Thomas Mini Me - Smallest HO Powered Thomas

We all want our Thomas & Friends trains to be powered HO / OO runners, this video details a method of making it so via the amazing and very tiny Bachmann Gandy Dancer.
Gandy Dancer's were purchased here, www.hobbylandau...
It's my local Hobby Store and a great place to grab advice on any hobby. I have been going there for many years. Please support your local hobby shops.
Thomas and Friends, "Томас и его друзья" "Thomas y sus amigos" "Thomas und seine Freunde" "きかんしゃトーマス" "토마스와 친구들" "Thomas et ses amis" "thomas dan teman-teman" "थॉमस और दोस्तों" "Thomas ei suoi amici" "โทมัสและเพื่อน ๆ" "thomas e seus amigos" "Thomas och vänner" "托马斯和朋友" "Thomas og Friends" "Thomas ve Arkadaşları" "توماس والأصدقاء" "Thomas và các bạn"
Thomas the Train, "Thomas el tren" "Thomas le train" "トーマス電車" "토마스 기차" "Томас поезд"" Thomas o trem" "Thomas kereta" "Thomas der Zug" "Thomas ang tren" "Thomas vlak" "托马斯火车" "توماس القطار" "Thomas a vonat" "Thomas tàu"
Web Links:
estore.bachmann...
www.hornby.com/
www.hornby.com/...
www.pez.com/store/
www.pez.com/pro...
thomasandfriend...
ttte.wikia.com/...

[@leokimvideo]

so much for mash up's being fine on the tube, those videos of James Farr would have sold more toys for HIT than the stuff they produce, it was a real eye opener to see a totally different bend on a tired old franchise

[@leokimvideo]

@726berkshire thats a excellent question indeed, my gut feeling is many of the ERTL's are too narrow for the gandy dancer, sure it could fit inside some models like Toby or Diesel it would be possibly the ultimate little model to pull off, but as we all know ERTL's are few and far between and you see them at train fairs with $25 price tags attached. i did the Pez purely as a extreme challenge, the take - alongs are a nice size and weight for the gandy dancer

[@SMTMainline]

I remember watching this video over and over as a kid, ah memories...

[@ApleIP]

Same

[@Lord_Billy]

bro how do i find my fav yt in a comment section

[@cec_oregon]

Hi smt! I love you videos!

[@SMTMainline]

@@cec_oregon Thanks

[@nukemanthe501ststormtroope5]

The mad scientist: let's see how useful you really are Tiny Thomas. Thomas: DON'T CALL ME TINY THOMAS!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@leokimvideo]

@simierski i think having a hornby fail Thomas will be a very interesting item to detail, and amazing how the lack of some simple traction tyres can leave the model a wheel spinning fail the book which details the feature of the model certainly speak of traction tyres, the other item Hornby need to install is a reset button on the controller, it's part of their jargon busting detail on their web site but not on their gear

[@therandomgamingboy7384]

leokimvideo noice

[@leokimvideo]

@TheShnizNite yes thats a very good thought, the only problem is the ERTL Thomas is not easily available these days, in fact it's becoming more difficult to find than hens teeth. It may also be too slender to pull this conversion off, I really need to have a closer look on this

[@leokimvideo]

@capmodesty yes it seems Hornby have dumped traction tyres, it leaves this very light model basically useless for pulling any sort of long train. the book which details the feature of the model speaks of traction tyres but all I have is steel slipping wheels

[@leokimvideo]

@Trainmaster189 the Chugger train which would be a very impressive model would be the wooden ones, they are the right size for HO / OO work. It may be far better buying a spud motor for this but thats going to me a expensive project, i like to keep below $50 on this custom mod stuff as it's more about having a bit of fun and making something you don't normally see.

