Review in Gazette Vol 20 Issue 12
Review of Minerva Models Manning Wardle Class K
Purchased and reviewed by Geoff Goddin
- 0-6-0 tank, RTR DCC with sound
- PO Box 244, Penarth, CF64 9FJ
- Tel: 02920 531246 or 07775 782086
- Email: sales@minervamodelrailways.co.uk
- Price: £380 plus postage, other versions available from £255
When I first joined the Guild in the 1980s the first loco kit I built was a Manning Wardle class K. It was a Slaters kit complete except for coal, crew, lamp and livery and cost me £99 at a Guild show in Sheffield. With a coreless motor and skew drive gearbox it still runs sweetly and has even visited Twickenham club's 'Addison Road' for an outing with LSWR stock. Yes I know the South Western's MW's, Jumbo, Sambo and Lady Portsmouth, were actually 'old class I' with a six inch shorter firebox requiring a 4ft 10in rather than 5ft 4in rear wheelbase, but after doctoring Tri-ang/Hornby M7s and suchlike in OO, the K was good enough for me.
Returning to O gauge ten years ago, this time with enough space for a modest layout, I decided with Lionheart and Dapol possibilities to go DCC, so my MW would require a decoder and even a speaker …eventually, but then Minerva announced its class K with DCC, the subject of this review. My original MW will now remain analogue for club layout outings but makes for an interesting comparison with Minerva's, as will be clear from the photos that accompany this review.
MWs compared. Minerva to the front with Geoff's Slaters kit behind.
The Minerva version comes safely packed in shaped foam inside two boxes. Minerva separately supply clack valves and cab steps, and you can if you wish to mistreat your crew change the up-and-over spartan cab for more meagre weatherboards; there is also a set of tools. The model weighs 470 grams, less than the Dapol Terriers at 500g, the prototype similarly weighs less, around three to four tons. I reckon on roughly a kilo being equivalent to 50 scale tons, however interestingly I find the Minerva MW can pull the same goods train weights, say seven 200g wagons, as the Terrier. The actual weight of the class K MW is 16tons 11cwt (according to the Colonel Stephens Society), so the Minerva model is generously weighted for the prototype, and my Slaters kit, despite being all metal, is 350g. The loco easily manages my Peco R2 1028mm radius curves, in fact it will run on three foot radius curves or less. In the 1980s my 'test track' consisted of a four foot diameter circle of Rivarossi track which my tiny MW coped with. Livery lining and cab detail considerably out perform my kit version as can be seen, though maybe the coal could be 'roughed up'. The Ks were constructed from 1864 to 1914. The Minerva version would appear to be a late 19th century build with conventional smokebox door and brass valve cover, my kit build is much earlier, with the E.B.Wilson fluted valve cover and 'D' smokebox door, and my Adams stovepipe chimney is pure South Westernry. A code supplied with the Minerva model gets you a 30% discount on Narrow Planet etched brass name and worksplates, and Claudia Everett offers a choice of beautifully painted Modelu crews for £22 the pair. I've waited a month and both have yet to arrive with me, probably because non-DCC buyers got a head start on ordering.
The Minerva Manning Wardle on Peco second radius curved track.
Turning to the sounds, F2 provides 'Realdrive' braking control when you 'shut off steam' to stop you coasting into the buffers. F5 provides a reversing lever effect cutting back the exhaust bark when on the move. You can even alter a control variable (CV265) giving a choice between having your loco sounding 'newly serviced' or 'clapped out', perhaps useful if you over-do the weathering. I initially found the wheel revolutions slightly faster than the 'chuffs' and Minerva advised me to alter CV267, which I did from 110 to 102. I also found overall sound slightly quiet compared to my Terriers. Minerva cautions that given the necessarily small speaker fitted, volume increases (CV266) should be modest, so I raised it slightly. This little loco can shunt and move incredibly slowly, making the most of my small layout space.
A final view of the Minerva Manning Wardle tank.
Dimensionally both locos match, I hope correctly, and allowing for the changed value of pounds sterling over 30+ years, unless you really must have an E.B.Wilson valve tower, the Minerva model is unbeatable value, and captivating to regard. I'm sure many layouts will find work for them. If you wish to customise your own class K, S&D Models make 7mm whitemetal kits for both class I and K versions, and they sell the cast chimney, valve cover, etc variants separately.
Those seeking further information might appreciate an article on class K Aldwyth, as preserved in Leeds, in MRJ Compendium 1, published by Wild Swan. It's also worth noting that class K Sharpthorn is preserved on the Bluebell Railway in Sussex and that LSWR class I details can be found in LSWR locomotives-Adams classes, Wild Swan 1985.
Finally, one last comment. As a constituency rep travelling round my Wessex area clubs, my accompanying kit built Manning Wardle hopefully gains me some kudos for modelling rather than box-buying abilities.
