2014 Hornby Announcements

[Robin Brasher]

Where do I start? Motor sport, flying, going to watch football, boating, having a camper van, pets and vets,.........

 

I would be surprised if there are any hobbies cheaper than model railways

 

Ed

I was horrified when I added up all the money I had spent on model railways. This is without the cost of buying an extra room, converting the loft or shed and buying a car big enough to transport the layouts to exhibitions and cluttering up my home with hundreds of Railway Magazines and catalogues. One good thing is that model locomotives and rolling stock tend to retain their value. I don't normally sell these as I would not have bought them if I did not want them. I think it is worth buying a Hornby or Bachmann version of a locomotive rather than a Railroad version. I bought a Railroad Tornado and I see the simplified lining on the display case every day and wish I had paid more for Hornby's or Bachmann's fully lined version.

[JBM37404]

There are plenty... Golf? Flying? Rally driving? Pedigree cat showing? (That costs a fortune, done that one!) Horses? Rock and roll? (either punter or band member)

 

Andi

Mounting Biking, Real life preservation (Diesel & Steam) etc. Anything to do with cars or railways or music always costs. Not to mention a healthy beer appetite. Woman can always find more practical uses for money like 300 pairs of shoes or a new bag or that designer outfit....

 

I tend to buy second hand of late as its cheaper and I usually butcher and detail my models. If the right model for me comes along I will consider buying it at the RRP although do have one of the cheapest in the country nearby.

[JBM37404]

I was horrified when I added up all the money I had spent on model railways. This is without the cost of buying an extra room, converting the loft or shed and buying a car big enough to transport the layouts to exhibitions and cluttering up my home with hundreds of Railway Magazines and catalogues. One good thing is that model locomotives and rolling stock tend to retain their value. I don't normally sell these as I would not have bought them if I did not want them. I think it is worth buying a Hornby or Bachmann version of a locomotive rather than a Railroad version. I bought a Railroad Tornado and I see the simplified lining on the display case every day and wish I had paid more for Hornby's or Bachmann's fully lined version.

 

Why be horrified? Surely its money well spent and enjoyed. Only live once etc!

[Peter Kazmierczak]

The beauty of railway modelling is that it can cost as much, or as little, as you want it to.

[newbryford]

Surely the issue of price is irrelevant? This is a hobby, isn't it? There must be hundreds of hobbies a damn sight more expensive than this one.

If you want it, just buy it. If you can't afford it, you have a few choices:

a ) dream on.

b ) moan about it.

c ) use real-world modelling skills to modify or detail something similar.

d ) scratchbuild or kit-bash.

As a few people have already pointed out... nobody needs anything in this hobby of ours. Life does not depend on your next purchase.

 

I can do a), followed up by b) and then decide whether c) or d) is the best option.....

 

Cheers,

Mick

[br-nse-fan]

The beauty of railway modelling is that it can cost as much, or as little, as you want it to.

 

I totally agree.  If you don't have a large amount of money to spend, then you can always start small and slowly add.

Unlike other hobbies, where if you want to ride horses (as an example)... you have a set amount of money this is going to cost... and if you don't have it, you are out of luck.

Model railways on the other hand, do have 'fixed prices' and there is a minimum (of sorts) that you have to spend (wood, track, power pack, etc) but much of this cheap to free, such as wood could be if handed down from a friend.

 

When I started, I began with the handful of items that I had purchased with pocket money and what I had received as gifts over the years...  I certainly did not go out and buy the 30-some-odd locomotives and 200+ pieces of rolling stock that I currently own in one fell swoop.

[Robin Brasher]

It is worth looking around for second hand Hornby models if you do not want to pay the recommended retail price of a new one because there seems to be a glut of second hand models. Looking at Britain's Model Trains 2013 second hand models are being sold about 55% of their original price. For instance a £144.99 A4 is only worth £80 second hand. The original Meccano Hornby model railway company used to take old Hornby engines in part exchange for new locomotives and then throw the old locomotives away. The company did this to prevent competition from second hand models.

