{"product_id":"3-12-inch-gauge-slip-eccentric-tich-stock-code-2230","title":"3 1\/2 inch gauge slip eccentric Tich","description":"\u003cp align=\"left\"\u003eWhen I was a young lad my parents' next door neighbour had a  Tich. An RAF officer, to me as a nine year old he was a rather intimidating  figure so I watched the engine from afar. From my bedroom window I could see it  through his landing window which was, unfortunately, glazed in a slightly obscured  glass - I used to screw up my eyes in a vain attempt to focus the green shape  into a recognisable engine. I would probably never have got any closer to it had  my parents not thrown a party, to which the neighbour was invited. My  father let it be known that I was interested in engines whereupon an entirely  unseen side to the man emerged, as he spent the rest of the evening drawing with  a soft pencil on my parents' white formica kitchen worktops. He showed me how a  regulator was made, how slide valves worked, what the boiler looked like inside  - and invited me round the following morning to see the engine. At nine years  old, it changed my life!  \u003c\/p\u003e    \u003cp align=\"left\"\u003eTich was a great idea of LBSC's and I'm sure he imagined that  the country would be awash with pretty little engines gamely zipping round club  tracks conveying happy builders and their sons around for the cost of two ounces  of coal and about a square foot of copper sheet. I've no idea how many have been  built - thousands - and that can only be a tiny proportion of those started. I  remember talking to one of the big suppliers at a show some years ago who was  still having Tich wheels cast in batches of 6000!  \u003c\/p\u003e    \u003cp align=\"left\"\u003eUnfortunately, although a super little design, there was little  margin for error in making up and fitting. Many of the engines I see are  commendable beginners efforts, but largely display pieces (to put it kindly).  \u003c\/p\u003e    \u003cp align=\"left\"\u003eThis engine is, I feel, exactly what the master had in mind when  he sat down at the drawing board in 1948. It has been built with no frills - it  uses dead reliable and efficient slip eccentric valve gear - but has been  well-machined and fitted. It looks, to my eyes, just right and, more  importantly, goes really well. It has a superheated copper boiler, axle pump and  hand pump in the side tank. One tank is missing a top and there is no pump  handle, other than that the engine is complete and raring to go!  \u003c\/p\u003e    \u003cp align=\"left\"\u003eLength 15 inches\u003cbr\u003e  Weight approx 30 pounds  \u003c\/p\u003e    \u003cp align=\"center\"\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Station Road Steam","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54019798270293,"sku":"2230","price":850.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1023\/0094\/2677\/files\/2230-1.webp?v=1779907334","url":"https:\/\/stationroadsteam.com\/products\/3-12-inch-gauge-slip-eccentric-tich-stock-code-2230","provider":"Station Road Steam","version":"1.0","type":"link"}