ruggedpeak

I mentioned last month about problems with the layout of the print mag. Even worse this month. Pictures across 2 pages such as the Neely shot on p22-23 is ruined by poor placement, half the 66 is missing. This plus random borders or not borders on other pictures, some disappearing into the centre, it is a mess and noticeable when trying to read the mag. I don't know if its a layout/design issue or problems at the printers but it isn't good. The Gaugemaster ad is affected as you can't see prices on one page or product references on the other - in fact that page highlights the wonky binding. There seems little point Andy Y taking excellent photos if the end result looks like this: Something has gone wrong in the last few months. There never used to be a problem with pictures across the spine.

I don't disagree, but not getting in front of the wider public is IMHO holding back all Hornby's brands. And it only has to be in a handful of the most relevant malls across the UK. This is not just about trains, but Corgi, Airfix, Scalextrix, Pocher etc. The business case would have to stack up. Throw in the overseas rail brands and you have the potential to make an interesting store. I'm not a retail expert but even as a temporary pop up type store it could be trialled. Some malls do this. And with everything from the latest detailed Colas 60 to the Junior set, Airfix Quickbuild and starter kits, there is something for everyone to think about buying. And who wouldn't drool over a finished 1:24 Typhoon model if it were on display?

Except every business and brand has to attract the next generation of customers. Those 60 year olds they target now probably people who grew up with a trainset and/or trainspotting. Who came back to modelling having experienced it as a child or teen. Kids today are not necessarily getting that exposure so that when they are 60 they won't look back and think of their chidlhood fun playing trains, it will be something else. You have to invest in future customers as well as today's, or you will have no future. That is the problem the industry faces, 40 years time what proportion of the middle aged+ people will have any reminisences of playing trains as compared to today? This new set does something to address that and hopefully be profitable as well. Even Ferrari has to think about future customers: http://store.ferrari.com/au_en/kids-1/accessories/toys.html I definitely agree with earlier comments about families at shows etc not really having the opportunity to buy relevant (to them) products to make that entry into the hobby. The traditional trainset may be past its sell by date. Stands at shows probably don't stock something suitable for a smallish family purchase as it is probably not in trader's best interests, but museums etc ensure they have a range of things suitable to flog as you leave the venue. And this is where I also think a Hornby store with its full range of brands along the lines of a Games Workshop with demo's etc is needed to get more people into modelling of any sort - I did trains, model planes and tanks as a teenager, although now I only do trains but use the same skills. A store can have a Thomas layout and a all signing all dancing DCC sound layout and all sorts of stuff. I'll bite against the negativity. Anyone with reasonable spending power and teen or pre-teen kids will probably have the current Xbox and Playstation and many games at £49.95. Even ignoring the phone contract the annual spend on games, addons, accessories (extra controllers and headsets etc) and gaming devices is significant. And with each iteration the systems are only partly backward compatible, so more games have to bought. Traditional trainsets are not compatible with the way kids today tend to play. They play with something for a while then get bored and play with something else. A traditional Hornby set that has to sit on a 6x4 board simply doesn't fit that behaviour. This new set that is easy and flexible to put up, then pack away again when they go off trains for a while before coming back to it, is ideal. As is the accessories. Kids today are not like us adults who build a collection over a long period, they want lots of varied experiences of different things. Yet Hornby have made it compatible with 'proper' sets in case they do. My kids had a Tomy Thomas set with no extra bits yet played with for hours. Young kids don't need a whole catalogue of accessories, that's an adult thing. They want something that is fun for a reasonably long time until they get bored and then [their parent's] can pack it away and move onto the next thing. Whilst Brio had a range it was not necessary to get play value to buy lots of stuff. And finally - perhaps a new RMWeb challenge is who can building the best layout based upon the new Junior set, using all the bits in the box?

A few points: 1) if a child/teen is on their Playstation/iPhone etc believe me it is just as expensive as model railways as they spendreal money on virtual must have in game features for FIFA. As a parent it is infuriating since this money is not a tangible object that can be retained or passed on (like my model trains from when I was a kid) but a virtual nothing that will disappear when next year's FIFA comes out. Trains sets are probably a lot cheaper than x hundred pounds on a phone and contract (an iPhone contract is going to cost £500-800) and numerous app and online purchases. 2) Its already been mentioned that kids are turning away from virtual to real as they are bored with screens, and giving the increasing complexity and general crapness of modern IT in not actually working (see Rails website thread for example) many of us want to avoid the IT rubbish that we have to fight with every day at work and have a nice analogue hobby that doesn't involve screens or settings etc. If cost is an issue why are people doing DCC in droves (apart from the presumably sadistic pleasure to turning a perfectly good analogue mechanical object into a piece of IT!). DCC Sound doubles the cost of locos etc, yet specialist DCC businesses appear to be doing very nicely thank you. 3) Have you watched the video for the new set? It is not only at a great price point, but includes a tunnel, station, trees, signals and OHL line equipment. The train is also compatible with OO track. Plenty to play with exactly as per Brio etc. It is a great product with huge potential and I believe is being sold through major high street retailers to ensure it reaches the full audience. Which links to the wider point about the alleged demise of the hobby and Hornby. Hornby is investing and turning out products that are selling. Attendance at key shows and at preseved railways and for things like the Flying Scotsman runs shows there remains a huge interest in railways in general, but the industry has not been as good as it could at harnessing this. When the Scotsman was doing its recent runs where was Hornby or indeed any of the model railway sector to leverage this awareness and interest? If the hobby is declining it makes no sense to see Rapido, DJM, Hattons and many others bringing new models to market, DCC companies expanding rapidly and bringing innovation (none of which is cheap either!), bespoke baseboard/layout suppliers popping up etc. It is going through change and not all is positive (losing small shops) but declining? No, it is vibrant and alive. Personally I think Hornby should be opening flagship stores like Lego and Disney in major shopping centres to promote and sell all their brands, especially as such centres lack decent places for males to hang out during shopping trips! This wouldn't conflict with model shops as they are not in the Westfields etc.

