Nova Scotian

Hope so. Would love to pick up a Dublo Dominion of Canada on the cheap. 320 quid will cause raised eyebrows at home, quite rightly. 220 or less (30%ish off) I reckon I can make the case. Its my top pick from the 2023 range, though I like the streamlined B17 too (a rename to a might have been streamlined 2870 Tottenham Hotspur for my own allegiances :))

So, not to brag or anything, but called it in the speculation thread :) Even a broken clock is right twice a day…

This was a really good post. There are a few of us that have stated such actions (1-3) would make them feel more comfortable. I guess the question for their business model is whether that matters or not. The fence sitters will see if there's leftover product at the end of the run, so may end up buying anyway. Believe it or not, Canada does have consumer protections. Frustratingly the equivalent of companies house is split across federal and provincial (you can incorporate in province or federal) - and many of the registries require payment to search. It adds up very quickly at $3 a search, especially if the company incorporates under a different name (or variant) than you expect. There are notable exceptions, including Nova Scotia, where it's free to access :) On the ring fenced... it does mitigate some risk and I agree it would be useful. But it doesn't eliminate all risk (which I can get into later) and it does impact development time. A manufacturer in "growth phase" might borrow from Peter to pay Paul to get that product across the line and realize their profits, which can then enable them to accelerate the other project with new cashflow. Ringfencing would potentially slow down the development cycle by making the allocation of funds inefficient within the company. It is of course risky, you have to hope you realize those profits and your production run doesn't just sit on the shelves gathering dust, because then you didn't generate the cash you need and you're into the cycle of more EOIs and deposits to replace cash tied up in inventory just to get another project moving. On balance I would agree, the "reward" is greater than the risk. However, another residual risk is if we treat the first deposit, or two payments, or whatever as only "variable" (cost of goods sold) expenses. Eg. it can only go to CAD and tooling. Most of the smaller manufacturers are run by people - those people need to take a paycheque from their business at some point. With no allowance for overhead you could feasibly have a business (or owner, or both) go bankrupt, unable to access funds needed because it's ringfenced for COGS. You could probably come up with a % that's reasonable and figure out how to make it work, but it's important to note that the people developing our models deserve to get paid!

I think the comment on "the worst of capitalism" is a bit... off... the owner isn't going to be diving into piles of gold coins for doing runs of a 500-2000 niche model locomotives at a time. Hornby's revenue at 39m GBP is barely a sneeze for larger companies, energy, oil and gas, automotive etc. It's going to be tough being in a crowdfunded market following on from DJM. A lot of trust was broken there, and I haven't seen efforts from KR to alleviate that as per comments above about companies house, addresses etc - this was all missing early on. The abrasiveness with which they engaged with potential customers early on really put me off too. However, GT3 was a good product, bar the upside down leaf springs... Fell not so much. I really like Bellerophon, and could even see myself splashing out on the DHP1. However, I don't want them enough to get past my annoyance at how rude they were early on, how difficult to contact, and how dismissive they've been. People who have met them in person say that they're actually quite nice, so maybe I just need to line up my next UK trip with Warley or similar. I'd purchase Rapido, Accurascale, Revolution and Realtrack all before KR Models given my limited funds. While I don't really "connect" with Rapido's communication style (the videos), I can't fault them on their approach to customers, their love for the hobby and the work they put into their product. They're good people. As we've seen there are enough people out there willing to put their qualms aside to put money upfront for the products they really want. So the business model works. I can't imagine they'll become a powerhouse, but as long as they keep doing smaller runs to limit their risk, and coming somewhere near expectations, there'll probably always be enough people willing to put 160 GBP down for something they can't/won't make themselves.

Something you said at the end there reminded me of some chap who built a life size loco replica (from memory it was US outline, and was a bit rough, based on a relatively simple trailer underneath) to house his model railway collection. Given the state some of these will be in, I wonder if that'd be cheaper than nipping to B&Q for a shed - get a Class 60 dropped off, crack open the rust eater and a few rattle cans of grey primer - jimmy the engine, generator and other heavy bits out the way (down a nearby slope?), and bob's your uncle fanny's your auntie's tennis partner you've got a pretty unique hobby spot.

