Hornby 2020 range "reveal date" = 6th Jan

[Fat Controller]

41 minutes ago, Southernman46 said:

My ha'pennyworth …………… just like to see some of the existing great mouldings in my era (very happy with this years' LNER CCT in blue) ie ……...

 

R4531 LNER BG in BR blue

R4409 Hawksworth B/BG in Blue

R6809 LNER 21t coal hopper as a VB version - there were plenty in existence

 

but would overjoyed with a "modern" fitted 21t coal hopper  too.

 

I am pleased that these "announcement" days still give me a bit of thrill …………….. long may that continue

Not sure about any LNER 21-tonners having vacuum brakes; there were a lot of unfitted wagons repainted from about 1965 to 1970, however.

[cambo74]

2 hours ago, Hroth said:

 

But "thinking outside the box" is soooooooooooo last-century management speak!

 

It'll be paradigm-shifts next....

 

Shall we run that one up the flagpole?

 

Guess we can all touch base on Monday when we're all suitably underwelmed .....

[rovex]

Perhaps they'll surprise us all by announcing that they've gone into administration. After all you can't keep losing money the way they have been and expect to survive.

[Dunsignalling]

My immediate likes would be quite modest, revive the ex-Airfix and ex-Lima Siphons, either with a full re-tool or just a new underframe and bogies. Ditto the Lima LMS 42' GUV (if indeed Hornby ever had it) and, yes, the venerable SR luggage van, which is already more than half way to its own centenary.

 

I'd also like to see a different M7, at minimum, one with round-top splashers in BR livery, but Hornby have so far barely scratched the surface of even the common variations. Also a large SR tank loco (H15, W or Z), to even up company provision. Wagon-wise, I'd like Hornby to go right across the board with cattle wagons as they have with goods brakes.  

 

Expected locos etc. : Swindon 120 DMu (if they don't grab it now, I reckon Heljan will, either off their own bat or as a commission), new "full fat" LMS 2P with (possibly) MR versions as some icing on the cake. Something ex-GE, probably a Buckjumper or E4. Maybe a de-Crostied Crosti 9F?

 

All-new big passenger locos would come down to Thompson Pacifics, the Great Bear, Turbomotive and nothing else I can immediately think of. Come down a bit to 4-6-0s and a Urie S15, a Saint or a Manor are low-hanging fruit. If a Saint, how about some real top-notch older GW coaches to go with it?

 

Black Five, 8F, A3 and rebuilt MN are all ripe for retooling, with the last having the advantage of three or four possible tenders that haven't previously been covered.

 

John

Edited January 3, 2020 by Dunsignalling

[rogerzilla]

Maybe they'll stop building wagons and buy a major UK port?  It worked for Powell Duffryn

[Deltic]

1 hour ago, MGR Hooper! said:

Arnold has N gauge track. Hornby had Lyddle End. So technically Hornby had a train, track and scenic items in N gauge, though not all at once.

I heard that it was developed with a German Retailer, whom subsequently decided not to proceed.  However Hornby having spent time and effort released the model in the two livery options.  They have just re-released them, as they did sell out, once modellers got to see them.

[eldomtom2]

1 hour ago, Denbridge said:

Explain the Hornby-arnold 5BEL set.

Note that it was sold as a "Hornby ARNOLD" product rather than as a "Hornby N Gauge" product or similar.

[Pandora]

The TT issue is a non-starter, why should anyone  turn their back upon the vast range of models in OO and even N,  gauges with a considerable catalogue of  locos wagon coaches and more ,from Hornby  Bachmann Dapol etc,  and be restricted to a tiny range of models,  from a single manufacturer with limited resources for tooling and manufacture?

Edited January 3, 2020 by Pandora

[APOLLO]

Think within the (red) box - Ball Park anyone ? (may be better than letting 'em hang !!).

 

 

Brit15

[Steamport Southport]

I've a sneaky feeling that something yellow is in the announcement...

