What IS Thumper; & Why He's Impractical: A TTTE Analyzation

A short video explaining one of the most strange side characters Thomas & Friends ever featured; Thumper!
Sources:ttte.fandom.co...
ttte.fandom.co...
Music: • lukrembo - cheese (roy...
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[@TotoDG]

1:31. "...and causes *miner* disruptions." Get it? 'Cause he works in a mine? Okay, I'll start packing my bags.

[@randomscb-40charger78]

Goodbye onion.

[@samster4044]

be sure to close the door on ur way out

[@brenlc1412]

m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/n5fEoH6Qm7ajmqM

[@RGWProductions]

One word to describe Thumper: Merchandising.

[@privateerbouncher9622]

Still he was used better than HiT era Merchandising.

[@osakatales9228]

@@privateerbouncher9622 What's so bad about the HiT era's merchandise?

[@stopmotionartist4987]

@@privateerbouncher9622 how so?

[@postironiac]

I have Thumper toy

[@leokimvideo]

Rusty & The Boulder & Bugs are two of the best model episodes. To me Thumper reminded me of something that may roll out of Thunderbird 2 pod for a International Rescue Thunderbirds style mission.

[@TonsOfTrackmasters]

I'd love to see that happen

[@dominikhouj6548]

@@TonsOfTrackmasters thumper is my favourite character

[@greycatturtle7132]

Ye

[@ZeldaTheSwordsman]

R&TB sucks

[@mrpotato5281]

Wait… I USED TO LOVE LEOKIM

[@SuperTrainStationH]

What I understand the least about Thumper is that so many Awdry stories were rejected for adaptation for budget reasons, thus the total abandonment of Awdry content from Season 5 onward, the same season that introduced MULTIPLE characters that only appeared once in the season, if not even in only a single episode for mere moments of screen time.

[@SmartassX1]

That was wasteful then. Unique characters could easily have been used in many later episodes as just scenery that the other trains would have driven past.

[@Notmortarandivyson]

I.E Thumper, Derek, Bertram, and the Lorries.

[@Lilyugiproductions]

Literally the video of james and the keyboard was cute and funny af

[@dogemaster-hm2ce]

I remember watching it back when i was younger

[@chriscabrera2332]

Cant agree more

[@mistermadmachine6311]

😊👍

[@jazzykingjack2846]

James even in toy form has good rythum.

[@masterfarr8265]

imagine it with the tender

[@TheHylianBatman]

I really hate that Edward refers to Thumper as "it". What the Hell, man, he has a face!

[@exertkarma]

Wouldn't say I hate it but it's definitely odd. Considering how supernatural the entire episode is, referring to thumper as 'it' just kinda adds to that strange atmosphere

[@SmartassX1]

Just ahead of their time. Not using a gender-specific word for a previously unintroduced character.

[@ayle1312]

Thumper uses it/its pronouns

[@Shadow_Hawk_Streaming]

He was basically a mechanized Jack hammer, presumably built with the intention of being armoured to protect the operator from inevitable rubble from above, although that doesn't explain the drill looking ends on the hammers unless there's some kind of ratcheting going on to allow them to turn with the push stroke

[@SnowingNapalm]

i couldn't have explained it better myself sounds like ya got the function down like a hammering screw driver with a drillbit on it i imagine it'd be for drilling dynamite holes but i suppose with alot of extra maneuvering could carve in a halfcircle pattern

[@Shadow_Hawk_Streaming]

@@SnowingNapalm yeah, more likley than not would have been for drilling holes to put charges in

[@SaulsSodor]

Thumper should have had more appearances he would make a good side character

[@jamessmithandgarrettsmith3623]

Especially for all of the Mountainous scenery in the HIT Era.

[@TheKingOfPoop123]

He could have fitted in very nicely at Blue Mountain Quarry.

[@roberttreacy8271]

Yeah.

[@rokamayono2312]

@@TheKingOfPoop123 yess

[@Racist_Railfan_Productions]

I guess Thumper is a different kind of "tank" engine... ...I'll see myself out.

[@TheGimpy117]

Comrade thumper on KV-1 tracks....

[@prussianbluecrayon]

Kliment voroshilov tanks@@TheGimpy117

[@Jake_Josh]

Thumper be like: Launch the *_B O U L D E R._*

[@jockdouglass3824]

GET DOWN HERE YOU STUPID ROCK: starts to punch the mountain boulder's on

[@thatphonebastard]

Hey guys! I have a quick question for you! what does it mean when it says launch the boulder?

