whatlep
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LGB unaffordable to you? Not now. A German retailer http://www.modell-land.de < Link To www.modell-land.de is splitting up the 70400 starter set and selling the bits off separately. That means for 89.99 Euros (about £82), plus a flat rate of 18 Euros (about £16) for 72 hour courier delivery you can have one of these:
Yes, it's a factory-fresh classic Stainz for about £98. Externally it's very close indeed to the LGB 27211 which currently retails at £220 or more in the UK (less any GSC discounts, plus any p&p). The 27211 looks like this:
So what is missing from the starter set loco to account for £122? Frankly, not a lot. A few photographs may help, setting my 1998-vintage starter set Stainz alongside:
The most obvious differences are the absence of any golden bits on the cheap Stainz and any lettering. The maker's plate which features on the "classic" Stainz's steam dome is missing from both cheap Stainz and 27211. Did you notice that the main rod and connecting rod don't have red painted inserts? Nope, neither did I for several minutes! So that's about 50p for paint or £3 for some red "Trimline" if you prefer. Mine will be left alone. I'm in Ruritania, not Germany!
Less obvious at first sight, the buffers are not white-rimmed and there is no driver. The omission of a driver could be seen as a good thing - it makes the Stainz easier to dismantle if you are going to install DCC or battery power. Those who've suffered trying to get a Stainz apart will know what I mean....
Now if the lack of finery troubles you, don't worry! All the relevant parts are also available from the same supplier. You would need the following:
Gold whistle - 2.49 Euros
Gold bell - 1.99
Smoke box handle - 1.49
2 side handles - 1.98
2 buffers - 3.98
Driver 4.99
A total of 16.92 Euros or roughly £15.45, assuming you really, really want all the bling. So we're still trying to find £106.50 of difference (ignoring the paint)! Lettering of course, or nameplates may be added. Well £8 for plates from http://www.narrowplanet.co.uk/ as noted in another GSC thread, or for £10 you can get enough superb transfers to cover at least a couple of Stainzes from Precision Labels.
I'm still tring to find at least £95 quid's worth of difference. Is it "under the covers"? Let's have a look!
Here's the bottom plate. Yes, it's a standard LGB "D" gearbox, albeit with a new Marklin label. Note the absence of a 5-digit code to identify the loco:
Venturing into the loco, we finally find some real differences. The electrics are delightfully minimal. No voltage regulation circuit or on-off switch in the cab. Of course if you are going to install DCC you don't need or want either of those! Like the 27211, there is no sound. Unlike the posh Stainz, there is also no smoke unit, nor an "auxiliary socket" on the back of the loco. If you are desperate to have the latter, it's simplicity itself to use one of the connectors off a 68333 lighting unit and feed it through the empty space in the firebox door, soldering it.....
...to this minimalist "main board" which is 100% identical to that originally fitted to my 1998 starter set Stainz. Three pairs of wires provide for lights front/rear and in the cab, with directional control. Pretty much all I need! The two pins prominent in the foreground are for attaching a 24 volt smoke generator. Note that there are some very handy soldering points to attach to. Conversion to DCC is dead simple. Disconnect the lighting wires and reattach to your Massoth L or LGB 55021 chip which lives in the boiler. The chip's leads attach directly to the normal 4 pins of the Stainz gearbox. Hardly more effort required than installing to the direct decoder interface in the posh Stainz (and in both cases you need to dismantle the loco almost completely).
So there you are. A very nice, industrial looking Stainz for £98, plus whatever small sums you may wish to invest on decorating it. Mine will probably receive some minimal lettering via transfers, retaining that pleasing matt black appearance of a loco which has knocked around a bit and now lurks in a grimy shunting yard.
The supplier, once again, is http://www.modell-land.de < Link To www.modell-land.de.
Yes, it's a factory-fresh classic Stainz for about £98. Externally it's very close indeed to the LGB 27211 which currently retails at £220 or more in the UK (less any GSC discounts, plus any p&p). The 27211 looks like this:
So what is missing from the starter set loco to account for £122? Frankly, not a lot. A few photographs may help, setting my 1998-vintage starter set Stainz alongside:
The most obvious differences are the absence of any golden bits on the cheap Stainz and any lettering. The maker's plate which features on the "classic" Stainz's steam dome is missing from both cheap Stainz and 27211. Did you notice that the main rod and connecting rod don't have red painted inserts? Nope, neither did I for several minutes! So that's about 50p for paint or £3 for some red "Trimline" if you prefer. Mine will be left alone. I'm in Ruritania, not Germany!
Less obvious at first sight, the buffers are not white-rimmed and there is no driver. The omission of a driver could be seen as a good thing - it makes the Stainz easier to dismantle if you are going to install DCC or battery power. Those who've suffered trying to get a Stainz apart will know what I mean....
Now if the lack of finery troubles you, don't worry! All the relevant parts are also available from the same supplier. You would need the following:
Gold whistle - 2.49 Euros
Gold bell - 1.99
Smoke box handle - 1.49
2 side handles - 1.98
2 buffers - 3.98
Driver 4.99
A total of 16.92 Euros or roughly £15.45, assuming you really, really want all the bling. So we're still trying to find £106.50 of difference (ignoring the paint)! Lettering of course, or nameplates may be added. Well £8 for plates from http://www.narrowplanet.co.uk/ as noted in another GSC thread, or for £10 you can get enough superb transfers to cover at least a couple of Stainzes from Precision Labels.
I'm still tring to find at least £95 quid's worth of difference. Is it "under the covers"? Let's have a look!
Here's the bottom plate. Yes, it's a standard LGB "D" gearbox, albeit with a new Marklin label. Note the absence of a 5-digit code to identify the loco:
Venturing into the loco, we finally find some real differences. The electrics are delightfully minimal. No voltage regulation circuit or on-off switch in the cab. Of course if you are going to install DCC you don't need or want either of those! Like the 27211, there is no sound. Unlike the posh Stainz, there is also no smoke unit, nor an "auxiliary socket" on the back of the loco. If you are desperate to have the latter, it's simplicity itself to use one of the connectors off a 68333 lighting unit and feed it through the empty space in the firebox door, soldering it.....
...to this minimalist "main board" which is 100% identical to that originally fitted to my 1998 starter set Stainz. Three pairs of wires provide for lights front/rear and in the cab, with directional control. Pretty much all I need! The two pins prominent in the foreground are for attaching a 24 volt smoke generator. Note that there are some very handy soldering points to attach to. Conversion to DCC is dead simple. Disconnect the lighting wires and reattach to your Massoth L or LGB 55021 chip which lives in the boiler. The chip's leads attach directly to the normal 4 pins of the Stainz gearbox. Hardly more effort required than installing to the direct decoder interface in the posh Stainz (and in both cases you need to dismantle the loco almost completely).
So there you are. A very nice, industrial looking Stainz for £98, plus whatever small sums you may wish to invest on decorating it. Mine will probably receive some minimal lettering via transfers, retaining that pleasing matt black appearance of a loco which has knocked around a bit and now lurks in a grimy shunting yard.
The supplier, once again, is http://www.modell-land.de < Link To www.modell-land.de.
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