The Garratt Locomotive
Miniature Garratt Locomotives
I have defined these as any live steam example that can pull at least one person. They may be professionally built but the majority are built by "model engineers".
At present I am utilising a selection of photographs found on the internet. Unfortunately I didn't originally collect them for use so I have little or no information about "who", "what" or "where". I hope eventually to be able to fill in the missing details and give credit to the relevant parties.
To be added when I get usable photographs (that is both quality wise and legally!) :
The other one of Kitson built pair of 2-6-0+0-6-2's for the Surrey Border & Camberley railway, which is apparently in Australia
Ceylon Government Railway 2-4-0+0-4-2 (5" gauge?) Casino Mini Rail - Australia
9½" gauge GCA which exists in South Africa (there are others I know about there as well but don't have pictures of or information)
A Spanish 2-8-2+2-8-2 in 5" gauge sold recently - (apparently built in Switzerland?) - looks like it's back on the Market again
Station Road Steam www.stationroadsteam.co.uk/stock pages/4957/index.htm
(Link broken by December 2023. RD)
I've seen documentary evidence that two Mayumbe 0-4-0+0-4-0's (see picture down this page) were planned/commenced - did the second ever happen?
and any others that I find, am told about, etc
Do not expect any logic to the way this section is laid out - I'll be adding examples as and when I find them!
Found the negative at last, This the other 7¼" gauge EAR 59 class, giesel fitted, it is owned by the NRM and was pictured (with difficulty) on it's transport frame on Display at York in 1987 (?built by Milner Engineering) (Photo Gavin Hamilton)
Currently it is displayed at MOSI on loan from York.
"Norfolk Hero" 10¼" gauge, Norfolk, England. Built by Neil Simkins - the second "Edith Cavell - Norfolk Heroine" has been completed by Richard Coleby and is pictured below
The new "Norfolk Heroine" with Cmdr. Roy Francis in the cab (photo Ian J. Williams)
Built by the Bush Mill Railway, Tasmania, 15" gauge. K1 replica. It has been sold and is now on the Perrygrove Railway near Coleford in the Forest of Dean
A 7¼" gauge K1 built by John Milner and owned by Tony Marris. This is resident on a private railway in England (picture found on the internet - additional details Trevor Heath)
Found on a "For Sale" site, an excellent model of a Rhodesia Railways 14A class. 5" gauge - unfortunately it had been sold! Update, I've heard from the new owner - hopefully there'll be some more pictures in the not too distant future.
Trevor Heath ( Live Steaming ) is building a 7¼" gauge NSWGR AD60 (more pictures) (Trevor Heath)
Eastleigh Lakeside Steam Railway
http://www.steamtrain.co.uk/index.htm
(Link broken by September 2025)
7¼" gauge 0-4-0+0-4-0 based upon a locomotive supplied by St. Leonard the C. F. Vicinaux du Mayumbe (Congo) in 1913 (Eastleigh Lakeside Steam Railway)
A fine 7¼" gauge 2-6-0+0-6-0 (due to builders trailer length) built by Harold Sinclair, (and completed by Paul Newton owing to ill health), in New Zealand (Trevor Heath)
Bob Farquhar, The North East and Pacific Coast Tramway, in Australia has built this freelance 0-4-0+0-4-0, based on the Mayumbe locos, in 5" gauge.(Trevor Heath)
Richard Stuart has built this 7¼" gauge 2-4-0+0-4-2 in Australia. Follow this link for more details(Russell Dunn via Trevor Heath).
Peter Stedman of the Malden & District Society of Model Engineers has built this 7¼" gauge model of "William Francis". Click here for more details. (M&DSME)
Moors Valley Railway 7¼" gauge 2-4-0+0-4-2 "William Rufus" in action (Moors Valley Railway).
The End of the World Railway, Tierra del
Fuego, had this 500mm gauge "miniature K1" built in Argentina. The gentleman visible is
Ing. L.D. Porta (Martin Bane Collection).
This is the result of a very radical rebuild carried out on the miniature K1.
(Martyn Bane)
Trevor Heath driving the coal fired 7¼" gauge 5928, built by Coleby/Simkins in 1975 and which is privately
owned, on the Weston Park Miniature Railway (Trevor Heath)
A freelance 5" gauge 4-6-4+4-6-4 built by Bob Brown of Adelaide, South Australia (3100 hours work between 1973 and 1985) (John Lyas photo via Trevor Heath).
