Hornby goes Steampunk in 2020

[truffy]

6 minutes ago, Corbs said:

Stumbled across this and thought it was pretty awesome. Looks like they've copied Big Boy running gear with an SNCF-style nose.

A real-life Big Boy is to this what a Toyota Hilux is to one of those vast Quarry Dumper Trucks!

 

Note the FLOCKS of birds in the station, and the three level stock! I really hope it isn't hand-fired.

 

 

 This is one that @Edwardian posted on page 4:

 

Although it's a triple-decker carriage, we have double-deckers in Switzerland, so not too much imagination/artistic licence is needed to add one more layer to the cake!

[Corbs]

Below my own post no less! Memory of a.... a.... one of those swimmy things

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

18 minutes ago, Corbs said:

... I really hope it isn't hand-fired...

Examine it more closely in respect of fuel and water supply matters, and you will note there is no tender. So I should think the triple decker coaches are to supply a plenteous stream of persons for the juice extractor and combustor units in order to make it go. In short it's the Euthanasia Express, designer presumably Kevorkian or someone of that ilk...

[RJS1977]

10 hours ago, Coryton said:

 

I didn't get that impression - and I did like the comment about some people complaining about it being the same ones who want Battlespace brought back...

 

TBH I don't have an issue with Hornby doing a Steampunk range per se. My two issues are:

 

1) The fairly crude representations caused by using the same old Smokey Joe and 4 wheel carriages in yet another guise - though I daresey had the previous Hornby management not destroyed so much of the old tooling, there would have been a wider choice of items for Hornby to choose from, and maybe they would have chosen items that have been out of the range for a while rather than the usual suspects.

 

2) The cheapening of the premium Bassett-Lowke name - why? What's wrong with 'Hornby Steampunk'?

 

[eldomtom2]

11 minutes ago, RJS1977 said:

1) The fairly crude representations caused by using the same old Smokey Joe and 4 wheel carriages in yet another guise - though I daresey had the previous Hornby management not destroyed so much of the old tooling, there would have been a wider choice of items for Hornby to choose from, and maybe they would have chosen items that have been out of the range for a while rather than the usual suspects.

The Dean Single is an available option and would require little beyond a different paintjob to look steampunk, but seemingly Hornby want to stick to stuff that's cheaper to the customer to launch the range.

[HonestTom]

23 hours ago, Corbs said:

I have the greatest respect for Laurie Calvert, firstly for taking the plunge with 'Cato Pass' and creating an epic sci-fi layout that doesn't resemble anything I'd seen before, for then taking that out on the exhibition circuit and having the gumption to pull it off. I hope he's a trailblazer for more people pushing the envelope in different ways.

Secondly, for taking on this challenge with Hornby, which must have been a daunting task to say the least! It's not a challenge to be taken lightly and to throw yourself into it and put yourself on the line, so to speak, takes a lot of courage.

 

So I would say well done Laurie, this particular kind of Steampunk isn't totally my bag, but like you I do hope it encourages people who may not have tried out new things before now.

In fact, I'm inspired to make something myself along Steampunk lines, and I would otherwise not have been, so thank you.

 

Having learned the specifications Laurie was working to, I feel that the problem was that Hornby weren't willing to go all-in, and I think they were relying on Laurie to do all the research. The result is something very specifically in his style. I don't know, I dare say a lot of modellers wouldn't consider this a problem, and I'm not going to condemn anyone for liking the range.

 

I must admit that I too am thinking of playing with steampunk - it's not a million miles away from the Victorian freelancing I'm already doing. And I've had this nagging voice in the back of my head since I started posting here saying, "Well, if you know so much about steampunk, why don't you try it?"

 

 

PS Here's another steampunk layout, again by Chris Walas. It's a Gn15 micro made almost entirely out of paper!

 

 

Edited January 13, 2020 by HonestTom

[Edwardian]

I think there are a couple of issues here, and I would encourage anyone who hasn't to watch Jenny's interview with Laurie Calvert.

 

Now, I have reservations over the chosen aesthetic, so let's get that out of the way first.  I realise that, as a non-steampunker, I'm hardly in a position to comment on this, but Laurie's work looks more sci-fi than steampunk to me. He overlaps the two on Cato Pass, but to my eyes that takes his interpretation to the diesel punk and futuristic limits of what might reasonably be called "steampunk".  My preference, and this is all very subjective, is for the Victorian sci-fi end, which might be the opposite extreme.  Certainly, with the Hornby locos, all sense of an underlying Victorian aesthetic appears lost.  Thus, a steampunk 'look' somewhere between these two points might have been better.  But, as I say, that's a personal subjective viewpoint, so feel free to discard and move on.

