RJS1977

By this time next year hopefully Abergwili will be open, which should resolve the parking issues.

It does seem as if perhaps there should be some sort of co-ordinating body - given how few shows there are in the area (which in some ways is rather a vicious circle - there aren't many shows so few people build exhibition layouts, which means there's a shortage of layouts to attend shows), it's a shame when two fall on the same day. That said, my father and I did manage to attend the Woollen Mill and West Wales O gauge shows on the same day last year!

Yes, they do get lonely on their own....

On the Tri-ang demo layout at Warley?

And as someone who was born in the BR blue era, went to school alongside the WCML from the end of the blue era to the early privatisation era, and has travelled on and observed the railways extensively since then, I think BR blue is certainly the most boring and probably one of the most awful liveries I've seen in my lifetime!

If memory serves there are (or at least were) two Hornby battery (or clockwork) systems. One system, aimed at younger children, had snap-together plastic track and so was incompatible with mainstream 00 but had the advantage that it was easy for small children to assemble. The other system used regular Hornby set track, which meant it was compatible with the main range, but the track had to be assembled by older children/adults.

Quite. My father's loft layout features an end-to-end branch line where two trains shuttle alternately, and a main line where three or four trains can lap independently with timed station stops and signal stops where necessary to prevent trains rear-ending each other (usually). This is all controlled by a number of reed switches (£1 each), relays (ditto) and 555 timer circuits (50p each). Yes, it's quite complex, but far less so then my club colleague's layout which operates a similar block system with DCC. There is no programming involved in our system so no obsolescence due to operating system upgrades and we know exactly how each component works - so if something goes wrong, it is relatively easy to track down the fault and replace the errant item with no major cost outlay.

I'm not sure about this - certainly as far as the "not sufficiently well detailed" part goes. I firmly believe that if a manufacturer brings out a low-budget model of a previously unreleased prototype (e.g. Adelante, Class 800 or perhaps even something like a Gas Turbine), people who want a model of that particular loco/unit will still buy it, and the market will be opened up to people who couldn't afford a more expensive model. The Bachmann Skarloey is a case in point - whilst clearly a toy model (albeit retailing at Peckett prices, largely due to the licensing fees - had it not been for that, I reckon it could have been obtainable for around the £50 mark) - as it's the only RTR model of a 'Talyllyn' style loco, importers in the UK have seen them flying off the shelves (one importer said his US wholesaler had sold him more than all his US retailers put together!). Likewise I'm sure that if Hornby were to bring out a better-proportioned 'Toby', anyone wanting a RTR J70 would buy it, irrespective of the lack of detail. There are still a lot of unreleased industrial types out there, which would be well-suited to Junior layouts but which would probably sell well to anyone wanting a model of that particular class. If someone wanted say a Bagnall 0-4-0F, would the fact it was produced without sprung buffers or a fully-detailed cab interior really put them off buying it if the price was commensurate with that? This may (or may not) also apply to prototypes which *have* previously been released by other manufacturers but are now unobtainable (e.g. Class 14).

In my case, I had a couple of spare bodies and the cut 'n' shut seemed a good way of putting them to use!

I cut and shut two bodies onto a Bachmann 03 chassis for a passable representation of an ex-Cambrian (Tanat Valley) 0-6-0T.

Originally designed to be fitted to reconaissance cameras on Spitfires!