DB Cargo UK disposing of 12 more Class 60s https://uk.dbcargo.com/rail-uk-en/services/disposals Not being an avid follower (just an occasional interested following) I don't know the history of the units they've put up for sale. I don't think any are the super 60s?

I had a book about the V2 and Green Arrow as a kid - been a firm favourite since. Kernow has the R3943 Hornby Ruston & Hornsby 48DS at 70 quid, the cheapest I've seen the newer releases of these at. The express dairy version: https://www.kernowmodelrailcentre.com/p/66905/R3943-Hornby-Ruston-and-Hornsby-48DS-0-4-0-Diesel-Locomotive--

https://www.hampshiremodels.co.uk/products/lima-205177-oo-gauge-police-livery-class-37 95 quid for a lima - reckon a run of 500 of these as a Limby you could get 130gbp easy! Then 2024 you do a collaboration with one of the police forces, or something and produce a new "never has been" livery. Maybe sell it with some liveried cattle cars and a destination plate for Rwanda and get Priti Patel to flog it for you. (note this is a terrible idea)

Well, glad I misremembered the 2022 release then! I genuinely don't remember the Pegler Dublo A1 though. Following the NRM poll just before Christmas here's my wishlist: - 37 in Police livery - 373 in GNER (North of Capital set) - Class 91 Interzuma (AzuCity?) Some others: - A diecast Dublo Deltic - just done right this time (with a good Bachmann model and excellent Accurascale I can't see this happening) - Diecast Dublo Standard 4MT - A train pack (pushing 1200 quid probably) - For the big 4 centenary and 75 years since the Locomotive Trials - one of the big engines from each of the four that participated in the trials. - Another centenary line, but probably focused on the cheaper end - A terrier or M7, Large Prairie, maybe an Oxford Rail N2 or an L1 (or J86? retooled J50?), and an H class (or retooled Fairburn? Fowler?) I reckon there's going to be something new in the DMU/EMU world too - was pleasantly surprised by the FLIRT addition last year. So my money's on the 197, though we may also see something like an 805 where most of the tooling can be used from existing it just needs a new nose.

That's what I see - plus some others. I really hope someone at Hornby's not having a bad day (or won't have a bad day tomorrow...) and this is all part of their launch/roll-out.

Anyone else seeing new stuff on the Hornby website? A "railroad plus" Class 40. Various A3s in Dublo, including the Pegler USA tour spec. Class 802 TPE. Class 423 in southwest and Southern. 800 GWR trainbow. The prince of wales P2 new build. Streamlined P2. Standard 2. Class 100 as a "railroad plus". Class 50 can't tell if new liveries or retool. And then tonnes of TT - HSTs, big diesels, kettles, etc. Or did everyone already see this? Struggling with the search function tonight... went through a few pages and couldn't see it.

When in the sequence is Stroudley improved engine green?

I haven't got a clue - but I expect if 2021 and 2022 models then almost certainly? I was thinking about how one would speed match two of these to two E1 (Thomas chassis) using resistors - using these as "booster" bogies on the front of a 4-6+6-4 garratt monster with all four motors wired in parallel, and some lead flashing. Unfortunately the 0-6-0 chassis aren't on the same sale... Totally pointless, would just spin its wheels etc etc. Not prototypical, but 20 driven axles on an articulated garratt would be fun. Not sure how you'd pivot the bogies (0-4-0) chassis, nor get enough weight into it with the height available. Or maybe a Fairlie?

Anyone who's a Hornby collectors club member might like this - a brand new donor chassis for twelve quid https://uk.Hornby.com/products/2021-Hornby-collector-club-locomotive-r3953 or https://uk.Hornby.com/products/2022-Hornby-collector-club-locomotive-r30202 And by chopping it up you might make the remaining "collectibles" more valuable ;)

If I didn't disagree with you this would be funny ;)

Remember SK saying they got wind of a competitor re. HST.... What better way to follow a 37 and 47 than an HST?

