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Western Scottish

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Everything posted by Western Scottish

  1. Is there any word on when the ScotRail ones are due? Hoping they are compatible with my existing Lima stock.
  2. I think the Mk1s are tainted by "Design Clever". I've found them more than adequate for my needs and would prefer a £30 coach compared to a £45-£50 one .
  3. I certainly hope they are expanding the Mk1 range. The diversification of types would also increase attractiveness of their existing range. Hope we get blue /grey ones this time.
  4. Specifically if it's timing that's important the Hawksworth auto coach is only post war. Not sure if they appeared in GWR livery at all, except in preservation whereas the Airfix/Hornby one is prewar And of course the other difference is the price!
  5. I really enjoy your updates on the layout. I love Blackpool trams and am very interested.
  6. It was also in Modern Railways I think in 78 . I thought 40106 was the last main line loco in BR Green because I remember the discussions on the back page of Modern Railways during 1978. This was in its original green. It was repainted later being the only "celebrity" green loco for many years. I wasn't aware of 20141 being in green livery at the time as we allthought 40106 was the last one. For many years in the late 70s /early 80s modern image layouts always had BR Blue diesels with 47s with Stratford Grey Roof and the obligatory green 40106 because it was something different!
  7. Very nice. I remember this layout, was it in Railway Modeller or Hornby Mag a few years ago. I remember it because its a fascinating era that you seldom see modelled.
  8. Well done. As you might suspect I like the Western buses!
  9. Looking good, but can't help thinking Bachmann have missed a trick by not announcing a 3 car one at the same time. At the moment the markets split between 3 Car Hornby and 2 Car Bachmann. With just a little extra investment (they already have a 3 car one in "N") they could have taken the whole market . I've no demand for a 2 car unit but a three car and I'd bite their hand off!
  10. Awe no! I've got an electric blue one on order , but the tops one looks particularly nice . Too tempting................... I think this will be a major smash. I hope so . Well done Bachmann. Can we get a 25kv EMU next year?
  11. Not happy about the price. I can appreciate that prices have increased since I placed the order , however:- 1. The advert in Railway Modeller said coming soon- so I kind of gathered they were imminent on placing order. The fact that they've taken so long and therefore subject to prices rises isn't my fault! 2.There has been no pre notification of price increase. I appreciate they are within their terms and conditions but really I would have thought a reputable company would have declared a 17% increase ,even if it was just a note in their latest advert in the Mags. If you think about it , on these t and c's, there is nothing to stop them advertising goods then doubling or even tripling the price on delivery. I won't contract with people with such an open ended possibility. I'm going to let this one ride as frankly I can't be bothered with the hassle of sending it back, alerting credit card co etc. But TMC.....NEVER AGAIN.
  12. The buses look good. Just a wee bit out of period for the 80s, though. These Lodekkas are more 60's and 70s. In 1979 the Scottish Bus Group also changed their logo so if you are looking at 1980 they should probably have Central Scottish logos with the three quater saltire rather than the CENTRAL logo. Not sure these buses would have lasted that long though . I think corgi have a new "Y" type single decker in Midland Scottish blue coming out that might be more suitable. Sorry reading this through it sounds a bit pedantic! Just thought you should know.
  13. Good that Steve got his VEP sorted out at Margate. But there's a few things from his posting that worries me 1. Bad VEPs are still out there. How can you identify modified ones from original batch 2. Steve's defective model was fixed by Hornby which means they must know the issues and how to correct them. Wouldn't it be a good idea to pass this on to those of us who can't get to Margate- but all we get is silence. No acknowledgement there even is an issue! Given that Model Rail has now run an article on improving a VEP you would have thought they might have asked Hornby about the defects( I appreciate that they did not find any defects in the model they tested- but we also know they are aware of this thread which details the issues). It would have been very helpful to their readers if they could have passed details of the mods.
  14. Probably we will find that this model was outsourced to another suppler (not Sandakan),perhaps the same one as the elusive B17s, and thats why this model was so deficient. Suspect with the BEL they have reverted top original producer or simply learned lessons from the VEP. Whatever the reason it shouldn't hsave affected the buying public - but it did! Shame Hornby are not proactive in advising their existing customers , but then they've already sold these units and seem to have little interest.
  15. Per Exel1095 way back mid November I asked Simon Kohler about how the Brighton Belle would be powered, saying I was worried in the light of the VEP issues highlighted in this thread. He was pretty insistent that there were only a few problems with individual units and that most of the comment on internet fora was pretty worthless. Now, I have not bought a VEP (because of the solid partition) and so I said I only had the evidence of what others said. This was exactly the point, he replied - lots of anonymous comment and very little of substance. Strange how very little of substance turns into "These VEP models have had a factory modification made to the bogies which will correct the occasional derailments that a few customers had experienced with this model that had not been modified."
  16. The Standard 5 is now some years old . It would perhaps have been better to say "are there any recent Bachmann models ........." . Look at the new Compound . Its a 4-4-0 with good haulage capabilities. Even though its a limited edition its still around the same price as Hornbys normal production. Their 4-4-0s (Schools T9)all have traction tyres I think the point about the market Hornby sees itself in is a good one. Traction tyres may be ok for Toys that get bought at Christmas and will have limited use. But for the die hard modeller with scale length trains they are not appropriate. Its the difference between knock them out , quick buck short termism and proper engineering for the long term. Hornby just don't get this! The 4 VEP is a victim . What will the 5 BEL bring?
  17. Western Scottish