Sounds great, count me in for a signed copy!

This one? It is very readable (read it on holiday) and comprehensive. A book that then applied this to common or not so common layout situations would be most useful.

Sweet. Like the headcode number 61 written in the screen dirt!

I suspect the no front brake offence will have had some trivial punishment like £30 fine so not worth bothering with when there were offences with custodial sentences. Shame he was NG on manslaughter. Don't understand it, this was not an "accident" of bad luck but the result of deliberate acts by this chap. This tragic incident was entirely avoidable. The courts still seem to treat road deaths as not as serious as other types of death.

I commend this publication to you - several chapters on crossings of all type, including the use of lasers and radar to detect obstacles on some types of crossings. https://www.amazon.co.uk/d/Books/abc-Modern-Signalling-Handbook-Chris-Hall/0711038392

Coaches with frickin laser beams.......................!

Jim Were you by any chance at Liverpool Street this evening with 37057? Update: SWMBO took the photo as it was pulling out and said it was "very hot and smelly". Given the roof is only a few feet above the exhausts I'm not surprised! She took the picture cos it "wasn't a normal train at Liverpool Street" (i.e. not a white 90/317/321/360!). She was surprised later when I said "Big Jim drives that one..." and showed her this thread

Can you point me towards where it makes any reference to safety? The reason they don't talk about safety is there are no safety issues on Greater Anglia DOO trains.

Arrived in the post the other day. Really like this issue, especially the longer articles like the ones about Paul Rolley and Digitrains. Haven't read the layout bits yet but Lomond looks really good. However............for some reason the typesetting has gone to pot. Normally magazines have the type offset by about 8-9mm from the centre of the pages. This months mag it is only about 5mm and it makes reading the print copy problematic as you have to pull the mag apart and flatten the pages to read it comfortably, or keep twisting your head to see all the text. Hopefully this is just a one off printing problem but spoilt the reading and was very noticeable as soon as I started reading. So much so I got the ruler out to compare with last month's BRM and Model Rail! Both were the usual 8-9mm so that even with the natural curve from the spine all the text is visible. Hopefully it will be sorted for next month.

And now the RMT are now trying to extend their self serving drivel onto GA lines to potentially make even more people's lives a misery. Using the new trains as an excuse to bring their members outf rom under their rocks. There are guards on the Norwich loco hauled services and the branch lines. The commuter trains work perfectly well without some RMT member leaning out the window thank you very much. GA staff are actually pretty good on the whole - would be a shame if the RMT destroyed that goodwill. http://www.railtechnologymagazine.com/Rail-News/rmt-to-ballot-members-over-extending-doo-dispute-to-greater-angl

Nets and the posts the right way round? Hardly realistic or prototypical. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-east-wales-40900519

Is that at least in part down to the skill of the modeller constructing it? I can assure you a Peckett will run better than any kit I make!

There is a small derelict NCB tank engine in a photo of a Class 40 shunting on p.51 of the latest issue of Traction magazine. To my very untrained eye it might be a W6?

In case anyone is interested there is a natty picture of the H&P Peckett as wallpaper on Hornby's website https://www.Hornby.com/uk-en/downloads/view/index/cat/35/

Whilst I agree, and on the assumption that Rapido have not decreased their North American output of models whilst expanding their UK range, then capacity is an issue. However capacity costs money, and clearly Kader haven't got spare and won't/can't invest in more. Again the Rapido approach of only making models with a guaranteed return (and like the Prototype HST if there's no money in it they don't do it) means they can invest in capacity with less risk. The extent of their involvement in the UK market is growing, as here, yet the only model that Rapido themselves are taking all the development/tooling risk they have delayed, as Bachmann have done with the 158. Does this mean Rapido are also land grabbing? http://myemail.constantcontact.com/Rapido-News-UK-Vol--10.html?soid=1101318906379&aid=6dazJANxFxE This is more consdiering the situation from other perspectives, but if I was Bachmann I'd be seriously considering using a pre-order/crowd fund route on say the 158 to reduce the risk and get it delivered. I suspect they don't want to go down this route, but the proof is in the pudding - these alternative business models are delivering good models. There are so many livery permutations on the 158 that it can then go into the main range through retailers as normal, something Bachmann are better placed than the new upstarts to do.

