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Dapol announce O Gauge Class 66


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1 hour ago, woodenhead said:

But is the market big enough to support two companies making O rtr class 37s for example ...

Exactly - which is why I said I don't think we'll see that sort of duplication in O.

 

I also think Dapol had to have a re-think with it's 08 - look at how long that took to reach the market. They set the bar regarding the price, then realised something just vaguely Gronk-shaped wasn't going to cut it.... to be fair, I thought subsequent small loco offerings from Dapol would increase dramatically in price, but they have maintained the "around £200" mark for the Pannier, Jinty & new 08, so fair play to them there.

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6 hours ago, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

Heljan's game seems to be an extremely muscular one to me. They have twin bogie O gauge traction available on sale.

 

Any potential 'walking over' surely begins only when the competitor has the product on sale at 60% of the Heljan price?

 

(Since the Dapol 08 retails in DC form at about £190, and a Class 66 is clearly more than double the content, I would consider the proposed £325 price as 'doubtful' too. It's the same technique and manufacturing environment, and it costs what it costs to bring to market...)

 

Yes in theory, I was more meaning that Dapol have (on the face of it) put forward a Class 66 model, that is detailed, fully working lights, DCC socket, and even cab lights for £375, which is superb value for money.  The Heljan locos are 50% more and have little of those 'added extras' except directional lighting.  This is 2019, there isn't even a DCC 21-pin socket.  That was what I was meaning by Dapol walking all over them.  The Mk1s from each company are chalk and cheese in my view, and again Dapol wins (ignore specific types of vehicles produced).

 

However, we're getting off topic!  Full marks to Dapol for the 66 move - it was one that had to come, and if the prices I am seeing are right, it could be another winner for them like the Class 08 was.  Lets hope so, as we all benefit in other ways - the EWS 66 would be an interesting product for the Dapol HAAs if they did another run, and people had the room.  Or the equivalent of Knottingley with the 56s, 66s and MGRs giving an mid-1990s feel!

 

Rich

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A 66 in 7mm isnt something i can provide a home for, far too modern, but having said that anything that brings in new modellers into o gauge has got to be a good thing, a bigger market will hopefully provide impetus for companies to offer more buildings, wagons, track, figures, detailing parts etc etc, many of which will be useful to all o gaugers of whatever era. Well done Dapol for pushing the market onwards.

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I can't help thinking a small tender engine would have been a better foray into the large loco market - a 3F, 4F, Dean or Collett goods for example. 

 

What is a 66 going to haul? Even a small rake of HAAs take up a hell of a lot of space in O gauge... 

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4 minutes ago, fezza said:

I can't help thinking a small tender engine would have been a better foray into the large loco market - a 3F, 4F, Dean or Collett goods for example. 

 

What is a 66 going to haul? Even a small rake of HAAs take up a hell of a lot of space in O gauge... 

The same could be said for Hattons  forth coming A3 & A4.

 

Paul

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As most O gauge layouts seem to be small depot/shunting layouts it seems a bit irrelevant. I sure as hell wouldn’t buy (nor could I identify) a 3F, 4F, Dean or Collet goods , but I’m seriously tempted by a 66. Seems a daft comment given the crossover between those two markets is virtually non-existent. 
 

I assume Fezza is a steam era modeller. 

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22 minutes ago, fezza said:

I can't help thinking a small tender engine would have been a better foray into the large loco market - a 3F, 4F, Dean or Collett goods for example. 

 

What is a 66 going to haul? Even a small rake of HAAs take up a hell of a lot of space in O gauge... 

 

Without some modern items [and even Class 66s have been around a long time now] O gauge has no long term future. We surely have enough stuff from nineteen hundred and frozen to death. I loved steam, and grew up with the last years of it, but today's scene is every bit as interesting to me. Saw a Class 66 a few weeks back hauling ONE four wheeled Dept. wagon - train length not much more than a 14xx tank & an autocoach! There is a prototype for everything.

 

This is the best news O gauge has had in a long time IMHO.

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22 minutes ago, fezza said:

I can't help thinking a small tender engine would have been a better foray into the large loco market - a 3F, 4F, Dean or Collett goods for example. 

 

What is a 66 going to haul? Even a small rake of HAAs take up a hell of a lot of space in O gauge... 

Heljan has had a lot of success with big O diesels so exactly the same market! 

