Paddy

The marketing of Farish was excellent and way ahead of its time, certainly in model railway terms. You can tell that Peter GF had worked as a professional marketing person earlier in his career. The adverts, packaging, presentation made GF look far larger than it actually was. I was fortunate to visit the Poole factory in 1999 (if memory serves) with Chris Leigh and Nigel Harris from Model Rail. We had a wonderful tour and pub lunch with Peter. I came away impressed and also surprised as how small the factory actually was. Kind regards Paddy

Hi Andy, I had a Poole produced Class 33 with blackened wheels. It was released just after Bachmann took over. One can only assume they were “testing” this feature at the Poole factory. Hope this helps. Paddy

Does anyone know if there are similar crane transfers for 2mm/N Gauge? Many thanks Paddy

This is a shame as I have visited the Hornby shop numerous times. I personally model in N gauge but it was good for Humbrol products etc. Spot On Models is OK but quite a trek in to the town from the Outlet. As for food, I often go to the Whistle Stop Cafe in the STEAM museum which is excellent. Kind regards Paddy

It will be interesting to know what happened here. Whilst there is no doubt Hornby would make a bigger margin by selling more directly I struggle to see why they would bother. In company terms, the amount of extra margin on a few extra models sold directly is peanuts and not worth the potential negative optics. Hopefully, this will simply come down to more Hornby dealers requesting stock and so to be fair Hornby spread the 500 around a wee bit more. My heart does go out to those let down though. Kind regards Paddy

Thanks Karhedron. Amazing, I assumed that livery was fake and just a reflection of simplistic “toy” decoration. Many thanks Paddy

Just a quick side question on this... is the simple white livery with “U D” branding used on some early tanker models real or just “modellers” license? Kind regards Paddy

Hi D7100, The prices of resin buildings have definitely increased and gone beyond an impulse buy in most cases. As you say, they are delightful especially in N gauge. I wonder if there would be a market for the return (re-imagined?) of the original Farish Scenecraft range made from plastic blocks and stickers. The artwork by Eric Bottomley GRA of those original kits was very good and IMHO the concept worked in N gauge. Surely such a range would also be cheaper to produce and provide a lower-cost entry point? Kind regards Paddy

Hi Keith, I agree with your comment about "business suicide", I am not for one moment suggesting you should go off and create a King (or other large/expensive projects) with fingers and everything else crossed. My point was about building credibility in the market and producing something relatively limited like the Shark seems a sensible way of doing this i.e. a £20+ model. This is the sort of money where I (and probably other people) would be willing to take a punt on you. If the Shark arrives on time, budget and is a good model then I for one would be more interested in backing the King proposal. If your business model is working then good for you and as I said before, I wish you and Michael every success. Kind regards Paddy

Hi Keith, My advice would be to start with something small like the Shark and get it to market. Deliver a quality product and on time to build credibility (like RevolutioN). Sadly N gauge modellers have been let down too many times and are no doubt reticent to commit to an expensive loco unseen. If RevolutioN announces a model then I have no worries about it being delivered or the quality of the finished model. This is in no way meant as a slight on KR Models but rather you are suffering from those who have gone before. I wish you every success with all your projects and I have certainly expressed an interest in the Shark. Just my 5c worth, Kind regards Paddy

I certainly registered my interest in the Shark. Personally I would like a BR black one but in the interests of reducing the options in the initial run why not choose three. An early version (BR Black), a middle period livery that could be seen in the 1970-1990 period (Olive?) and finally a current livery (Dutch?). I do not model the later periods so I am not saying those choices are right. But if this approach worked you could make 1200 Sharks, with 400 of each livery. Would that be viable? Kind regards Paddy

Hi Garry, I cannot personally comment one way or the other as I have never owned any HD. Michael goes to some lengths in his book to describe the poor engineering on later locomotives which led to some of them being effectively withdrawn from the market. In my mind, there is no doubting the robustness of HD though. The sheer amount of models that are still around is testament to this. Whatever the truth is, the range has character! Kind regards Paddy

As I get older I am becoming ever more interest in “classic” trains such as HD and TT. The new models are wonderfully detailed but for me the charm is lacking. I am too young to remember Hornby Dublo but the range is very interesting. Currently I am reading Michael Foster’s book on Hornby Dublo and the observation I would make are: 1. They manufactured each item is volumes which far exceeded annual sales leading to vast quantities of unsold stock. 2. May be they should have made smaller batches and changed identities and liveries more frequently. 3. Found a way to lower the cost - possibly less stock may have allowed this. 4. According to the book, the legendary reliability of HD locos is a myth in several cases. 5. Introduced a finer scale 3-rail track system. 6. Switched to Tri-Ang couplers and/or some form of compatibility e.g. like the Tri-Ang wagon they created. All good fun though. Kind regards Paddy

Wow, I always assumed Wrenn was highly sought after and commanded high prices. Has the market collapsed? Is it simply a sign of an ageing customer base? Kind regards Paddy

I used Humbrol Italian Red acrylic - comes in pot and spray can form. Looks good to me although it is gloss so you will need to apply a matt varnish. Hope this helps. Paddy

