Stevelewis

Should any one be looking for the BR Weathered version on the Hornby 01 (DCC ready) Tim at Arcadiarail (01706 882900) has stock @ £109.00+postage

Many thanks for your quick response

Can any one advise please does the Hornby 01 have tender pickups? Thanks in anticipation Steve

Well I think my £199.00 saved up for the BG will have to go on another Mallet for the 0n30, thats a heavy hauler but not 00

Yes seems to be running a little late! However I suppose I can spend the saved up cash on sonething else and save up again!!!

Many sound fitted locos etc do sound a whistle are let off steam or ring a bell when power is first applied to them. All my Bachmann Tsunami fitted 0n30 loco do! It indicates that the sound unit is working! Have you any comments on the sound in the 205, there were some earlier comments that it was not really that good, so any thoughts are welcomed

Re My post #1283, I am disappointed to note that although a Dapol employee has been online no response has been forthcoming.

I have just received a Green Western , unfortunately the loco apears to have some missing parts on one bogie and also a twisted buffer and one cab window pushed inward. I am correct in assuming that both cabs should have 2 windscreen wipers? This one only has one at one end! The loco was very well packed by the supplying retailer and I feel sure the problems occured when the loco was factory packed. It will be returning to the retailer. I have some photos which I would be pleased to forward to Dapol should they be interested. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I thought Dapol might have been interested but obviously not, I shall vote with my feet in future, the loco has now returned to the selling retailer.

If you power up the 4 car unit with lights on but stationery (assuming you are using digital) then raise up from the track so no wheels make contact one of the trailer cars you will see that the lights go out thus indicating the wheels are not isolated and do in fact perform the function I described previously. The lighting functions of the unit did prove rather perplexing in the initial few weeks of the CEPs release, but we finally manged to understand how it is set up If you disassemble the cars make sure that when you re- assemble, that there is a good contactt between the brass strips ( bend them to increase pressure if nescessary)

For info only the power car actually COLLECTS power the wheels on the 3 unpowered cars simple return the power to the circuit to enable internal and end car indicator light work. If you set the 4 car unit on the track apply power then lift the powered car up so no wheels are in contact you will note that the motor does not work! Also the lights in the other 3 cars go out! This was discussed at length when the 4 CEP was first launched as it did cause some queries as severall sources did state ' picks up power on ALL wheels' The wheels of the 3 unpowered cars provide a return route for the power, this enabled the unit to be designed with power connections between cars ( the coupling bars) only requiring 2 'wires', so a simpler perhaps more durable connection, than Hornby's system of 4 wiresin the couplings of the 5 BEL & 4 VEP both of which do not have return via wheels in the trailers.

Thanks for the memories, I used to live in Levenshulme (about 3 miles away) as a child and we often used to cycle across to Reddish to do a bit of train spotting, and also to watch the Midland Pullman arrive back in the evening after it's run up from London. My wife lived approx. 1 mile from the site! She lived in the housing estate visible in one of the photos!!

Bradford Model Centre Yes Manchester opposite my department store!!! I used to visit frequently around 77 to 84. It was a nice shop with very nice staff, now sadly gone I think?

We Have 7 Westerns available at the last count all Heljan (sorry just been told its EIGHT 8) we have no intention of replacing any of them for Dapol versions. All our Westerns perform brilliantly and it would not seem cost effective to replace them.

Absolutely spot on!! If you are playin' trains, you arent out doing other things!!

Hi Keith Thanks for the info you have posted, this has proved very beneficial, decision wise! Regards Steve

I would say that the 2 BIL does fall short of the 2 EPB in terms of quality and value for money, I feel the lack of lighting doesnt help, when the BILs are alongside the CEPs & EPBs the lack of lightng is very apparent, however it should be noted that if Hornby had added lighting the BIL would probable have cost quite a bit more and Bachmann have established a certain expertise with coach lighting with their EMUs & DMUs. As far as I am aware the only coaches with Lighting that Hornby have produced are the PUllmans & 5 BEL but that system is entirely different no ceiling lights, just table lamps which are a fibre optic system. I know some modellers have revised their BIL plans, one guy had 5 on order but only recieved 2. He has cancelled his other 3 and I noticed that he now has a second Bue Pullman on his layout!! It will be interesting to see if any other manufacturer comes up with an new EMU when they make their announcements. Would point out re SAC Martin's post above the Bachmann EMUs only have 1 powered bogie, but in their case it is a different set up, the motor is fixrd in the car , is flywheel fitted and drives the 'powered' bogie via a cardan shaft. ( Very Smoothly)

Just a thought as the 2 BIL motor unit will easily haul several additional coaches, why not simply remove 1 motor bogie and substitute an unpowered bogie? It should not be too complicated to do it would be nescesary to add a 'floor' where the motor unit was and fit appropriate side frames to the new unpowered bogie.

Having been in this game for over 50 years, I feel that it is much simpler to fix minor problems myself, of course if it is a really bad issue and then the item would go back to the retailer rather rapidly!!

I shall seriously look at my earlier proposal to use an MLV chassis in one of the 2 BILs I am afraid that comparison of the Hornby Motor bogie to Bachmann's Multiple Unit power units is rather depressing. We spend a lot of time trying to get Hornbys unit to perorm satisfactorily, whereas Bachmann's drive system seems to work well out of the box ( we have Bachmann 11 EMUs a a few DMUs between us). I am not saying that all this type of Hornby power unit are poor it probably just a minority, but really for the prices now being asked it shouldnt be that way, Should it?? PS TENDER re the decoders, we have tried ZIMO without any difference being noted.

Has any one had experience of slow to medium speed poor running qualities with the 2-BIL? Reason for my query is I have 2 2 BILs and a friend has 3. of the 5 2 have almost identical issues with running at low speeds, they are OK when they run fast ( approx scale 60MPH) They seem to surge and judder... as a test we coupled up a coach to them using standard hook& loop couplings it was noticable that at the low speed running there was a definate issue as coupling between the BILs and the extra coach slackened and tightened. I have tested the units both on analogue and digital with the same results ( and three different decoder brands were used to ensure it was not a decoder or CV setting problem). We have the same problem with a 5 BEL as well which we have not yet overcome fully. I suspect the problem is probably down to a quality control issue, with the motor bogie. I am also considering to look at the possibility of using the chassis from a Bachmann MLV as a replacement in the 2 BIL. .

RE robin brasher. The 2BIL easily hauls an additional 4 Bachmann Mk1 coaches/ Re living away from the 3rd rail. I am in North Wales, but only 11 miles from the 3rd Rail! CHESTER ( Mersey Rail!!)

We have approx 30 currently, and no squeeks noted!!!! ( bought Bachmann Mk1s when they were first released on the market I have been into the Hobby for many years!)

Running the 2 BIL this evening it suddenly developed a rather loud squeek!!!!!! Quick investigation showed it wasnt the power car, but the trailer! Quite an unusual occurance, not had a new unpowered vehicle in any of the scales I dabble in SQUEEK for some years!, Anyway a tiny drop of lubricant on the axle and the squeek was eliminated.

Looking good.................... Try Kadees No 19 or No 20 NEM plug in type for coupling units if they need to be uncoupled frequently

Ah I see... I must look at mine I must say I have had some EPBs since they were launched and never noticed!!