People with layouts in the garden and garages plus shunting layouts. 66’s also move short trains 

66069 6V41 EH-Wby 170215 2

 

66116, 66148 Bapton 2009-12-03

 

66130 Custom Bottom 2009-10-12

 

2009-03-09 Quidhampton

 

66714, 47739, 73966 0G66 EH Works-Leicester 100419 01

 

Even run it with mk1’s!

Swanage Diesel Gala 090515 138

 

 

 

 

 

 

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As there are (or were) 250 EWS 66's, it might possibly be a slight mistake on Dapol's part to produce it already numbered, and at 001 at that!!

If I wanted one, I'd prefer it to be un-numbered. At least Heljan have learned that trick!

Maybe if enough people who want one contact Dapol about it, they might re-think.

I can't comment on the other liveries as I've no idea how many locos those Companies have, and of course the "Evening Star" edition might as well be numbered!! 

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Most of the Heljan diesels could be run with very short trains. Yes you can have a 66 on a single wagon but both prototype and model look very odd. I follow the old advice of model the typical rather than the very unusual. But each to their own. 

 

I have to admit I'm 80s era diesel so can't really see any beauty in a 66.. .they were called sheds for a reason. However if they help modern image modelling it can only be good. 

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Fancy producing the GBRF Sorrento liveried example... surely a standard GBRF corporate livery example would sell better... 

 

ill be buying one but heres hoping somewhere commissions a standard GBRF livery as id like to model 66763.

 

do people really like the biffa livery that much also? Amazed its so popular.

Edited by Erixtar1992
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1 hour ago, F-UnitMad said:

If I wanted one, I'd prefer it to be un-numbered. At least Heljan have learned that trick!

 

Funny one that, as I am the total opposite. I would have been interested in a LL 37/4 from Heljan, but at £500 or so I kinda expect it complete as per 407, 409 or 424 is today. I don't want to be adding decals to something which shall take centre stage on the shelf. Hell, I shall have two Dapol ones, one for the office and one for the study! But if blank, I instantly become blank. 

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50 minutes ago, fezza said:

Most of the Heljan diesels could be run with very short trains. Yes you can have a 66 on a single wagon but both prototype and model look very odd. I follow the old advice of model the typical rather than the very unusual. But each to their own. 

The 60...? Which sold well despite woeful QC. 

 

The trouble with offering 66001 is that it (and 002 IIRC) had maroon body side grilles at delivery, whilst the other 148 had black ones. So do Dapol offer it ‘pristine’, meaning extra work required to Re-number, or do they do it ‘wrong’ with black grilles, as they ended up within minutes, with the bonus of making re-numbering easier. 

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23 minutes ago, Erixtar1992 said:

Fancy producing the GBRF Sorrento liveried example... surely a standard GBRF corporate livery example would sell better... 

 

ill be buying one but heres hoping somewhere commissions a standard GBRF livery as id like to model 66763.

 

do people really like the biffa livery that much also? Amazed its so popular.

Yes I had thought exactly that - a standard GBRf one is the missing link here - I’m sure one will appear from somewhere before too long!

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21 minutes ago, Erixtar1992 said:

Fancy producing the GBRF Sorrento liveried example... surely a standard GBRF corporate livery example would sell better... 

 

ill be buying one but heres hoping somewhere commissions a standard GBRF livery as id like to model 66763.

 

do people really like the biffa livery that much also? Amazed its so popular.

 

Fully agree - going to have to do repaints both to standard GBRF and the Europort version + no DB Schenker Red/Grey! Also an idea to sell the applicable ones without numbers. In a way an unpainted version would be very useful, given the sheer amount of schemes they carry.

 

Must admit I do like the Biffa livery though!

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6 hours ago, fezza said:

Most of the Heljan diesels could be run with very short trains. Yes you can have a 66 on a single wagon but both prototype and model look very odd. I follow the old advice of model the typical rather than the very unusual. But each to their own. 

 

 

Sorry but short trains with 66’s aren’t unusual at all. In the early 2000’s I had regular return workings past the box every day with 3-5 wagons, TTA’s, Silver Bullets or various 4 wheel engineers wagons, and up to six light loco moves between depots either side. Freightliner heavyhaul sent a loco to Maritime and back each day from Westbury for fuel. EWS sent multiple light locos every Friday and Monday to and from engineering works, often requiring them to run as a X headcode as out of gauge on weight. 

In recent times Colas regularly send a loco across to pick up a train from Eastleigh, GBRF have a regular light loco training run and DB still ran 1-3 light locos together until they left Eastleigh yard.  