 

 

 

 

Jason

[Joseph_Pestell]

2 hours ago, Denbridge said:

I bet they sell more HO & N models than they do OO simply because there is a bigger worldwide market. Same applies to Bachmann. Especially in the latter case, OO is relatively small beer.

 

They should be selling more HO because, as you say, there is a much bigger market out there. But they have failed to make the best of their acquisitions.

[Joseph_Pestell]

8 hours ago, GWRtrainman said:

and yet the Half Year report states the European business has had the highest growth of any part of the Group in 2019 (no doubt from a small base - it's a big market). And the numbers show it is the closest to being profitable. 

 

Maybe they've got it right this time around?

 

I certainly hope so.

 

I suspect that the 2019 figure may have been boosted mainly by a certain 4-8-8-4.

[autocoach]

Just think that in 3 days all this frothing will be 2020 hindsight.....Maybe an Airfix Golden Hind tie-in?

[Matt C]

7 minutes ago, Steamport Southport said:

I've a sneaky feeling that something yellow is in the announcement...

 

 

 

 

Jason

 

 

I was always warned against yellow snow

 

Centenary packs throughout the year starting with Rocket and wagons, then  a steamy pack, bittern ? Flying Scotsman etc ? With Hornby 100 years headboard, then an ultra modern thingy in Hornby colours with  Hornby 100 years emblazoned on the side, All in Hornby ltd edition retro packaging with certificate. Sold in the new outlets they are targeting, marketed by a full sized beasty traveling the country in full Hornby livery, stopping at every station and luring in new youngsters with VR stuff whilst lifting sovs from the parents in return for starter packs 

 

   Sorted 

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

18 hours ago, rovex said:

Interestingly this year although the frothfest started surprisingly early I have noticed a decided lack of real froth. A lot of off topic and history but not much froth. Have we lost interest?

Roughly fifteen years ago, when it had become clear that ranges of new and decent RTR OO model introductions were going to continue from three manufacturers, there was much to froth about. There was a good choice in 'never previously available' traction and vehicle subjects, to generate excitement that they might be next to appear. And appear they steadily did, causing the suds to mount up in ever higher heaps.

 

But now? I would suggest it's largely minority interest subjects waiting for models. I couldn't confidently name a loco class and say 'sure fire winner if released in OO'.

 

So what might we find in the 'thinking outside the box' suggestion? There's been some thoughts about VR or in cab cameras already. What about some novel approach to scenic product? A new ready ballasted track system with integrated point motor and control kit built in?

[rovex]

What better for centenary year then a new range of GWR centenary stock!!

[gwrrob]

1 minute ago, rovex said:

What better for centenary year then a new range of GWR centenary stock!!

 

I'd rather have the Super Saloons .

[gwrrob]

1 hour ago, Dunsignalling said:

My immediate likes would be quite modest, revive the ex-Airfix and ex-Lima Siphons, either with a full re-tool or just a new underframe and bogies. Ditto the Lima LMS 42' GUV (if indeed Hornby ever had it) and, yes, the venerable SR luggage van, which is already more than half way to its own centenary.

 

 

Long overdue John and would fit nicely in their range with recent SR van C and LMS and LNER CCT's too.

[tomparryharry]

40 minutes ago, APOLLO said:

Think within the (red) box - Ball Park anyone ? (may be better than letting 'em hang !!).

 

 

Brit15

Very apt, and very funny! Nice one! That must be the V1:5:1 version. In my old office, we had a winning line that went straight to the winning post, which had squares with optimise, win-win situation, accentuate, returns, and the very rare killer key, which was 'Upper Quartile' Other, rare tiles had Knowledge Working, Extrapolate, Vertical Insertion, Downsize, Minimise, Development Opportunity, JIT.

 

Threre is also a japanese version, with words like POkey-Yokey. (No, I'm not kidding).

 

Sigma 9

[gc4946]

31 minutes ago, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

So what might we find in the 'thinking outside the box' suggestion? There's been some thoughts about VR or in cab cameras already. What about some novel approach to scenic product? A new ready ballasted track system with integrated point motor and control kit built in?

 

A new DCC compatible ready ballasted track system taking advantage of best practices from Kato and Rocoline would be a significant development. 