Rhodesia Railways 20th Class, 3½" gauge. Built by Jan Kouwen in 5 years
This is 2½" gauge, built by Peter Wardle.
2½" gauge, .7" scale South Australian 400 class. Built by Bob Brown of Adelaide, pictured in 1973. (John Lyas)
5" gauge, 1.5" scale Australian Portland Cement 2-6-0+0-6-2. Built by Keith Bradford of the Adelaide Miniature Steam Railway Society (as is Bob Brown). (John Lyas)
Hard to believe that this a 3.5"gauge, 1" scale GMAM 4-8-2+2-8-4. Built by Graham Armstrong of Johannesburg. Picture courtesy of Roly Chapple (who is building a 3.5" gauge/1" scale GEA)
2½" gauge K1 homebuilt but now owned by the West Riding Small Locomotives Society near Leeds UK. (courtesy Johannes Grabsch)
104mm gauge(?) incomplete 231-132BT Algerian Garratt. Being built by Lucien
Mothu, he was unable to complete it before he died in 2000. His family donated his models and tools to the l'Écomusée du
Creusot, Borgogne, France.
(thanks to Rene Vink for the tip)
A 3.5" gauge (1" scale) South African Railways class GF built by Brian Armstrong (brother of Graham Armstrong who built the GMAM above) (Picture Roly
Chapple)
A 3.5" gauge 2-8-0+0-8-2 in the style of East African Railways at the Canterbury Society of Model and Experimental Engineers, New Zealand (picture courtesy
CSMEE)
Michael Guy of Toronto link,, is building a freelance 7¼" gauge 2-4-0+0-4-2 (picture Michael Guy)
One of the two 10¼" gauge Garratts originally built in 1938 by Kitsons - this was 4012 - for the Surrey Border & Camberley Railway. As built it had a low cab & chimney but was rebuilt to this outline about 1963. It is now owned by the Royal Victoria Railway after a varied history post 1940 (Royal Victoria Railway via Christopher
Allenby)
A 2.5" gauge freelance 2-6-2+2-6-2 built by father & son team A. W. & W. Tucker in about 1939. It Was featured in the July 17th, 1941 edition of The Model Engineer. (J. A. Smith,
Failsworth/The Model Engineer - G. Hamilton collection)
A 7.25" gauge 0-6-0+0-6-0 seen at the 7.25 Gauge Society AGM 2006 in North Wales - based on the Buthidaung-Maungdaw Tramway type, anyone know any more? (Trevor Heath)
The heading says it all! An interesting piece of work from Newcastle, NSW, Australia. (Russell Dunn via Trevor Heath)
1.5" scale, 5" gauge South African Railways class GB. Built by Fred Same when he lived in South Africa but pictured a few years ago at the Richmond
Hill Live Steamers track near Toronto, Canada. (Bruce R. Ward)
Additional information from Les Wood - "The locomotive is 1/8 th scale. Two identical locomotives (numbered 2166 and 1650) were built in
South Africa jointly by Les Wood and Fred Sarne of Johannesburg, South Africa over 13 years 1978-1991. They are exact scale and based
upon more than 150 original Beyer Peacock drawings. Fred Sarne emigrated to Canada on 1993 were he subsequently died and the whereabouts
of his locomotive are unknown to me. My locomotive is regularly driven on the mile long track of the Rand Society of Model Engineers
located at Roodepoort near Johannesburg."
3.5" gauge freelance photographed at the Johannesburg Live Steamers in 1971. (Bruce R. Ward)
7.25" gauge Leopoldina Railway 2-4-2+2-4-2 at the Wagga Wagga Society of Model Engineers track in Australia. (John Cummings via Bruce R. Ward used with permission)
7.5" gauge freelance 2-4-0+0-4-2 owned by John Baker of Morrow, Ohio. (picture via Trevor Heath used with permission)
3.5" gauge freelance 0-4-0+0-4-0 built by built by Maxitrak, in the style of C. F. Vicinaux du Mayumbe (Congo)
5" gauge SAR GEA 4-8-2+2-8-4 Rob Steiger on his track Albert Falls Miniture Railway(Courtesy Gary Barnes)
