Brass Part I: The Basics

by Bruce Bloch

So ... You’ve been bitten by the brass bug and have decided that you can no longer live with the xyz locomotive. You’ve heard the Call of the Brass. Welcome the BRASS DISEASE! In this series of articles, we will learn about buying brass imports. This issue discusses some basic concepts of buying a brass model. Some of the topics in future issues include:

Quality, Accuracy, and Value

When you’re thinking about buying a particular model, you must understand that the model may have manufacturing flaws or even be incorrect relative to the prototype. Brass imports are not only models, but are also investments that, if incorrect or materially flawed, may not increase in value. They may even decrease! Before paying hard-earned cash for that locomotive, you should examine it for both operation and accuracy. Be concerned if there are problems such as misplaced number boards, an oversized or undersized boiler, or an incorrect paint job. At one time or another, almost every brass importer and builder has released a model with these and other equally serious flaws.

Although the importer does not build the model, the importer is responsible for ensuring the model is correct. Almost every importer has messed up at least once. For example, there was an advertisement several years ago for a factory-painted model with a paint scheme that never existed in the prototype!

Generally, brass models have been improving in both operation and detail; but, alas, they have also become much more expensive. Suppose you’re buying a brass GS4. You have to decide what you want:

Also, the current Korean models have far more detail and operate many times better than even the best Japanese models of the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, but they cost much more.

Importers and Manufacturers

Some importers seem to use particular builders, but not always. For example, since the early 1980’s, Overland Models has used the Korean builder Ajin almost exclusively. Samhongsa, on the other hand, has build models for a variety of importers including PFM and Westside in the middle 1970’s and Key Imports, W & R, Oriental Limited, and others since the late 1970’s. Precision Scale has been importing brass models since the late 1970’s from a variety of builders, some of which are no longer in business.

In almost every case, the builders and importers have gone through a learning curve in which their products have improved over time. Today’s Samhongsa 4-8-4 steam locomotive is much better than a similar Samhongsa 4-8-4 from the late 1970’s. Of course, it costs three times as much. As a buyer, you have to make your own decision. In this article we’ve looked at some important considerations in buying a brass model: