Michanglais

Hope those couplers are in NEM pockets. A 'fill-in' for the front plough would be nice, too.

Hello all! I'm positive this question will have been asked already but as I'm new to the thread, I don't fancy going through over 200 pages of messages to see if it has been answered... Would I be correct in assuming the loco is easily convertible to EM gauge? Initially I could cope with OO but eventually, I'd like to build a depot using EM gauge track. Cheers, Michael

Hi all, I was wondering whether anybody knew anything about these Tillig points. My main question is - are they isolating (i.e. not live frog), so that I can store a train in a siding on a DC system without it running off the rails when I run another loco. Also, can they be hand operated or do you have to install point motors? Many thanks in advance for any help someone can offer! Cheers, Michael

I certainly wasn't expecting such a contrast! Great fun to have something new to run on my TT loop (please excuse the cat litter on the floor! The track has been cleaned and vacuumed but it's an ongoing battle with the cat litter!). As you can see, my track is very uneven (praying my next place will have a tiled floor), so the coach uncouples immediately when being hauled as the loco isn't fitted with the 'loop' part of the traditional HO coupling. I think coaches will probably remain coupled with there being two loops but the hook on the loco needs some work. That being said, these trains did run in push-pull formations and there doesn't seem to be an issue with the loco pushing the coach. I'd like to be patient and wait for more coaches to arrive to test 'loco pushing multiple coaches' but it just so happens MSL have got an FO 'pilot coach' on sale at the moment. I think I may have to chance it and purchase while they've still got stock. I would never have thought when TT:120 was announced that I'd enjoy running A4s and metre-gauge trains!

So far, so good! 08 is trundling round my TT circuit, seemingly quite happily - hauling its first train of maroon Mk1s! I decided to take the chance of removing the fitted couplers so that I could install my N scale magnetic ones. I 'practised' on the cab end - which will always be leading and will have the bufferbeam fully detailed. No real need for any type of coupling mechanism there, although it's an advantage to keep it in case of resale. I started at the back of the coupler, squeezing together the two arms that spread apart to hold the coupler in place, very gently easing it forwards. It went about half way then refused to budge. So, I decided to attack from the side, placing the loco in my ESU loco cradle and supporting the coupler socket as best I could so as to avoid a repeat of the holding tab snapping off as happened on the last loco. Success! With some very pointy pliers I was able to sort of 'flick' the coupler the remaining bit out of the socket. Fitting the magnetic coupler was a bit easier, not quite such a tight fit but easily tight enough. What I will say is that the whole coupling mechanism and the tab that holds the coupler horizontal are all too fragile. That being said, I can't really knock Hornby for seemingly being at the very limits of the NEM tolerances. I've got plenty of N scale coaches that cost nearly as much as the 08 that have pockets rather tight, or too loose so that you have to use something tacky to hold the coupler in its pocket. I don't look forward to having to do the same thing on my future, sound-equipped HSTs... :o Despite what I perceive as short-comings, I must say Hornby were very reactive and got the replacement to me very speedily. For that they get five stars.

Oh no... something terrible has happened... My love for Swiss railways has spilled over into TT:120 in the form of Swiss narrow gauge. Scale HOm, which runs on TT track. I guess it was inevitable. From the start TT was to be my 'play' scale given that I was willing to mix and match any UK stock I wanted (even buying a steam loco for the first time in my modelling career) and also given that there's no more UK stuff I want due out until the end of this year (which will possibly run over to 2024...), I figured, why not? Of course the Tillig snaptrack I use will be totally wrong sleeper-spacing-wise but given that I'm running UK era III stock on concrete sleepered track, I don't think I care. Now to test the replacement 08 that has literally arrived just this minute!

