No.119 Mainline ex LMS 2P – worth a second look?

I recently took delivery of one of those cute little six wheeled vans originally from Ian Allan Publishing. I thought that an elderly Mainline ex LMS 2P would make a suitable train engine.

Ex LMS 4-4-0 in Dumfries Station in the early 1960s


I bought my Mainline 2P back in 1984 from C&G models in Darlington.

Mainline 2P from 1984 – it has a lovely faded appearance!


My model was supposed new but never ran properly and has spent most of its 40 year life either in a box or resting peacefully in a siding up against the buffers (stored).

Spot the 2P – engines waiting for their last journey at Dumfries early 1960s


Although ‘branded’ as ‘Mainline’ my model is very obviously of Airfix origins. The mechanics of the tender drive are identical to the unit fitted to the Airfix 4F. The tender body is lined as opposed to plain black but lacks the wire handrails that appeared later when the tender drive 4F was reintroduced by Hornby. I had considered replacing my model with the latest Hornby engine driven version. That was until I discovered that the latest model still has rubber traction tyres – now on the engine driving wheels rather than the tender! So still I think a wobbly engine?


The problem with my Mainline 2P was that whilst the engine sailed along at ‘60mph’ the driving wheels were only rotating at say 20mph. I removed the spring from the front bogie to see if this would transfer more weight to driving wheels and encourage them to better rotate. There was no noticeable improvement. Rotating the wheels by hand indicated a tight spot symptomatic of the perennial problem with ready to run models where the wheels are not properly quartered.

Driving wheels ready to be lifted clear


The LMS 2P has inside cylinders so there is no valve gear to bother about. After unscrewing the bottom keeper plate the driving wheels can be lifted straight out. The wheels on the Mainline model have 20 spokes which means that the cranks on one side should be offset by five spokes on the other side. On my model one wheel set had cranks offset nicely at 90 degrees. The other wheel set could be seen to be not quite 90 degrees. Because of its Airfix origins the plastic driving wheels are a push fit onto a shouldered knurled axle. To change the relative position of the two wheels it is necessary to pull one of the wheels completely off the axle. Only with the wheel clear of the knurled end of the axle can it be rotated before being pushed back and hopefully better orientated. I did this without removing the coupling rods.


I must have been lucky because after reassembly there was a noticeable improvement. I have put together a wee video comparing the running before and after re-quartering.

Engine to tender coupling shortened for Peco Medium Radius Points


What else have I done to the engine? Well I have painted the wheel rims black, shortened the engine to tender coupling and fitted a Bachmann mini coupling to the tender. I am still thinking about the front bogie coupling – the Mainline coupling is held in place with a brass rivet.

Mainline 2P left Bachmann Compound right


How does the 40 year old Mainline 2P compare with more modern models?

Bachmann Compound left Mainline 2P right


I think the 2P body shell is quite well detailed with nice lining and works plate. It does lack lamp irons and sprung buffers – all of which can be updated relatively easily.

Mainline tender front Bachmann tender rear


A comparison of the Mainline and Bachmann tenders highlights the age of the former model. As said earlier it is the original moulding for the Airfix 4F from around 1975. However I think the lining is still reasonable and I like the overall bleached look of the black plastic which reminds me of the tired paintwork of the prototypes at the end of their working life in the 1960s.

Bachmann Compound showing front bogie spring


How does the performance of the models compare. Well before any comparison is attempted it is worth removing the front bogie spring from the Bachmann compound. The bogie is held on with a single screw into the metal chassis block. Removing the spring makes a big difference to haulage capacity on the gradients on my layout.



I have loaded another short video to YouTube showing both the Mainline 2P and the Bachmann Compound in action. I would say the tender drive on the 2P still has the edge over the engine drive of the compound. Not bad for a 40 year old model. Why did it take me so long to sort out the quartering?

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