Jump to content
 

N gauge Crowdfunded APT-P (Warley announcement)


DJM Dave
 Share

Recommended Posts

  • 3 weeks later...

N & OO Gauge Crowdfunded APT Press release Friday 12th January 2018

 

With it now being 7 weeks since the surprise announcement at the Warley MRC 2017 exhibition, it is time for a progress report.

Both Durham Trains of Stanley and DJModels Ltd are very pleased with progress so far with OO, running at over 65% of the total required to be self funding in all aspects achieved, and more orders coming in on a daily basis.

 

 

The N gauge is, surprisingly, just over 25% funded so far but it is hoped that as more become aware of the project they will jump on board and order.

Adverts will soon start to appear in the press pushing the project forward into modellers consciousness, and press releases will continue to be released as we go along.

 

For those that do not know, this model promises to be the train a lot of you have always wished for, and to that aim we have specified and had agreed the specification which is available online, but a few things do need to be reiterated here.

 

Namely,

A working tilting mechanism in both gauges, Next18 or higher decoder socket, On board DCC sound capability, directional lighting, internal car lighting throughout, heavy metal chassis and gearing based on the best of Japanese / American Practice in design and construction, Seats with correct tartan seat and seat back design and colours, Painted and finished buffet car, fully modelled and painted cab interior with cab lighting, removable nose with accessory pack containing buffers and lifting arm for nose and NEM coupling for those that wish this feature, 5 pole skew wound motor with flywheels and a host of other fine detail you would expect for such a prestigious model.

 

Design still goes on in the background as it is felt that working through the design features of the model now, will give us a ‘head start’ on the model and testing before the model goes into tooling. However the thinking process on how we can make this model even better goes on, and we welcome any ideas our customers might have to help develop what could be the ultimate model electric train made.

 

There will be regular updates from this moment forward, and once we reach the line, and hopefully cross it, we will organise the laser scanning party at Crewe Heritage Centre.

 

Best regards

Mick Worrell (Durham Trains of Stanley)

Dave Jones (DJModels Ltd) 

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Will the internal lighting be able to be switched off in DC? Sometimes in daylight it's nice to run with lights out!

Cheers,

Alan

Working on it, and it might be possible, if it happens, i'd like it through a roof mounted switch on the Motor Power Car, (for example, maybe turning an insulator 90 degrees for off, and back again for on, as removing half the train to do just this is, i'n my opinion, impractical. however, we need to watch the wiring connectors between cars as we don't need the fragility of too many pins in a plastic connector, no matter how strong the connector.

 

The other way is by reed switch operated by magnet in each car roof. It's a tried and tested principal that's been used in models for many years now by modellers, and seems to work, but is more 'manual' labour to do but a handy feature.

 

Cheers

Dave

Link to post
Share on other sites

HI Dave,

 

Many thanks for keeping us updated. With projects like this, communications with those who are crowd funding the project and potential new comers are vitally important.

 

It looks like the 00 Gauge version is storming ahead at the moment and it’s encouraging to see this activity taking place. Being an N scale modeller, I’m keen to see this version go into production. Just hypothetically, but say the N gauge version doesn’t quite meet the required target but the 00 gauge goes massively over its target, would the 00 gauge project be able to help fund the N gauge version to go ahead in this particular scenario?

 

Look forward to hearing your thoughts on this.

 

Best regards,

 

Jeremy

Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks for the update. I've shared the message around the N Gauge groups in the hope of stimulating some more interest to get up to that 100% funded! The crowdfunding business model poses a number of challenges. You are getting the online communication right on this one, but I really believe that getting the impact in the printed media is much more difficult. This applies across the various projects and crowdfunding agencies. Printed flyers help at exhibitions, but magazine copy and advertising risk blending in to the general background. I don't know the answer but do recognise the challenge.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks for the update. I've shared the message around the N Gauge groups in the hope of stimulating some more interest to get up to that 100% funded! The crowdfunding business model poses a number of challenges. You are getting the online communication right on this one, but I really believe that getting the impact in the printed media is much more difficult. This applies across the various projects and crowdfunding agencies. Printed flyers help at exhibitions, but magazine copy and advertising risk blending in to the general background. I don't know the answer but do recognise the challenge.

Hi Mike,

 

Thanks for that, the press were sent the release today, including the NGS and DEMU as well.

Getting the press to publish info is always problematical, even more so nowadays when there's seemingly a model announced every few days, and space is tight.

 

However i think that despite the N gauge version lagging behind the OO one, it will still cross the line (fingers crossed), and it does surprise me as i'd have thought the N gauge might, due to its size have more appeal than the OO one, but like the HUO wagons, it hasn't.

