Chris56057

Lovely work and some interesting projects here Jerry. Just thought I'd mention that I've dropped you a message through your website contact form about a potential respray. Thanks, Chris

37517 getting some front end detailing treatment. This was originally a Bachmann model of 37710, however I've renumbered it to 517 after finding some photos on Flickr of the loco on RHTT services around the Midlands and the East. Numbers are from Fox Transfers and as you can see these were fitted in an unusual place which matches the prototype. I generally use guitar wire for my vac and air pipes these days, having used Craftsman and Shawplan products in the past. They're not 100% correct, but withstand the handling of the models between the workbench and the layout itself. This model is fitted with a V4 Legomanbiffo sound decoder and is an interesting model to operate on the layout. Further updates to come on this particular loco.

I've started to add some smaller details to the buildings that make up the low relief back scene. Most of thse are from Scale Model Scenery. In addition, I have been working on tidying up the control panel and getting this fully functional.

More 56's, mainly another run of the Blue and Large Logo..

Another video uploaded to the channel.

A short running session if you fancy a watch.

Thanks Rob - hopefully some more progress can be made over the next few months.

Progress has been slow over the summer months whilst I've been enjoying other hobbies but now winter is here more progress should be made.

37702 has been in the collection for a long time and was part of the Rail Exclusive set along with 37798 in Mainline Blue. As they were a limited edition set I was apprehensive about going ahead with weathering and detailing - ultimately though these locos are made for use so I changed my mind! The model has had the plates fitted and I've started weathering the chassis and undeframe as well as the body side with a mixture of dry brushing and washes. At the moment I don't have an airbrush so I'm having to rely on these techniques along with weathering powders, unfortunately some of the effects are harder to replicate without an airbrush. Plenty more to do on this, but happy so far. Any feedback is much appreciated.

37517 has just arrived with the weekly fuel train as the resident shunter gets ready to carry on moving some wagons around for the depot staff.

My 66 has been generally okay so far - slight body wobble but I can live with that on an end to end layout. I definitely think it has been the noisey minority that have flagged up (in some cases, important issues), but this has detracted from the fact that this is a superior model to the Bachmann offering and that with a little more consistency on models coming through the production line will probably make the ultimate 66. Just my opinion!

I've been adding various details to build up the scene this week - quite happy with the way it is turning out.

Checked the pins and added some insulation tape and the fault still seems to be replicating

Just tried to install a TTS chip into a Hornby 60 - once the chip is fitted the loco shorts out. Anybody else had this issue?

Thanks for spotting that - the rail is in the fish plate and no step fortunately - I've just left a bit of an expansion gap to account for the heat in the shed..

Having opened up the other scenic break into the fiddle yard, I've also been able to add a couple more storage roads which will assist with operations. In the scenic section itself I've added a crew mess room and put some ground cover in to separate the different areas. Going forward I'll continue to add the smaller details and bring the scene to life. Any comments are always welcome

I've decided to open up the other line into the scenic section to create more operational interest and to make yard operations a little more prototypical. I had realised that in order to access the lower lines, the loco would have to draw into the repair shed which was going to prove frustrating and not very realistic. I'm going to have to modify the bridge slightly to accommodate it all, but should be fine.

I've enjoyed reading through this layout thread and really like the track plan and idea behind the layout

Progress has been slow on the layout recently, blame the summer weather and other hobbies. I've made some time to add some ground cover towards the back of the depot before placing a crew room building later on in the week. A sky back scene printed on to 3mm foam board has also been added which I think looks a lot better than the plain blue I had before. Looking forward to adding the smaller details going forward.

They are a business at the end of the day, this current stock needs to sell one way or another for maximum profitability.

Every model has a fault - YES. Starting with the gauge and then each individual model has it's own specific faults. But is RTR too much of a demand? When you buy a Hattons Class 66, it's either an RTR model or a beautifully carved potato! Judging by the last 158 pages of this thread, I think you're right.. - It will be the ultimate one, when it actually works and when it's basic mechanics are fine. You got a perfect one? Congratulations! I bet you wouldn't be singing the same song if you got a dud. And I'd rather have the Bachmann or Hornby version than the Hattons one. I wouldn't say it's perfect, but it certainly runs well out of the box and there's no hidden faults or issues. Perhaps I wouldn't be on the same page if I had a dud, but I'm also aware that manufacturing RTR models is no easy task and so prefer to take the view that coming down hard on businesses like this isn't actually that helpful. Plus, if I had a dud model, I would probably have exchanged it for another - I'm sure they're not all faulty! - No one said it's the end of the world. The problem is the Hattons Class 66 is currently eye-candy. It's not really an RTR model unless we have the same luck as you? Whether Hattons reimburse you for postage or not is besides the point. We're in the middle of a global pandemic. With each nation handling it in different ways, some places are not doing as well as others. People like me haven't been able to send/receive parcels since March. Postage charges for me are much higher than the UK. I spend double the cost to send a model to the UK than the receive one from the UK. And when you work part time like me, every penny counts. I agree with your sentiments about postage and the charges associated with all of this. Perhaps in a year's time all the issues with the model itself will have been ironed out. - I'm sorry, if we all had to be cutting manufacturers some slack we won't be getting the kind of high-spec models we get today. I don't see why some people can never accept the fact that a model is flawed and it's well within people's rights to be disappointed and voice their concerns. The fact of the matter is that the Hattons Class 66 doesn't really do what it says on the box (in many cases). I can accept the model is flawed and that comments need to be made so that the problems can be put right, but the big picture is that ultimately we have got a good base for a solid model of a 66 - much further ahead than the Bachmann model in detail, lighting configurations etc and general body shape so let's be positive about that fact and hope that the issues that have been so widely discussed will be cleared up.

Agree no model is perfect but you would at least expect it to run properly out of the box without wobbling like a drunk & AB bits falling off thus its a tooling issue that needs to be rectified, plus there is that lighting issue on the large round headlight variants that nobody can fix unless you're an electrical engineer. I agree with this entirely, no further comments to make. Why should we be grateful, its a Want not a need and it isn't yet the ultimate 66 but has the potential to be just that! I'm just thinking about the bigger picture here - the model is very well set up now to become the ultimate 66. Who says its the end of the world???...definitely not for me lol Now what you're missing here is the fact if you purchased DCC Fitted or DCC Sound then sending it back will not get you the same model back in exchange as they have all but sold out and Hattons will not retro fit a DCC chip or Sound chip unless you pay the extra cost on another model of the same type and then you are crossing your fingers again that it runs ok. I didn't realise this, so fully accept these comments. I'm personally waiting in the wings until the issues are fixed in hopefully the next batch, if they get fixed then'll buy loads (more than 1) as I have already stated so yeah I'm cutting them some slack. But no I will not buy these in their current state, I might be lucky or I might not and again as stated already I'm not playing the lottery with these expensive items. Hopefully the issues will be taken on board and further releases are better.

I understand the frustration with the issues that the 66 has been having - but surely no model ever produced has been perfect, this goes with the manufacturer too. Maybe we should just be grateful that Hattons have gone ahead and produced the ultimate 66 which in my opinion is a fantastic model - at the end of the day we could still be stuck with the Bachmann offering! Yes there are issues with the model, but surely it's not the end of the world to have to send it back and exchange it for another one - it is free postage after all! My thoughts won't be welcome with some, but I just think we need to cut them a bit of slack and be thankful that we have a good solid base for a loco which is so prolific across the network. PS - I have one of these and so far it's been fine.

I've had no issues with the model of 66789 that I received quite early on in the batch.

If you enjoy video content, here's the May Layout Update.