[@saucyswipe]

Hi

[@leokimvideo]

@TheMrbigtires in that case it will finish next week! I would like to think this contest will be open for some time, and the mystery prize just gets bigger and bigger as time goes on The big call I always get is we want really good prizes, not short contests This contest will give all of us a opportunity to see everyones Thomas collection in a ay like no other, already there are some amazing entries, stuff which I have never seen before

[@leokimvideo]

@simierski this video carries with it Austin Powers mojo, apart from the Pez Thomas mojo which I know is a powerful beast. I loved the Pez Thomas from day one. The contest will have.. 1st, Bachmann Gordon and coach and the Pez Thomas HO / Tomy Playrail train 2nd Bachmann Edward and 2 Troublsome Trucks plus Pez Thomas HO 3rd Pez Thomas HO The Bachmann Gordon looks stunning I have to admit, contest video still being produced.

[@leokimvideo]

@Lumpyrox1412 i found the gandy dancer by chance while looking for something else at my local hobby store, as soon as I saw it I thought it may be useful to power other items in a novelty style

[@KeizerJirachi]

All Engines Go before All Engines Go. It was nice revisiting this after so long.

[@harrytodhunter5078]

“Hold me closer, Gandy Dancer. Count the sleepers on the Railway!”

[@leokimvideo]

@TheUnluckyTug02 My Hornby Thomas is a MASSIVE epic fail, and that video will surely make you think very carefully when you purchase your HO / OO Thomas trains But the big question is how can my brand new 2009 Thomas in a 2010 set be so different to simierski's 2008 Thomas, it's something which will surely amaze you.

[@leokimvideo]

@OrigamiAirEnforcer I have purchased 4 wooden railway sets, 2 are Thomas, 1 is Thomas and one Aldi Now here are some strange facts, One of the Thomas sets is around $200 for 35 pieces, the Chugger is $150 for about the same number of pieces and the Aldi one was $49 for 100 pieces All the tracks interconnect so this video will be a eye opener for many, and surely we will all be asking why the Thomas sets are so expensive..! Maybe they have quality the other lack.

[@leokimvideo]

@SilverZEntertainemnt yes I saw that on the news, they happen here but luckily rarely ever take out populated areas, far too much wide open space here and most people cling to the coast

[@sarahhockey02]

Came back to this video after finding a Pez Thomas after 3-6 years of searching

[@Boojackp]

I already have a pez Thomas

[@Emilystar1095]

@@Boojackp same i had percy thomas toby edward gordon but through the years of getting older i lost them

[@Boojackp]

@@Emilystar1095 I only have the Thomas and the Percy

[@leokimvideo]

@MasterOfTheLemons believe me it's a very tight squeeze, it's a mod which is quite difficult to pull off but I feel it;s worth it just because I feel the Pez Thomas is so cute and fun. I liked the Pez Thomas from day one, and it's dirt cheap which is even better. I still see boxes of them in toy stored here and just bought another box.

[@leokimvideo]

@TheNw1218 going from what we have all witnesses with Chuggers I'm pretty sure if they did some HO models they would be as good as the Bachamnn version of Thomas. Chuggers have been very careful to keep their characters in toy form very close to the TV series.

[@nleeder]

Great dedication to getting it JUST right and superb macro-focus videomaking Leo! You have a fascinating layout and, clearly, you derive a lot of satisfaction from your chosen labour. Your viewers are fortunate people indeed!! G'donya!!

[@leokimvideo]

@avaitionnerd111 i only have the train, it was my fav when I was a kid. What's weird here in Australia you still see a very similar train get around called the XPT. one notable difference with my Hornby from my childhood is the fact it's all marked made in England, you don't see that anymore

[@MatTheSoundless]

I've been really thinking about this video in specific recently, and it really makes me want to try making my own PEZ engines as well, these really do look nice! I'm also quite curious about how this installation would fare on the PEZ versions of Edward, Henry, and Gordon as well-

[@Number1biztos]

Unless you're doing a capsule plarail or Toby or N scale I don't recommend doing this with a PEZ. I recommend doing it with a Take-Along or something similar.

[@leokimvideo]

@thomasrosiefan1 you know what, so far there have been 6 different numbers put up as the number of mistakes, now I wonder what is going on and who is correct I feel there are some games going on and any one thinking they can pick a figure from the comments is being very brave indeed

[@leokimvideo]

good luck, it's a very tricky mod to do believe me

[@WORRO]

This video is pure awesome that deserves more than a THUMBS UP!~~John

[@Bero12300]

A very good way of powering the Tiny Thomas'. If I had all the components I would get started with those instructions now!

