Il Grifone Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 My mistake! but one of the replicas was. That must be where I got the (mis)information from, because I'm sure I read it somewhere! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andymac-2008 Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 The local Asda had 2 of part 5 this morning. A roof, which appears to be for the cottages, and a piece of what passes for track. The roof is moulded in tile colour, but the individual 'tiles' are the size of large slates. They also had 2 of part 22 of a 'Batmobile' effort, which I seem to have missed up to now! Since I already have a 'Hot Wheels' version of the T-bird based one from the '60s TV series, I abstained This is the photo of the roof and track piece. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyram Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 Before I search for something that's not there, has anyone started a specific thread on Hornby's "Operation Build-it?" Good question, I was wondering if there was a thread for this too. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pacific231G Posted October 24, 2013 Share Posted October 24, 2013 Steve K, on 24 Oct 2013 - 18:47, said: Before I search for something that's not there, has anyone started a specific thread on Hornby's "Operation Build-it?" Good question, I was wondering if there was a thread for this too. From what I've seen of it Operation Build-it looks like it could generate quite a good first layout and for a lot less cost than the partwork. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Il Grifone Posted October 26, 2013 Share Posted October 26, 2013 There were a couple of weathered/distressed/got at Hachette coaches at the toy fair today at £8 each. I did not add to my collection! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gismorail Posted October 26, 2013 Share Posted October 26, 2013 Is this thread a joke or am I missing the point to all this twisted humor are their genuine people who collect a series like this and make a model railway this way. Reckon I will start a loan shark business for people who want to borrow money to build a layout. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyram Posted October 26, 2013 Share Posted October 26, 2013 Is this thread a joke or am I missing the point to all this twisted humor are their genuine people who collect a series like this and make a model railway this way. Reckon I will start a loan shark business for people who want to borrow money to build a layout. I think the point being made is not many people will build the layout and the series is destined to fail. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baby Deltic Posted October 26, 2013 Share Posted October 26, 2013 Even if they do build the layout and collect every issue, it'll be of lower quality than the same layout built with parts sourced from the main manufacturers. I reckon that steel track will rust if someone sets it up as a garage layout. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium PhilJ W Posted October 26, 2013 RMweb Premium Share Posted October 26, 2013 Do any of these partworks 'go the distance'? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YK 50A Posted October 26, 2013 Share Posted October 26, 2013 Do any of these partworks 'go the distance'? You mean in general? Dr Who DVD Files! My recollection is that I ordered it in the Autumn of 2008. The first edition(s) didn't arrive in time for Christmas (it was meant to be a present for my son who was 5 at the time) and we're still waiting for some of the free gifts. To be fair, my son now owns an impressive library of Dr Who films and episodes - some but by no means all have been on general release - and has a decent and comprehensive encyclopaedia which he was reading earlier this evening while his sisters watched a film. I don't want to think about how much money we've spent (or will end up spending) but I'm not sure we could have easily got hold of the material any other way. The series must be successful, otherwise it wouldn't keep on being extended (28 issues, then 40, now 140) and it's been rolled out in Australia and probably other countries where the BBC Dr Who DVD licensing rules allow. A different beast to what this thread is about - in my opinion of course! Alun Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cctransuk Posted October 28, 2013 Share Posted October 28, 2013 If you are in the process of refinishing Hachette Mk.1s, this may be relevant; it's the reason that I designed the Mk.1 transfer sheets :- http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/77937-new-coach-and-wagon-transfers-from-cambridge-custom-transfers/ Regards, John Isherwood, CCT. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Phil Parker Posted October 29, 2013 Administrators Share Posted October 29, 2013 Do any of these partworks 'go the distance'? My Dad has the entire Bismark set and is now most of the way through the Hood. Both have been excellent. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Phil Parker Posted October 29, 2013 Administrators Share Posted October 29, 2013 Is this thread a joke or am I missing the point to all this twisted humor are their genuine people who collect a series like this and make a model railway this way. Reckon I will start a loan shark business for people who want to borrow money to build a layout. Yes there are - otherwise there wouldn't be at least two big players in the partwork business who put these things out year after year. This isn't a fly-by-night operation. You're presumably an expert who could do all this stuff yourself but there are lots of others out there who need their hands holding to through the process of building a layout to an even greater degree than conventional magazines can manage. For them, this does the job. They pay a premium for the service of course but if it makes the difference between building a layout and not building a layout, and they are happy with the results, who cares? