Brekina HO Routemasters

[Dogmatix]

Brekina's 1:87 scale Routemaster buses are now available. Two models have been produced for general sale - a London Transport red version, and a Green Line green version. There will also be an open-top sightseeing version produced exclusively for a German model company.

 

I have received my red and green versions. They both look fine, although a small gap is visible between the upper and lower deck moulds. Interestingly, there is also a slight, but prototypical, gap on the bonnet lid.

 

The red one is on route 15 to Tower Hill - one of the last Routemaster routes.

 

The green one, however, is wrong. It is a standard RM Routemaster - standard length, single headlights, open rear platform. It is finished in Green Line dark green with a light green cantrail, but no light green window trimming. As far as I am aware, Green Line did not operate standard Routemasters, only the coach versions RMC and RCL (although London Country Routemasters were sometimes running on Green Line routes).

The registration on the Brekina Routemaster is 482 CLT, which belonged to RMC 1482. Brekina's Routemaster is numbered RMC 1432, but Routemaster 1432 was a standard RM, not an RMC, and was registered 432 CLT.

How Brekina managed to mess this up I don't know. They'd have been better off making it a London Country RM.

 

Possibly Brekina might later re-issue a red Routemaster with a different route, and a green London Country one. The sightseeing open-topper might also appear in different cities as souvenir models. However, I doubt if they will bother with the RML, RMC, RCL, RMA, RMF or the relatively recent ERM and RME rebuilds (the last two aren't even available in OO scale).

 

I hope to add some pictures in the next days.

 

[Dogmatix]

 

 

[Dogmatix]

 

Sorry about the focus!

 

[Dogmatix]

HO meets OO

 

Routemaster on tour to Berlin...

 

... Hong Kong...

 

and Hamburg.

 

 

[Dogmatix]

Comparison to a Tomica Routemaster (re-wheeled) which is quite close to HO.

[47137]

The last time I travelled on a 'service' RM I fell asleep , quite a deep sleep really and I had to be woken by the clippy. The route had terminated mid-way and I had to blearily make my way onto another bus. The next time I went to London all the RMs had gone except for the heritage ones, but it was a nice way to say goodbye to them.

 

- Richard.

[rue_d_etropal]

For a London Country version I would be tempted just to do a minor repaint of the Greenline one. I do remember London Country double deckers in Kent. Used them a few times, As Sevenoaks bus station was also used by Maidstone and District I did think they looked more comfortable, especially in winter as they had doors!

Not a cheap model, and it would be a red one I would require for one of my projects(West London). As for routes  not too difficult to print off different routes to fix on bus.

Odd that theydid not just supply a sheet ofalternative routes.

Does not surprise me they got wrong number as numbers are similar, and sometimes old documents can be difficult to read (I have to be careful with measurements printed on plans especially if they are handwritten)

[47137]

On 28/12/2020 at 17:53, rue_d_etropal said:

..

Odd that theydid not just supply a sheet ofalternative routes.

...

 

I wonder why Brekina have made the model at all, and the only reason I can think of is for customers who have visited London and fancy a Routemaster. This would explain the choice of route on the model. I don't know, but perhaps there are Routemasters running as tour buses in Germany?

 

The model is expensive by British standards, but I think this is reflecting the higher cost of plastic moulding production over die-cast. The result looks very good and I would hope most of us would get away with only one for a layout.

 

- Richard.

[rue_d_etropal]

old London double deck buses have found their way to many parts of the planet. Not sure if they wee Routemasters but some were used in San Fransisco when the tram system was out of action as it was being upgraded. Also some tour comanies have used them,such as Top Deck. I have been on some of their tours, and to most people they would look like London but think some came from other places. Initially they were all rear entrances. Having nbeen in one of these buses travelling down a road in Norway, I can easily imagine anyone we pssed thought they were seing a London bus.

So from a marketing point of view there is apotentially big market out there, mainly railway modellers whowant a London doubledecker on their HO scales layout. There are already a lot of near OO scales one s on the market, Oxford Diecast helped that along in their early days.

As for price, it is in the normal continental  HO price range. It has puzzled me for a while that a company like Oxford has not moved into HO market(apart from a few American models), as they could easily take on the German companies, in the same way they took on EFE and their own original company Corgi and Lledo.

Interestingly though, some of the early Lledo bus models are pretty close to HO scale.

