letterspider

Stephen Thanks for the quick reply. Do you think that chip would also work with the Bachmann 90?

Hi I have just been reading about the Bachmann Class 90, which will also have servo operated pantographs. Apparently this will require a bespoke DCC chip in order to control the servo motors. Will this also be the case with the Accurascale 92 and as it has two pantographs will it require two DCC chips?

How much will these bespoke decoders be?

Having seen it in the flesh - I would give it my vote for the best diesel of the year. I really appreciate the Hattons 66 but without Dapol we still would be dependant upon the Lima moulding 59. Looking forward to the Summer...

Do we know what kind of pantograph Dave is installing? I am presuming just metal, sprung as there has been mention of selling them as spares for other projects?

July / Aug

A couple of questions about the pantograph - how would it operate under catenary as I don't see it is sprung also as it appears to be plastic, would that suffer increased wear and tear upon metal wire?

Can anyone confirm that the Network Rail livery 73 is due 2019 Q2?

The ideal solution is to Genetically Engineer bacteria which can convert human sewage into fuel. Considering that London probably produces near to 5million kg per day. We spend vast amounts of money using drinking water to pipe it to expensive sewage treatment plants, which generate Carbon dioxide as a waste product. We already have bacteria which can make diesel from sugar but there are issues of sustainability due to land use for sugar cane. Of course the problem here is we end up with diesel. So I don't see it as useful way to tackle pollution within cities but is may be useful to provide energy source for ships and railways. Whatever happens, the indicators are that biotechnology is going to revolutionise our lives globally and more profoundly than electronics or the internet - and that is even disregarding GM crops.

This is likely to be the best of all worlds solution for instantly charging up electric cars at existing petrol stations https://interestingengineering.com/new-liquid-battery-system-could-charge-electric-cars-in-just-seconds the only limitations now is to make the materials reliable.

PCP rates are very low at the moment ~ 3% and you would own the car at the end, if you opted to. The downside is you have to have the car serviced by the dealerships, which costs more. On the other hand when you consider 10 year warranties, courtesy car, free electronic systems recalibration and free replacement of parts with manufacturing defects - it is peace of mind you are paying for and that is invaluable when you are doing 70mph in the fast lane

Ouch

I realise that many modellers consider opening cab doors to be a gimmick but maybe this is an instance where it can allow the different variants to be modelled? Or would a whole new tooling be required for the later variants?

The law regarding collusion AFAIK only referes to price fixing and not to product development, so there is nothing to stop manufacturers ringing each other up to find out what they are developing and save duplicating a model. Although whether we can call the likes of Dapol, Hornby, Rails, Hattons, etc manufacturers - when they outsource to injection moulding companies - really they are more like project managers. I guess they are not completely in control of the whole process - both the manufacturing side and the intellectual property. There is the risk of industrial espionage, price rises and production delays outwith of their control. Is this what we are seeing in the marketplace when there is duplication? And if so can these companies really do anything about it? Unlikely unless they could prove - for example - the CAD of a competitor was a copy of their own AND make the cost of damages worthwhile for a legal firm to bother taking the case to court. For example this was the case with the satellite imagery for the EURO note which was apparently taken without permission from M-Sat http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1779978.stm I never found out what was the result of this case because you can't find any other mention about it on the internet and EURO notes weren't withdrawn - so I'm assuming out of court settlement. What we do know about legal disputes - the winner is always the lawyer - and how. It may actually be cheaper to fight in the marketplace - make a tooling or produce new liveries, rather than to fight in court. At least that way you are keeping your business going forwards. Going forwards I hope we can increase the diversity of suppliers and that they can increase their profit margins from reduced production costs but also pass on some of those savings to the consumer.

Yes - you have noticed! Perhaps you prefer 10% mark up of the RRP to go to RBS (other lenders are also available) Please stick to talk about the model not the business

The aim of the other thread was to draw away trolls from this thread and have a 'clean area' where crowdfunders could talk but it didn't work for long and the thread was closed. Saying that I think we might see 92031, it is simply a matter of sufficient orders. Saying that I don't know how easy it is to renumber a '92 and stick on an etched nameplate! Maybe we should also be asking if we can have any weathered liveries?

You have answered your own question. Small marketplace - high production costs, heavy competition from established businesses highly critical and niche customer base I don't think this is a typically healthy ecosystem for crowdfunding

Perhaps I may have £50,000 to throw into this project as a major crowdfunder and want to gauge opinion on the ground by opening a new thread and engaging with other crowdfunders. I have to do this because trolls were ruining the old one- does that upset you? Please don't bother to reply - thread will be closed down shortly thanks to your valuable inputs.

MGR Hopper please can we focus on the model. Everyone interested - if you are after 92 031 and Accurascale are duplicating the 92 001, it may make sense for customers and Dave to switch their order with him from 92 001 to 92 031. That way he may even draw some orders away from Accurascale and fill up the order book a little more. I have talked to him and he has suggested numbers to make this viable. I don't need to advertise - as the crowdfunders are on this forum and can hear the conversation. They just need to be aware of the opportunity and if numbers are sufficent we can put the suggestion forward. I can tell you in my work having to handle +50 emails a day, plus a website IS a lot of time - you don't want emails that are not directly related to day to day business. So I am not going to put this forward to him unless it makes business sense. At this time it looks like there is little interest - which is what the point was of this conversation in the first place!

Thanks for that. However i thought the link would be much further North through Camden.

Yes 50+ people could email him asking for 92 031, which would be an unnecessary distraction to say the least. I think he would be better served with a single email saying this many people want a 92031, is that enough? As for the original thread, it is precisely because of the noise of negativity that this thread was started. Hence rationale for suggesting locking the first thread.

Would be more useful if you could say whether or not you want 92 031

WHo says?

Exactly the point sends that sorry problem in Paris it's exactly what we don't wanr to replicate However we can now to to Amsterdam direct from London., so why not Paris, London, Manchester?

Am I the only one interested in 92 031?