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pacific231G Posted October 31, 2013 Share Posted October 31, 2013 You're presumably an expert who could do all this stuff yourself but there are lots of others out there who need their hands holding to through the process of building a layout to an even greater degree than conventional magazines can manage. For them, this does the job. They pay a premium for the service of course but if it makes the difference between building a layout and not building a layout, and they are happy with the results, who cares? I think the difficulty I have with this is that the same amount of hand holding could very easily produce something a whole lot better than what is really little more than a large train set with buildings. The layout is also surely far too big for most British homes. This is clearly what Hornby Magazine are trying to do with their current series as are LocoRevue in their separate bi monthly magazine Clés pour le train miniature aimed specifically at beginners. This basically offers a step by step project layout built like Hornby Magazines on a standard door blank but in this case a roundy round with a through station with a road with houses and shops behind it (Rue de la Gare?)- and with the rear of the oval forming a hidden fiddle yard. They suggest a Jouef goods train set as an affordable source of a loco, some wagons and the basic oval. The magazine includes card building kits as centre folds. The project layout is one that I think a typical beginner would be well pleased with as it offers operation and shunting not just watching the train circling. It is reckoned to cost a total of no more than €600 (less if you follow their advice on 2nd hand purchases) based on an average of €50 a month over twelve months. An equivalent layout would probably cost rather less in UK prices for 00. The magazine suggests other possible layouts and ideas as well. I hope the Hachette partwork does encourage people to take up railway modelling but fear that disappointment with what they're building will simply put them off. I suspect that those who do get into the hobby through it will diverge fairly rapidly. I suppose that at least some of what they've collected may prove useful in this. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Il Grifone Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 I don't think anyone fails to realise that all these partworks are an expensive (and slow) way to the final result, but that is an individual decision. Up to now we've had:- Coach - not perfect, but cheap Station - OK but expensive (there are better station building kits for this money IMHO) Cottages - Only the roof so far so reserved judgement I was interested in the French/Italian station building (appears to be identical in both countries), but when I found it required 4 issues I lost interest - There is/was? a Hornby 'ready to plonk' building for less. (I'll build my own - it would have been the wrong scale for Rivarossi in any case. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Il Grifone Posted November 3, 2013 Share Posted November 3, 2013 I think the difficulty I have with this is that the same amount of hand holding could very easily produce something a whole lot better than what is really little more than a large train set with buildings. The layout is also surely far too big for most British homes. This is clearly what Hornby Magazine are trying to do with their current series as are LocoRevue in their separate bi monthly magazine Clés pour le train miniature aimed specifically at beginners. This basically offers a step by step project layout built like Hornby Magazines on a standard door blank but in this case a roundy round with a through station with a road with houses and shops behind it (Rue de la Gare?)- and with the rear of the oval forming a hidden fiddle yard. They suggest a Jouef goods train set as an affordable source of a loco, some wagons and the basic oval. The magazine includes card building kits as centre folds. The project layout is one that I think a typical beginner would be well pleased with as it offers operation and shunting not just watching the train circling. It is reckoned to cost a total of no more than €600 (less if you follow their advice on 2nd hand purchases) based on an average of €50 a month over twelve months. An equivalent layout would probably cost rather less in UK prices for 00. The magazine suggests other possible layouts and ideas as well. I hope the Hachette partwork does encourage people to take up railway modelling but fear that disappointment with what they're building will simply put them off. I suspect that those who do get into the hobby through it will diverge fairly rapidly. I suppose that at least some of what they've collected may prove useful in this. Thanks for the link! I can see even more valuable modelling time being wasted spent on the internet! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
northwestern400 Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 I don't think anyone fails to realise that all these partworks are an expensive (and slow) way to the final result, but that is an individual decision. Up to now we've had:- Coach - not perfect, but cheap Station - OK but expensive (there are better station building kits for this money IMHO) Cottages - Only the roof so far so reserved judgement I was interested in the French/Italian station building (appears to be identical in both countries), but when I found it required 4 issues I lost interest - There is/was? a Hornby 'ready to plonk' building for less. (I'll build my own - it would have been the wrong scale for Rivarossi in any case. Issue six is out today - the stone work looks rather over scale and the windows look too recessed while the doors are moulded flush with the walls. The rear and front walls are identical as are the end walls which do not feature any windows. That said it is a lot more solid and 3 - D than a card kit! Issue 7 will feature a bag of scatter and a piece of curved track ( contain your excitement please). If you save stamps from issues 6 to 20 you get the chance to buy the Bachmann Jinty for £69-99 ( again a list price of 174.99 !!) and the electric pack for 39-99. The electric pack seems to include a speed controller, two wall mounted (plug-in) transformers a roll of wire and a switch. I assume one transformer is for the lighting circuit. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