Well, I have to say, I'm impressed with Hornby's reactivity with regards to my 08 issues - free return from France, with the promise of a replacement upon receipt. In some ways, I would rather have kept the body because mine is perfect and it's only the gubbins underneath that are the issue. I'm just praying I don't get a replacement with the QC problems some others have reported. The replacement will have to impress me before I put in that pre-order for a sound-fitted HST, tho. Although I do pay €300+ for Continental sound-equipped locos (which is really taking the p**s price-wise, it has to be said), at least I know what I'm getting and, while I'm overall pretty pleased with the way Hornby have captured the look of the 08, no lights, some of the moulded detail, lack of sound version (yet) do let it down a little. That being said, I don't demand sound in all my locos, I just like to have a few sound-equipped ticking over in the sidings for a bit of atmosphere. I'm really looking forward to a sound-equipped TT:120 Tractor (should things ever get that far... not wanting to be pessimistic). I still have faith yet!

Ta-Ta TT? My 08 is now dead. I'm going to await Hornby's reaction to my initial email about the broken coupler sockets and see if they'll accept it back for maintenance/replacement, if not, I'm certainly not investing over €300 in a sound-equipped HST. It's very frustrating because I REALLY like the scale but the models just seem to lack the reliability and flexibility needed for everyday running. Or at least that's been my experience and I'm not exactly a novice. As I've said before, I'm used to small scale having modelled Continental N for years but (and of course, I recognise that Continental N comes in at around twice the price of Hornby's TT:120) the quality and robustness just seems to be lacking. Certainly no more pre-orders for the time being and I await keenly Customer Service's response to my last email. Frustrated... and well naffed off...

Not wanting to Hornby-bash but my 08, which has run perfectly and almost constantly for a few days, is now stalling on my 4th radius curves (even at full power on the controller - in DC). I'm wondering if I need to clean the contacts (track is clean and it runs fine on the straight). However, I'm a bit reluctant to remove the base-keeper plate for fear of the tenuous coupler repair I had to carry out disintegrating. Anyone else experienced a deterioration in performance like this?

More strangeness on the Hornby website. I want to place a pre-order in € for a sound-fitted HST. However, when I switch the currency from £ to €, the sound-fitted versions disappear. I'll give it a bit, then get on to Hornby if it isn't fixed. I don't know if this is the case for any other locos. Are we not allowed the sound versions on the Continent? :( I guess I could just try ordering in £ and see if I can change to € at a later stage in the ordering process but based on current 'Expected' delivery date changes, I don't think the HST will arrive before next winter, so I've probably got plenty of time yet (tho I may do well to pre-order asap in case of price rises...). Actually - not being familiar with ordering from the Hornby site - can anyone clarify for me, do they honour the pre-order price, or do they add-in any possible price increase when the model actually becomes available? Cheers, Michael

Same. Possibly a necessity, along with general maintenance/dismantling, if you want to add the detail parts to one end (or both, I guess). I don't really know my 08s and wouldn't know what goes where (I suppose a bit of detective work online would aid that but having images of the actual parts is probably easier - call me lazy!).

More by luck than judgement, I think, I've managed to re-glue the angled tab that holds the coupler head horizontal back in place and despite the lack of centring spring (and probably because of magnetic couplers attracting the coupler into coupling position) I've got the 08 hauling 4 Mk1s without issue (so far). Obviously, I guess I've not been able to perfectly match the angle of the holding tab and so the coupler doesn't move very freely side-to-side but on 396mm radius curves and with the adjacent Mk1 coupler providing quite a bit swing, I seem to be getting away with it. That being said, I have contacted Hornby because I've no idea how long the angled tab will hold and it's so tiny, if it were to fall off on the track there's a large chance I'd never be able to find it again. (Not to mention if I ever wanted to sell the loco.) I've not had this issue on any of my other TT:120 and, after years of N gauge Continental, I'm pretty used to handling these types of NEM pockets. Fingers crossed Hornby will be willing to exchange it. I can only hope they come up with something a little more robust on future models (although, as I say, I've not had any issues with my other TT:120 stock). I really want a full-length HST or two so the coupling mechanisms are going to have to be up to the job. Disgruntled but there are worse things going on in the world...! :)