As well as integral point motors there could be easy provision for fitting train detection devices and/or uncouplers.

Moreover it could become the standard track offered across all of Hornby's international brands.

[wombatofludham]

I have a feeling the big announcement on Monday will be - they've persuaded GWR to brand up one of their 5 car IEPs with Hornby 100 branding, named Frank Hornby/Hornby Centenary (they tend to give their units two different names, like Brenda/Queen Vic for the "royal" unit) and that it will get lots of free telly advertising through a carefully choreographed news release, plus a model of the Hornby 100 GWR unit being the headline of the new catalogue.  After all, you can't get much bigger than 1:1 scale.

More seriously, I do wonder if this year we will see an admission of the damn obvious and a quiet absorption of the Oxford Rail range into Hornby, and a dropping of the Skale Autos range allowing Oxford to regroup around their core diecast market?  The rail range seems to have gone off the boil with Oxford, so I would imagine the range would make for a simple acquisition within Hornby, and I would hope that the promised Oxford HST Mk3 stock would be a high priority for a launch under the new merged range, with a number of engineering tweaks to make them more robust than the loco hauled range.  To be honest, it's the lack of a decent detailed Mk3 HST trailer that has stopped me buying the Hornby super-detailed HST power cars so getting them to market would have synergy with their range, giving them  the chance to consign the existing trailers to complement the ex Lima Railroad powercars and cashing in on the recent demise of the HST from the majority of the network by being able to offer cost conscious and full fat models of the trains.

The Oxford kettles would also fit into the existing range nicely, their buildings are Skaledale ready and their wagons would help expand the wagon range as well.  To me it seems like as no-brainer, and I can't see the Competition authorities being very interested in any "merger" of the rail brand as there is an expanding number of competing firms in the British OO market and competition is healthy, the loss of one very minor league player won't even register on their radar, whilst it might allow for Hornby to bring some better resources to future developments.

[Steamport Southport]

19 minutes ago, wombatofludham said:

The Oxford kettles would also fit into the existing range nicely, their buildings are Skaledale ready and their wagons would help expand the wagon range as well.  To me it seems like as no-brainer, and I can't see the Competition authorities being very interested in any "merger" of the rail brand as there is an expanding number of competing firms in the British OO market and competition is healthy, the loss of one very minor league player won't even register on their radar, whilst it might allow for Hornby to bring some better resources to future developments.

 

Would they?

 

Without mentioning the non standard mechanisms, Hornby already has better models of two of the three steam locomotives that Oxford make...

 

 

 

Jason

[wombatofludham]

4 minutes ago, Steamport Southport said:

 

Would they?

 

Without mentioning the non standard mechanisms, Hornby already has better models of two of the three steam locomotives that Oxford make...

 

 

 

Jason

 

There's been a debate about the Dean Goods but to be honest I'm not sure that the old Airfix model is that much better.  What is the other steam loco Hornby make that is better than the Oxford version?

(edit) The Adams Radial.  To be honest, given they were such a niche loco working one branch line for most of their life, it was never going to be a huge seller, so if that gets dropped, so be it.  However, the latest revised Dean Goods, made at the behest of the NRM, seems to be a better model than the old Airfix model, unless you really are into counting rivets.

Edited January 3, 2020 by wombatofludham
Forgot the Adams tea urn.

[Compound2632]

5 minutes ago, wombatofludham said:

 

There's been a debate about the Dean Goods but to be honest I'm not sure that the old Airfix model is that much better.  What is the other steam loco Hornby make that is better than the Oxford version?

 

Adams radial - the Hornby one being considered more satisfactory, I gather.

[GWR-fan]

Remember when E-link was going to rewrite DCC accessibility.  What happened to that?  E-link trainsets were flogged off at bargain basement prices.  Now Hornby wants to try some other foolhardy whizzbang tomfoolery to excite the market.  I had believed that Lynton Davies appointment was going to place Hornby on an even keel and a path to prosperity.  Looks like I will need to be patient for a whole lot longer.