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Dapol 08


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38 minutes ago, Owd Bob said:

Only allowed to reply if you agree with the good reviews on this site it would seem. ;) Need mods on here who don't have a biased opinion and without any other links to the publishing industry they represent or work for.

I’m not being funny, but this isn’t a forum run by amnesty . There’s no human rights, right to reply , democracy on a private web page.
 

The owner and MODs can do what they see fit with it , very much like you can invite someone into your house or not and you don’t have to justify that call.

 

 

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9 minutes ago, AY Mod said:

 

Complaints were received about the content of some of the posts and after a review the posts were hidden for further consideration. As the incident arose at a time when I was supposed to be taking a couple of hours off I removed his access so the issue did not escalate. It was a bit quick and dirty as I was having to this on a mobile in a layby. Don't you feel a bit annoyed when someone's behaviour causes you to lose time when you were doing something else?

 

I really don't like what you are inferring when you have only received one side of the story; he's not 'barred for a week' so even there you are being fed duff information or jumping to your own conclusions. It's not about honesty - it's about unsubstantiated generalisations.


My comments about Dapol have been rather scathing based on my experience and to the best of my knowledge they're all still there

 

15 hours ago, Owd Bob said:

So much for freedom of speech on here and to someone with a differing view from a mod' and someone who sees it from the other side of all the oh so perfect appraisals of products. AY has stopped CME from posting on this very thread and has barred him for a week for daring to be honest in his own opposing appraisal, until he decides what to do with him next.:nono:

 

 

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40 minutes ago, Owd Bob said:

Only allowed to reply if you agree with the good reviews on this site it would seem. ;) Need mods on here who don't have a biased opinion and without any other links to the publishing industry they represent or work for.

 

OK, I'll take that as a disgraceful direct insult. Just go and think about your unnecessary and inaccurate unpleasantness.

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I came here as single parent as my son had asked for a Dapol 08 loco as joint birthday and Christmas present. He's a fan of the great model railway challenge and would like a small O gauge shunting layout. As it would be a purchase that required some thought, I did a Google search, that led me here. So I joined up (my father used to have model railway too, in O scale).

 

I hoped to find out about all of the in's and outs of the model, whether it was any good or not. Or if there were other options.

 

I had thought that model trains were a gentlemanly pursuit - how wrong I was, lol.I  can't understand the controversy as my needs are to be able to read all opinions.

 

As a potential purchaser I want to know the warts and all views on this engine, and if it's reliable, other peoples experiences and reviews are all welcome.

 

I'm now not sure if this is the place for me to get to the bottom of whether or not to buy this model engine or not.

 

The general gist that I'm getting from some posters is that this site isn't truly independent? Have I missed something, is the site owned by a manufacturer? Sorry if I've missed something, I'm a novice. Am I correct in thinking that? If it is not, where can I go to get that sort of information?

 

And there was me thinking that twitter was where all the action is! Ha ha!

 

Edited by FluffyFeathers
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16 minutes ago, FluffyFeathers said:

The general gist that I'm getting from some posters is that this site isn't truly independent? Am I correct in thinking that? If it is not, where can I go to get that sort of information?

 

ignore the fuss - not that we know what it was! This is as good as anywhere.

 

Dapol are relatively new to the market in O gauge and have been producing some well detailed and accurate models much cheaper than, for example, Heljan. They have always had a lot of flak for taking a long time to produce models, which is utterly irrelevant and a suggestion that their quality control isnt brilliant, which is more concerning. My locos have all been fine but more than a few have have reported problems. Do test thoroughly and if any problems send it straight back - by and large I think things have been replaced. I always use Tower personally and have had good service from them.

 

Whether O gauge is suitable or not is a different matter. I would say the vast majority totally underestimate the cost and space involved and the amount of stuff being resold on eBay from an "abandoned project" is testament to that. On the flip side someone will almost certainly tell you to go for it as "you wont regret it" (thought presumably all those ebay people would disagree).

