Hornby Star Class

[lofty1966]

Minor mod but major improvement

Edited May 15, 2018 by lofty1966

[OnTheBranchline]

Should the grey plates on the cylinders be grey or black?

[Ian Hargrave]

Should the grey plates on the cylinders be grey or black?

 

If you mean the silvered look which is a hangover from the Steam Lode Star then no it is not .Looks nice but is a fiction I'm afraid.However don't let that put you off.It is the best of the Stars to date and the green though not quite there yet is a definite improvement.

[Edwardian]

Simon Kohler was RMweb's darling at one time and not even 'design clever' dented his popularity. Life's a chuckle a minute on here.

 

Hornby did become a bit like "the Simon Kohler Show" at one point.

 

The only time I ever met him, to be fair, he was about to leave Hornby and was no doubt de-mob happy and had no doubt had a busy day explaining to punters at STEAM that, no, they could not collect their limited edition Star as it was still not ready and, yes, that moulded-on cab-side hand rail on the sample would be on the production model, and, no, he hadn't a clue how many spokes there were supposed to be on the bogie wheels ....   

 

Nevertheless, having been present for a couple of conversations and snatching a brief word myself, I was surprised at how little he knew, or, apparently cared, about the subject of Hornby's models, which made him an odd choice for a subsequent job with a museum commissioner. 

 

Presumably he did whatever Hornby needed most at the time, no doubt successfully, but now both he, and Hornby, have moved on.  It would be ironic to say the least if Hornby failed just at the point at which Hornby is becoming something of a beacon of accuracy, producing  honest models with a high degree of prototype fidelity, well-built and reasonably priced.  That is not to suggest perfection is always achieved, but Hornby outclasses by a Country Mile one or two of the much vaunted Johnny Come Latelys that spring to mind as consistently disappointing.  

[coachmann]

Presumably he did whatever Hornby needed most at the time, no doubt successfully, but now both he, and Hornby, have moved on.  It would be ironic to say the least if Hornby failed just at the point at which Hornby is becoming something of a beacon of accuracy, producing  honest models with a high degree of prototype fidelity, well-built and reasonably priced.  That is not to suggest perfection is always achieved, but Hornby outclasses by a Country Mile one or two of the much vaunted Johnny Come Latelys that spring to mind as consistently disappointing.  

I have good reason to believe Hornby is serious about upping it's game in both model and colour departments. Things just take time to happen. 

[MatthewCarty]

Can anyone confirm whether the latest model R3455 'Knight of St Patrick' has got brass bearings on the axles?

 

Many thanks.

[C.A.T.Ford]

\QXC

Sorry about this my cat wandered acrosswwwwwe]# (just did it again) the keyboard. You may judge for yourselves if he has made a contribution to the thread.

 

Personally I think he was supplied without intelligence perhaps I should send him back?

 

CAT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

s-0 

Edited September 27, 2017 by C.A.T.Ford

[Gordieb01]

Thanks to Neil Dimmer on the GWR E-list for sharing these 'Knight' photos for those who recently purchased St Pat from Hornby.

 

https://railway-photography.smugmug.com/GWRSteam-1/Churchward-Locomotives/Churchward-Assorted/Churchward-4000-Star-Class/40114020-Knight-Series/i-Dsq9wWf/A

 

I've just re read Adrian Vaughan's book "Signalmans Morning".  He recalls that 4014 "Knight of the Bath" was known by railwaymen as "Friday Night"  LOL.

[Coppercap]

I've just re read Adrian Vaughan's book "Signalmans Morning".  He recalls that 4014 "Knight of the Bath" was known by railwaymen as "Friday Night"  LOL.

Yes, it seems so, and I think you'll find that name for 4014 has been quoted in numerous other publications, before and since...

[GWR8700]

I've accidentally knocked the whistles off my Lode Star model near the cab.  What are the most accurate whistles for this engine as I can see Markitsand Modelu have a range of different ones available?

Edited November 12, 2017 by GWR8700

[rgmichel]

I've accidentally knocked the whistles off my Lode Star model near the cab. 

 

I did this on Lode Star when it first came out.  The whistles are too delicate, and made of plastic.  

[GWR8700]

I did this on Lode Star when it first came out.  The whistles are too delicate, and made of plastic.  

This has happened a few times on my Hornby locomotives, never on one of my Bachmann's which are more robust.  I've had this particular loco upside down in a foam cradle quite a lot which only increases the risk of damage.  Do you know what appropriate whistles should be fitted to this loco without a whistle shield?

Edited November 14, 2017 by GWR8700

[OnTheBranchline]

I did this on Lode Star when it first came out.  The whistles are too delicate, and made of plastic.  

 

Or one could be more careful with the 100 quid model.

