The prototype
Replacing elderly low powered 0-6-0 locomotives was a task the LMS gave to the designer George Ivatt. He came up with a 2-6-0 design that had a 3000 gallon tender with 4 ton coal capacity. 128 2MT’s were built between 1946 and 1953. The LMS made 20 and BR then took up construction. The 2MT was a good general workhorse and seen mostly in the North and on the Western region. Some ran till the end of steam and there are seven in preservation.
The model – Bachmann Ivatt 2MT Steam Locomotive
The Bachmann Ivatt 2MT Steam Locomotive model has been around for 10 years or so. There have been various versions, with LMS black and BR green being two. So is the model any good?
The main numbering for this model is below. As of 2019 this model is still in the Bachmann range with an RRP of £144.95. The rather low-res service sheet is here.
- 32-826/ A, BR lined black
- 32-827, 32-830 / A, LMS black – sells for £80 – £100.
- 32-825 BR green
If any of the links above are out of date, let me know in the comments.
This is quite a weighty model. The livery is done to a high standard with excellent lining and crisp lettering. Hand rails are separately fitted. There is also some very fine printing. The smoke box door is not of the opening type but has some separate components.
The buffers are made of metal and sprung.
The safety valves and whistle are made of metal
Additionally, there is flush glazing and some rivet detail on the cab.
Cab detail is sparse with only the hand wheels painted. The pipework is black and there is no gauge detail.
The valve gear and linkages are spectacular but fragile. They look amazing when running.
The tender has a lot of detail and strange protuberances! The coal load is a bit shinny. However the tender has glazed windows. The brake rigging is available in the provided detail pack. Additionally, There is a lot of separately fitted detail on the back of the tender. Lamp irons and tiny signage make this a fine model.
Running and issues
Now to the issues! There is a really ugly wire that goes to the tender. The wire is present because the DCC decoder PCB is in the tender. A big issue is that there are no tender pickups. These can be fitted as shown below. However at this price range they should already be there. The motor is a bit noisy and tends to grind.
The mechanism is not the greatest with a three pole motor. However running is OK.
Summary
Overall, the detail is good, the mechanism not so good and the lack of tender pickups disappointing. Get a pre- owned model, give it a service and this model is a good addition to any mid century layout.
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