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Well, that's one way to get someone to announce a RTR 93. Having said that I wouldn't be surprised if Dapol have an agreement that means they are the ones with the rights to make the model (as part of the negotiation to do the 68), and even if they were interested in doing the 88/93 as mentioned by 4630 they will want to wait until there is actually a 93 (or better all 10) built in case there are any last minute changes to the body.

RAIB statement indicates both were moving into the depot, so it would appear so. The question is should the amount of derailment observed, with the potential for injury or worse if passengers had been moving between coaches, be expected for such a low speed collision. If it is expected, that would seem to be a problem. Obviously in a higher speed incident anyone in the gangway area is potentially going to be in trouble, but for a low speed collision the train should remain roughly aligned.

Just prior to WW2 the GWR had begun the process of building the inland route, so I would assume that the seawall woudn't have seen any wires.

The point is that you didn't just ask for an update, when you learned that there wasn't an update you then proceeded to effectively criticize Heljan on the basis that it is an "important model". As for comparisons with Accurascale, the difference is that Accurascale is 12 months away from release, not 16 to 24 months away. Furthermore, at least for the 92 and likely the 37, Accurascale have the advantage that the choices are based on other models that Accurascale are selling. It is possible that Heljan may provide an update tomorrow at Warley, but it is equally possible that they will wait until around 12 months away from release to provide detailed information.

Given that it's not on the Heljan Facebook page perhaps you would like to be more specific as to where it was seen, and whether it is official or just a rumour.

Rapido are waiting for the fallout of Brexit to settle, as they have made clear, for their own branded items but they are still very active in the doing work for others department (Model Rail - GWR 1600 / LB&SCR E1, Revolution, RealTrack 142 coming next). So its not a belief that the UK is not paved with gold, but rather difficult for a company located on a different continent to deal with the current ongoing saga, particularly when they have another market that can focus on in the short term. But both Jason and Bill Schneider have a big interest in the UK rail scene so I would expect they will return when things settle down. It's clear the existing companies need to make some changes, and there are at least some signs that they are. The danger here is working on the assumption that what was popular 10 years ago must automatically also be popular now. So yes, the Class 66 hurts, and perhaps the 37 and 47. But some of the other perhaps not so much. It might be wiser, and more financially advantageous, for Bachmann to lower their prices on some of these existing tooling items and instead look to items that may reflect the current market. Unlikely. First, any reply from Hornby or Bachmann wouldn't be made public for another 6 weeks at least so there was still lots of time for an Accurascale announcement. I think, even though many on here have come to expect announcements to be made at the big shows, the explanation from Accurascale is correct. We see the same thing in the North American market, where many of the stuff that was previously announced at big trains shows now gets done in the 2 weeks prior to the show. It means that they stand a better chance at getting their announcement out to the public (they can have at least a day to themselves, instead of being lost amongst several announcements all at once), and it means that they can be more responsive on social media to the inevitable questions that flood in (as opposed to being forced to leave social media in a vacuum for 2 or 3 days, with the dangers that can pose given the bad sad of social media). The Heljan 47 is due 2021, so in theory Bachmann could have a chance if they moved reasonably quickly - though the danger is by rushing things you end up with errors that annoy your potential customers.

There are apparently rumours around, particularly over in the US, but it would make sense if one of the reasons he joined Rapido was to develop the UK products and then that being paused.

Also a good way to lose orders and customers, as it requires too much involvement of the customer and inevitable disappointment if they choose a number and are then told sorry but we aren't doing what you chose.

Read the latest Rapido newsletter, where it is all explained. But the short version is they will continue making UK projects for 3rd parties (Revolution/RealTrack/Model Rail) but not their direct stuff. And while we will see what happens at Warley, the comment on the second bus they scanned (West Midlands Fleetline) sound like it also is on hold (though they will be doing a second run of the Birmingham bus in 2020 per the latest (118) North American newsletter). So the only projects paused and up for grabs are the Gunpowder van and the Prototype HST.

Over in North America Rapido Trains have just released their B36-7 model and a mistake at the factory means some of the models have shipped with the wrong sideframes. Rapido is getting correct sideframes made and will provide them to those who have models with the incorrect version. It's been a while, but I also recall a Rapido passenger car with an error in the paint scheme (lettering?) - they had replacement shells made and provided to modellers who ended up with the mistake. True Line Trains made replacement shells when a reefer was painted the wrong colour. Other manufacturers have also provided replacement shells/parts when a significant enough mistake happens. So the question really should be why aren't Hornby correcting the mistakes that are being made.

Jason Shron, the President of Rapido Trains, has done an interview with the hosts of the A ModelersLife podcast. It is episode 134 and can be found at https://www.amodelerslife.com/ or by searching your podcast app.

Very much. Where is this place?

