mdvle

Not a new announcement as such but given that the original announcement was a month short of 3 years ago many may have forgotten about it. The Rapido Royal Hudson steam locomotive order deadline is September 30th 2018, delivery estimated early 2019, and Rapido have just posted a video demonstrating the model, the link can be found here in the discussion about the Royal Hudson http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/103928-icons-of-canadian-steam-led-by-the-royal-hudson/page-3&do=findComment&comment=3299301

Well, everybody can now judge for themselves, the Royal Hudson video has been posted: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alkOqQ1ngAM

It appears you may be able to request the report by making a Freedom of Information request if no one else can provide it for you https://www.worksafebc.com/en/health-safety/create-manage/incident-investigations/worksafebc-investigations/incident-investigation-reports

I recall a reply on their Facebook page to a question about it that indicated it was progressing slower than initially planned. Speculation that at this point more will likely be heard at Warley if Rapido attend. Safe to say though that it is coming given that Jason's last visit to the UK was partially to go through the legal motions to set up a Rapido UK company to allow Rapido to sell their own branded products in the UK.

Well, it has sort of been announced as a kit by Judith Edge Kits with availability next month.

I don't think anyone necessarily has any illusions about hobby shops suddenly starting to reappear everywhere, though you may occasionally get someone started up a shop. But what this move does do is giving the remaining stores a fighting chance to stay around by being able to compete for customers. Thus helping to try and avoid a future where we end up with only 2 or 3 retailers and thus a lack of competition at all. It also may be a case of Heljan deciding they need to try and get a similar retail presence as Dapol have given Dapol's continuing expansion into 7mm.

There will be parts of the country (like anywhere inside the M25 I would guess) where opening / sustaining a model shop will be next to impossible, even if there was no discounting, simply because external factors make many businesses impossible - cost of rent / cost of parking / cost of living / landlords preferring the big pocketed large chains. Similarly, a lack of clubs or decline in clubs isn't necessarily an indication of a health of this hobby. Much as what faces a small retailer can also cause problems for a club, where rent / parking / inconvenient transit etc. can all take a toll. But, just as the Internet has changed retail, it has also threatened clubs. How many people on RMweb are essentially using RMweb to replace the social aspect of the hobby that they would in the past get either from a club or from hanging out at the hobby shop? What something like Heljan's new policy can do though is improve the viability of those hobby shops that still exist outside of the expensive areas.

Perhaps one of the reason so few stores sell Heljan is because of the inability to compete with the big online stores, that given the more limited market for Heljan product it just creates too much risk of having a model that a smaller shop would have to sell at a loss? Thus by limiting discounts it may (with time) open up the opportunity for smaller stores to stock some items with more of a chance to sell the item that still allows a profit on the sale. As for the shopping around for the best price, I don't think anyone is saying that it is wrong. Rather just pointing out in an indirect way that not supporting a local store can have consequences - that the store closes - that can make things more expensive for a person when looking at an entire year of purchases when the cost of shipping all the little items gets taken into consideration, or the inconvenience of having to wait for something to arrive by delivery instead a quick stop into the local store.

But you are then rolling the dice that there will still be stock in 6 to 8 weeks, and that the stock available matches the livery and / or number you want. You are also assuming that they big discount will appear in 6 to 8 weeks, which it may not given that the big initial demand will have gone and thus there is less ability to make a profit on the big discount as the volume will not be there, the retailer will have had the product on the store books for 6 to 8 weeks already, and the ability to corner the market is gone.

Which totally missed the context of the thread given that they are identical models except for the electronics. The initial poster said which is not the same thing as you have quoted prices on. The closest to what became known as "design clever" in the UK would be as I said ScaleTrains with their Operator vs Rivet Counter product lines, except: 1) both lines come in either DC or DCC/Sound, whereas the implication was that it was an Operator/DC or Rivet Counter DCC/Sound split. 2) the latest announcement from ScaleTrains is not being made available in the Operator line. When combined with the fact that nobody else is copying (in the US) the split lines of products it is an indication that it may not be as popular as some may wish it to be.

A bit late maybe, but for the record should it not be to late and you do want to be accurate there are 2 wide cab versions of the GP40-2. Atlas and Athearn Genesis both offered the GP40-2w, though I don't know how accurate that Atlas model is for an ex-GO unit given that the GO units differed in some small ways from the CN original units. Athearn is accurate for both GO and CN. The other 4 units on the roster are GP40-2L (all ex-CN) which has a different frame and larger fuel tank than the GP40-2W. The GP40-2L has been offered by Athearn Genesis. Having said that most people aren't aware of the differences...

The problem for office boy Fred is that if you want to slow things down you do so while your costs are minimal - in other words before you okay the $100,000 cost of tooling a new model (cost based on rumours that have gone around for years now). Even if finance were concerned about the ability to sell at the new price they would be absolutely horrified at the thought of such a major expenditure happening with no plans to pay it off by selling the resulting model, and the following cascade of issues where the cost of the debt eats into the ability to finance other new models. So short version, if Bachmann UK was concerned about the ability of the market to pay the cost of the 94xx they would have left it at the CAD stage and not approved it into tooling. [edited insert - Also, Bachmann will also be considering what their competitors are doing and may want to get the 94xx out before the Model Rail 1600 possibility takes some of the sales away from those in the market who just want a modern pannier engine ] Now yes, Bachmann has had production issues over the last number of years which has justifiably resulted in a great deal of skepticism. But, if one pays attention one can see that the issues appear to now be in the past with product moving through the pipeline in reasonable time frames as I mentioned in my previous post. As for the suggestion of cheap DC and expensive DCC, not likely and certainly is not what is happening in the US. The only company I am aware of that sells their product in 2 lines is ScaleTrains, and both the Operator and Rivet Counter lines come in DC and DCC/Sound versions. Even then it is worth noting that the latest announced product from ScaleTrains is a high end only model.