OH NO! DID I SPEAK TOO SOON?!!! I use N scale magnetic couplers. I pulled as gently as possible on the pre-fitted coupler to release it from its socket to swap them out (whole point of NEM pockets) - whole coupling mechanism came away in my hand... Spring definitively lost forever. So, I tried the other end of the loco - same thing (and I was really gentle). Now, the springs I can do without - the magnetic couplings pull and centre on their own but, while I was able to get the coupling mechanism back in place (at the end I don't need/want a coupler), no such luck at the end where I want there to be an actual coupler. There's a tiny, and I mean TINY, extremely fragile piece of plastic that holds the coupling mechanism horizontal and at the end I want to fit a coupler it has snapped clean off. I think I'll be able to get it back in place with some superglue but will the coupler hold when pulling a load? I shall probably contact Hornby anyway and see what they have to say. I do feel you should be able to change coupler heads without the whole mechanism crumbling - being careful of course. Never had this sort of issue with my Continental N scale locos (but then the models are twice the price...). Hmmmmmm...

08 has just arrived on my Tillig bedding track on my bumpy parquet floor. I was expecting it to keep cutting-out but it's running-in admirably. Next task will be to test its haulage capacity. Its intended use, in the future, is 'shunting' blue/grey Mk2s (I presume that happened... I don't care, mine will be doing it anyway). I don't foresee trains of more than 3 coaches so if it manages my 4 Mk1s (+ potentially 3 lit Pullmans for extra drag), I'll be more than happy. Can't wait to fit all the hoses and pipes to the cab end - it will always run 'cab-first', that's how I like seeing my 08s and 20s, etc. Funny, it's actually shorter and only a little taller than my N scale Swiss re 460 locos. I really hope British TT:120 has a great future. It's so nice to have all proportions correct (even if an 08 running alongside an N scale re 460 is hardly prototypical). It's finally allowed me to 'justify' British outline (given that, as far as I know, no EM gauge snap track exists, and snap track is the only practical way I can get trains up and running without loss of temper on my temporary circuits). The future is bright! The future is British TT:120! (Yes, I'm in a good mood :)

Aaahhhh, Genève Cornavin - been in love with Geneva and the station since arriving there from Paris on an old-skool orange/grey TGV in 1986. I spend more time train-watching there than in my adopted French city of Lyon. My plans for an N scale diorama of the French and adjacent Swiss platforms are (sort of) coming along (there's a topic I started on it buried elsewhere in the Swiss Railways group) in that I'm acquiring the stock but it's taking frustratingly long to find a new apartment for it to be built in! Still, it's giving me time to get everything DCC'd and Sounded-up (the diorama will be powered and will hopefully be long enough to at least allow the odd loco to run through light engine). Nice catch of the Sybic in Fantôme livery, Tony. I've no doubt Fleischmann will grace us with one sooner or later. I've only seen a Béton one there before - didn't think they were still putting in appearances. Excuse for another future purchase... And the classic Nez Cassé + Corails as opposed the much less interesting - to my eyes - multiple units that are slowly but surely replacing them (tho they are still hanging in there, somehow...). If only Piko would produce a pilot coach to match their fairly decent standard Corails. (I may be wrong, but I think there are some 3D prints available but I'm no airbrusher - no idea how much someone would charge to do the dirty work for me :) Glad to see you appear to be enjoying your new Swiss life! No doubt you've experienced the biting cold wind off the lake as you cross the bridge during the winter - that wind becomes your friend at the height of summer! Enjoy! Cheers, Michael

Hi all! I've a quick question about the mixture of an era 3 Pullman and maroon Mk1s in one of Hornby's 'Bundles'. Would it be prototypical to see this combination or are they just offering it for 'fun'? Cheers, Michael