northwestern400 Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 Issue six is out today - the stone work looks rather over scale and the windows look too recessed while the doors are moulded flush with the walls. The rear and front walls are identical as are the end walls which do not feature any windows. That said it is a lot more solid and 3 - D than a card kit! Issue 7 will feature a bag of scatter and a piece of curved track ( contain your excitement please). If you save stamps from issues 6 to 20 you get the chance to buy the Bachmann Jinty for £69-99 ( again a list price of 174.99 !!) and the electric pack for 39-99. The electric pack seems to include a speed controller, two wall mounted (plug-in) transformers a roll of wire and a switch. I assume one transformer is for the lighting circuit. Correction - the front and rear walls have the doors in different positions! Should have gone to .......... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Chris116 Posted November 6, 2013 RMweb Premium Share Posted November 6, 2013 Issue six is out today - the stone work looks rather over scale and the windows look too recessed while the doors are moulded flush with the walls. The rear and front walls are identical as are the end walls which do not feature any windows. That said it is a lot more solid and 3 - D than a card kit! Issue 7 will feature a bag of scatter and a piece of curved track ( contain your excitement please). If you save stamps from issues 6 to 20 you get the chance to buy the Bachmann Jinty for £69-99 ( again a list price of 174.99 !!) and the electric pack for 39-99. The electric pack seems to include a speed controller, two wall mounted (plug-in) transformers a roll of wire and a switch. I assume one transformer is for the lighting circuit. Where do they get their list price from? Bachmann's own web site says that a weathered Jinty is £79.95 and the S&DJR Blue version is £72.95. I think Trading Standards would be interested in this as it appears to be a con! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete 75C Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 I'd consider it a con if you subscribed to the partworks and they then made you buy one when it's available elsewhere for less. Surely it's your choice. I don't think I'd want to pay cover price for a bag of scatter and a bit of bent track but I'm sure plenty will. It's long been a marketing strategy to tell you you're saving a hundred pounds on a dishwasher (for example) when in reality you're saving virtually nothing over other retailers prices. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Griffin Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 so you collect tokens out of 14 issues which ammounts to £125.86. you could get two jintys for that and some change from the right places. the steel track, (I left one of the straights from issue one outside and its very rusty now) the coach was a bargain I agree but the rest of the part-work seems a bit steep. and despite searching the web ive yet to come across a Bachmann jinty with no decals for £170 odd quid. something fishy there! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YK 50A Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 The Hornby Midland red Jinty's that were in Argos for 20 quid until recently look like excellent value for money all of a sudden! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andyram Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 I am so glad I have not bought any further issues since the first one. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Il Grifone Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 Where do they get their list price from? Bachmann's own web site says that a weathered Jinty is £79.95 and the S&DJR Blue version is £72.95. I think Trading Standards would be interested in this as it appears to be a con! Regrettably, since the abolition of Resale Price Maintenance, retailers can charge what they like. I would agree that they are exaggerating however, but then it is a partwork. It appears to have ground to a halt. Our local Asda still has (or did until a day or two ago) their 2 copies of part 5. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
YK 50A Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 It appears to have ground to a halt. Our local Asda still has (or did until a day or two ago) their 2 copies of part 5. My local independent had 3 of issue 1 which I deprived him of. He got 1 of issue 2, just to see, which didn't sell, it ended up going back to the wholesaler, he didn't bother with issue 3. I've been keeping an eye on the local Spar which had a couple each of issue 2 and 3 on the shelves for ages (again I cleaned them out of issue 1) but hasn't had anything since. I'm still planning to have the lions share our new layout up and running for Christmas, hadn't considered for one moment going down the partwork route. It will costs us half the money, will have much greater playability and for that matter will be far more practical. For my son, the time may well have gone if we had waited for the Hachette job, he'll be a teenager in no time. The coaches have been very well received though. Alun Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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