    Hornby B1

    Looking at Hattons I think Bachmann is £81 and Hornby is £96 (non DCC fitted) so there is only a £15 differential. I'll wait to see the Hornby one , but given all my latest purchases from Bachmann have run well straight from the box, as opposed to having to go back and forward from the shop, I'm predisposed to the Bacchy one. It looks like a B1 - thats good enough for me!
  18. Absolutely! The contrast with another manufacturer is stark!
  19. I'm using them because of the fact they test models before shipping, saves any hassle in sending defective ones back. Prices are as good , if not better,than Hattons, although perhaps not surprisingly, their website is not as comprehensive . I also find that they tend to have items in stock after they've gone out of stock elsewhere. There are still some Hornby granges in stock and an LNER A3
  20. I think this just demonstrates the usefulness of this forum ,compared to mags, in having a warts and all review and a longer term running test. There do seem to be two categories of issues:- Aesthetics such as corridor connections, cantrail stripes,solid corridor positions. Armed with the information from here I can go examine and decide whether I want the model. On balance probably yes. Then there are the much more serious running issues, derailments, slow running, inability to go round 2nd radius curves. These are just show stoppers for me. I really can't consider buying this model on these grounds Hornby really should make some statement. Aside from the letters being recently sent off, I'll bet they monitor rmweb for feedback, so they must know there are issues. What Andy has said is probably correct ie this model has been made to a specific price point, the question is , what about the 5 BEL?Surely they wouldn't consider a Limby unit with traction tyres on this? I note that following experiences with the 4 VEP there are a number of people cancelling orders for the 5 BEL , so its really in Hornbys interest to clarify their position now- as well as addressing the clear flaws in the VEP
  21. Surely the number of branchline termini that immediately run into tunnels is a bit of a Cliche, or even the number of tunnels on any layout. They really are not that prevalent on the real thing
  22. Strathspey might be worth approaching because they have an 812 which has just come out of overhaul. But the Glasgow Museum of Transport has just closed until 2011 when it moves to a new site nearer the Clyde. Problem there is that they don't have a 439, J36 or the 812 in the national collection but only Caley 123, Glen, Gordon Highlander, Jones Goods and a G&SWR tank . They really also don't have a mail order retail operation (unlike NRM) The position has obviously changed since 2006/2007 with lots of limited editions. I just hope existing limited editions like the Class 107 are succesfull enough that maybe Harburn would look again. I really think there is money to be made here. There are still not too many steam limited editions out there. The Beattie tank is the only one I can think of, and it seems to have gone down well- so a 439 or J36 with much larger geographical operation should also go down well. And thats not taking into account the popularity of Scottish Railways. J36 ideal for all these West Highland layouts. Maybe Bachmann could give us a Scenecraft WH Signal box or Chalet railway station to go with it!
  23. I understand what you are saying, and it makes sense to concentrate on the 439 and J36 , both preserved by SRPS. I wonder , though, given the new set of circumstances outlined by Dennis ie that preserved locos have more chance of production , that the 812 class may have achieved higher votes and that those who voted for Jumbo wouldn't now transfer their votes en masse to the 812. In addition the 812 has just undergone a rebuild and will appear this year on the Aviemore line. So I wouldn't want to discount it. Cumulatively a Caledonian 0-6-0 scored 73 votes, which would have put it to the head of the poll. Sorry, I don't mean to criticise but I think anyone analysing the poll may come to the same conclusion.
  24. I thought there were three front runners, by combining the votes for the Jumbo/812? Thats certainly how I voted in the MREmag poll.
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