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Freightliner MJA twins & HIA hopper


newbryford
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The RRP has increased according to Hattons. Now £38 expected selling price about £32.

 

Quite a significant hike in Hattons pre-order price from £23 to £32. I thought they looked exceptional value at the former but that bubble has now been burst.

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Quite a significant hike in Hattons pre-order price from £23 to £32. I thought they looked exceptional value at the former but that bubble has now been burst.

 

Remember that this is for TWO wagons. Still good value when compared to others.

 

Cheers,

Mick

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I'm interested to see the 'tie bar' with nem pockets that Dapol describe for the system they are using to couple the joined twinsets together. I'm wondering if it can be adapted for the MRA sets, as I adapted my MRA couplings, using a system written by another RMweb member, using thin brass tube and magnets, but they are still overscale.

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Quite a significant hike in Hattons pre-order price from £23 to £32. I thought they looked exceptional value at the former but that bubble has now been burst.

 

 

Yes a price hike I agree but thats £32 for two, what appear to be, decent looking wagons.

£16 for a new wagon in this day and age shouldn't be sniffed at I don't think, proof will be how fast they sell.

 

As always,pays your money takes your choice but for me I'm in and ordered 4 sets

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Well, yesterday I was surprised to see that, in a little known model shop in Grimsby, there was still one HIA wagon left...not any more! :no:

post-21664-0-28384200-1471795897_thumb.jpeg

 

Couldn't resist...clearly (being a shop that is hard to stumble across) they have sold at a steady rate, so I was able to snap the last one up at the original price. This will now join one of the aforementioned extortionately priced larger silver wagons, along with some container flats and a pair of MJAs (when they appear) in a Freightliner trip working as can often be seen working from Crewe to Leeds or similar. Short wagon trip workings like these are a great excuse to buy a couple of wagons of differing types and have a very mixed train, as I personally am never going to be able to afford a full train of these or the larger Bachmann hoppers! I've already eyed up some work that needs doing to the wagon though, such as replacing the weedy buffers and maybe changing the hopper door arrows around, as well as a thorough weathering of course! :yes:

 

There's a couple of pictures of the MJAs in this months Rail Express, and they do look good! I hope they're to the same high standard that the HIA is.

 

Thanks,

Jack.

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Well, yesterday I was surprised to see that, in a little known model shop in Grimsby, there was still one HIA wagon left...not any more! :no:

attachicon.gifimage.jpeg

 

Couldn't resist...clearly (being a shop that is hard to stumble across) they have sold at a steady rate, so I was able to snap the last one up at the original price. This will now join one of the aforementioned extortionately priced larger silver wagons, along with some container flats and a pair of MJAs (when they appear) in a Freightliner trip working as can often be seen working from Crewe to Leeds or similar. Short wagon trip workings like these are a great excuse to buy a couple of wagons of differing types and have a very mixed train, as I personally am never going to be able to afford a full train of these or the larger Bachmann hoppers! I've already eyed up some work that needs doing to the wagon though, such as replacing the weedy buffers and maybe changing the hopper door arrows around, as well as a thorough weathering of course! :yes:

 

There's a couple of pictures of the MJAs in this months Rail Express, and they do look good! I hope they're to the same high standard that the HIA is.

 

Thanks,

Jack.

 

Grimsby - strange place to frequent from our side of The Pennines Jack....

I'll have my rake for you to test out in a couple of weeks.

 

Cheers,

Mick

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Grimsby - strange place to frequent from our side of The Pennines Jack....

I'll have my rake for you to test out in a couple of weeks.

 

Cheers,

Mick

That's where the rest of the family live...only me, my parents and my cousin (London) have moved from there. I regularly visit and was tempted last time by some as they had three white ones left about a month ago.

 

I look forward to it! Mine has just received a new set of much meatier buffers and I've scrubbed out the 'un' of 'unlocked', so now you can either have the hopper doors locked, or, erm, locked! :P

 

I'll post a pic or two on here when I've completed the mods, which IMHO make a huge difference and really show off what a great wagon it is.

 

Thanks,

Jack.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Well, I've finished the modifications I set out to do to the wagon, and it is all the better for it!

 

The most obvious was to replace the under scale buffers. The plastic inserts were removed, and some new heads were cut out of plasticard. Some plastic tube was added to the back of the heads, and these were duly glued to the existing stocks with a short piece of 1.5mm diameter wire added for strength. The heads were then gently bent with the heat from a soldering iron.

Next I sorted out the pesky hole for the tail lamp by gluing in a piece of plastic strip, which was filed down and then a hole was drilled to accept a small strip of brass which as bent and glued in...

post-21664-0-81104900-1472555659_thumb.jpeg

That was it for the physical mods, but I've also painted various parts. The bogies first received yellow axle box covers and white 'T's, along with black wheels. Next the upper hopper doors and new lamp bracket were painted white, and the buffers and coupling recess painted black. The hopper interior will be painted rust brown colour, and then the whole wagon will receive various washes and coatings to weather it sufficiently.

post-21664-0-01587000-1472555653_thumb.jpeg

post-21664-0-90636400-1472555666_thumb.jpeg

 

These mods and a good weathering will really show the detail of this wagon off as it is a brilliant release on Dapol's part...I look forward to the MJAs now!

 

Thanks,

Jack.

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The RRP has increased according to Hattons. Now £38 expected selling price about £32.

 

RRP upped to £39.95 with an expected selling price a few pennies short of £34.

 

Still good value for TWO wagons before anyone complains.

 

Cheers,

Mick

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The MJAs were built 2003/4 by Wagony Swidnica and were certainly in service by February 2005 when I photographed a loaded set working from Bristol Kingsland Road to Harlow Mill at West Drayton.

 

Graham

 

That's strange, there is a write up here:-

 

http://www.railtechnologymagazine.com/Rail-News/eversholt-rail-sells-entire-freight-wagon-fleet

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I'm pretty certain they are earlier than 2009.

Martin Buck's wagon recogntion book has them listed as 2003/2004

 

Cheers

Mick

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