Any 442s left unscrapped? Maybe some new third rail (despite the rule against doing so) along Marston Vale. Rejigged to a 3 car unit it'd fly! You could even stick a diesel engine and generator in the front half of one of the driving cars - a la Class 210 - voila, a bi-mode and you don't need to worry about overhanging platforms anymore. Paint it NSE though.

Unfortunately I can't imagine seeing Castle sets on the Marston Vale line. Just don't need that power-to-weight ratio, top speed, etc. And the door configuration, seats etc are all a bit silly for 16.5 miles. That said, there were the top-tailed 37s (then 68s!) on mk2s in East Anglia on routes not much longer. I assume the biggest challenge will be some form of rolling stock that meets accessibility standards and is currently sitting around waiting for lease opportunities? For the other lines, maybe TfW would entertain an HST? That'd be fun. The other potential here is someone comes along, offers creditors 30pence on the pound but has to assume the existing contracts - everyone gets to hit the reset button a bit and creditors are happy to see 30p back rather than nothing. (30p chosen as an example, not as someone with an inside track). There are times that a business can be sustainable, but the debt load it carries is too much - a sale that buys out some of that debt and cancels the rest is often still better than no sale and a liquidation of assets. Personally I wanted to see them succeed, because if they can be "more sustainable" with less fuel consumption, a decent overhauled set (passengers seem happy with them), and they can push rail service into communities where no other model makes sense that's a good thing. I also feel for the employees. It's tough being a new entrant to a market like this - your future may depend on developing and implementing a step-change technology (eg. the battery storage side), but to get there you have to get a product out the door with revenue, your runway keeps getting shorter and any slippage in the commercialisation funnel makes it harder and harder. Small firms can be scrappy and do things the large firms can't due to interia, but they're not resourced and financed like the big firms, obviously!

GWR is starting to dispose of the Castle sets :)

On the topic of advent calendars - Hornby doing one again this year too. Day 1 is the chance to win some number of hobby points. https://uk.Hornby.com/christmas/advent-calendar

Interesting, I thought it was because he'd got ahead of himself (it says day-2, but it's the 1st December). But changing the link manually doesn't work! The newsletter e-mail for once doesn't give a "view online" option. This is the day 1 item, a Gaugemaster Track Cleaning Wagon in RTC livery https://railsofsheffield.com/products/gaugemaster-gm4430103-track-cleaning-wagon-br-rtc 30 quid, 33% off as was 45 quid. I'm signed up for the newsletter and got it at 8am UK time.

Greatly saddened by this.

When still in use in Devon you had a 2+1 pacer plus class 153. The 153 was always filled before the pacer because of the difference in comfort (ride, sound levels etc). The pacer did do what it was meant to do. That doesn't mean it wasn't a blight on our railways as compared to if they had invested in proper rolling stock. They weren't going to do that, so we got what we got. They did not see the economic benefit the railway brings as important enough - bean counting indeed. I will maintain they are awful machines and are suitable only as public toilets (their other main use). The 230s are a massive step up from them. The difference a set of real bogies makes.

I found it interesting that there's some US ownership and a very short time before entering administration they shipped a second product to the US. I'm disappointed by what's happened here. I think their product had application and was promising to maintain rail service in some areas - and much better than the pacer was. They were set back by a number of clear problems - a fire, the software for the Isle of Wight (must have cost them a fortune), and then a "thermal incident". I don't think the D stock are ratty, or can't be made to be good - particularly the bogies. However, I do think the choice of D stock caused one massive problem that's been talked about before - a 60mph top speed. This causes problems for any pathing on mainline. Anything else (passenger) out there is 75mph plus. Pacer was 75mph (if it ever got there and didn't give you brain damage shaking at that speed).

"As the doors open at Warley Model Railway Exhibition on 26th November 2022, visitors to the Hornby stand will be given the chance to experience something special! If they'd said "new product launch" then this thread would have been different. Not just a special announcement, they said "chance to experience something special". We all tried to parse the experience word and what was meant by that. I can't imagine in the world of model trains "any publicity is good publicity". Not how this works. Noone trawls their way through 15 pages of rmwebbers doing what we do best and thinks "I'll just hop on the Hornby website and buy something I hadn't already planned to".