Or at least a fairly vociferous part of the hobby won't. Generally speaking the people who want change tend to shout louder than those who are happy with things as they are, so the model companies listened to the people who were clamouring for ever-increasing detail levels rather than the "average enthusiasts" (including the traditional 'father and son' modellers) for whom affordability was more of a concern. As models have become more expensive, the "average enthusiasts" have increasingly been priced out. So the people who write letters to the magazines, post on RMWeb etc tend to be the ones who can afford the increases in detail, the dads who go into a model shop, see the £100+ locos and say "They're too expensive, son - I'll get you a new game for the Xbox instead" don't. But they're what the hobby needs in order to maintain interest to the next generation. Whilst I'm not advocating a return to the 1950s style models with non-see-through spoked wheels and big flanges, personally I think the level of detail on Hornby, Lima and Dapol offerings in the early-mid 90s was perfectly adequate. I can live without sprung buffers, opening smokebox doors (though even the 1985 M7 had one of them!), firebox glows and DCC sockets. I can even live with a slight discrepancy in wheelbase if the loco still looks the part and it helps keep the price down.

My father's layout has two Nellies (not end of run ones either, they have X04 motors) on it which AFAIK have not been rewheeled and run fine on Code 100 Streamline track. As do a various other locos (the 1956 Princess has been rewheeled, but I think that's the only one). Rolling stock though, is another story!

Companies like Bing and Bassett-Lowke made premium products with fairly small numbers of sales. Even HD was a relatively premium product with a limited number of sales. It wasn't until Tri-ang (and later Airfix and Lima) came along with low-priced, mass-market models that the model railway hobby really became accessible to everyone. The model of increased prices require fewer sales to produce the same level of profit may be good for Hornby's bank balance, but I'm not sure that going back to pre-Triang days with fewer people being able to afford models is good for the hobby in general. Yes, Hornby may still make the same profit (at least for a while until the 50+ market who have been buying the expensive models die off and the younger, more cash-strapped folk who can't afford to get into the hobby don't take their place) - but a pricing policy which discourages people from entering the hobby ultimately hits all the businesses in the hobby - folk like Ratio/Wills etc making the scenic extras, the retailers, clubs, shows, even the heritage railways.

Personally I wouldn't normally go out and buy a loco as soon as it hits the shelves anyway (unless it's a re-release or re-livery of an existing model). I'd rather wait until other people have bought one and reviewed it, so that I know whether there are any major issues with them before I go out and buy one for myself. I didn't buy the Bachmann City of Truro when it first came out, for that reason. Likewise I don't pre-order. So in that regard it's slightly unfortunate from my point of view that the H&P livery (which is of local interest to me) is being applied to the first batch of Pecketts! And yes, the possibility of the models being available at a discount in a few months is also an incentive to wait, although it doesn't always work out!

I've been doing most of those anyway! Thing is though that the more people resort to those measures (apart from the first one), the less money Hornby makes....

I believe the US Embassy had several for a while.

And I thought Black prince was steam powered....

I'd say it's even more complicated than that. The Laffer curve is fine for one-off purchases. But in this hobby, one purchase can lead to another, especially for those starting out in the hobby. Over-price those initial purchases, people take up stamp collecting instead and don't make the later purchases. So over-pricing may well not just lose sales on that particular item, but on many other items for years to come.

That depends on why they're not making money. If people aren't buying the models in the quantities Hornby make them because they're perceived to be over priced, then they will still end up losing money.

I certainly wasn't arguing prices shouldn't go up. All I was saying is that Hornby have to be careful how they manage the price increases in order to avoid getting into the vicious circle I mentioned. But yes, agreed that some things in the main range should really be at Railroad prices, and the budget HST should return to the catalogue. My preferred view would be for Hornby to go back to supplying the details in a separate packet (sold as an extra) to be fitted by the owner (or by a friend if necessary), rather than being factory fitted. That way production costs are lowered, and those who don't want the extra details don't have to pay for them.

Trouble is, it's easy to get into a vicious circle: Prices go up. Fewer people can afford the models. Fewer models get sold. Production runs shorten. Development costs get spread over fewer units. Prices go up :-(

I only saw the London-end power car of the one I spotted so it may have been the same one (I may have got the time wrong, it could have been 12:30, when I next went out on to the platform to flag out the train to Wallingford).

Yes, I remember seeing someone down the end of the platform recording it as I came down to catch the Oxford train from 8B.