Just watched Sam’s video review and it looks like a very poor loco. I thought Hejan considered themselves a premium supplier? Kind regards Paddy

Well I am fast approaching a 1980s mullet! Kind regards Paddy

Wow, what a layout. Those baseboards look fantastic - did you make them yourself? If so, top notch. Kind regards Paddy

Hi Grahame, Sadly the medium radius Setrack point does not match the geometry of the Setrack range. You are almost certainly right but as my wife says “if you don’t ask, you don’t get”. Personally, I have no problem with stalling on even PECOs R1 Setrack point even with short wheelbase locos. Must be very lucky I suppose. Kind regards Paddy

Blimey, I really stirred up a hornets nest - my apologies. Personally, I believe we are well served in the main for British N gauge and certainly better than when it was just Farish in Poole. Like most people on this thread, I would not want to see a return to levels of detail that Farish Poole were manufacturing. The livery application of today’s models is exquisite and I like the blackened wheels, see through spokes on steam locos in particular. From personal experience, I would like to see an increase in overall robustness although given the size of models this would be challenging to achieve. As Grahame said, price/value is a very personal thing. As for PECO, they strike me as a very conservative company that firmly believes in evolution rather than revolution. They did release the DCC fitted 2251 0-6-0 in N gauge (a lovely model and one I have in the fleet) but my understanding is that it was not commercially successful. They are developing some new better detailed wagons as well so progress is there but as a slow pace. As Ben said, PECO have been around for 70 years (did they start after WWII?) in what is a challenging market so their approach has merit. No doubt they own their factory and land in Beer which gives them added resilience. In normal times, PECORAMA must be a good income stream as well although no doubt they are worried for this year. Anyway, all I would like for Christmas is a PECO R2 Setrack point. Keep safe. Kind regards Paddy

Damn, one more post. Duck Fezza, you mentioned “train set”! Edit. Take a look at Barrie’s train shed layout in the link below as it raises some interesting questions. Barrie calls his model railway a “train set” upon which he runs “toy trains” (his words, not mine). There is no ballast, uses Hornby track, mixes stock (rule 1) and has next to no scenery. Yet, Barrie is an ex BR signalman and runs his “train set” to strict prototype practice with things like interlocking etc. Kind regards Paddy

Phew, you raise a lot of points there. I will try to make this my last post - honest. Rich mans hobby. Nope, can’t agree with you there. In fact for most of my modelling life it has been a reasonably priced hobby. Compare model railways with tech, fishing, photography, gaming etc. and we are nowhere near the top. My point is, this is changing. Not a problem if that is where the market wants to go but people should not sleepwalk in to this. My wants vs. Market wants. Nope, I was very clear this was my view of how I wanted the market to be. I totally accept that I might be/am a minority of one. If that is the case then I refer you to my answer above “me lord”. Less detail, lower price. My point is not about less detail but rather an appropriate level for N gauge. On one side you have Union Mills (as you highlighted) which are very basic but sturdy right through to the most delicate of models from Dapol and Farish. In my opinion, some of this fragile detail is over the top for N gauge as it cannot be seen when placed on the layout. The question becomes whether you are happy to pay for this? Or as you put it... where you draw the line with regards to what is reasonable. Interesting discussion but I feel I have taken the thread off track enough - my apologies to everyone. Kind regards Paddy P.S. I took delivery of a brand new G2 0-8-0 from Colin at Union Mills today. Doing my bit to keep British N gauge alive!

Hi Njee20, Who said British N gauge is dead? Not me as far as I am aware - if I gave that impression then you have my unreserved apology. My concern is not about whether British N gauge will survive - it will, but rather the the form/direction the market/hobby will take. Personally, my preference is for a healthy, reasonably priced British N gauge market - I do not want it it to become a rich mans hobby. Now, if my view is in the minority then so be it. If the demand is for more detailed/functional models with ever higher prices then that is the market. This is not wrong, just different. People like me (or just me ) will have to make a choice. As I already indicated, my wants are minimal anyway so it is really the active consumers and people entering the hobby I am thinking of. This has nothing to do with my personal financial position but rather how I enjoy the hobby. Each to their own. Kind regards Paddy

Hi njee20, On the above I would have to disagree with you. This is exactly the time that the leaders within businesses need to be thinking strategically about how they will operate post CV19. Such plans need to be worked on in detail now, so that once economic activity returns they can be executed with drive and focus. Obviously, the tactical decisions have to be made to get through these dark times but these two threads can be undertaken consecutively. This is not just actions for business but something individuals should be undertaking as well. We will get through this situation. Keep safe. Kind regards Paddy

Hi Ben, You will get no argument from me - N gauge has never been better. However, you and I modelled through the golden period when models were even more plentiful and the prices VERY reasonable. I do not expect those times to return especially now given what we are going through. As for track, there are plenty of options out there but it would be great to see PECO complete their range with a 2nd radius point. The rest of their code 80 Setrack range is spot on. Now if I was really dreaming, I could ask for a code 55 Setrack range. You and the other players have and are doing a great job in terms of bringing non mainstream models to market. However, there is always room for disruption in any market and often from somewhere we do not expect. Whether this is true for British N gauge only time will tell. Keep safe. Kind regards Paddy