 

I'm sure others will chip in if i've missed anything!

 

edit. of course if your son changes his mind he can put it on ebay for slightly more than it costs in the shops and someone will buy it!

 

Edited by Hal Nail
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41 minutes ago, FluffyFeathers said:

Have I missed something, is the site owned by a manufacturer?

Short answer:- No.

 

Long answer:- No. 

It is now owned by a publishing Company, of which model railways is a very small part. It has no affiliations to any manufacturers at all. 

You just happened to join in as a bit of dummy-throwing was being dealt with. Remember the old football manager's quote, that football wasn't a matter of life & death, but far more important than that? Welcome to the model railway version. ;)

I had a Dapol 08 for a while (a few months). No problems with it at all in that admitedly short time; I only sold it because it's livery wasn't exactly what I wanted.

Whilst O Scale is a great scale & I for one wouldn't wish to discourage anyone, depending on the age of your son, you might wish to start with something a bit cheaper (like Hornby OO ) if he's quite young.

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1 hour ago, F-UnitMad said:

Short answer:- No.

 

Long answer:- No. 

It is now owned by a publishing Company, of which model railways is a very small part. It has no affiliations to any manufacturers at all. 

You just happened to join in as a bit of dummy-throwing was being dealt with. Remember the old football manager's quote, that football wasn't a matter of life & death, but far more important than that? Welcome to the model railway version. ;)

I had a Dapol 08 for a while (a few months). No problems with it at all in that admitedly short time; I only sold it because it's livery wasn't exactly what I wanted.

Whilst O Scale is a great scale & I for one wouldn't wish to discourage anyone, depending on the age of your son, you might wish to start with something a bit cheaper (like Hornby OO ) if he's quite young.

Hi, Thanks for the heads up, I think that I understand the situation here now. My son is 12, he has his heart set on O scale, like his granddad had, but more modern, if that makes sense. Thanks for the advice on your own experience with these too.

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2 hours ago, Hal Nail said:

 

ignore the fuss - not that we know what it was! This is as good as anywhere.

 

Dapol are relatively new to the market in O gauge and have been producing some well detailed and accurate models much cheaper than, for example, Heljan. They have always had a lot of flak for taking a long time to produce models, which is utterly irrelevant and a suggestion that their quality control isnt brilliant, which is more concerning. My locos have all been fine but more than a few have have reported problems. Do test thoroughly and if any problems send it straight back - by and large I think things have been replaced. I always use Tower personally and have had good service from them.

 

Whether O gauge is suitable or not is a different matter. I would say the vast majority totally underestimate the cost and space involved and the amount of stuff being resold on eBay from an "abandoned project" is testament to that. On the flip side someone will almost certainly tell you to go for it as "you wont regret it" (thought presumably all those ebay people would disagree).

 

I'm sure others will chip in if i've missed anything!

 

edit. of course if your son changes his mind he can put it on ebay for slightly more than it costs in the shops and someone will buy it!

 

Hi thanks for the advice and information. My son has his heart set on O gauge and tells me that Dapol is almost as cheap as OO. I'm not taking his word for that! But he just wants a L shaped board, a few wagons and buildings. I'll also have a look on eBay then. Thanks again.

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2 hours ago, FluffyFeathers said:

The general gist that I'm getting from some posters is that this site isn't truly independent? Have I missed something, is the site owned by a manufacturer?

