOB!

[@NextEevolution]

Spent the better part of yesterday morning restoring the mechanism of a Tri-Ang GWR Hall. I got it missing its tender, cylinder blocks, some paint and name stickers but it's a lively runner! It went well with a Tri-Ang GWR tender with the chuffing sound I had laying around. Glad to see old models get a new lease on life

[@warlockgaming3651]

Enjoyed the video mate! Would be good to see you do full restorations if possible? You’re more than capable clearly. This one turned out great. The perfectionist in me wishes you repainted the blue though haha. Hopefully there’s more of these in the future

[@mandrillfoden]

Absolutely lovely work youth.

[@patricksmodels]

I really enjoy these vintage loco restoration videos. Next time you have to paint a nameplate in brass l advise Vallejo gold paint applied with an old fashioned nib pen. I use a nib pen and paint for all sorts of small details" windscreen wipers, boiler bands, engine numbers in relief, moulded ropes or handrails.

[@ALouisae]

wonderful! salvage or scrap was a good series? but i always wondered how’d you do if you had infinite time. you did wonderful! i hope you go back and fully repair the salvage or scrap engines to your fullest ability

[@ciaranburke3243]

Great idea same would like to see more of this ,nice result 👍

[@lesliesavage9229]

Very good job. Something to be proud of.

[@alexfitz9917]

You will be helping me restore my Polly so thank you for the video Sam

[@birtle123]

Great job Sam, well done.

[@jamesdunloptrains]

I really do love these types of videos Sam the locomotive looked beautiful

[@SerialDesignationNPlaysRoblox]

Hey Sam, I have a video suggestion, can you make a video showcasing all of your 3D printed rolling stock to go with the 3D printed loco showcase video you made a year ago? Thanks I’m a big fan!😀😇😍

[@andrewsgarage796]

Awesome Mate Best regards Andrew from downunder

[@jancraft3539]

Next time, use an acrylic marker for the nameplate

[@andrewduke1489]

Superb. Love the buffers

[@paulputnam2305]

Absolutely awesome job! Good on you Sam. “Free as a Bird” …Freebird, Led Zeppelin, sounds good by me…

[@CuriousMath350]

Splendid work !

[@railway187]

This is a great format, I adore it. I would be nice if you would add links for the materials used, such as the wire for the pickups for instance. Thanks 🙏

[@bruceknights8330]

My first loco was Connie. Your restoration is excellent although the white wheels and brass are not as mine was. Nice to see it

[@johnblair8146]

NEWS AND TRUTH FROM SAM'S TRAINS!!!!!

[@PhilPage227]

Verey interesting Sam. I have the exact same loco that I bought 40 odd years ago as a project. May give it a go now. Thanks.

[@king_of_suddery]

Hi Sam! This is my first time commenting in a few years and I wanted to give a recommendation for picking out details with markers. The reason the yellow didn't show up was because it's ink, (think about trying to use a yellow marker on a red price of paper, it doesn't really work because they're both primary colors) But I want to recommend posco paint markers! They're just like painting, but it's.. yknow.. a marker. It's very convenient especially for situations like yours where painting with a brush would be or redundant or using an airbrush would be unethical. I highly recommend them, they're a godsend. Amazing video sam! As always ❤ 🚂

[@lindaoffenbach]

Fun project Sam, and restoration vids like this in your particular style are very inspiring. You've become a proficient modeller on top over the years, perhaps thanks to your 3D printing and loco creation ventures. This is a well good format actually, doing right to a salvage without all the hurry. Cheerio.

[@andy2950]

Great effort! More please. 😊

[@philliprhodes2299]

So here’s an idea… Take the chassis of the latest Hornby generic steam 0-4-0 locomotive and create a new body in SketchUp. This new body would allow for the latest in slide moulding technology, and be more prototypical of something that actually exists. Then you can either print and paint them yourself, or offer it to Hornby or a third party like Rails of Sheffield. Another idea is to crest a model of Ivor the Engine, though for copyright issues you wouldn’t be able you sell it! Just a few ideas!

[@bassjammer0344]

Hey Sam, awesome job on the restoration! A little trick for painting nameplates and such, I like to use a piece of wood which I can apply some paint onto. Then I press it on the lettering and the paint only sticks to the letters. Sort of like a stamp. It's a bit tricky to get right but worked beatifully on my Märklin locomotives. Maybe this will help. Cheers and have a great day!

[@altair8598]

Sam, I was intrigued by this as I used to have a started set hauled by 'Nellie'. Yes, Nellie was the blue one, Connie the yellow and Polly the red.

[@tooleyheadbang4239]

This was my impression, too. Mine was blue, and was called Nellie. My cousin Graham had Connie, but she was certainly yellow. What made you think this one had originally been Connie?

[@Jay1330]

What an impressive restoration! Could be interesting to see an old Tri-ang or Hornby loco get the full new motor, DCC and sound treatment.