[@jockdouglass3824]

@@thatphonebastard rumbling and the undeniable screeching of Percy

[@sdmedia1323]

People want to build a working E2 replica? *Build a working Thumper first.* Edit: I literally forgot to put this in, this is a few seconds later. *Full-size.*

[@BagelsGuy]

Lol

[@TonsOfTrackmasters]

Tomy thumper is better

[@ajaxengineco]

I've always had a soft spot for that little diesel shunter. She's an underappreciated machine as far the GWR goes.

[@HeavyTanker-vx4oq]

Thumpers Chassis is from a Russian ww2 Heavy tank. The JS/IS series heavy tanks.

[@privateerbouncher9622]

Well yes, but no, its from a KV-1 / 2 or SU-152 Self propelled artillery tank. The IS series had minor differences such as the driving gears. But IS series was a development from the KV series.

[@NikoDiohulkmaker]

Ah your a tankman i see

[@HeavyTanker-vx4oq]

Privateer Bouncher no, it's a IS/JS chassis, you can tell because in the shots of the rear of him, you can see the angled rear plate that the IS is known for.

[@NikoDiohulkmaker]

@@HeavyTanker-vx4oq but is/js is basicly kv chassis with minor upgrade with a big/sloped armour(except is3(ithink))

[@kwlkid85]

@@HeavyTanker-vx4oq Also from just a practical sense it's much more likely an IS because basically all the KVs were destroyed by wars end (after they finished trolling Germany through most of the early war) although I guess it could be a recovered battlefield wreck.

[@TheTealEngine]

I love how Sir topham hat literally almost killed like everyone there for making them dig a hole in the mountain

[@robcowboy2713]

I wonder if Thumper was ever considered for The Pack as a cliffside/tunneling specialist

[@danielthestonejohnson4733]

YES!

[@tau-5794]

He almost looks like the cab of a steam shovel welded onto the back of a tractor like Terrence, with the extra mining equipment possibly being modular/detachable.

[@doucettealexander98]

The tank that thumper borrows his treds from is just called the "KV-1" nobody calls it a Kliment Voroshilov

[@aimbasse2275]

Thats true

[@SmartassX1]

Oh? Maybe they're from a KV-2?

[@doucettealexander98]

@@SmartassX1 all the KV-2 is is a KV-1 with a Enormous gun and turret. They share a Hull and therefor tracks so it would be impossible to tell if its a KV-1 or KV-2

[@SmartassX1]

@@doucettealexander98 I know. ;)

[@l0rdapophis]

I still have the take-n-play version of him and I honestly never knew what to do with him when I was playing with my trains so I just put him with Jack and the rest of the Pack 😭😭😭 I'm garbage I know

[@nikerailfanningttm9046]

That intro with James on the piano…. *MOZART BEEN REAL QUIET SINCE THIS DROPPED*

[@thomaszinser8714]

Ah, the rare crossover of tanks and trains. The KV-1 as a basis is fairly interesting, considering it's a Soviet design using a transmission adapted from a tractor, but frankly, something like modifying a surplus Lee or Sherman would have made a more plausible basis, as such was done to make Lees into agricultural equipment, for example.

[@lukechristmas3951]

Thumper's origins always had me view him as a mysterious sort of character. Think about it: who's to say that Thumper was in league with some villains who knew a custom, flawed, hodge podge quarry machine would be just the ticket to cause an accident at a new quarry site? After the accident, they would've tried to collect the insurance money or file a lawsuit or something. Real mafia possibilities here.

[@sbomorse]

You earned my like with the intro.

[@hawkerhellfire9152]

The tank is generally referred to as a KV(each letter being pronounced separately) Headcannon for me is he is a converted KV-2, a tank which mounts a monstrous 152mm anti Bunker cannon which is comparable to it's equally monstrous peacetime role.

[@easykeysy5973]

Omg that video at the start takes me back

[@TheKingOfPoop123]

Thumper could have been a generic faceless drilling machine and there'd be no difference whatsoever. Also, a hot take: say what you like about Billy, Charlie and Logging Locos, but at least they said stuff and had personalities.

[@osakatales9228]

Eh, still one of the worst things from Misty Island.*

[@TheKingOfPoop123]

@@osakatales9228 Oh definitely.

[@quillmaurer6563]

That's true of a lot of the background characters that are still shown as having faces - have no speaking roles and personality not depicted. But I guess goes in with the lore of most machinery on Sodor having a face. Though I guess it's a bit ambiguous as to which do and don't, some freight wagons and passenger coaches do while others don't. Or it's just to make him more appealing to children.