One possibility, if you are trying to launch a new factory it can be helpful when trying to attract new customers to provide a sample of what you are capable of.

Are you trying to imply the Bachmann is lying? My source, as indicated in my original post, was the Bachmann Times image posted (but since removed for copyright reasons) here http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/137188-Bachmann-94xx/ For reference, Bachmann appears to be reasonably clear in their periodic updates at to what stages their models are at and I would point out that of the models in their January update that were indicated to be in tooling (158/159/117/24) have all but the 159 have made it to EP stage. Demonstrating they things are finally progressing again, in addition to the 3 models now demonstrated at the EP stage listed above the 121 and 2HAP were both at CAD stage in January and are now through the tooling process and have demonstrated EP versions. So, I take Bachmann's word that when they say the 94xx has gone to tooling that they mean what they say.

The problem with your speculation is that, from the latest Bachmann magazine, the 94xx has gone into tooling. Now tooling is the most expensive part of making a model and Bachmann would not be paying those costs to then turn around and put the molds on a shelf for 5 years.

Rapido have just tweeted a picture of a diesel that they love https://twitter.com/RapidoTrains/status/1038145876722692098

I wonder if what you saw where the noise barriers that Metrolinx has had to put up as they make improvements and increase service levels on some of the area tracks. https://www.toronto.com/news-story/5145823-metrolinx-noise-wall-construction-begins-along-the-west-toronto-railpath/ I was on a GO Train years ago (late 90s, back when the cab cars still were only the little half-width engineer compartment, which would often have it's door left open) when we almost hit a kid on a bike at a grade crossing just before Streetsville Station - from what we passengers could see we couldn't have missed the kid by more than 2'. With the train stopped at the station the engineer came out of the "cab" shaken up and somewhat in shock, though he recovered quickly and train proceeded.

Roughly twice as many people die trespassing as do from grade crossing accidents https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2018/09/05/hundreds-of-so-called-trespassers-have-been-run-over-on-canadas-railways-the-transportation-safety-board-has-only-investigated-two-cases.html

I agree that sites could often be better for those using a PC, but the world has moved on from the PC. There are more Internet connected mobile devices than PCs according to most sources, and more online searches are done via mobile devices (even when the person is sitting next to a PC!). Given that, RMweb must change with the times and become more mobile friendly if it is to continue to be one of the best sources of information and discussion for our hobby. If it doesn't, then the next generation of users will go elsewhere leaving all of us worse off as we lose their knowledge and input.

Be interesting to see how this develops, it may be instructive on just how healthy the market is for rail franchises now. While the concept of the extension is sound - allow the delayed upgrades time to finish and settle in - this seems to go beyond that concept. Talk of more new trains, additional service improvements, GWR developing a business case for other improvements all sounds like a franchise bid in concept if not name. The question then becomes do other TOCs / prospective TOCs see it as a hidden franchise bid and start legal proceedings. And if they don't, is it because they agree with the government that despite appearances it is just a justified extension or is it because the private sector is getting leary of the whole private railway concept? Another final thought, are the government and private sector both quite happy to maintain the status quo until a number of years after Brexit to allow the uncertainties to work themselves out so they don't have to be factored into a bid, and thus are there any other franchises coming up due in the next say 3, 4 years that a review of the franchise model would provide convenient cover for delaying?

Similar incident on the subway in Toronto a couple of years ago https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k4Hw3krlWig

It's actually worse than that. Windows 1.0 was only 32 years ago, MS-DOS only takes you to 37 years...

I can't say one way or another, I just posted the information that was posted on the Facebook group as it looked like a nice small (well, at least the rail portion) industry that people might be interested in. If anyone is further interested the Facebook group is "Rail Served Industry Model Railroading and Operations"

Don't think Hornby factors in at all - Hornby will be aware as everyone here is that Dapol will be close to a Manor and thus could already be working on it to announce either at Warley or their next big yearly announcement (or of course Dapol could do a surprise announcement in December much like they did last year). If I had to guess it is likely more a case of not putting too many similar locos on the market at the same time, where they would all be competing for the same hobby money and thus possibly cannibalizing each other, and instead attempt to spread out that purchasing over several years with the side benefit of a small amount of spreading the tooling costs.

The impression I get from Andy Y's update is that the 94xx was covered in their mid-year press update on Friday. Well, the same update says since Dec 2017 16 upgraded or totally new products have been delivered or are in transit, and that their narrow gauge range is selling out prior to arrival in the UK. I suspect its a bit of a case where it is easy to overlook all the stuff that Bachmann is delivering recently when it doesn't happen to be the item one is waiting for. It wouldn't for example surprise me if the soon to arrive Mk2f doesn't make a lot of people happy. http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index.php?/topic/137096-Bachmann-2018-mid-year-update/