 

I love the idea of tea races by railway 'steam clippers' - a great narrative concept, which I think is also down to Laurie - but, for me, that conjures up long-low elegant Cramptonesque single-wheelers with massive wheels, complicated motions and a multitude of polished brass parts. It does not conjure up the Railroad equivalent of Mad Max, I'm afraid. 

 

So much for the subjective bit, take or leave it as you will.

 

There is a practical issue. The video reveals quite how cheaply Hornby has done this.  These are cast resin bodies.  Yes, one of our two biggest RTR manufacturers has resorted to cottage industry methods, and not necessarily the most refined of them.  You may have thought that those are Hornby 4-wheel coaches and wagons with bits of Airfix kits stuck willy-nilly and, perhaps, somewhat nonsensically, to them.  No, they are resin casts of Hornby 4-wheel coaches and wagons that had bits of Airfix kits stuck willy-nilly and, perhaps, somewhat nonsensically, to them. I believe the same is true of the loco bodies.

 

Now, no criticism express or implied - commercial reality no doubt dictated such an approach on what is, after all, a novel and unproven subject - but it does mean that there are going to be some severe restrictions on what Hornby can produce using these means. I think some of the locomotive flights of fancy involving Dean Singles and Q1s that I and others might have been indulging in simply will not suit this material and its limitations; you won't get a slotted splasher or open cab, sheets, or rails or any finer fittings. The stock has to look relatively crude because the medium is.

 

Incidentally, there is perhaps more praise due to Laurie Calvert than at first is obvious; he has had to design the range with the constraints both of budget and the production material. 

 

There is a hint that Hornby might move on from resin, if further models are produced, but that will likely depend on the sales figures for this 'toe in the water' selection. That is not impossible, as I daresay that there are many who will like this range.  It is nothing if not refreshing, and great for making the creative juices flow.   

 

EDIT: PS thanks to Honest Tom for the link to Chris Walas's Gn15 micro layout.  It's a great little layout. I love the baby Nautilus.

 

Edited January 13, 2020 by Edwardian

[James Harrison]

19 hours ago, 34theletterbetweenB&D said:

Examine it more closely in respect of fuel and water supply matters, and you will note there is no tender. So I should think the triple decker coaches are to supply a plenteous stream of persons for the juice extractor and combustor units in order to make it go. In short it's the Euthanasia Express, designer presumably Kevorkian or someone of that ilk...

 

Have you read  George Mann's 'The Revenant Express'?

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

5 hours ago, James Harrison said:

Have you read  George Mann's 'The Revenant Express'?

Never heard of it!

[F-UnitMad]

On 12/01/2020 at 09:26, traction said:

I for one will be ordering a set of the locos as I think they are actually pretty good, the kids at an exhibition would love them on a suitable layout.

Nah - I'd run them on an UNsuitable layout, preferably in front of a bunch of pontificating rivet counters....   

[HonestTom]

12 hours ago, F-UnitMad said:

Nah - I'd run them on an UNsuitable layout, preferably in front of a bunch of pontificating rivet counters....   

 

With a rake of Hattons Genesis coaches?

[dullsteamer]

On 13/01/2020 at 09:17, Corbs said:

Stumbled across this and thought it was pretty awesome. Looks like they've copied Big Boy running gear with an SNCF-style nose.

I think there's more Norfolk and Western A in it than Big Boy...

 

[AMoonRabbit]

Yeah, don't think this is Hornby's finest moment. Guessing Simon Kohler didn't have anything to do with this decision? Most of this stuff looks like it took a plunge into a bucket of sprues and glue....

[Edwardian]

9 minutes ago, AMoonRabbit said:

Yeah, don't think this is Hornby's finest moment. Guessing Simon Kohler didn't have anything to do with this decision

 

The definition of non sequitur 

[robmcg]

Actually Hornby's Rivarossi has already made the perfect loco...

 

 

Rivarossi C&O H8 with 14,000 tons behind....   

 

 

[truffy]

16 minutes ago, robmcg said:

Actually Hornby's Rivarossi has already made the perfect loco...

