The Unofficial Mamod and Other Steam Forum

igy569 · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 5:03 am Post subject: New Wilesco Quality

I wanted to see how many of you have purchased new Wilescos, and found the quality abit.... shall we say..... lacking?

I finally took apart the D21 today. There have been several things that have been bugging me from the first day I took it out oof the box. First off, the pump did not work. I seem to figured out how to make it work by switching the little valve oins around, and adding a pen spring to the main pump chamber, or the little valve pin would pop out and get stuck. Real pain in the butt. Remeber, I am new to this, just an avid hobbiest. (I did own a hobby shop for a period of time tho....)
Anyhoo... Today I removed the boiler, had to for the design of the meths burner anyway. But the front of it was never attached to the pin in hte front, so the boiler moved. The lines were poorly bent, so they were crooked, and did not fit right., and the feed line from the pump started to leak from the lousy soldering job. The stupid esbit tray has nevr fit right, one of the 4 tabs was never made right. Must not forget, the governor belt flies off with some regularity, and the flywheel wobbles. (not real bad). Running at high speen, this baby will walk itself right off the table. I use a c clamp. So I have it all apart, and I amm going to fixx all of these issues, cause I still LOVE this engine, what great power, and I really hope I can make a go of the meths burner. I would go gas, but I just do not have the dough to buy the right parts The esbit stinks, and is messy. I got aquainted with its ability to explode, set my shirt on fire!

Then a little later the gasket on the 76's whistle leaked, and when water hit that stuff.....WOW!!!

Holy **** batman!!!
The final of all this, my 1961 D12 is splendid. Nice finish, came aprt for cleaning very easily, went right back together. Fit and finish is much better than my 21.
Thats my rant! (sorry for the typos, I am using my laptop, and this keyboard is too dang small!!

Wallace · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 5:08 am Post subject:

Sorry to hear it.

I don't own a Wilesco, but you certainly aren't the only one that has had troubles.

I've heard of similar troubles as yours, and to add, 2 or 3 instances of the steam line coming out of the boiler.
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tmuir · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 7:21 am Post subject:

I think it goes without saying that pretty much all modern toy steam engines (except Steamco) are a bit on the average side when it comes to build quality. I guess they don't sell as many now so have to make them cheaper to stay in business.
I don't own a modern Wilesco but have looked at many in the shops and I would agree modern Wilescos are a bit tinny for me.
I like my old Australian ones with cast iron bases.

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steamyman · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 7:39 am Post subject:

Don't forget our friends in the US of A- Jensens are GREAT build quality.

now where's my FREE 51

Mamodman123 · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 9:30 am Post subject:

Things just aren't built like they used to be, that goes for everything really....

Sad but true
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tmuir · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 9:34 am Post subject:

MooseMan · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 10:22 am Post subject:

My 1978 D45 is a thing of beauty and it runs as well as the day it was made, but I wouldn't touch modern Wilesco with a 10-foot bargepole. Same for modern Mamod. I have no experience with Steamco, but I agree that Jensen are the only Toy Steam company who never compromise on quality.
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johnreid · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 11:49 am Post subject:

If you can find one with the Gray base, you know it will be of a good build quality. The newer ones dont seem to be of near the quality.
As Clinton said, the Jensens are built like Tanks, plus, I think that the current staff at Jeanette are working to make the Cosmetics nicer too.
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toxx · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 11:57 am Post subject:

... yep, I must agree there. Both modern Wilescos and Mamods are partially horribly down-scaled when it comes to quality. But, on the other hand, we should be glad they're still in business. I own a "new" D455, which was purchased by a friend in 2000 and never used. I made my "Crematory" out of it, and it's just fine. The only real new engine I have is a Jensen #85. The only thing tatty with it is the burner tray. Otherwise it's a great little machine.
Oh! You might want to check out Reid's posts on his D21: He practically dismantled the whole thing and rebuilt it.

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TRAPPERKEEPER · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 6:25 pm Post subject:

Reid's videos were crucial to the rehab of the D21 I got off ebay a month ago. The pump was also broken, but that was due to the previous owner taking it apart, leaving parts out and losing the spring

But one of Reid's videos happened to be all about putting the pump back together right

The catalog that came with it said 1996 on it, so I don't know if it counts as modern, but it has had no other flaws whatsoever, runs like a champ and everything checks out. The pressure gauge doesn't read, but with the previous owners habit dismantling of tricky things I wouldn't be surprised if he broke it too

igy569 · Posted: Sat May 10, 2008 6:41 pm Post subject:

I saw some of the stuff Reid did, that is part of what made me decide to take it apart. But I do like the firebox the way it is. I am not going to go as radical with the bearing upgrades right now. Fortunatly, the engine runs great, so I am going to leave it alone for now. I would like a better oiler tho. How does the displacement oiler work? And is it something I can make, or buy? I am working on a larger scale project involving the 21. I can assure you all, the members of this forum will be the first to see and hear about it. This is the first place I posted the pics of the meths burner I just finished testing a few minutes ago. I took pictures, and here I am!!!

And oh yeah.. my pump on the 21 came brand new missing parts and not working!!!

psantama · Junior Member Joined: 18 Sep 2007 Posts: 105

I have owned a few wilescos now and the older, the better... no question in my mind

Mister Occlusion · Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 1:57 am Post subject:

the only old Wilesco I have is a D6 from the early 80's (I think), and an older Roller

I have 4 modern ones, and they all have their little issues. The D22 has a bit of a wobble in the flywheel and the steam line does not fit into the groove in the gantry, which it rubs on. There's also much play in the regulator due to the loose fit of the plastic knob.

The D455 has a bit of a wobble in the wheel too and has those new plastic valves - though on the plus side those do not work loose and seem to seal just fine.

The D18 I picked up... Actually I have no real complaints with that one other than not particularly liking the idea of the pot metal con rod and crank; it is what it is, and what it is is a pretty nice little toy.

The T90 turbine component is made of plastic and the feet on mine have stress cracks. Could have been designed better, but then it's also a fraction of the cost of a Jensen 95G: you get what you pay for (which is not necessarily a bad jab at Wilesco, because you do get a fair bit for your money).

Of course if I were shopping new retail instead of NOS or close-to-wholesale on ebay, it would be a different story. I would never pay ministeam's or yesteryear's price for a D22, for example. That's getting a bit too dear.
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Nick · Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 2:02 am Post subject:

The only Wilesco I own is a D24. It is an older, gray-base model.

It runs very smooth (no wobble with the flywheel) and it will run on very low pressure.

One feature I really like is the esbit burner, especially after I found out you can adjust the flame with it.

I do not plan to buy a newer model, and the only reason I picked this one up, was the price was too good.

If I do get a newer model, it will be the traction engine.

toxx · Posted: Tue May 13, 2008 1:37 pm Post subject:

... I've got an D24el. One helluva brute. Blue base, I'd put her 1985ish. Quality is tough and heavy. Sounds like a small tractor going off!

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... keine Wunder sind vollbracht.
No miracles ... yet.