Hi Phil, Is that a 'Britannia' if so is a scratch built or a Winson/Modelworks one? Looking at your location what club are you in? I also have a 5" Brit which is a much modified Winson kit she a perfect runner and given me hours of joy.
John It's beyond me how you work on a 71/4 Gauge my loco's are heavy lumps when I need to work on them and I dread to think of the cost of that boiler 
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I agree she is a bit of a lump. Thats why you can see Gerry George and Tony Burrell laughing. They helped me get it out of the basement for a show , and they're laughing wondering how I'm going to get it back down without them. (They did come to the rescue ...bless them).
I normally work in 1" or 3/4" scale, but some of the castings for this loco came available at a good price. Having spent many hours on the platforms of Didcot, Newbury, Oxford and Paddington watching these majestic machines roll through I couldn't pass up the opportunity to build a model of one.
The cost of the boiler ........best not talked about........I'm trying to forget that part. I didn't have the facilities to build such a large boiler, so had to have it made. Swindon was the best choice. Its interesting, the boiler is stamped and certified to British standards, but that doesn't mean anything here. It certainly should be certified here, but we don't have any regulations for copper boilers.
John
