Class 66 in OO Gauge - New Announcement

[Pete the Elaner]

42 minutes ago, Torbay Express said:

I will stick with simple maths......

 

5 apples and 6 oranges = 5 apples and 6 oranges.  Unless you start combining by saying fruit or something.

 

 

I thought the chat was about Hattons class 66, but it seems to have wandered towards imaginary numbers!

[TomScrut]

15 minutes ago, Pete the Elaner said:

 

I thought the chat was about Hattons class 66, but it seems to have wandered towards imaginary numbers!

 

i agree

[ERIC ALLTORQUE]

The tread has got infected with Isaac Newtons shopping list,5 apples and 6 oranges......is this the new Freightliner colour chart.

[dj_crisp]

13 hours ago, YesTor said:

 

 

Agree on both the above.  Also, the bodyshell itself isn't the most precise/sharpest of mouldings by today's standards, with some quite poor definition with regard to many of the details.

 

 

I always thought Bachmanns 66 looked a bit small, then Hattons came along which I think is a better representation so I lost interest in Bachmanns efforts

[Roy Langridge]

7 hours ago, Torbay Express said:

I will stick with simple maths......

 

5 apples and 6 oranges = 5 apples and 6 oranges.  Unless you start combining by saying fruit or something.

 

5 apples and 6 oranges = a boring fruit salad. 

[Matt]

3 hours ago, dj_crisp said:

 

I always thought Bachmanns 66 looked a bit small, then Hattons came along which I think is a better representation so I lost interest in Bachmanns efforts

 

i haven't measured but i would agree the Bach 66 sort of lacks presence beside the Hattons one

[Pete the Elaner]

Just now, Matt said:

 

i haven't measured but i would agree the Bach 66 sort of lacks presence beside the Hattons one

 

I don't really want to start an argument, but is it critical to get the dimensions 100% accurate?

 

Some things scale down better than others. Colour does not always scale well & the lighting most of us use is not the same as daylight.

We also look down on our models. How often do we get to see trains from a similar angle & distance in real life?

So sometimes what is dimensionally accurate may well look a bit off & what is not entirely correct may look better.

 

So what looks better is surely better, even if it is dimensionally better or not.

I must admit that I don't have a Bachmann 66 because they are really a little too modern for what I model, so I can't compare the 2 side by side. I couldn't resist a Hattons 66 because it looked such a good model. My first one had a lighting fault, but Hattons customer service was great & its replacement looks great.

[Matt]

15 minutes ago, Pete the Elaner said:

 

I don't really want to start an argument, but is it critical to get the dimensions 100% accurate?

 I won’t argue with you - cos I agree! It’s why I’ve not measured - to me the Hattons one captures the presence of the real thing better. I’ve no idea which is dimensionally more accurate

[dj_crisp]

3 hours ago, Pete the Elaner said:

 

I don't really want to start an argument, but is it critical to get the dimensions 100% accurate?

 

 

I think everyone's view will be different on this one. At the end of the day if you're happy with a model it really doesn't matter IMO.

 

I hardly ever measure anything which is probably why alot of my modelling is a bit shoddy. I went to great lengths to get a couple of coaches to "scale" height or what I thought was about right and then judge everything else next to them. The idea being that everything on the layout will probably be equally wrong. Whacking a Bachmann 66 next to them it just looked small whereas the hattons one didn't. TBH I don't know which one is technically right! 

 

So I'd say it's how it all fits in the overall scene thats more important to me than 100% accuracy.

[Torbay Express]

17 hours ago, dj_crisp said:

 

I think everyone's view will be different on this one. At the end of the day if you're happy with a model it really doesn't matter IMO.

 

I hardly ever measure anything which is probably why alot of my modelling is a bit shoddy. I went to great lengths to get a couple of coaches to "scale" height or what I thought was about right and then judge everything else next to them. The idea being that everything on the layout will probably be equally wrong. Whacking a Bachmann 66 next to them it just looked small whereas the hattons one didn't. TBH I don't know which one is technically right! 

 

So I'd say it's how it all fits in the overall scene thats more important to me than 100% accuracy.

I think that it is just the full front that makes Hattons look imposing....

 

But side by side apart from Hattons being a mm or two taller - pretty much the same......

 

 

[TomScrut]

21 minutes ago, Torbay Express said:

it is just the full front that makes Hattons look imposing....

 

I agree, as I said before the air dam is the most obvious thing when not moving/switched on IMO. Lighting when it is.

[YesTor]

5 hours ago, Torbay Express said:

I think that it is just the full front that makes Hattons look imposing....

 

Plus I found that the Bachmann 66 never quite sat correctly on its bogies - I can't recall ever having one out-the-box that wasn't slumped at one end, or one side.  A niggle some might say - for others such as myself, a deal-breaker - but it is indeed that kind of thing that either gives a model presence, or not.