Hi all! I've just acquired one of these models and have learned that it comes with a speaker pre-fitted. This is possibly a question for the DCC forum but I'll post here first of all :) If I fit a sound-decoder, where do I get the sounds files from for an Ae 6/8? I presume they're not 'in' the decoder and have to be downloaded and uploaded to the decoder? Or, as an alternative is there a 'generic electric loco' sound decoder? As you may be able to tell, I'm a bit of a novice in terms of DCC/sound! Cheers, Michael

I had the same problem - wanting to know when the Easterner would be available again. I had already decided on Tillig ballast track so wasn't interested in the track provided or the controller. In the end I caved and bought an A4 and four Mk1s to run on my completed Tillig loop. I'm glad I did. Cost me more than the set would have but when I contacted Hornby about the re-release of the Easterner, they were evasive in the extreme. My impatience got the better of me. As it happened, I was so pleased with what I got, I put in an order for some pullman coaches and will be ordering another loco soon. I have to say, at the current prices, the items are definitely worth the money. That being said, I'm more used to the prices of Continental stock which are greatly over-inflated for what you get. If your budget allows, I would go for ordering from what's available. I don't think you'd regret it. Cheers, Michael

Something strange has happened in my railway world... Since I bought my A4 and maroon Mk1s as 'stand-ins' for diesel and electric releases, I've had an unexpected revelation... I rather like steam locos! My TT:120 is literally going to be my loop of Tillig snap-track for the floor, displays and, possibly, a 'period-neutral' (as far as that is possible) countryside diorama. Heresy! - I don't care what loco/era/region/stock-type goes with what, I'm just going to go ahead and buy what I like the look of. I'm SK's dream customer! Eventually, I'll be going with pre-fitted sound locos, but given the fairly small additional cost of adding sound at a later stage, and my impatience to wait for summer (autumn...?) pre-fitted locos, I think I'm going to have a spending spree on what's available currently. I think I'm looking at a rake of Pullmans and 'Night Hawk'. Might as well make use of that 15% discount (I signed up in October 2022 so most of the stuff I thought I was waiting for would be coming out after then and I'll have to do some maths to see whether it's cheaper to buy from German stockists or Hornby direct - with renewed club membership - in the future). Also, those potentially lowered 'introductory prices' to be taken advantage of (scandalous comment!) and to top it all off, the fact that my two deliveries to France have arrived DDP (not to be mixed up with DPD!), no questions asked. Out with the credit card!

Oh, I'm definitely talking TT:120. And, yes, window sills have been mentioned quite a few times in the various interviews about TT:120 (tho, if we're talking 'main window' sills, they would be just as useable for N, HO, OO or O, etc. for a short end-to-end). I use some shelves in a fireside cupboard for a small HO diorama. You are right - I very much doubt we'll ever find out about any possible tactics - it's a business after all, just like any other, Hornby aren't likely to go into that side of things, that would really be unusual in any business. Cheers, Michael

Fair enough, but SK has repeatedly mentioned things like 'window sill' layouts, which, apart from maybe dioramas, are not tooooo suited to big locos and the 'longer' trains we've been told we'll be able to run. I understand that this whole game is new and, of course, China plays a great part but Hornby knows that China can present problems and developing new locos and stock takes time. I just wonder whether the TT:120 announcement was a bit tactical (I'm afraid as a fresh returnee to UK modelling I don't know all the ins-and-outs but there seem to be lots of new manufacturers bringing out quality - and cheaper - models than Hornby, with better communications) and not totally realistic (given the reasons everyone's been outlining for the extended delivery times). The project is ambitious (and I hope successful) but maybe a more softly, softly approach should have been adopted? Just thinking out loud. Cheers, Michael