[@RealBanana]

Honestly I kinda want to rewatch the old TTTE episodes just so I can appreciate the models and scenery

[@foxwolf973]

I've always had a soft spot and genuine fascination for Thumper -even now I think he's still on of my favourites :D Loved the video too!

[@chaoticgoose4887]

Great video! I've always been interestied by thumper, and wondered why he never spoke in the series. One thing I would add is that the GWR wasn't the only company to have that Folwer shunter. Like peckett and Andrew Barclay, fowler sold large amounts of industrial shunters, the one you showed being one of their more famous designs.

[@politicallyinaccuratetoast4757]

I have a great feeling this was recommended to me because it mentioned the KV-1 I've never watched TTTE or anything TTTE related within the past 5 years, especially not on KZbin

[@TonsOfTrackmasters]

YES TRAINBOY LETS GO

[@davifariatertuliano]

Hello Tons

[@jamesisred5387]

lol love the intro with James on the piano

[@m26a1pershing7]

Drive sprockets can be front or back, as shown by the KV picture he showed. The real question is what tanks its based on, the KV, IS-2, or IS-3. The minimal amount of sloping at the rear of the model suggests an IS, but whether a 2 or 3 is difficult due to the lack of visible rear plate details. Even were these details visible, ID would be difficult due to the similarity of the plates on these tanks. Best guess is an IS-2 simply from the proportions of the track width to the hull width.

[@koenigsegg888]

It is true that the drive can be at the back but it would be a very odd choice to do that on a front engined vehical. Drive at the front performs better but because tanks are rear engined it is simpler to drive them from the back.

[@lukeslocomotives]

i love that intro

[@traingoddess]

The intro is just perfect

[@parker-boy98]

Being a sentient vehicle, I think it's safe to say Thumper operates on his own, and the humans are just there to supervise him. Unless his eyes act as the windows. Like, eyes outside, windows inside. Like a two-way mirror.

[@britishneko3906]

just love how the tracc was taken from a Kliment Voroshilov-1C aka KV-1C

[@SeaSwine9]

I await "Pumpkin Carving with Thumper" as your Halloween special

[@ReubenAshwell]

The intro was hillarious. XD Also I would of loved to see more of thumper. :)

[@rottenroads1982]

You can see that season 5 is the transition between seasons 4 through 6 and that is because you see the Season 6 Rusty in “Rusty and the Boulder”

[@MatthewChenault]

You can call the Tank a “KV.” It’s a Soviet Heavy Tank chassis used for the KV-1, KV-1S, KV-2, and SU-152 series of SPGs during the Second World War. The full name pronunciation is “Kl-e-ment Vo-ro-sh-ee-l-ov.” The Tank is named after Kliment Yefremovich Voroshilov who was, at the time of it’s design, the People’s Commissar of Defense for the Soviet Union (Minister of Defense).

[@theunknownwarrior632]

If you play war thunder these things are a menace if there's more than one of them on the enemy team

[@dyodee-o4582]

@@theunknownwarrior632 true they are pain

[@theunknownwarrior632]

@@dyodee-o4582 especially the Finnish kv1B or the German Kv1 C 756r

[@dyodee-o4582]

@@theunknownwarrior632 IS/JS are a pain in WT i always get shot always ,dont have time too aim on the turret cheecks/hull

[@theunknownwarrior632]

@@dyodee-o4582 I feel for you mate as I'm the same

[@Cnw8701]

Okay, that intro was awesome; you need to use it more often!

[@MonopodMan]

Thumper looks like a type of vehicle that would have been used in Thunderbirds

[@trainlover74]

Wow holy sh*t Duncan yeesss

[@TorridPrime217]

I think Thumper is better suited for clearing fallen rocks that are too heavy or slippery to move, either pummeling them out of the way or breaking them to more manageable sizes

[@ewanfawkes2708]

I´ve got/had (until eBay made things complicated) an idea and plan to make a series adapting elements from the TV series into the railway series cannon. In my series Thumper is a human with an obsession with blowing things up. (Basically he´s Billy Shoepack)

[@lyokianhitchhiker]

Like what Victor Tanzig did?

[@ewanfawkes2708]

@@lyokianhitchhiker Similar.

[@johndavies9270]

"Ah'm gonna get a steam drill t'do yo-er share of drivin', an then what's all that muscle gonna do, huh, John Henry?" What an inventive machine - quite a few tanks did (probably still do) have their drive sprockets at the back, but the tracks still face to the front. And to think they went to all that trouble for just one programme? Perfection!