 

Al

 

Edited May 6, 2022 by YesTor

[Br60066]

14 hours ago, YesTor said:

 

Plus I found that the Bachmann 66 never quite sat correctly on its bogies - I can't recall ever having one out-the-box that wasn't slumped at one end, or one side.  A niggle some might say - for others such as myself, a deal-breaker - but it is indeed that kind of thing that either gives a model presence, or not.

 

Al

 

Interesting you should say that. I had trouble with Bachmann class 66's derailing since the bogies weren't sitting right on the chassis. Found it could be fixed by unscrewing the bogie mounting screw and adding a thin washer between the chassis and the bogie mounting stud. Just gave a little more clearance between the bogie and chassis, made the loco sit far better and gave it a mm or so more height making it look more on par with the Hattons class 66 stance.

 

Still not found a good way to stop the NEM pocket smacking the front valance without just grinding it down though.....

Edited May 7, 2022 by Br60066

[ERIC ALLTORQUE]

This is a little clip i did as i built the modified bogies back into one i stripped and re axled as it ran on rollers for an hour or so to bed it down,still runs fine as this was only few months old so 18 months or so now,once i get loft done i will look into doing more of the fleet but proves it can be made bullet proof.

 

 

Edited May 8, 2022 by ERIC ALLTORQUE

[dj_crisp]

On 06/05/2022 at 16:30, Torbay Express said:

I think that it is just the full front that makes Hattons look imposing....

 

But side by side apart from Hattons being a mm or two taller - pretty much the same......

 

 

 

I'm not sure it's just the fronts as when I decided to give up on my Bachmanns mine had full fronts ;)

 

I think your side by side photo is interesting though. Bachmanns has clearly lower buffer heights (ignoring the raised Hattons one in the background) - I don't have a Hattons with original wheels but fitted with 14mm replacement wheels they line up nicely with my height gauge. The base of the bodies don't seem as different (as does the cantrail) but the height is lower. Could be the camera angle distorting things though.  I remember comparing bogies and liked the look of the Hattons one more so that made up my mind.

 

cheers

Will

[Torbay Express]

2 hours ago, dj_crisp said:

 

I'm not sure it's just the fronts as when I decided to give up on my Bachmanns mine had full fronts ;)

 

I think your side by side photo is interesting though. Bachmanns has clearly lower buffer heights (ignoring the raised Hattons one in the background) - I don't have a Hattons with original wheels but fitted with 14mm replacement wheels they line up nicely with my height gauge. The base of the bodies don't seem as different (as does the cantrail) but the height is lower. Could be the camera angle distorting things though.  I remember comparing bogies and liked the look of the Hattons one more so that made up my mind.

 

cheers

Will

The GB's the camera was aligned with gap between them, so should not really get one distorted more than the other.  

 

I think that the Hattons 66 also has a much crisper body tooling, and finer details, that probably helps too!  There maybe a little discrepancy in the angled part between the side and roof on the Bachmann?  Can never understand how they missed the heated windscreen representation tho!

[dj_crisp]

Yeah front glazing is on my list for a future replacement but I'm rather hoping a well known laserglaze manufacturer can be persuaded 

[martin_l_jones]

Presume LH is Hattons and RH is Bachmann.

The printing of the blue and red half circles on the right hand one looks crisper and more prototypical, but the cantrail stripe on the left hand one looks finer and more prototypical. And agree with previous statement on the detail on the bogies, it is a lot more defined on the Hattons one, but I guess the tooling is starting to wear out as it is quite old now on the Bachmann model.

[PieGuyRob]

Scotsman liveried 66743 has just appeared on Hatton's website, for £119.

 

https://www.hattons.co.uk/stocklist/1484058/1000588/1000635/0/hattons_originals_oo_gauge_1_76_scale_diesel_locos/prodlist

[TravisM]

If Hatton’s do another run of Freightliner Class 66’s with what I call the ‘bug eyed’ headlight’s, they’ll have to do the revised headlight’s as on 66548 to be current.  66566 is still in original condition and both pictures were taken on the 17th May at Peterborough.

[Hilux5972]

Come on then Hattons. Please. 

[37501]

7 hours ago, Hilux5972 said:

Come on then Hattons. Please. 

66734 was on display in the stabling point adjacent to Eastleigh station this morning. I was amused to see people who would not normally be interested in trains taking photos of it with their mobile phones. 
Looks very striking in this livery. Well done to GBRf and Arlington paint shop. 

[Torbay Express]

Surprised they went for 66734 with its history.  Let's hope it doesn't jinx this 66.  Personally with a little thought they could have done it as 66700!  With the '70' larger than 66..0, for the jubilee  The 700 would also have worked well for the 100th loco!  

 

Still looks very nice though!

[newbryford]

There's a few pre-owned 66s currently on Hattons website - with a few niggles - if anyone's interested.

[ERIC ALLTORQUE]

A £263 non runner with sound,and its a bug eye light job,some bargin that.........they must be running out of returned items soon.

 

https://www.hattons.co.uk/893447/hattons_originals_h4_66_026_s_po03_class_66_66740_in_gbrf_europorte_livery_sarah_sound_fitted_pre_owned_sold_as_/stockdetail