 

Cheers

Dave

Link to post
Share on other sites

Working on it, and it might be possible, if it happens, i'd like it through a roof mounted switch on the Motor Power Car, (for example, maybe turning an insulator 90 degrees for off, and back again for on, as removing half the train to do just this is, i'n my opinion, impractical. however, we need to watch the wiring connectors between cars as we don't need the fragility of too many pins in a plastic connector, no matter how strong the connector.

 

The other way is by reed switch operated by magnet in each car roof. It's a tried and tested principal that's been used in models for many years now by modellers, and seems to work, but is more 'manual' labour to do but a handy feature.

 

Cheers

Dave

 

Thanks Dave.

 

Another thought - could you have a knob that controlled the brightness (and allowed going to zero?) Maybe this would be easier to wire - I guess in a crudest form a pot that when turned up to high resistance would dim the lights.

 

Just throwing it out there, as people do tend to have varied opinion on lights, and their brightnesses, so if you could elegantly allow folks to set it to their desired choice then everyone is a winner.

Cheers,

Alan

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Gold

Thanks Dave.

 

Another thought - could you have a knob that controlled the brightness (and allowed going to zero?) Maybe this would be easier to wire - I guess in a crudest form a pot that when turned up to high resistance would dim the lights.

 

Just throwing it out there, as people do tend to have varied opinion on lights, and their brightnesses, so if you could elegantly allow folks to set it to their desired choice then everyone is a winner.

Cheers,

Alan

Modern lighting is LED based and they and pots don’t really sit together well.

 

Roy

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Have to say I’m a little miffed to see that 00 gauge is so close to getting the go ahead. This was originally an N Gauge crowdfund project and I appreciate that 00 is the far more popular scale, I still think they should have to wait until N gauge reaches its target it also. There’s already a 00 gauge APT-P, granted it’s 30+ years old, would hate for the result of this to be that 00 gets the model and N doesnt

Link to post
Share on other sites

Have to say I’m a little miffed to see that 00 gauge is so close to getting the go ahead. This was originally an N Gauge crowdfund project and I appreciate that 00 is the far more popular scale, I still think they should have to wait until N gauge reaches its target it also. There’s already a 00 gauge APT-P, granted it’s 30+ years old, would hate for the result of this to be that 00 gets the model and N doesnt

That's a bit sour grapey. Why should 00 modellers miss out because the numbers can't be reached for N.

Link to post
Share on other sites

That's a bit sour grapey. Why should 00 modellers miss out because the numbers can't be reached for N.

And once the OO model is done part of the work is already done for the N one. When numbers are reached it can be scaled down and reworked as per needed.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Have to say I’m a little miffed to see that 00 gauge is so close to getting the go ahead. This was originally an N Gauge crowdfund project and I appreciate that 00 is the far more popular scale, I still think they should have to wait until N gauge reaches its target it also. There’s already a 00 gauge APT-P, granted it’s 30+ years old, would hate for the result of this to be that 00 gets the model and N doesnt

Hi mate,

I kind of get what you are saying, and as an N gauge modeller myself, i’d Love to have seen the N gauge model go out and get itself crowdfunded before the OO one.

 

Having said that, it proves that N gauge, despite the Long APT being perfect for the scale, is just no where near as popular as OO gauge despite what people who claim to know, think.

 

Even DToS is an N gauge modeller and wants an APT for himself.

 

However the cold hard truth is that whatever gets crowdfunded will get made. If the N gauge takes longer or doesn’t make it, then so be it. It’s probably your one and only chance to get one, as prices won’t be going down at all.

 

To a degree, the whichever crosses the line first will allow the second scale to benefit from the I.P. of the first, but other than that, it still has to cross the line. If it doesn’t, it’s not through want of trying. If it does, i’ll be a very happy man.

 

Please note as well that the OO one is priced just to break even, not to make a profit for either DToS or myself, which we would hope would come from a last minute surge to get over the line order wise, so in many respects we are doing this for the love of it, and for our desire to produce something extra special for the modeller. But ideally we would like to make some money for ourselves out of the work we are putting in, but not sure if that will happen. :-(

 

Cheers

Dave

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

That's a bit sour grapey. Why should 00 modellers miss out because the numbers can't be reached for N.

I won’t deny there’s sour grapes, and I don’t mean to appear so cold about 00 modellers. In a ideal world neither scale of modellers would miss out, but for once it would’ve been nice for N modellers to have a model that other scales lusted after

Link to post
Share on other sites

Have to say I’m a little miffed to see that 00 gauge is so close to getting the go ahead. This was originally an N Gauge crowdfund project and I appreciate that 00 is the far more popular scale, I still think they should have to wait until N gauge reaches its target it also. There’s already a 00 gauge APT-P, granted it’s 30+ years old, would hate for the result of this to be that 00 gets the model and N doesnt

Why?

