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Class 143 First Great Western


charliepetty
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I agree, it looks fantastic and I have ordered one.

 

I think that this sort of quality also gives the lie to oft repeated sentiment that the recent price rises from Hornby and Bachmann are unavoidable and that we shouldn't complain about them. These units are made in smaller numbers than the big 2 will order yet the price is extremely reasonable for the quality on offer. I am sure that Charlie is still making a profit on these (at least I hope he is!) which leads to the inevitable question as to why the big 2 felt the need for the recent large increases.

 

Compare the VFM of Bachmann's recent pipe wagon and the 143/144 and there can only be one winner.

 

ROB

No it doesn't give the lie. I don't suppose Charlie has several hundred employees to pay, marketing and finance departments etc, large office overheads, and shareholders to keep happy. These posts which set Realtrack and Rapido etc against Hornby and Bachmann, completely fail to recognise that there is no comparison between big commercial companies with Plc after their name and tiny outfits run by two or three enthusiasts. Both have their place but it will never be possible for the big commercial companies to match the prices of guys who can choose to take a much smaller margin and who don't have the same massive overheads. 

CHRIS LEIGH

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While we totally agree with Chris, please bear in mind that smaller companies don't have it all there own way, the risk's taken are more dramatic if the go wrong and 'YES' we run lean & mean, so do Aldi & Lidl, but like Aldi & Lidl we cannot compete with the buying power of a larger company, where we order 1300 models, larger companies probably order 15,000, so I guess they 'Might' get them made cheaper, especially if the manufacturer is the same company as the distributor. That was Hornby's issues after the takeover of Sanda Kan by Kader (Bachmann), there prices rocketed above inflation leading towards there troubled 2013 results.

 

This hobby needs a good mix of innovation, flair and imagination, do we really want to go back to the Triang, Trix, & Playcraft days.   Competition is healthy, as without innovation and new ideas things can get in a rut!  Hornby to there Credit have done some very good diesels with innovation (Speaker Fuel Tanks, working Fans etc) and so have Bachmann.  But would that have happened without this competition, WHO KNOWS.

 

To all:  Happy Christmas, and cheer up Chris.   'Mines a pint!!!'  Charlie 

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No it doesn't give the lie. I don't suppose Charlie has several hundred employees to pay, marketing and finance departments etc, large office overheads, and shareholders to keep happy. These posts which set Realtrack and Rapido etc against Hornby and Bachmann, completely fail to recognise that there is no comparison between big commercial companies with Plc after their name and tiny outfits run by two or three enthusiasts. Both have their place but it will never be possible for the big commercial companies to match the prices of guys who can choose to take a much smaller margin and who don't have the same massive overheads. 

CHRIS LEIGH

This is not an economic model that I recognise. Companies get bigger and more successful by exploiting economies of scale, keeping their costs down and increasing their margins. If it were true that big companies inevitably have large overheads and charge more for their products then market forces would quickly ensure that there weren't any large companies. If Realtrack can be succesful at their price point and with their level of detail then the future looks pretty bleak for the likes of Hornby and Bachmann as the logical conclusion is that more small concerns will appear and undercut them on price and exceed their quality.

 

Bachmann must be either very inefficient or are trying to take a much larger margin if the price of their fGW class 150 can be justified against the price of the far more difficult to produce Realtrack 143. I know this discussing a long running topic and it is not one that the powers that be in this forum seem comfortable with when the staus quo is questioned but I did not feel I could let Chris Leigh's post go unchallenged, sincere as it may be, particularly as it comes from a trade standpoint.

 

Rob

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While we totally agree with Chris, please bear in mind that smaller companies don't have it all there own way, the risk's taken are more dramatic if the go wrong and 'YES' we run lean & mean, so do Aldi & Lidl, but like Aldi & Lidl we cannot compete with the buying power of a larger company, where we order 1300 models, larger companies probably order 15,000, so I guess they 'Might' get them made cheaper, especially if the manufacturer is the same company as the distributor. That was Hornby's issues after the takeover of Sanda Kan by Kader (Bachmann), there prices rocketed above inflation leading towards there troubled 2013 results.

 

This hobby needs a good mix of innovation, flair and imagination, do we really want to go back to the Triang, Trix, & Playcraft days.   Competition is healthy, as without innovation and new ideas things can get in a rut!  Hornby to there Credit have done some very good diesels with innovation (Speaker Fuel Tanks, working Fans etc) and so have Bachmann.  But would that have happened without this competition, WHO KNOWS.

 

To all:  Happy Christmas, and cheer up Chris.   'Mines a pint!!!'  Charlie 

Absolutely agree with you Charlie. Wasn't intending to say that you had any particular advantages other than that you have more choice in what you do and how you do it. You certainly have greater individual risk if you get it wrong, but you also stand or fall by your own decisions. I recall Simon Kohler once telling me that he envied Lima because when Lima chose to do a new model they only had to get the owner's agreement. Simon had to get his choice approved by numerous departments. No question of turning the clock back - I would expect that there will be more Realtracks, Rapidos and Oxfordrails in coming years but I also suspect that they'll do their bit, produce several models and then drop out, the driving forces behind them having reached that time of their life when they want to enjoy what they've earned. We've seen it with many of the cottage industries and kit manufacturers who set up in the 1960s and 70s. Once the 3D print technology really settles down, we may see even more exciting developments in the way we make and distribute models. Oh, and I AM cheerful - it's a good Christmas for the hobby and I'll definitely be spending my 'Christmas Bonus' on an FGW 143!!

CHRIS LEIGH

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Has anyone received the same email from Charlie as I did yesterday regarding my class 143 pre order?

 

It says that due to a security software update carried out by Sagepay older pre orders can no longer be processed and anyone who still wants a 143 is directed to the Realtrack site to re - place their order.

 

However, the price has now increased from £110 to £120 per unit. I questioned Charlie about this and his response was that the production costs had gone up and to order at the new price if you still want one.

 

Can someone in the know say whether or not Realtrack are legally obliged to honour the original amount of any order's which are affected like mine.

 

I believe that the same was true with the 144s when they where subject to a price increase from £100 to £110, those who pre ordered at £100 paid £100.

 

Dale

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