nathan70000

https://i.ibb.co/Kzwsjyr/1598961956779847767895847266586.jpg And it has arrived!! It is a stunning model, my first Oxford Rail loco, and the value for money is incredible. Metal construction, excellent decoration, smooth-ish runner (not quite as good as most recent Hornby, but better than most Bachmann). Visually the only thing I'd mark this model down on is the daft front coupler (which has now been removed!) and the lack of a smoke box number plate. Running-wise, it does make a slight clicking noise on second radius curves, but only when running forwards. Should I be concerned?

Hi all, I have a few of the Hornby Blue Spot Fish Vans marked "To Run Between Kings Cross And Aberdeen" and I was thinking of assembling an reasonably accurate (if not quite as long!) recreation of the fast fish trains that ran overnight down the ECML. Part of the attraction of these trains is of course the top link motive power- A4s, V2s and the like. I am aware that this train was mostly made up of Blue Spot vans by 1958-ish. I have two questions about the formations, though: 1. What was the most commonly-used brake van? I've read multiple sources that state that a BG or a BSK was used rather than a "normal" 20 ton van but I've never seen a photo to prove it. 2. What shed would the locos on this train have been drawn from? I'd quite like to use one of the upcoming A2/2s but I have no idea if that would be accurate.

Hmm. I wonder where CMC are getting their information from?? They seem to have far more precise dates on the J27s than other shops, so I'm inclined to believe that they are closest to the truth... Just ordered 69612 from Hattons.

Any updates on the late crest N7?? Just curious as I have one on pre-order, and we now seem to have finalised dates for the J27s and J26s whilst the N7 is still "TBC". If it's going to be much longer I might bite the bullet on 69612.

Surprised 1214 is coming first. I thought it was announced after the others and it has more complicated decoration, so I assumed it would come later on like the late crest N7. Also, it's a rather obscure livery/number combination to pick. "L&NER" was applied only during 1923, IIRC, and lining was ditched on goods locos before the end of the twenties. So the model is only really accurate for the period 1923-1929, which I don't think I've ever seen modelled. Yet this is the second time this scheme has been done by a mainstream manufacturer, as Hornby did their J36 with "L&NER" on the tender as well. And those have ended up in the bargain bin, as have the J15 and the Q6 they've done with their post-1946 numbers... That J36 is very pretty though...

I couldn't help but notice that one of the new Hornby 5 plank releases (R6947, "Dowlow Lime") has a plain, undecorated chassis with no builders plates on the solebar, etc. Now IIRC on older releases the five plank chassis was common to all sorts, BR Vent Vans, SR Vans, LNER Conflats, etc. Of course they had the big "D" shaped couplings, crude detail and plastic buffers. The thought has crossed my mind that I could "upgrade" some of my older wagons and vans with the newer chassis so they wouldn't look out of place with newer Oxford and Bachmann releases. But before I commit to that, can anyone who has any of the latest 5 or 7 plank releases confirm that they have the same clipping method for putting a new body on?

Freightliner is owned by Genesee & Wyoming, a U.S. shortline conglomerate, and their livery was originally designed for American diesels. It suits them quite well, they own some streamlined GMs in Australia and they look great. On a Class 90, not so much.

I've noticed recently that a supplier by the name of "CDC Models" is supplying 3D printed (and painted!) locomotive bodies on eBay to fit on RTR chassis, which at the moment seems to limited to the J68/69 and the NLR tanks that were used on the Cromford and High Peak. All of them are priced at a very reasonable £42, and if you can get the required ex-Dapol Terrier chassis cheap the complete loco should come in at about £70-80. Has anyone here bought one of their models? They seem very affordable for what they are and the phrase "too good to be true" springs to mind. I realise there will be dimensional compromises, but with no RTR Buckjumper on the horizon I'm seriously considering one to complement my other ex-GE locos.

Well for the first time ever I've pre ordered an item - Botanic Garden's very own 2082. There are certainly more important things going on in the world at the moment so I don't expect to see it until next year but it's something to look forward to at least! I'm hoping the price doesn't go much over £169 which would be my guess.

And hopefully the 4th will be a J25! They have the chassis...not sure I would have gone for the J26 before the J27 is even out, I may well pick one up but this is very surprising. I like the GER van, LNER modellers are now very well catered for in terms of RTR stock though the NER hopper would be a better match for the 0-6-0s.

Hoping for another small useful 0-6-0, it's unlikely to be of NER extraction so soon after the J27 but the J21 would be lovely. I think they'll do a J69.

78010 was allocated to Bishop Auckland, any evidence for it operating passenger trains over the Stainmore line?

I wonder what liveries will be chosen? The A2/2s in particular saw quite a few odd combinations like apple green with LNER numbers but with "BRITISH RAILWAYS" carried on the tender. It seems likely 60505 will be modelled in the condition shown above, green with late crest, but there is a wide range of potential options for 60501.

If this were announced on the 1st of April I would not have believed it for a second...

