For those with deeper pockets...

[Chris_S]

Dreweatts have transport auctions twice yearly.

Looking through I note there are both 2 1/2" gauge and gauge 3 in separate sections.

http://www.dreweatts.com/cms/pages/lots/13950

Cheers,

[Peaky 556]

Thought for the day...

As a general observation it seems that live steam models are by far the most popular at auctions, at least in our scale anyway.

What do we think are the reasons for this?

Maybe it is an age-related thing, as a lot of steam was built in the C20th, by engineers who have, sadly, shuffled on to that big footplate in the sky, and like artists, their work is always deemed to be more valuable posthumously?

Or more likely our Society, with its steam-outline electric power, is just a tiny minority compared with the 'real thing' that the N2.5G members produce?

Tim

[IanT]

Maybe it's because small live steam engines are (generally) not mass-produced Tim and can potentially take hundreds of hours to build.

If you take away the cost of the raw materials from the prices quoted (especially the boiler materials & castings) and then divide the remaining 'cost' by the number of man-hours that have likely been consumed in building it - then you begin to get some idea of the hourly labour rate.

Given that this will often be much less than £1/hour, then perhaps these small steam engines are much better value than is immediately obvious (assuming it's a good 'un of course).

Regards,

IanT

[MikeWilliams]

If by "popular" you mean they appear more frequently, then I suspect over the last few decades more live steam than electric has been built in Gauge 3.  Electric propulsion is relatively new for our scale.  I know there are very old electric models, but not many.

If by "popular" you mean they sell for high prices, then I agree with Ian that considering the time and cost of making a live steamer many are actually quite cheap - and that applies to many 5in gauge models too.

Mike

[AshleyW]

ALSO, from what i have heard, 2.5" gauge was back in the day, the original - or most popular model engineering gauge. so that average joe, with maybe space in his shed or larder for a small lathe could make a loco at home. i assume that was back inbetween the wars, so the 1955 modernisation program had not even started, thus many of the live steam models we see are from such periods, hence no diesels up for sale. i'm sure in another 80 years time,such auctions will have diesels in them.