[@nobel-obailey-taylor1569]

I have no clue why I'm asking this but can you do the history of Molly's model

[@henderson2394]

There is some basis for "stuff mounted on tank chasis as an experiment" for instance 2 mig jet engines mounted on a t34 chasis called "big wind" is used to put out oil well fires in Hungary, i like the idea somone on sodor bought a tank hull and mounted powered hammers on it making a unique machine.

[@johndavies9270]

Apparently in early post war France at least one abandoned Panther tank was converted into a mobile crane, with the jib and luffing gears replacing the turret. The Slovakian railways mounted a spare Mig 15 fighter fuselage and engine on a flat car, to use as a snow blower, an experiment which was also tried on the LNER in the late 1940's. One problem - it cleared the snow very effectively, but it also cleared the ballast from between the sleepers as well.

[@jooberboober4609]

Thumper seems to be on the treads of a KV Series Heavy Tank. Way to make him reliable.

[@CurtisCreates]

Interesting origins. Also Please tell me there’s a stand-alone clip of the intro, it’s just too good

[@savagegardenfan9680]

As a Kid I've always wondered about Thumper and what he was it is a pity he never appeared in other episodes. I often thought of a Bob the Builder Character with his Basis :P

[@ItsDaJax]

The show predates Bob The Builder.

[@savagegardenfan9680]

@@ItsDaJax I know but When Bob the Builder first came out I thought of Thumper from Thomas and made up a BTB Character based on Thumper.

[@TheBrickGuy7939]

I actually looked up what his basis was before I even saw the video and was surprised he was a diesel locomotive with tank tracks. It's a shame he didn't appear again and join Jack and The Pack.

[@connorflaherty175]

Winnie-the-Pooh: but what is a thumper? Tigger: well, he asked for it.

[@harrishyatt6283]

thumper was gonna appear in series 6 but was cut, he was gonna appear in series 8 but was cut again (he had a series 8 model), and he was gonna appear in series 12 but was cut again the 3rd time

[@rorymoore8982]

How do you know?

[@harrishyatt6283]

@@rorymoore8982 the ttte wikia

[@SpaceBoiYT]

my favorite already is james playing the piano

[@spencergorman366]

2:25 you said the treads are backwards because the drive sprocket is in the back, but that’s not necessarily true. For various reasons, some tanks have their drive sprocket in the rear instead of the front, including the Abrams. Also, video was dope. Brought back some latent memories I didn’t know I had lol

[@spencergorman366]

Oh you definitely might have been implying that his treads are from that tank specifically, but put on backwards

[@notbren903]

Love these discussion video format good job man

[@thesagaciousengine5404]

Ngl I think Thumper's arms work better as double jackhammers, just to sorta jab at rock for loosening, not actually tunneling.

[@johntyjp]

Why am I watching these vids!!??🤔 Coz he makes them so enthralling !! ??

[@derekbackofen6]

I really like thumper I wish we could have seen him one more time

[@silenc3068]

I had wooden railway thumper, he was my favorite

[@harrisonallen651]

You really paved the grave Mitton and Allcroft

[@F40NJ2CAT]

Britt is Still alive and well.

[@jackholmesdiscovereranglos7891]

Thumper might have the huge Jack hammer arms to jack hammering the rocks out similar to demolition hammers or heavy duty jack hammering chisels, both hand tolls and ones used by excavators.

[@MrDankEngine1999]

This is basically like a “history of Thumper” video.

[@saltbombcreations8336]

Technically this is like a history of Thumper and his models

[@BVW16]

Thumper sort of reminds me of the jumbos used in underground mining

[@_Funtime60]

2:24 Claims that the tracks are on backwards. Shows KV-1 which also features a rear mounted drive sprocket.

[@macdoeman4560]

So Thumper was a kit-bash? awesome!

[@safeguardprime5914]

Perhaps he was punished like Smudger but given somehow a more stressful fate than Smudger himself

[@godzillahomer]

I think Thumper could have worked as a Pack Character. Make him a pile driver. thumping piles into the ground

[@svsmodelling2857]

Drayton Manor Thomas exhibition is in good hands now and all the models have been fixed including Thomas, Rosie etc but Edward is missing and I don’t know where he has gone.

[@Michipicoten]

YAY KV 1 MODEL FEATURED IN THOMAS

[@toopink4death492]

Thumper is basically Russia's answer to strip mining using a KV-1 Chassis. Btw nobody calls the KV-1 Kliment Voroshilov because there's more than one of em with the same name, KV-2 for example and the KV-85 also known by it's cooler name Objekt 239 (It's actually spelt Objekt).