 

I agree with njee20 that 001 is an oddball on livery so best warn Dapol about that! ;) 

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I can’t run locos that long (I would love a class 47!) because my radii just won’t  allow it! That goes for Pacific steam locos, too! 

I’m STILL waiting for Dapol to produce the Class 121 - I’ve been waiting years for it after they made the parcels version - surely it can’t be that difficult to make the body, the underframe, engine details etc are the same, aren’t they?

Bill

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1 hour ago, billtee said:

I can’t run locos that long (I would love a class 47!) because my radii just won’t  allow it! That goes for Pacific steam locos, too! 

I’m STILL waiting for Dapol to produce the Class 121 - I’ve been waiting years for it after they made the parcels version - surely it can’t be that difficult to make the body, the underframe, engine details etc are the same, aren’t they?

Bill

Dapol announced a class 122 Bubble car March 2018 and from what people have ascertained recently they are in production now - that will be less than 2 years from announcement to delivery

 

It is Heljan who made the class 128 parcels car, they announced a class 121 Sept 2016 ish

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11 hours ago, deltic17 said:

Yes I had thought exactly that - a standard GBRf one is the missing link here - I’m sure one will appear from somewhere before too long!

There are several "standard" liveries missing to be fair - only a Powerhaul Freightliner too, how many actually received that, versus the original plain green!? And yes, original GBRF or Europorte, or the most recent incarnation. Instead we get 4 novelty liveries.

 

No DB, or DB/EWS which many have carried for several years, and as I said earlier I'd argue that 66001 being different from 248 of the other EWS ones isn't the standard livery either. Plus DRS compass was more common than the later plain blue I'm sure. I imagine it's the standard idea that you release the oddities first, people will buy one because they want to be an early adopter, then your second batch includes the more 'run of the mill' stuff which people buy because they want to have one. I hope it works out for them. I think I'd have maybe done one or two of the less obvious liveries, but backed it up with a 'normal' EWS/FL/GBRF/DRS.

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42 minutes ago, njee20 said:

There are several "standard" liveries missing to be fair - only a Powerhaul Freightliner too, how many actually received that, versus the original plain green!? And yes, original GBRF or Europorte, or the most recent incarnation. Instead we get 4 novelty liveries.

 

No DB, or DB/EWS which many have carried for several years, and as I said earlier I'd argue that 66001 being different from 248 of the other EWS ones isn't the standard livery either. Plus DRS compass was more common than the later plain blue I'm sure. I imagine it's the standard idea that you release the oddities first, people will buy one because they want to be an early adopter, then your second batch includes the more 'run of the mill' stuff which people buy because they want to have one. I hope it works out for them. I think I'd have maybe done one or two of the less obvious liveries, but backed it up with a 'normal' EWS/FL/GBRF/DRS.

I think you've hit the nail on head, if clear standard liveries are missing then this isn't a one batch model and Dapol have sensibly chosen the Bachmann model - get the lesser liveries out of the way first as people will buy to get the model and then buy again to get the livery.

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17 hours ago, deltic17 said:

Yes I had thought exactly that - a standard GBRf one is the missing link here - I’m sure one will appear from somewhere before too long!

 

17 hours ago, djparkins said:

 

Fully agree - going to have to do repaints both to standard GBRF and the Europort version + no DB Schenker Red/Grey! Also an idea to sell the applicable ones without numbers. In a way an unpainted version would be very useful, given the sheer amount of schemes they carry.

 

Must admit I do like the Biffa livery though!


 

fingers crossed one of the retailers will commission one. Just seems a bit baffling, as they are trying to get the O gauge side of things kickstarted so surely you would want to appeal to the widest audience possible!

 

im sure they will be a cracking model anyway!   
 

ive personally driven a few with only a single wagon at times, from westbury-eastleigh, so short trains are very normal :-)

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Hattons are offering the base model for £276. Heljan 56 expected at £560.

 

I would imagine Dapol are testing the water with this one as the model has not been produced before in this scale, there are numerous livery variations making it an excellent first choice for a big diesel. 

 

Personally I won't be buying as its out of era for me and would have preferred a 58 but as a debut model the financial case probably would not have stacked up.

 

I wish them well with this - if it comes off at this price it bodes well for the future. Heljan need some serious competition to get prices down.

 

The centre code 40 is overpriced. They have little retooling to recover, the chassis unaltered - yes I would like one but have to think twice at this price whereas if it were at a £300 price point in line with Dapol I would not hesitate to pre-order.

 

Paul R

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