[@leokimvideo]

@TheNw1218 if I had simierski's Hornby Thomas maybe this video would not have had the issues which came from my very poor performing Hornby model it seems there are some major differences between what look like two identical models, it's a story best told b a special video outlining the differences

[@shortround551]

my hornby thomas (i got years ago) is now broken it moves but makes a pain full clicking sound so im glad i bought the bachmann. ive still got my pez thomas and i want to turn it into a memory stick but i need to find one first. wow i will try to enter the contest!

[@Britishrailwaystories]

Loved it, looking at the Hornby Thomas the lack of traction tyres is apparent. The Pez conversions are proper stunners, I'd love to get that sort of performance out of "Hiro" but he's far too heavy!

[@leokimvideo]

@TMRReturns my Hornby Thomas can't pull the 1500g as seen in simierski's review, in fact it fails to haul half that weight! My old made in England Hornby trains from the late 70's can pull big weights! I purchased the Hornby Thomas only on the thought it had great haulage performance as seen in simierski's review, my model would have issues breaking through a wet paper bag.

[@leokimvideo]

@sirgresley6007 pulling the Prancy Gande is real easy, the little men just fall off, the arm between them is easily pulled out and the arm which powers them from below is a open cresent and pulls out easily. Look carefully at the illustration of the pull apart Fancy Kancer and you will see there's not much to those little men at all.

[@MasterOfTheLemons]

I never imagined being able to do that with a Pez Thomas! Good thinking, leo!

[@birca04]

The Skit at the Beginning was SO Funny and clever, I shared it with my friend

[@birca04]

FANTASTIC VIDEO! So Informative and Fun to Watch!

[@bigalgames7963]

Watching old Leo videos makes me miss old Thomas merch.

[@JIPS1993]

hey just wanted to say i love the videos. im not a thomas collector (a lego collector however yes i am) but i still very much enjoy these videos none the less. keep up the amazing work my friend.

[@legobuilderdirector5727]

Cool! Nice custom!💯👍🏻😍

[@r2ausg372]

A lot of your videos like this one have inspired me to make my own

[@lateshathomas4644]

I love it and I love that picture of that is good to see it

[@Nerfherder219]

This is so cool. I bet one day I would do this.

[@Team86_Official]

I remember watching this when I was 4 and coming back to this nearly 10 years later I feel old

[@NickySteingraber]

Just you know revisting my CHILDHOOD YASSSSSS

[@ArseniiB]

I'm in childhood

[@agentwoomy5790]

Ok

[@Gooberly3]

Nicky Steingraber I’m still a child

[@graydoughnut3848]

Same

[@kayjocoth]

I’m a child duh

[@adondondindin]

God its good to be back feels like ive went back in time 8 years

[@vicblox25]

Cute small Thomas.

[@popgoesadryn]

Mad scientist: How you feeling Thomas? Thomas: I don't feel so good…

[@thebritishbuilder6251]

Rape!

[@diverseuniverseyt320]

I SEE WHAT YOU DID THERE

[@graydoughnut3848]

*Turns to dust*

[@maosaobraamandacanedo5452]

Jzjhwgushstdtydgsujqgqtqnskshsggsudgsgsgffgsgtqy

[@tomazperes8940]

Bru

[@zulfaisolroslan6770]

Thomas turned into an extremely small version of himself.😲😲😲😲

[@leokimvideo]

@TheNw1218 not sure if you know it's set up as part of a contest, sorry if you did not watch the whole video which explains this!

[@churroman183]

This video was very inspiring.

[@Cyber_Horse_Studios87]

Leo kinda invented an alternate form of Thomas N-Scale before Bachman ever did. XD (I know the Tomix versions exist and look a fair bit nicer, but it’s kind of in a class of its own when compared to the Bachman N-scale in my eyes.)

[@eddierools]

You mis-pronounced Gandy Dancer 8 times. But this is a BIG eye-opener, it's just like what Top Gear explained when they bought three of the same car and showed that none of them are the same in certain ways.