The problem is that those items generally cost so little, and thus have so little profit, that it can be difficult paying the bills only selling those sorts of products. I have lost track of how many times Hornby management has changed recently, but there was in the not to far past a management team that decided direct sales was the solution to the financial problems and you can find comments on RMweb from shop owners about their frustrations during that period in dealing with Hornby. Fortunately that has since changed with a renewed focus on retailers. Exactly. There is a viable way to run a shop, but you need the capital and the ability to know your market and how to run a business. One would think after years of proclaiming the hobby dying they would look around, notice the hobby still exists, and revise their opinion.

The Internet is certainly a factor, but so is the diversity of product that we now have. Back in the for random example 80s, it would be easy to open a model railway shop - rents were relatively speaking cheap, 1 or 2 new items a year and almost everything permanently available to order means you didn't need a large space and could get away with a small inventory (aka small capital investment). And for the most part everything would sell at list price, giving you a healthy margin to pay the costs and a salary for yourself. In the last 20 years, things have changed. High street rents have become unaffordable, the Internet makes it easier for a handful of retailers who took the gamble to take sales away from you, there is an expectation of discounting that eats into your margins, etc. But you also can't get away without stocking inventory now. You really have to know your market and have business sense to know what to order and stock so it sells in 3 months when it becomes hard to get, and you need the bigger premises to display that inventory (you also need a bigger space so that you are more welcoming). This means it is more difficult and expensive to operate a store, and thus it has a weeding out effect leaving only (for the most part) healthier and more dedicated retailers. I think it is beneficial to have physical retail stores supplying the hobby, but the changes mean that it is fewer shops but in general better shops. As for the point of the original post, an insinuation that a local store failed because one of the manufacturers wouldn't supply them, I would point out that there could be many reasons for that refusal that had little to do with another nearby retailer.

I suspect this previous post helps explain that the 142 goes next now that the 156's finally arrived

Rapido announcement and updates. A second run of the NH 8600 coaches has been announced, order deadline is February 10th with eta of Fall 2020. https://rapidotrains.com/products/ho-scale/passenger-cars/ho-scale-8600-coach Also an update on the 2 steam locos. The CPR D10 is proceeding and will get its design work finished and go into tooling. The CNR H-6 did not get sufficient orders and so for now is being put on hold. Upcoming order deadlines: November 25th - F7B / F9B December 2nd - SW1200, Flexi Flo Hopper, Amtrak Horizon Cars.

I like the idea of a 1920 and 2020 model, though not sure about the 88/93. My suspicion is that given you seem to need agreements to make models of the newer stuff Dapol likely has that in place. It also would be brave to tool up a model of an unreleased prototype in this era of wanting accurate models, a late change to the look of the prototype could make that tooling investment look bad. The class 69, while still with risk, might be safer given that a straight rebuild/re-engine shouldn't offer the same risk of last minute changes, and the tooling could also perhaps be used to churn out some class 56s. Another option, perhaps for a "going big" announcement, would be doing the Bombardier Aventra family. The class 701 will be new in 2020, and as an extension of a established family should be reasonably sure what the units will look like. South Western Railway part of the southern part of the rail network Hornby likes to favour, and other members of the family open up sales to modellers of other regions.

The last thing Bachmann needs at this point is yet another duplicate high end model, they need to invest their tooling resources into a model where they can be the likely only option at the detailed end of the market.

For @Allegheny1600 5 days after the other SD45 videos ScaleTrains does the C&NW SD45

Rapido video featuring 3 upcoming products - SW1200, Amtrak Horizon coaches, Flexi Flo Hoppers

According to the Rapido Twitter account, Jason was put to work at Rails of Sheffield today https://twitter.com/RapidoTrains/status/1197213705626370050

Lack of high level platforms in the steam era?

Or perhaps we could look at what is actually happening in 2019 and judge the companies on this year and not previous years? Bachmann did exactly (and more) of what you asked for. They announced essentially nothing - one OO freight wagon and a small number of OO9 items - and they made the tough decision to defer 4 items (2 N / 2 OO). And they have made significant progress in catching up with their back log of items. As for Hornby, a look at their 2019 announced new tooling (based on a quick check of RMweb): LMS Princess class - sample GW Large Prairie - in production Peckett B2 - delivered 48DS - delivered SR 59' Bulleid Short coaches - delivered GW 57' Bow-ended suburban - delivered Mk2F - delivered Mk3 sliding-door - samples LSWR brake van - livery samples (new for Warley) LMS brake van - samples Terrier - delivered So for Hornby 11 new tooled items, with 6 delivered / 1 in production / 1 at livery sample stage (so close to production) and 3 have had at least tooling samples. So I think your comment about Hornby scaling back to concentrate on back logs is more than a bit unfair given they are progressing extremely well on their 2019 announcements. Partially I suspect because Heljan have had a spotty track record in the past, and the new UK person hasn't had time to put things right. But the amount of announcements leads me to believe that Heljan have made a decision to refocus their UK efforts which is a very promising sign.