[Robin Brasher]

The beauty of railway modelling is that it can cost as much, or as little, as you want it to.

Last Tuesday I bought three Hornby 0 gauge LMS four wheel coaches for £20 instead of buying 3 Darstaed six wheelers for £300 and I got just as much enjoyment running them behind a Jinty. The same applies in Hornby 00 gauge and you could probably buy a Jinty and three four wheel coaches for under £40. If you are modelling a specific prototype you probably have to pay over £100 for a Hornby locomotive if no-one has made it before.

[reevesthecat]

Not sure if mentioned already but I am hoping to use the two tone sound models to upgrade my old lima 37. I suspect the way the body fits on the chassis won't have changed too much. More secure than a vitrains chassis upgrade I expect. Like others disappointed not to see a new AC electric, is someone starting a thread to discuss?

Mark

[Guest maxthemapman]

Perhaps it is valid to complain about prices in one sense, which is that these days, models come and go quickly and it is easy to miss them. I would be much more relaxed about the price of a Bachby 4-Bog EMU in Concoach East Western stripes if I knew I could save up my money and buy one next year. More likely, that livery variant will never ever appear again. Worse still, 4-Bog units might disappear from the catalogue completely for five years, or forever. We just don't know, and we get no reassurances from the manufacturers in this respect. In 2014, there seem to be 11 Southern EMUs forthcoming that I would like to purchase. Good job I am interested in a niche area which is poorly served by the manufacturers, otherwise my wallet would be completely devastated.

[coachmann]

RTR manufacturers had the same models in their catalogues for years plus a few new additions and dealers had shelves full of models, many of them slow-movers. But buyers are their own worst enemy at times and while model shops were well stocked (and investment tied up), modellers were chasing other bits of 'candy' on the basis that there was no hurry to purchase as the models would always be there. Add to that the things written on RMweb for all to see such as, "I'll wait a while until there is a glut then buy them cheap from a box shifter" and  "I love duplication as it is good for the hobby and will force prices down".

 

A suggestion  some of us made was that proprietory manufacturers produce limited runs and focus people's wallets! This way company's recover their costs and profit very quickly. It is unlikely they listened to little 'ol coach and others on here, but the fact is limited runs have become the norm for some products and so somebody obviously saw the light.

[melmerby]

I think one of the problems at the moment is that locos (which seem to take precedence with manufacturers) aren't necessarily followed with suitable coaches(/wagons) to pull.

 

A good example is the P2 which when it is eventually available won't have much in the way of teak coaches to haul. (unless you are already well stocked NE wise!)

I pre-ordered one earlier this year and not being an LNER modeller started to look for some suitable era coaches (maybe 8 or so)

So far I have managed to find; 1x Sleeper, 1x All first, 1, Buffet, 1x Brake comp and 2 pigeon vans, hardly a typical formation!

The new releases include some 1948 teaks, but no 1930s ones.

 

Gresley teaks, although expensive, seem to sell out. So why isn't there another batch for when the P2 arrives?

We have had any number of GWR locos but decent RTR GWR coaches, apart from the limited appeal Hawksworth's, are like Hen's teeth!

 

Maybe each time there is a new loco some suitable coaches should be promoted to go with it. (not in sets!)

 

 

Keith

 

EDIT: personally I don't think the current loco prices are excessive. I just wish some of the sloppiness was worked out of the production system

[valeofyork]

I think one of the problems at the moment is that locos (which seem to take precedence with manufacturers) aren't necessarily followed with suitable coaches(/wagons) to pull.

 

That's regularly been the problem with HSTs - power cars and carriages don't appear at the same time if it's a livery which they've done before. In fairness, they do appear to have learned on this one, and have announced power cars and carriages at the same time (although whether they actually appear at the same time is anybody's guess!). They also seem to have produced the same number of each type of carriage in the past, which doesn't make sense - a full typical set will need only one buffet and TGS, but two FOs and four TSs. Will they do the same again?

[Ozexpatriate]

I think one of the problems at the moment is that locos (which seem to take precedence with manufacturers) aren't necessarily followed with suitable coaches(/wagons) to pull.