If the OO one reaches the target then it gets the go ahead, why would a business sit on a viable project without taking it forward in the hope another connected project reaches its target.

 

If the N gauge one was viable there would be more orders for it, that isnt meant to sound nasty, its a simple fact.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Why?

If the OO one reaches the target then it gets the go ahead, why would a business sit on a viable project without taking it forward in the hope another connected project reaches its target.

 

If the N gauge one was viable there would be more orders for it, that isnt meant to sound nasty, its a simple fact.

It was originally an N Gauge crowdfund, the 00 gauge was started due to demand. I totally appreciate that the N gauge model is proving to be much less popular, and I wouldn’t want to see either scale miss out on a potentially incredible model, just feels slightly wrong that when it was originally an N gauge crowdfund that it ends up being an 00 model Edited by Drew-1986
Link to post
Share on other sites

I won’t deny there’s sour grapes, and I don’t mean to appear so cold about 00 modellers. In a ideal world neither scale of modellers would miss out, but for once it would’ve been nice for N modellers to have a model that other scales lusted after

Unfortunately N is not as popular as OO and a project such as that proves that point.

 

I wouldnt expect this project to be viable as an N gauge only project and if it went down that route it would never get the go ahead, any way you look at it once the OO gets the go ahead it will subsidise the N gauge one if only on development costs.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Why?

If the OO one reaches the target then it gets the go ahead, why would a business sit on a viable project without taking it forward in the hope another connected project reaches its target.

 

If the N gauge one was viable there would be more orders for it, that isnt meant to sound nasty, its a simple fact.

 

As previously implied the model is very highly specified and therefore could be cheaper (and therefore more accessible) if some of the more exotic bits (e.g internal lighting) was omitted or made an option. Given that many N gauge modellers who would be interested may also have a lot of money tied up in crowd-funded models, committing to almost another £1k may be a bit to far. There seems to be much less crowd-funding in OO as a percentage of total spend so OO people may be prepared to more readily committing 4*£200 payments at potentially unknown times over the next three years.

 

I have skipped the HUO and the DJM 92 so that I know I can pay for the APT - that does not mean the HUO and 92 is less 'viable' just that this form of payment model needs to be better balanced with respect of the rest of the rest of the market.    

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

It was originally an N Gauge crowdfund, the 00 gauge was started due to demand. I totally appreciate that the N gauge model is proving to be much less popular, and I wouldn’t want to see either scale miss out on a potentially incredible model, just feels slightly wrong that when it was originally an N gauge crowdfund that it ends up being an 00 model

Surely the fact it started as N but is now likely to be 00 shows what the demand is?

I can imagine there are 00 modellers who sometimes feel the same when N gets something 00 doesn’t.

It would be fantastic if both scales could be produced but if it’s not financially viable why would DJ or DTOS risk a loss or worse?

Personally I hope it meets the minimum, even if it does take longer to get there.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Surely the fact it started as N but is now likely to be 00 shows what the demand is?

I can imagine there are 00 modellers who sometimes feel the same when N gets something 00 doesn’t.

It would be fantastic if both scales could be produced but if it’s not financially viable why would DJ or DTOS risk a loss or worse?

Personally I hope it meets the minimum, even if it does take longer to get there.

Please share this list of n gauge iconic trains that are not or have ever been available in OO

Link to post
Share on other sites

You just have to look at the RevolutioN threads for the IZA (cargowaggon), HOA (stone hopper) and TEA tanks.

 

Every few comments, you get someone asking for them to be released in 00 gauge. They have managed to get the TEA through into production and got to the minimum quite quickly showing the buying power of the 00 modellers.

 

It’s unfortunate that the APT-P hasn’t quite got there yet, I’m hoping that it will, as I really want my 14 coach unit! Hopefully there is a long enough period for the N gauge orders to be collated.

 

Al

Link to post
Share on other sites

  • RMweb Premium

Please share this list of n gauge iconic trains that are not or have ever been available in OO

I have no list, like wise are you able to confirm that none exist?

Wagons, coaches, units, loco’s.

Take away kits, after all this is a proposal for a RTR model.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I did say iconic train not random wagons and some are already being cross developed in OO as Mike and Ben have time.

 

Maybe someone does know of a train in N and not in OO I can’t think of one but the point is it is incredibly rare and this was an N gauge crowdfunded project that seems to be disappearing before our eyes whilst the OO model metaphorically steams into the sunset.

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...