Well a good "build manual" is available in the form of Bill Hughes' book which gives a lot of guidance on how to tackle the more complex items.

The majority of parts are still available from Reeves though I think one or two you will have to find an alternative source for if they are not already in the set of bits that the chap has.

The good thing with a traction engine is it has some fairly basic parts as well as complicated ones so you could start with the easy bits and as you get a feel for things move onto the more involved parts. Most people tend to start with the front axle, perch bracket and then the front wheels.

You should be able to go through the list of items available from reeves to get a total and then compare that to what the guy is asking.

One othert thing, what do you want out of the traction engine? if its the enjoyment of the making and occasional running on a good surface then the Alchin in that scale is great. On the other hand if you want to be running around the rally fields then a larger engine would be a lot more practical They vary in size so I don't like to quote a scale but 12" rear wheels as a very minimum 18" plus much better

J

Yes it would pull you no problem on level tarmac and your son too provided you get it finished before he turns 18

This is Bill Hughes, photo taken from the book. The engine drivers hat is optional

Tempting though it is to start on the traction engine you have quite a bit to learn and family commitments absorbing time. I recommend looking at "16mm railways" which are very child friendly and you can make electric locos which are safe for a small boy to operate. They can even be made from Lego while you tackle the real steam one. There is a design called Idris being serialised in Model Engineer and a thread on the forum too.