[@leokimvideo]

@psp880 maybe thats something the audience can work on, I am hopefully showing you a way to get your fav toys moving

[@Legozmindz]

Wow, u sure know ur tools! Man there r so many thomas trains nowadays!

[@leokimvideo]

@Stuingtion don't worry many of the counts are wrong...lol it's certainly a tricky treat lots of issues for many

[@SnowflakeTH]

Leo, the end of your video gave me disturbing flash backs I had with my own Hornby Duck, which if I recall, shares the same type of chassis with Thomas, abiet color. Don't worry about your winter rain though, it's pouring in the bayous too, mid summer, and with a hefty cool front I'll add. Great video too, I have some HO bogies laying around. Maybe I can give them some use.

[@leokimvideo]

@theonlyadsrulz ah, yes....about the traction tyres well I am still in shock, I would have been far better off buying the Bachmann Thomas. Here in Australia Bachmann and Hornby stock reside side by side. I am told the Bachmann Thomas sells far better than the Hornby one and that seems to be connected to the look of the engine. Interesting to know that the "look" of Thomas is so important in a model but not in a toy. It would be great to see ERTL's return and replace the Take - Alongs

[@cyb1283]

Ahh..... The good old days!

[@leokimvideo]

@Bero12300 i can see loads of other thomas tubers jumping onto this, maybe I have started a whole new trend here

[@OfficialAnimeCitizen]

BECAUSE OF YOU, I'M GOING BACK TO TOY MODEL DESIGNING. THANK YOU.

[@tropicalfishswim]

the views continue to climb, let's hope this can hit 1,000,000 by christmas

[@TheShnizNite]

@leokimvideo yeah, I just got back into collecting Thomas around September, and remembered how fun it was to collect the trains so many years ago. I didn't even know ERTL went out, but it is great to see the wooden railway is still going strong. Anyway, your videos are amazing, and this is one of my favorites, so that is why I asked the question. I wish you luck wherever your creativity leads you.

[@wandabentley963]

Whoa your a thomas fan?

[@denisdoobe]

i always found this so cool

[@paulscott6018]

These are so cool! I wounder what ones of the Edward, Henry, Gordon, James, Toby, and Emily pez despensrs would look like

[@leokimvideo]

James is totally different inside, I now have Toby and I think I can pull off that Pez easily

[@bohemianh]

Well done interesting modeling!

[@leokimvideo]

@Th3RussBus in the info area is a link to the shop where I buy train stuff

[@vanessaturner3388]

Aww......when he small he is cute ❤️❤️❤️❤️😍😍

[@leokimvideo]

@nleeder thanks noel, much appreciated

[@leokimvideo]

@KnapfordMaster98 i should also add all the details behind the Hornby fail is in the video after this..i think

[@leokimvideo]

@MrTrainboy1 my train layout in this video is nothing special, the sidings were a bit tricky as I had to cut small pieces of track to bring it all together it's a generic loop track with a weird custom siding, it's definitely not a out of the box layout

[@TrainTsarFun]

Thanks for showing! That is a neat modification. Pez trains! A lot of work. I think my favorite part was "It has been bitterly cold this year. They say it is from the global warming." lol

[@tinamaslin8478]

hi

[@caseynguyen3579]

Train Tsar Fun thmas

[@bederemmanuel]

Train Tsar Fun you watch leokimvideo

[@beausteele]

Train Tsar Fun q

[@michaeldoncanete9939]

Train Tsar Fun .xofifhxf😬😑😊😬🙉👬₩#¥÷(3÷(÷÷(÷4÷4÷434$==4÷4=4=44÷4÷4÷4$=4÷4==5=4-$€=€=*=*=*=*=4(4((%%)%)%)%t T T2vc07f Tt⊙

[@ChillyPeppers]

What a clever idea.

[@JaysTheManNow]

0:21 kinda giving me sodor fallout vibes looking back at it

[@Jordmate]

Truly Superb Leo - you have a great video here mate - oh and you make a very nice Mad Scientist ;) Ha ha

[@leokimvideo]

@MrLegotastic the gandy dancer turns on by applying power to the train tracks like any other HO train

[@leokimvideo]

@MrMichaelDogson hi, no I don;t sell my stuff, from what I see at model train markets where I live this repair crane train is fairly easily found, in fact I think Hornby still do a version of it today although I may be totally wrong, pretty sure I have seen it in the shops lately

[@leokimvideo]

@thomasandferdinand14 The pasenger and freight set was going to become a prize...BUT i would not give out such a nightmare set to anyone, as for the Hornby Thomas maybe it needs some destructive testing, I certainly gave it a headache while trying to work out why it's so weak

[@zumaman5816]

who else back here for *N O S T A L G I A*

[@carmelasabbatino7712]

00000

[@carmelasabbatino7712]

⁰0000000

[@carmelasabbatino7712]

Òĺ00

[@Johnthecardboardsmileyface]

Watching all these old Thomas vids for the high pitch Thomas voice

[@cameronplays7138]

me

[@leokimvideo]

@TheMrbigtires here is the blurb direct from youtube A known technical issue in our reporting systems resulted in incomplete / inaccurate video view count data from July 11 to July 18. Please be assured that any views not currently updated are still being recorded. We hope to have any view count discrepancies resolved as soon as possible, but please note that it may take a few days

[@gonk-on]

damn, your camera work is really good

[@kayjocoth]

Much better than mine

[@leokimvideo]

@ryan12hw thanks, sorry for taking so long to do a video on this subject, i know it's a question which is often asked about.

[@pwalpar]

awesome production

[@nelsonxiong7515]

i love your vid and i am not old

[@AshplayzKL]

Why wold we say your old

[@cjkelley333]

I love the scientist's laugh. XD

[@leokimvideo]

sadly your not allowed to do contests on youtube anymore, thats why this contest has become a giveaway haven't you noticed all the contests have gone.?? I have lots to give away, i'm just trying to get my head around how I can do this without breaking the rules of youtube, BM22 is in the same situation, he used to have far more stuff up as prizes than I ever did.

[@nancywilliams4216]

Leo, neat idea to power a pez Thomas

[@trackmaster1999]

Nice! i like went you use minifigure with thomas again

[@leokimvideo]

contest closed, where I see the tube it's cracked the million, remember there is loads of views lag depending where you are on the tube

[@fionalover2.0gaming18]

hi

[@Mahder000]

Y r ur fingers soooo dry?

[@Casper3417]

pretty cool Leoki, good job :)

[@EuanEchidhog]

Hi there Very cool video there Leo ^^ Great work there. May enter your contest to win one of them, cause they look unique ^^ Euan

[@capmodesty]

Sorry to see the Hornby Thomas was giving you trouble, my guess is that there's something wrong with the traction tyres, as in, they didn't put them on him.

[@TheBlueSnowplow]

I'm almost positive Leo said every single variation of the phrase "Gandy Dancer" possible without saying the right name even once.

[@rumpz]

i've watched this video before and i love your vids! :D

[@JeremyOrangeHedgehog]

My childhood :)

[@leokimvideo]

@timelordthetrain we have broken out of what was a long drought, lots of rain over the past few few years now and some near record floods. some say it's the end of the word, others say it's global warming in reverse while only a few look at the suns activity. if i had a cold house surely i would inspect the heater first! for some reason the sun is rarely ever brought up in relation to the earth's climate cycles which are indeed a very complex series of ever changing events

[@ShadowNick]

Bachman captures more of the TV Series Engines and the Hornby is used for more of a Railway Series look, but I haven't had a Hornby or Bachman model in years so :(. Also in the video you can see that Annie and Clarabel are wet. Finally don't feel bad Summer in New York looks like your winter :|.

[@leokimvideo]

@jakethedogfil very soon I will hammer Hornby and the Bachmann fans will rejoice, maybe I copped a bum Friday special set or maybe this is what is served up a today's version of model railways for beginners

[@TheMrbigtires]

ok... nevermind. sorry. i heard about the viewcount problems...... forgot when i posted that. that"s really awesome that you got so many views in a week!

[@leokimvideo]

@CineSteam thanks, never knew that one!

[@derekingramjr.9552]

Amazing how you do that

[@graydoughnut3848]

Ahh good memories