News from the Summerlands Chuffer Team
Chuffer for Accucraft Rheidol
Thanks to help from Dave Mees and David Fletcher, we have a Summerlands Chuffer for the new, 16mm Rheidol. This will be a simple, push fit on to the existing exhaust and tests show that it gives a good chuff and keeps the loco so much cleaner!
New Chuffer for Accucraft 13 Ton Shay and Mabel on hold
The Chuffers for the 13 Ton Shay (SCAC56) and Mabel (SCAC54) are on temporary hold as the Summerlands prototypes proved unsuitable for the early production models due to burner breathing difficulties. I understand and that later batches of the locos have been modified at the factory, so I am optimistic that a Chuffer will be possible for both loco types. I will release them as soon as I have had confirmation from a test.
New Chuffers for 7/8ths Diana and Gauge One 43xx
The SCAC53 is now available to order for the Accucraft 7/8ths Diana and the SCAC55 is availablefor the Gauge One 43xx Mogul, thanks to help from fellow enthusiasts who supplied the measurements.
Chuffer for the Accucraft Lawley 4-4-0
Thanks to help from Dave Mees at Abbey Bach Locomotive Works, we have a SCAC52 for this fine loco. It is an easy fit and will keep it so much cleaner!
Accucraft Peckett
I have had a number of enquiries about a Chuffer for the new Peckett but sadly we are not able to list a version for this loco. Although it has pretty much the same chimney and smkebox dimensions as the Large Quarry Hunslet ((see below), Accucraft are concerned that a Chuffer up the chimney might cause overheating in this particular loco, where the “blast pipe” type exhaust helpos to draw the heat away. I have also had reports of variations where the exhaust fitting is at an angle, of offset under the chimney which makes fitting more of a challenge.
The Garden Railway Club
About a year ago, Google decided to pull the plug on the Garden Railway Club that a number of us had created as a free resource for the hobby. Thanks to some very clever fellow enthusiasts, this contest has been saved – though it cannot be updated. I now have the links from this site to the garden Railway Club working and am working through the long project list to add them. You can either click the links or go to Gardenrailwayclub.co.uk which will take you to its new home. The contents are listed down the left hand side and there is lots to read if you have spare time.
Chuffer for Accucraft 16mm Large Quarry Hunslet
The slimmest Summerlands Chuffer ever, at under 3mm diameter has been developed for this new Large Quarry Hunslet with its tiny chimney. The SCAC51 really does the business – keeping the loco so much cleaner and adding a pleasant chuff. I must thank Peter Ingall for twisting my arm to design it, and both Dave Mees and Ian Pierce for testing and approving it.
Chuffer for Bowande 16mm Quarry Hunslet
Using the same 3mm Chuffer body that works so well in the Accucraft Large Quarry Hunslet, I was able to design one for the new Bowande locos. The SCBW2 was tested for me by John Sowerby – so a big thank you to him!
Chuffers for Accucraft Sabrina & Talgarth
Sadly these generic locos from Accucraft UK have been discontinued. If you do need a Chuffer for one, please remember that the SCAC2 used for Ragleth etc. will not work properly. The correct Chuffer for both locos is the SCAC50
Chuffer for Dolgoch and Talyllyn
The beautiful Accucraft Dolgoch now has a Chuffer – the SCAC49. It is a slim version for the narrow chimney but still gives a good chuff! I believe that it is also fine for the Accucraft Talyllyn, but please check with me at summerlandschuffer@gmail.com and we can check the measurements.
Free Chuffer Design Service
Since the first Summerlands Chuffer in 2009, I have offered a free design service for new, unusual or scratchbuilt locos. In the past month I have done four new ones and always enjoy the challenge. Do get in touch if you would like me to look at your loco – I will need some measurements and photos, but there is no committment until you are happy.
Chuffer Advertising
Each quarter, for the past fourteen years, I have been producing an ad for 16mm Today featuring photos from my railway with caricature figures from Rob Bennett’s Busybodies and ones supplied by Si Harris at Model Earth Design.
Here are some recent ones:
A few years ago I ran one which said “Size Matters” because when it comes to Chuffer design, it really does. Browsing through my old photos I came upon this one of my little Mamod and, of course, when it comes to loco size, it doesn’t matter. Provided that there is enough space in the chimney, we can do it – just look at the new 16mm Quarry Hunslet Chuffers!
And I used the same message in November 2023, but this time with the large 7/8ths Edrig conversion!
And below are some more recent ones:
This page will give all the latest news and tips about Summerlands Chuffers.
Last Autumn, the old website was frozen by the service provider and although it still works, it cannot be updated or edited in any way. My difficulty was finding a website software that could create something similar – and I confess that after struggling a few times, I lost the will!
At this point Scott Yates came on the scene and has saved the day. A professional IT man, he was creating a new website for the Weymouth & District Model Engineering Society, when he realised that it would be perfect for us too (Nigel and I are both members). He spent some hours replicating our old page style and made it look better. Then he taught me the works and even did the swap over – so a big thank you Scott!