I'm sure this has been brought up before but I've personally just noticed that most of the era 7 and 8 stock has slipped to the end of this year, even to midway through next year (or later). I'm not a steam fan and have only bought my A4 to haul my maroon Mk1s. The hope was a relevant green diesel might put in an appearance in the not too distant future and the A4 would get sold on... I don't know what to think of this. I guess Hornby needed to test the market but announcing items and then having their expected arrival dates pushed further and further back is more than a little annoying. For those who wish to/have elected to adopt TT:120 as their main scale, there could be a lot of pent up and frustrated demand. I shall keep in my pre-order for a blue 08 just because I think it'll look 'cute' but everything else of interest to me is on 'stock alert' only. I'm no marketing expert but I have to wonder whether Hornby were a little over-enthusiastic announcing TT:120 possibly a bit earlier than they should have. I have fears that people will get bored waiting and go back to their 'former' scales or decide TT:120 really is just a 'gimmick'. Fortunately, I've got plenty on the way in French and Swiss N so my 'purchasing desire' will be satisfied and I'll have new toys to play with but I feel for anyone who has decided to go all-in on TT:120, especially those aiming at the more recent eras.

'Silver King' has arrived, has been run-in and is now happily hauling a rake of 4 magnetic close coupler fitted Mk1s around my Tillig ballasted snap-track circuit on my lumpy-bumpy parquet floor. No derailments so far... First impressions - the loco seems very 'light'. It may be an optical illusion but it feels lighter than my Continental N locos - all electrics - (got no scales to test that out unfortunately). I thought this might lead to derailments but, fortunately, no. Detailing and finishing are fine for this scale. I don't know how much it would cut costs to miss it out, but I don't really see the need for painted interior cab pipework. Nice to have but not exactly visible when the train runs by. The loco is a bit wobbly - but not the tender or coaches. I guess that's due to the motor/gearing (or maybe the connecting rods are not perfectly aligned on both sides?). I'm far from an expert in these things and this being my first ever steam loco, I don't know what to expect. The coupling on the tender has enough sway to allow for virtually buffer-to-buffer running between it and the leading coach (the tender is fitted with a magnetic coupler as well). I suspect I could get the coupling even closer but it's more than satisfactory as it is. It'll be interesting to see how a longer loco/Mk3 coach will behave (I'm running on 396mm radius curves, btw). Overall, I shall definitely be getting more. It'll be interesting to see how the 08 runs (if I remember correctly, it's even lighter than the A4 but then again it doesn't have a tender...). Keen to get my hands on an HST but I guess I'm going to have to be patient on that score...!

Believe me, I've tried :) To be honest, the main issue is that the floor is at its most uneven just where I'd want to fit the points. (It's most uneven coming off the bends and even with a long straight between the end of the curve and the point to 'straighten out' the bogies, I could never get satisfactorily consistent running.) I do have a tendency to just set a train running and go in and out of the room, etc. so it needs to be a pretty reliable set-up to avoid messy accidents. I may give points a go in TT but the Hornby TT coaches are lighter than my Continental N coaches so I'm not too hopeful... Really the circuits are just for fun and display - I'll be using Peco track (and then there will be points) on my dioramas. Cheers, Michael

Tillig circuit complete - tested with TJ Modèles magnetic close-couplers by pushing the rake of coaches with quite a bit of force - enough to get them to make a full circuit, they're certainly very free-running. No issues on the 396mm radius curves. The straight sections will easily accommodate an 8-car HST, which is probably the longest train I'll run, my intention being to rely on 08s to haul 2 to 4 car rakes as stock movements to allow Mk1s, Mk2s, of all types to be hauled, while keeping purchasing costs down by not having to build full rakes, but representing many liveries). My only concern is whether the Mk3 substructure fairing will scrape on some of the uneven track (due to warped, century-old parquet). I'll have to wait a while to test that I guess! I'm not sure about sidings. The unevenness of the floor precludes me from having points in N scale - coaches simply 'jump' the rails. I may use the same method in TT of simply having a few parallel lines either side of the through track for stock display/storage. The couplings make for very easy stock transfers from the 'sidings' to the mainline. Eventually there will be powered diorama 'shelves' for all my 3 scales but that's for the future. Just awaiting motive power now to be able to play...