[@amitysluzara2022]

Thumpers design always interested me

[@Saviliana]

I think it was a brawler type of driller, which if just like two air-driller attach and powered form the main engine. There are actually real driller of this type developed in the 1920s but quickly fell out of style.

[@SonicJrandSarah]

Thumper confused me a bit as well once I learned that he had no real basis. I was wondering if anyone was to do a series of pictures of the engines in real life, how could Thumper be done? I think the best solution was to just use Thumper's image and that's the best you got.

[@timelord8472]

Boys watch Adult Swim Alpha Males watch Trainboy Seriously, I love this channel. Keep it up.

[@TheGreyTurtleEntertainment]

Heeey... This isn't a video about the bunny from The Disney classic "Bambi" I'm disappointed. XD Seriously, great video!

[@LBSC70]

Thumper is a free lance design

[@elevatestrong39]

Edward says he’s called thumper he helps collect rocks and also will cause giant boulders to fall down because yeah… He sounds great!

[@lyokianhitchhiker]

I’m sure he didn’t mean it like what ended up happening.

[@brenlc1412]

What is Thumper? Merchandising.

[@Staniele]

finaly a vid on the T H U M P E R

[@TuShan18]

That’s pretty interesting that they used a tank model for thumper. I wonder why they never used him again. Did they just not come up with a situation for him after Allcroft left, or they just didn’t care?

[@WatchVidsMakeLists]

Think about it, after Series 5, TATMR flopped and a new writing team took over for Series 6. If you were a new writer on a show about talking trains that you only had passing familiarity with, who would you right stories about? Thomas, Gordon, Percy, main characters with memorable (and easy to understand) personalities? Or some obscure one-off from the series just prior who had no speaking lines and didn't even run on rails? I'm not saying it's fair to Thumper, but I totally get why he never came back.

[@TuShan18]

@@WatchVidsMakeLists I can see that, but I would at least like them to consider other characters after they got their bearings.

[@davidvasquez08]

Now when I think about it, that bolder had a similar face to Gordon

[@deltahalo241]

Given his fully custom model and alternate faceplates, I wouldn't be surprised if initially Thumper was going to play a larger role in the episode, perhaps beyond that. But eventually it was cut down to what we see in the final version.

[@datbarricade9995]

Alright. How did I end up here, watching basically TTTE lore and character explanations. Time to watch some more of this stuff! ...Pls send help.

[@jkblohm9899]

Ooo that Duncan model

[@0151Master]

0:04 Heart rate is currently 63, which is good enough

[@pacificcoastpiper3949]

Thumper is a double boom mining drill, just watch the dirty jobs salt mine episode. They’re used to bore holes for blasting charges

[@RedShocktrooperRST]

Fortunately Kliment Voroshilov is one of those odd Russian names that is actually pronounced exactly as it looks. Most people would just call it a KV tank, though. Odd you pin it specifically as the KV, though, as the IS tanks also used that suspension layout. okay it being sourced from a Tamiya KV-1C does pin it pretty hard.

[@ckilo11]

I guess you would call it something like horizontal steam powered pavement breaker, but it kinda looks like a double boom face drill. Maybe it works like a hammer drill.

[@Im_here170]

I liked thumper he was an interesting looking vehicle!! 👍🏽👍🏽

[@MrJoeyWheeler]

Thumper is such an odd thing. I don't believe he would have been made solely for marketing - usually those sorts of characters at least **focus** in their first episodes, but Thumper is just there. Seems like they wanted to do something with him but never got aorund to it. So it's very odd, therefore, that he even got an ERTL model. Then again, even RWS exclusives like the Culdee Fells got ERTLs as well.

[@joneades1364]

I think the denotation of the KV chassis, although similar, is not quite right. I believe that the chassis basis is actually the IS2, the successor the the KV tank. The frame at 2:04 shows Thumper to have an angular hull that meets at the sprocket in the rear, Just like the IS2. My 2 cents I guess.

[@Leonardo-cw1dd]

i still have that very same james at the intro

[@planebois]

Dude Rusty and the Boulder is the greatest episode

[@teamidris]

There is a historic virticle version for breaking up runaways. It is on wheels and has several drop rammer hammers.

[@Train115]

Thumper's front looks less like a locomotive than just a bulldozer.

[@TheGWR0-4-0]

He launches missiles

[@SonicJrandSarah]

Where did you get the music at 4:40 from?