Edited January 3, 2021 by rue_d_etropal

[SRman]

The red one doesn't look too bad at all, but Brekina rather shot themselves in their foot with the green one. As the OP says, Green Line versions were the RMC, which had dual headlights and rear doors, with a modifed back end to match. London Transport's country area did not have any standard RMs, only the lengthened RML versions with the extra half bay in the middle, so the model does not truly represent any green bus or coach versions.

[rue_d_etropal]

I notice EFE did various versions , includig long and short bodies.

For me the red one is more suited to one of my modeling projects. Only reallyinterested in the London Country one for personal reasons,and not really that bothered, and could easily get one of the EFE ones.

It would not have been that difficult to have done modifications for a Greenline version, exta door panel, and alternative lights.

[rue_d_etropal]

I knew something was not quite right. I think the London Country buses I used were RTs not RMs. In my mind a much nicer front end. Maybe someone will bring one of these out in HO.

Probably more common than the RM as well, and then there are some films which used old RTs, namely 'Summer Holiday' and 'Live and Let Die'. I think the bus in Harry Potter was also based on an RT, so possibly more marketing oportunities for a model of an RT.

[Johann Marsbar]

7 hours ago, rue_d_etropal said:

old London double deck buses have found their way to many parts of the planet. Not sure if they wee Routemasters but some were used in San Fransisco when the tram system was out of action as it was being upgraded. Also some tour comanies have used them,such as Top Deck. I have been on some of their tours, and to most people they would look like London but think some came from other places. Initially they were all rear entrances. Having nbeen in one of these buses travelling down a road in Norway, I can easily imagine anyone we pssed thought they were seing a London bus.

So from a marketing point of view there is apotentially big market out there, mainly railway modellers whowant a London doubledecker on their HO scales layout. There are already a lot of near OO scales one s on the market, Oxford Diecast helped that along in their early days.

As for price, it is in the normal continental  HO price range. It has puzzled me for a while that a company like Oxford has not moved into HO market(apart from a few American models), as they could easily take on the German companies, in the same way they took on EFE and their own original company Corgi and Lledo.

Interestingly though, some of the early Lledo bus models are pretty close to HO scale.

 

I think the San Francisco ones were ex New York Leyland Atlanteans (which were'nt succesful there) some of which ended up in Victoria, BC, after their stint in SF.

The only RM I've come across in Germany was this one.....

 

 

....which  I was surprised to see given that the Germans have maximum height restrictions on buses which is why you generally only find lowbridge bodywork on exported vehicles there eg Bristol Lodekkas.

 

They seemed to get away with it in Leipzig and the roof doesn't seem to have been lowered - particularly compared to the ex Berlin DD you can just make out on the left..

 

[rue_d_etropal]

found this. pity it is a basic model

https://www.nasshan.com/en/schuco/005931-piccolo-aec-rt-london-bus-doppeldecker-pearl-polo

if it is plastic it might be possible to cut out windws, but a a lot of work for what starts out as a not so cheap model

Edited January 3, 2021 by rue_d_etropal

[47137]

2 hours ago, rue_d_etropal said:

found this. pity it is a basic model

https://www.nasshan.com/en/schuco/005931-piccolo-aec-rt-london-bus-doppeldecker-pearl-polo

if it is plastic it might be possible to cut out windws, but a a lot of work for what starts out as a not so cheap model

It's solid die-cast. Best kept as a paperweight.

 

- Richard.

[Dogmatix]

On 03/01/2021 at 18:36, Johann Marsbar said:

 

 

The only RM I've come across in Germany was this one..... [picture removed]

....which  I was surprised to see given that the Germans have maximum height restrictions on buses which is why you generally only find lowbridge bodywork on exported vehicles there eg Bristol Lodekkas.

 

They seemed to get away with it in Leipzig and the roof doesn't seem to have been lowered - particularly compared to the ex Berlin DD you can just make out on the left..

 

I have seen a few Routemasters in Berlin and Hamburg (as well as the odd RT and Bristol Lodekka). Often, they are open-toppers or have had the roof lowered, because of the height restrictions you mention. Berlin is one of the few cities in drive-on-the-right countries which makes major use of double decker city buses; the usual height is 4m but there have been exceptions at 4.06m or even 4.12m, which is still low compared to the Routemaster's 4'6" (4.42m). Bridge heights are usually only posted if they are 4m or less, so drivers of full-height Routemasters here need special maps showing the height of all bridges.

Edited January 14, 2021 by Dogmatix