Well my prediction that they'd stay away from large, big-ticket items in favour of smaller, more widespread locomotives and rolling stock proved to be quite far off the mark. The W1 is an inspired choice and will fly off shelves, I'm sure, but the Thompson Pacifics, at nearly £200 a pop?? Very risky imo. The Standard 2MT isn't personally useful but I'm sure it will be for lots of modellers. Another inspired choice. APT...how many people actually have a layout big enough to run one? I don't even have a room in my house that's long enough for a full set! It'll sell but I can see the extra coaches ending up in the bargain bin, or they'll produce so few of them that they become ridiculously expensive collector's items. Not sure what they are thinking with the Class 91. Especially as there is no sign of Mk4s anywhere in this announcement. Very strange. I'm not entirely sure Hornby have taken notice of the trend towards smaller layouts. 2MT aside, all of today's new tooling is primarily aimed at collectors and/or modellers of the ECML and WCML. How many layouts can actually justify an APT or an original condition W1? I don't think I've ever seen a realistic modern-day ECML layout, ever.

It would be nice if they produced their newly-revamped range of plank wagons in a range of company liveries, and not just POs. I'd suggest LNER, LMS, LBSCR, MR, and SECR. The three plank in particular is rather lovely now without the massive couplers. Another pre-group brakevan wouldn't go amiss- preferably the NER birdcage but I think an LBSCR or SECR one is more likely. I suspect one of Hornby's older products will be retooled. I'm gonna guess it'll be either the 2721 or the J52 which haven't appeared in the range for a while. A small useful 0-6-0 will probably be announced. Hopefully a J21 but they might surprise us with a LNWR or L&Y design. Non-Midland derived LMS 0-6-0s are very thin on the ground. There will be at least two big-ticket steam locomotives, one of which is likely to be a retool, probably the D49 to follow the upgraded B17. They've thoroughly mined the Pacific well so maybe something like an LSWR T3? As for diesels and modern image, there have been plenty of new trains introduced over the last couple of years that they could pick from. I hope I'm surprised! There has been a lot of duplication of relatively recent models (Duchess, Lord Nelson etc) and it's notable that they haven't sold particularly well and have been heavily discounted. Hornby would be wise to avoid that this time around.

Definitely in all photos I've seen of small pre-grouping coaches in the LNER era, they've been brown. The photo above is the first time I've ever seen an NER non-ECJS coach in teak actually. I think I'll be ordering the brown ones, useful substitutes for ex-NER and GE coaches that don't even seem to exist in kit form at the moment.

I think the reason for picking a J24 is that a J21 is almost a dead cert from one of the major manufacturers in the next few years. Personally I would go with a B16 if I were Hattons.

I think this is a game-changer. Let's face it, railways like the L&Y and the GC are unlikely to ever get accurate models of their coaching stock, and given sales of the Bachmann Birdcages have been rather sluggish (partly, I think, because they are the "wrong" era for all those lovely Wainwright locos), I wouldn't bet on the bigger, more popular pre-grouping companies getting any either. I've drifted off in to modelling US prototype but I've given serious consideration to planning a new layout after this announcement. It helps that they are quite a bit cheaper than some of Hornby and Bachmann's latest offerings. This really opens up the pre-grouping and early grouping era (1923-30) as a practical possibility, and let's face it, there are very few people alive today who can tell you that they're not exactly right. I'd much rather they kept them generic rather than making them as exact models of say, LSBCR coaches, and only making them in that livery (although it is odd that the LBSCR isn't on the list!). Generic brake vans next? We need something to run with all those pretty PO wagons...

Right okay then, I'll send them an email. It is a bit confusing as if you Google them it says they are closed, it would be helpful if there was some kind of statement on their website.

Hello, I recently placed an order for a Pikestuff kit from the above shop. Over a week later and they're still 'processing' the order. So I'm about to shoot them an email when I decide to Google them to see if any other customers have had similar problems. Several recent reviews state that the shop has closed! So I'm a bit worried now. Not massively worried as it wasn't a lot of money, but they did have a few things in stock that I was planning to order.

I suppose it could go above £200 but I think that's pretty much the absolute ceiling for most British R-T-R (O gauge and above notwithstanding), and even then pricing a model that high must be quite commercially risky. I can certainly see Bachmann getting burnt with their new Caley 0-6-0. I certainly hope these are successful enough for Kato/Peco to consider more 009 locos and more Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland locos in particular.

After many years resisting the allure of 009, I think the opportunity to own my very own 'Prince' might finally tempt me as I have a bit of a soft spot for this particular locomotive. It's a little odd that they're doing it in green; it's been red for the last 40 years IIRC and it had a 'flat' footplate back then whereas now it is raised underneath the water tank. The cynic inside me wonders if they are waiting to do the current 'Prince' (and the also currently operational 'Palmerston') in the second batch so people end up buying two! £150 is a little steep for an 0-4-0 but 009 is still somewhat of a niche. Hattons are quoting £130 which is a bit more palatable. I'd be expecting the Fairlie to come in at just under £200 but it could be lower. I seriously doubt the market would take a price of £200> for them.

Many of other wagons are either Hornby, Airfix or early Dapol and they use the Airfix method of coupling fitting. To a degree I think this a superior method to NEM as it seems to keep the coupler more secure.

Hi I recently acquired some Dapol BR 12t vent vans, I know they're not as good as the Bachmann ones but they were very cheap and "fit" better with the rest of my rolling stock which is mostly Hornby. The couplers Dapol use aren't very good, frankly, and are rather droopy. I had a spare ex-Hornby Railroad van chassis that was a relatively smooth replacement and enabled me to fit my preferred coupling, but I can't seem to find any more. Does anyone know the part number? AFAIK these vans are still in production so spares should be available. Thanks