 

Gresley teaks, although expensive, seem to sell out. So why isn't there another batch for when the P2 arrives?

We have had any number of GWR locos but decent RTR GWR coaches, apart from the limited appeal Hawksworth's, are like Hen's teeth!

Hear hear!

 

Though I don't think we can answer the 'chicken and egg' question implicit in your post. It is a fact that we enthusiasts purchase relatively more locomotives per coach than prototype trains. I think it's probably also true that we purchase more locomotives than we have trains for them to pull, so who can blame the manufacturers for their total balance of locomotives versus coaches and / or wagons.

 

That said, there are relatively very few sets of coaches available RTR for the varieties of locomotives produced. Yes, there are kits, so please don't helpfully point that out, but BR steam liveries excepted, with the focus on short production runs there is rarely more than one example of the big four coaches available at a time.

 

Bachmann have recently offered their GWR 1930s Collett coaches in a Hawksworth livery consistent with the Dukedog, only they haven't been available to purchase. Curiously they have just arrived right around the same time as the Dukedog might.

 

That's regularly been the problem with HSTs - power cars and carriages don't appear at the same time if it's a livery which they've done before.

Indeed.

[Mike Storey]

Where do I start? Motor sport, flying, going to watch football, boating, having a camper van, pets and vets,.........

 

I would be surprised if there are any hobbies cheaper than model railways

 

Ed

 

Train spotting?? 

[Dr Gerbil-Fritters]

Armchair modelling.   Cheap as chips, and I have quite the collection of scale armchairs now....

[Mike Storey]

Perhaps it is valid to complain about prices in one sense, which is that these days, models come and go quickly and it is easy to miss them. I would be much more relaxed about the price of a Bachby 4-Bog EMU in Concoach East Western stripes if I knew I could save up my money and buy one next year. More likely, that livery variant will never ever appear again. Worse still, 4-Bog units might disappear from the catalogue completely for five years, or forever. We just don't know, and we get no reassurances from the manufacturers in this respect. In 2014, there seem to be 11 Southern EMUs forthcoming that I would like to purchase. Good job I am interested in a niche area which is poorly served by the manufacturers, otherwise my wallet would be completely devastated.

 

Absolutely spot on, and I am in the same position as you - practically nothing for my interest in the Hornby announcements although I might stretch a point and take a Blue 2BIL (and I am still waiting for news on the delayed, improved Blue/Grey 4VEP). But if a few "must haves" arrive in 2015 or whenever, the credit card will take a hell of a bashing, because one cannot take the risk of waiting to spread the cost. Bachmann seem to be better at longer term shelf life, so one gets a chance if you miss the first boat, despite their shorter batch runs. You can quite easily tell the gaps that require filling in the EMU market at least, from the kits shown as "out of stock" at DCK and Britannia/SP! As per Sodde, usually the ones I want.....

 

That said, very good to see that Hornby is not re-trenching, as some had feared, and is coming out fighting. The cheaper sound chips could well be a game-changer, if of reasonable quality, as predicted by Andy, both for the number of sound equipped locos and for the progress of conversion to DCC.(I assume these chips are only for DCC?).

[hornbyandbf3fan]

Armchair modelling.   Cheap as chips, and I have quite the collection of scale armchairs now....

But are they finescale?

[JSpencer]

Absolutely spot on, and I am in the same position as you - practically nothing for my interest in the Hornby announcements although I might stretch a point and take a Blue 2BIL (and I am still waiting for news on the delayed, improved Blue/Grey 4VEP). But if a few "must haves" arrive in 2015 or whenever, the credit card will take a hell of a bashing, because one cannot take the risk of waiting to spread the cost. Bachmann seem to be better at longer term shelf life, so one gets a chance if you miss the first boat, despite their shorter batch runs. You can quite easily tell the gaps that require filling in the EMU market at least, from the kits shown as "out of stock" at DCK and Britannia/SP! As per Sodde, usually the ones I want.....