 

No, it's not truly independent, but as noted above, it's owned by Warners, a publisher not a manufacturer. As long as their works; a certain large Asian communist country; and said country's role in a global pandemic and internal genocide are not disparaged, everything is hunky dory. :good_mini:

 

In all seriousness, though, this is a great site for information and insight. Sometimes toys are thrown out of prams. But, hey, internet! ;)

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I bought a Dapol 08 and it is a great little engine and I have had no problems with it. I think if you decide to go ahead then it would be better to buy new, so that you have a guarantee, and this may sound a bit over the top, it is a good idea to buy a rolling road set, which fits onto a piece of track so that you can put the engine through its paces and run it in properly. Short, plank type layouts do not let a model get properly run in, and this will show up any defects quickly. I usually run a loco 30mins each direction about 3/4 speed, then work through different speeds to see how it behaves, I have found it very helpful in getting the best from my Heljan Diesels, but that is another story

All the best

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I’ve got an 08 and again it runs well and is quite happy on the Peco setrack curves so if you build a layout around them it will be fine. You may find different length wagons will buffer lock on such tight corners so avoid a left and right curve right after each other to minimise the chances. 
:)

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15 minutes ago, FluffyFeathers said:

Do I take it that most of these models are okay, work well and last then?

Seem to, it is known that there will be a certain percentage of failures as part of the deal is you test a sample as it keeps costs down and why it’s recommended to test a loco when you first buy it to run it in and highlight any issues while it can be returned at no cost to you. I’ve had to return two OO Dapol locos this year but both were replaced with postage covered by the retailer and I have two of their O terriers as well as the 08 amongst around ten Dapol locos in total that are superb runners. Certainly the replacements made me glad I did exchange rather than get a refund. 

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1 hour ago, PaulRhB said:

Seem to, it is known that there will be a certain percentage of failures as part of the deal is you test a sample as it keeps costs down and why it’s recommended to test a loco when you first buy it to run it in and highlight any issues while it can be returned at no cost to you. I’ve had to return two OO Dapol locos this year but both were replaced with postage covered by the retailer and I have two of their O terriers as well as the 08 amongst around ten Dapol locos in total that are superb runners. Certainly the replacements made me glad I did exchange rather than get a refund. 

Going by my experience with Dapol, definitely buy from a retailer NOT direct from Dapol whatever you do.

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5 hours ago, boxbrownie said:

Going by my experience with Dapol, definitely buy from a retailer NOT direct from Dapol whatever you do.

Can't say either way for buying direct from Dapol, but as you're a newcomer, FluffyFeathers, I'd buy from a retailer nearby then if there is a problem you can easily return it under warranty. You may not get the best price though, but as they say "yer pays her money......" it all depends on getting 'your' preferred balance of price/convenience/customer service in whatever deal you strike.

Edited by leopardml2341
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16 hours ago, leopardml2341 said:

Can't say either way for buying direct from Dapol, but as you're a newcomer, FluffyFeathers, I'd buy from a retailer nearby then if there is a problem you can easily return it under warranty. You may not get the best price though, but as they say "yer pays her money......" it all depends on getting 'your' preferred balance of price/convenience/customer service in whatever deal you strike.

Although of course some items are only available from the manufacturers direct so little choice there.

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14 hours ago, leopardml2341 said:

Agreed, but not (as far as I know) in the case of the subject of this discussion....... 

if Dapol bring out a limited edition of the 08 (which they did previously through the collectors club) it is relevant.

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On 29/09/2020 at 13:35, boxbrownie said:

Going by my experience with Dapol, definitely buy from a retailer NOT direct from Dapol whatever you do.

Thanks, I'll try. 

 

I have my doubts, now, about the whole thing to be honest. For me, as a single parent it's a risk. Looks like my son could only have a straight board 4'-5' long. I'm still thinking it through.

 

Thanks everyone for your input.

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Maybe a few things to ponder....

 

Is your son really interested in modelling or does he just like trains?

Has he done any other model making and how did that turn out?

Does he have anyone to help if things don't quite turn out as expected?

And lastly, perhaps maybe a question too far, but does he appreciate the value of the (your) investment?

 

4 to 5 foot in O gauge will only provide very limited operating scope, so if that's his interest rather than 'modelling' per se, maybe other scales might be a better bet.

 

Good luck with whatever your answers and thus decisions are.  

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