[gwrrob]

Finally have 4012 Knight of the Thistle five and a half years after starting this thread. Everything comes to those who wait.

 

[Ozexpatriate]

Finally have 4012 Knight of the Thistle five and a half years after starting this thread.

Robin, if you don't mind me asking, how was the QA? Is everything seated correctly? Is the fall plate flat? How many spokes are there on the pilot wheels?

[gwrrob]

Robin, if you don't mind me asking, how was the QA? Is everything seated correctly? Is the fall plate flat? How many spokes are there on the pilot wheels?

 

Hi Oz. Not too bad apart from no hook on the front bufferbeam in the accessory pack and the wrong bogie wheels fitted again. I contacted Hornby customer services and they sent a replacement bogie [castle] free of charge. I've also replaced misplaced whistles [my fault] and the drain cocks [Peter's Spares]

 

 

[Ozexpatriate]

... the wrong bogie wheels fitted again.

It's hard to believe this is still happening.

 

I'm encouraged by the customer service though.

[Garethp8873]

Question for anyone who owns the Limited Edition model of the GWR Lode Star. Would I be right in thinking that the model represents her between 1924 to around 1933...? A friend of mine is selling one and I would be interested in purchasing her if this is the case

[Hilux5972]

Question for anyone who owns the Limited Edition model of the GWR Lode Star. Would I be right in thinking that the model represents her between 1924 to around 1933...? A friend of mine is selling one and I would be interested in purchasing her if this is the case

I believe it represents the loco as preserved.

[John Tomlinson]

A few days ago I picked up a "British Monarch" on ebay, quite a good deal I thought for £60. It is as new, no marks, full accessories and appears never to have run.

 

On test it runs very well, despite the absence of bearings. The "design clever" moulded handrails on the cab make me cringe, and if I'm feeling brave one day I may take a knife to them.

 

I'd like to change the identity however, and rather fancy 4062 "Malmesbury Abbey" in early '50's condition. The O.S,Nock book, "Stars, Castles and Kings part 2" has a picture of her in June 1952 with a 4000g Collett tender and elbow steampipes, as on my model. Another picture by Dick Blenkinsop in "Shadows of the Great Western" has her at Swindon, also in June 1952 but from the other side, which is always re-assuring.

 

I've skip read the previous 67 pages, but wonder if any GW specialists could alert me to any flaws in my idea of moving identity to 4062.

 

Many thanks,

 

John.

Edited August 2, 2018 by John Tomlinson

[toboldlygo]

A few days ago I picked up a "British Monarch" on ebay, quite a good deal I thought for £60. It is as new, no marks, full accessories and appears never to have run.

 

On test it runs very well, despite the absence of bearings. The "design clever" moulded handrails on the cab make me cringe, and if I'm feeling brave one day I may take a knife to them.

 

I'd like to change the identity however, and rather fancy 4062 "Malmesbury Abbey" in early '50's condition. The O.S,Nock book, "Stars, Castles and Kings part 2" has a picture of her in June 1952 with a 4000g Collett tender and elbow steampipes, as on my model. Another picture by Dick Blenkinsop in "Shadows of the Great Western" has her at Swindon, also in June 1952 but from the other side, which is always re-assuring.

 

I've skip read the previous 67 pages, but wonder if any GW specialists could alert me to any flaws in my idea of moving identity to 4062.

 

Many thanks,

 

John.

 

You'll need to add buffer beam numbering, as she had that in her twilight years.

 

And there's a cover on the right-hand side of the cab front, that isn't present on British Monarch.

[coachmann]

I seem to remember I removed the metal splasher front which is also the nameplate and filed the nameplate back so that the metal plate was flush all over. Then the outer ends were clipped off so that they would not show behind the new etched brass nameplates.

 

Re the etched plates, I removed the backing plate and glued the nameplates to the Hornby metal pressing. The metal below the nameplate had to be painted green and lined out in orange as did the cabside number plates. The lot was then glued onto the splasher. I think lining can be obtained from Modelmaster along wit the plates....

 

[gwrrob]

Fox also do lining for the cabsides too.

[John Tomlinson]

Many thanks indeed for all your prompt replies.

 

I'd been pondering how to actually change the plates, and Coachmann's  description and photo are particularly useful.

 

John.

[No Decorum]

On test it runs very well, despite the absence of bearings. The "design clever" moulded handrails on the cab make me cringe, and if I'm feeling brave one day I may take a knife to them.

The “square axleboxes” cause me concern for long-term use. They do wear visibly; quite quickly at first. I suppose it’s too much to hope that the new regime will have enough pride in the product to cast a new chassis, apply separate cab handrails and check the paint. Perhaps unlikely if these are still coming out with the wrong bogie wheels – surely not the most difficult thing to fix.