 

That said, very good to see that Hornby is not re-trenching, as some had feared, and is coming out fighting. The cheaper sound chips could well be a game-changer, if of reasonable quality, as predicted by Andy, both for the number of sound equipped locos and for the progress of conversion to DCC.(I assume these chips are only for DCC?).

At first I fancied a blue/grey un refurnished VEP (that may be enhanced!), but £160 slowed me from ordering one as it was £40 more than the NSE refurbished now at the time. Today it seems to be pottering just short of £200! Naturally when all blue dropped to £84 and Bachmann,s second Blue/Grey 4 CEP dropped to £89, I brought one of each thus getting two EMUs for the price of one blue/grey 4 VEP. (I already had one 4CEP when I brought the second).

 

If the Blue/Grey VEP does see the light of day, it would seriously depend on how much it had improved for me to want a 3rd one.

 

Of course a cheap TTC sound equipped, improved VEP in blue grey would certainly convince me to buy!!

[brian777999]

So, still no white metal kits from Hornby ?   I thought this might be one untapped area where they could jump ahead of Bachmann !

 

I wonder if the idea ever crops up at either company when they have a brainstorming session ?

[Robin Brasher]

Hear hear!

 

Though I don't think we can answer the 'chicken and egg' question implicit in your post. It is a fact that we enthusiasts purchase relatively more locomotives per coach than prototype trains. I think it's probably also true that we purchase more locomotives than we have trains for them to pull, so who can blame the manufacturers for their total balance of locomotives versus coaches and / or wagons.

 

That said, there are relatively very few sets of coaches available RTR for the varieties of locomotives produced. Yes, there are kits, so please don't helpfully point that out, but BR steam liveries excepted, with the focus on short production runs there is rarely more than one example of the big four coaches available at a time.

 

Bachmann have recently offered their GWR 1930s Collett coaches in a Hawksworth livery consistent with the Dukedog, only they haven't been available to purchase. Curiously they have just arrived right around the same time as the Dukedog might.

 

Indeed.

Considering the number of A4s manufactured by Hornby and other companies I am surprised Hornby have not made more coaches for them to pull. Examples include Mallard's dynamometer car, accurate LNER silver grey coaches for the 1935 Silver Jubilee, LNER blue coaches for the 1937 Coronation and West Riding Ltd. Golden Age are going to make some for £250-£350 per coach but this is a bit expensive for me as my main interest is the Southern Railway. Hornby often monitors the sales of Golden Age models and produces their own models if the Golden Age models sell well.

[Dunsignalling]

Considering the number of A4s manufactured by Hornby and other companies I am surprised Hornby have not made more coaches for them to pull. Examples include Mallard's dynamometer car, accurate LNER silver grey coaches for the 1935 Silver Jubilee, LNER blue coaches for the 1937 Coronation and West Riding Ltd. Golden Age are going to make some for £250-£350 per coach but this is a bit expensive for me as my main interest is the Southern Railway. Hornby often monitors the sales of Golden Age models and produces their own models if the Golden Age models sell well.

The dynamometer car would be very nice (though I'd personally prefer the GWR one).

 

There are potential problems with mass production of specialised passenger stock (articulation being just one of them) and I feel they would need to be produced as sets (like Bachmann's Blue Pullman) rather than individual models.

 

Otherwise, odd vehicles (e.g. observation cars) might become disproportionately popular and sell out early, making it impossible for other customers who want the full train to get it and leaving dealers with the unsaleable remnants.

 

John

[Dunsignalling]

Armchair modelling.   Cheap as chips, and I have quite the collection of scale armchairs now....

Broad, standard or narrow gauge?

[Dunsignalling]

You missed one:

e: Wait for retailers to reduce the price.

 

This might seem a risk but its what I do, £196 to pre-order HST power cars is ridiculous.

"e" only works if enough people do it!

[Paul Cram]

"e" only works if enough people do it!

There is also the risk that if everyone waits for the price to drop Hornby will say that there is no demand for that type of model and then not produce any other similar types. See comments re AC locos where despite assurances from some that there is demand Hornby are not convinced. Could be a good way to shoot yourself in the foot.