Lima's Fowler 4 Freight 'O Gauge' Review

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

What does everyone think? Would you go out and buy the LIMA 4F after watching this video?

[@hartleymartin]

If I can get it cheap, I will buy one. There are old articles from the 1970s and 1980s where this was the basis of a 2P conversion, an 0-6-4 tank engine and one was given a bunker and side tanks to look like Thomas! I have a battered one somewhere in storage. It hasn't been out since I first bought an Ixion Hudswell Clarke in 2012.

[@Curly472001]

Hi Tom, Been doing O gauge for 50 years . The Lima 4F came out in the 70's and you could buy them for £8 new. The coaches you could pick up for £3 each which is why I have 30 odd. A lot of O gaugers thought they were getting something that would pull fifteen metal coaches up a one in thirty gradient but as your excellent video has pointed out they arent like that at all. What you did get was six driving wheels and six tender wheels. You should have tried getting wheels in the 70's. A lot of them were fitted with the boiler skirt being filled in and new fittings which improved things a lot. All sorts of different locos could be build from them using the standard 5' 3'' wheel and the 8 ft/ 8ft 6 midland railway wheelbase. If you made suitable rods the chassis could be cut into sections and used to make something else. I modified one of mine to be a GWR 54xx pannier. I ve seen them done as a SR Q and Q1 . The latter done with plastic overlays glued to the wheels. I have even seen them done as 1860's Lancashire and Yorkshire locos. The variations were endless. The tender wheels were very good . You spin a pair between your fingers and see how true they are. I ve used them under fine scale models. The wheel profile is good with LIMA items and they never derail. They will quieten down with a lot of running and I have seen on running round a test track all day with six or seven coaches. My 54xx could be left running in the garden all day. The chassis gave up eventually not due to the LIMA components but failure of the glue. They were a good product at the time which is why I have large box of LIMA Spares including six chassis blocks. rgds

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Hello Graham! Thank you so much for your comment, really enjoyed reading your experience with Lima. Since this video the model has been given the upgrade motor by Strathpeffer Junction and I will be releasing another video about it soon. Even with the upgrade although the running quality has improved, its haulage capacity has remained the same. It still struggles to start and pull trains on a curve and I have also bought two Darstaed Suburban Coaches and have tried them out on the same loop as seen in the video. The 4F could not pull them around the same bend, yet my 3F Jinty from Dapol managed it with no problems. Every now and then I look on Ebay and there is at least one model that was built using the 4F, sometimes I see a tank engine, most recently I saw a couple of the battery powered variety that were turned into Thomas characters. I often wonder what percentage of the 4Fs were kit bashed and how many weren't. I guess a lot of them would have been modified back then due to the lack of models and kits available.

[@jacob2954]

oh I absolutely LOVE this style of review, much better than the ones that drag over half an hour by miles! looking forward to seeing more!

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Wow thank you so much! In that case I can only hope I can make the next ones just as good! :D

[@davidsheriff8989]

Started as a child with O guage, then OO later, this really brings back memories and your video style is great...looking fwd to seeing more...

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Thank you so much David, your kind words really mean a lot! I have been a bit quiet lately on this channel but I hope to have some more videos finished soon! Funnily enough I first started modelling in 00 before eventually moving to O gauge! Funny how the scales are reversed😆

[@karltriebel4262]

Very useful video, I’ve just bought one of these and intend to use the upgrade kit.

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Thank you! Highly recommend the upgrade, I have installed the new motor into the same 4F and although it hasn't improved haulage capacity it can run in slow speeds which is what the Ringfield motor failed to do. I have already filmed the upgrade episode and will begin editing shortly. :)

[@musoseven8218]

Very professional and entertaining video. I'm fettling a pair of these with new chassis, motors, gears, wheels and fretted out wheels, new fully round boiler (from sink waste water type plastic tube)they make an acceptable, nice layout model, not as nice as the Connoisseur kit, but pretty good. Even the Lima mechanism can be made to work well with a light service too. They're of their time and have started many off in the hobby and have been fettled into various loco types by ingenious modellers, some good, some bad and some indifferent. I'm surprised that Hornby hasn't entered the RTR O gauge market, but the best time for that was probably in the company's wilderness years and now Dapol and Heljan have stolen a lead. But there are several locos and items of rolling stock that would be good sellers that neither Dapol nor Heljan manufacture at the time of writing (October 2021) and if Hornby's build quality was good - plus the design and execution up to current standards or better - then they could do well.

[@TankEngine97]

Nice start to this series.

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Thank you! Really appreciate it :D

[@penninefilms4714]

Really enjoyed this review, you've got a really good style. Nice to see reviews that get to the point. :)

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Thank you so much for saying that! And what a relief, thought It might have gone on too long, really glad you enjoyed it :)

[@MattyCtrains]

Greetings from the states!! Nice video quality you have in your reviews! I model in this scale aswell but I use 3rail

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Hello MattyC! Thanks so much for your comment, have watched a couple of your videos too! Really enjoyed the Custom Walt Disney one, especially the Star Wars car :D

[@MattyCtrains]

@@tomsmodellingcorner thank you very much! I have a review of an engine more femilure to you, I have a model of LMS 6233 dutchess of southland! :)

[@Shipwright1918]

Personally would like to have one to try out on my Lionel O27 layout. Probably would swap out the motor with a modern one and put batteries and a speed controller in the tender.

[@Curly472001]

Hello Tom, Following on from your video I have just ordered two replacement motors as a trial. Have you tried putting some additional weight?. They come with a steel weight in the frames but you really need a little more. Try holding the engine when you have added some lead and if the wheels wont go round under power then its too heavy. The jerkiness might be down to pick ups. Hold a wire on one of the motor brush holders and touch the other wire on the wheels. Only the leading and middle wheels have pick ups. If the motor doesnt go then you have a faulty pick up. Must confess that I have not tried to see how much they will pull. The 54xx pannier was restricted to one auto coach. I have a scratchbuilt Cravens DMU which was fitted with a Lima power bogie ( ex class 33) and that too has covered many many miles. I would have thought that a 4F should pull at least 3 Lima coaches and ten to twenty trucks. Very often on my garden railway (try 0 Gauge Garden Railway on You tube) short trains are quite effective and a lot less stock to have to get out....! All the best rgds Graham Powell

[@karltriebel4262]

0:48 Chris Eden-Green??

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

It is indeed :D

[@SteamSupreme5035]

The old motor makes a chuffing noise when it goes around😊

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

I thought that too funnily enough, more so when she was pulling the goods train! :)

[@hartleymartin]

I am almost surprised that Dapol or Heljan have not done a modern RTR Finescale 4F.

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Same here, it would be a splendid model and I would definitly be up for reviewing it

[@PeckhamHall]

The tooling for that model is probably in several door shell of a fiat uno. 😂 I liked the video 👍

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

That's hilarious! It could be, or maybe someone from Hornby is using it as a doorstop 🤣Thank you so much I really appreciate it!

[@AUDIABiQUATTRO]

Yuor 4f is missing the lead weight

[@Guitar6ty]

Give it a good blast with WD40

[@AUDIABiQUATTRO]

Mine runs alot better i used WD40 it Works amazing on this Lima motor

[@tomsmodellingcorner]

Really glad WD40 worked for your Lima Motor, I did give the 4F a couple of sprays before the filming of this episode and it didn't really work that well, I have since gone for the upgrade and the 4F runs so much better :)