 

 

Rivarossi C&O H8 with 14,000 tons behind....   

 

 

 

Sure, it's big and it has pipes a'plenty, but I think it's too inelegant.

[LB&SCR 337]

I don't want to insult anyone but I think the American engine's are very ugly.

I love the elegance of the Victorian and Edwardian era railways.

The way I would have done it is buy getting the Dean single and recolour it with a couple more pipes in brass and use a cog the same size as the driver wheel and stick that on. Maybe a small clock on the front of the smokebox and take away the front of the wheel arch. And then name the company Great British instead of great western. Just an idea

In fact I will model it myself at some point.

[Coryton]

3 hours ago, AMoonRabbit said:

Yeah, don't think this is Hornby's finest moment. Guessing Simon Kohler didn't have anything to do with this decision? 

 

According to the video linked above, he certainly did have something to do with it.

[HonestTom]

19 hours ago, AMoonRabbit said:

Yeah, don't think this is Hornby's finest moment. Guessing Simon Kohler didn't have anything to do with this decision? Most of this stuff looks like it took a plunge into a bucket of sprues and glue....

I actually think the idea is a sensible one. Much like Harry Potter and Thomas the Tank Engine, it aims at a market that might otherwise have no interest in model railways.

[Phil Parker]

19 hours ago, AMoonRabbit said:

Yeah, don't think this is Hornby's finest moment. Guessing Simon Kohler didn't have anything to do with this decision? Most of this stuff looks like it took a plunge into a bucket of sprues and glue....

 

I understand that this has been in train for a couple of years and isn't just someone's pet project. As has been said it's not aimed at us. Hornby are trying different things aimed at different markets (see the re-packaged paint aimed at crafters) to grow the overall market. This stuff appeals to someone, most towns have a Games Workshop for instance and have done for many years. As a low-priced toe in the water, I can see the logic.

 

Anyway, I'll try to find out more next week. I understand the Bassett-Lowke stand at the Toy Fair isn't part of the Hornby one, so they see it as a stand-alone brand.

[eldomtom2]

If they're attempting to grow the market, why are they not doing it under the name of the brand nationally recognized as the model railway company?

[MarkSG]

40 minutes ago, eldomtom2 said:

If they're attempting to grow the market, why are they not doing it under the name of the brand nationally recognized as the model railway company?

 

Because they see it as a sufficiently different sector to justify a different brand. To customers, "Hornby" means, broadly speaking, scale models of real locomotives and wagons (even Smokey Joe and the ubiquitous 0-4-0 are loosely based on a genuine prototype). This stuff isn't based on reality, at all. So it makes sense to do it under a different brand.

"Growing the market" doesn't have to mean growing the market specifically for the Hornby, the brand. It also means growing the market for products made by Hornby, the company. That also includes Humbrol, Airfix, Scalextric, Corgi and the various European brands that they own, as well as, now, Bassett Lowke. It's all about finding things that they can profitably make and sell.

[30801]

1 hour ago, HonestTom said:

I actually think the idea is a sensible one. Much like Harry Potter and Thomas the Tank Engine, it aims at a market that might otherwise have no interest in model railways.

 

Without the fat licensing fees attached to those two things.

[eldomtom2]

43 minutes ago, MarkSG said:

To customers, "Hornby" means, broadly speaking, scale models of real locomotives and wagons (even Smokey Joe and the ubiquitous 0-4-0 are loosely based on a genuine prototype).

Does it really? Does the average member of the general public really draw a line between freelance and scale model trains? And even then, ditching the Hornby name seems unadvisable - call it something like "Hornby Bassett-Lowke" if you must, but leaving "Hornby" off entirely would, I suspect, turn the public off or at least not consider it as seriously.

[MarkSG]

1 minute ago, eldomtom2 said:

Does it really? Does the average member of the general public really draw a line between freelance and scale model trains? And even then, ditching the Hornby name seems unadvisable - call it something like "Hornby Bassett-Lowke" if you must, but leaving "Hornby" off entirely would, I suspect, turn the public off or at least not consider it as seriously.

 

These aren't really aimed at the average member of the general public either. They're aimed at steampunk fans and the kind of people who shop in Games Workshop. I have a feeling that, to them, the name "Hornby" would actually be a negative factor, because they will associate it with stuff that they're not interested in. Just like we'd probably be a little suspicious of a new range of model railways branded Warhammer.