I think the delays are in part due to the challenges that Bachmann and Hornby are facing from new entrants. The 158 requires a substantial investment with no guarantee of a decent return, whilst others like Rapido and DJM are entering the market at little real risk because others are carrying the bulk of the risk through crowd funding, commissions etc. This is also why in the time Bachmann haven't delivered the 158 and 90 etc they have delivered a lot of commissions and continue to do so. Why would you divert time and money into the risk of a new tooling unless a return was guaranteed (eg Kernow's 4TC). Far better from a business perspective to take the low risk profits with numerous 66 liveries etc. I also feel the success of the smaller outfits like Realtrack is making them more risk averse. There is a natural support for the new entrants, yet the irony is much of these are in fact just fronts for Rapido in various disguises. Smart business strategy, and making life difficult for the incumbents. Bachmann are reacting - why are criticising Bachmann for not putting cash at risk whilst lauding Rapido for not putting it's cash on the line? Our behaviours as customers no longer support the traditional model development model (sic) as we are busy pre-ordering the latest Rapido (aka Realtrack/Revolution/Rails etc) commission. If I was Bachmann I'd be looking for pre-orders for the 158. Edited for format.

Although there haven't been any updates on here for some months, there has been quite a lot of action on the layout. Scenic work stopped and the focus has been on track and electrics. 1.5mm cork sheet has been laid across the entire layout, painted with black craft paint. Track has been laid out, checked with the viaducts etc, and then droppers soldered onto every piece, including all ends of the points. Used plumbers flux initially, now learnt that lesson and used IPA to get rid of the corrosion or whatever it is. Proper electronics flux now in use. Learnt quite a bit about soldering, and bought a few replacement bits as well! Wire is a mix of 0.2 from Ebay and 0.1 from Expotools. With no return loops there are no polarity issues, so simple colour coding of black and yellow. Wiring is probably overly complicated (in part due to using proprietary track in short lengths rather than flex so more droppers) but has been designed to allow DC operation using one controller (so only one movement at a time), or full DCC operation. At the same time I wanted an inexpensive method of point control. A visit to my local model railway emporium and I found Phoenix Precision 0.9mm bras wire in 300mm lengths and Evergreen 3/32" Stripstyrene tube. 300mm is more than adequate for the width of the layout, so I have wire in tube, the tube cut into the cork base. The ends are bent up into the hole in the centre of the point, and the handles are just the brass wire turned into a loop. Simples. With track down, holes drilled for droppers I decided to have a running session with various locos from my collection. This threw up some interesting results - the Hornby type points with insulfrogs and tight curves really showed up the good runners from the bad. My Hornby 67's all ran beautifully, as did my Bachmann MPV. However a number of my Bachmann 66's and 40 were not happy bunnies. A 66 and the 40 would both push the front axle off on one bogie when turning off on Hornby points. Another 66 just stalled on the points. The derailing is only a problem in one direction, but not good as locos will come in and then reverse out. Have not had time to investigate further but sadly they did not perform anywhere near as well as other locos Something to work on later. However it is clear Bo-Bo’s (Hornby 67 and Dapol 68’s) are by far the best runners on this layout. Which is great as I love both classes J and can run them with DVT’s etc as short sets. What was good news was that the locos that did work properly had no problems did so even without the droppers connected, so power was getting through. Hopefully bodes well for future running. The ultimate test re: power & running will be how my Sentinel and Peckett get on! That's for later. Power is distributed along the lines of the points through switches, so every point has 3 pairs of wires soldered to them. After initially thinking of Peco or Hornby switch levers to switch with the points, I remembered cost was an issue and went for simple two way switches from Rail Room Electronics. 50p each so a lot cheaper than the proprietary levers. I have one isolating section in the main platform, which is controlled by a lit rocker switch which was removed from my Lidl soldering station when it died. Switches are cut into the shelf on the edge of the baseboard. Not elegant but just needs to work.

What a load of old cobble®s! Best road braking surface in the dry and worst in the wet.

I guess you saw Chris' reply to your other post? http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/122813-great-british-model-railways/?p=2753678

I think I will leave my H&P in the box - if its worth that now imagine what a pristine version will be worth in 10-20 years time!

How many people run full length trains? Probably not that many, and with a lot of interest in short trains and plenty of prototype examples of a loco and a few wagons etc there will be plenty of people for whom this is fine. Indeed the 3 foot OO version is ideal for microlayouts, and overcomes the limitation of limited fiddle yard space on a micro. I can certainly see a use for it on mine, although I don't have the funds for one at the moment Good luck to them. I think this is useful innovation.