oreamnos

All this talk about red stripes when the only one I'm interested in is ND204C #56006 BR Blue! Is the plan to issue all 4 liveries mentioned in post #28 at the same time, or not? Matt

Wow. I'm not a Western "fan" so I have not been paying close attention to this tread, but what I'm most impressed with is that given there is nothing to give a sense of scale in the EP photos in posts nos. 598 and 600, it is very difficult for me to tell if these are pictures of OO or N scale models. I'm guessing OO solely based on the fineness of the wire handholds, but the point of this post is that Dapol's (and Farish's, too) N gauge models have gotten so good in the past couple years modelers of the smaller scale have come to expect they won't have to give up anything detail-wise compared to the larger one. Whatever the scale, well done. I'm looking forward to a Cl 40 being done to this high standard - in N of course! Matt

I was doing my usual "lets see what's new" browse about today and saw that Hatton's have them in stock now, too: http://www.ehattons.com/56883/Peco_Model_Railway_Products_RW_3_Diamond_Jubilee_Celebration_CDA_China_Clay_hopper_wagon_in_royal_blue_gold_live/StockDetail.aspx Yes, it's silly. No, I didn't buy one of the Royal Wedding purple ones. But I did buy one of these for the heck of it - which is admittedly the only real reason to. At least I don't have to pay VAT. Matt

That's actually a very big help - thank you very much. I'll have a go at it tonight. OK (post edited 12 hours later) - Had a go and it's a piece of cake once you know how it's supposed to work. 1.) remove the coupling 2.) prize out the NEM socket from the socket housing. There's a small hole at between the back of the socket and the socket housing that you can slide a long needle into to push the socket out, but be careful as it potentially could come out of the socket with some force and go flying across the room. 3.) Simply slip the plough over the lower half of the socket housing. It's a snug friction fit and is unlikely to fall off. Given the socket housing for the NEM socket and coupler is a bit proud of the body, the fitted plough also sits a bit proud of the body rather than tucked under it. Still, I think the fitted plough looks pretty good. Given that the fitted plough precludes use of the coupler, I get why Dapol only provides one plough. I don't understand why Dapol chose not to include something similar to the foregoing instructions on the slip of paper that comes in the loco's box. Matt

I agree it's not the end of the world by any means. It's a very small issue. Which is my point: it should have been easy to get right. In all other respects the 26 is fantasic. That's a really nice looking model you've linked too and very well done. The irony is that those look like discs from a Farish 24. Matt

I got the same single black plough. I didn't try to fit it because I figured the loco wouldn't be right with ploughs fitted only at one end. Based on your experience, I don't think I'll even try to fit it now. As pleased as I am with the 26s I have, I admit I'm slightly miffed regarding the ploughs. I think Dapol overpromised here and then under delivered. If you're going to make a big deal about a Scottish 26 coming with ploughs, 1.) supply two of them and 2.) design them so they can actually be fitted - and provide a diagram showing how it's to be done. The same thing could be said about the headcode discs, actually. If you're going to light your loco and supply discs to fit over them, design your discs so they don't block the lights. Bachmann managed that with its 24; there's no reason Dapol couldn't have done the same with its 26. Matt

Did your 26 come with one or two ploughs then? Just curious - mine only came with one. I agree that the Farish 24 is much easier to detail and much better documented. Ironically, I had to use the headcode disc diagram that came with my Farish 24 in order to fit the disc on my Dapol 26. I really like the 26 and have warmed up to Dapol because of it, even if compared to similar Farish products it is a little rough around the edges Matt

Regarding the snowploughs, was it normal operating procedure to have ploughs fitted at one end only (obvioulsy, the leading end), or would would both ends have fitted with ploughs at the same time? I'm asking because my blue 26026 only came with a single plough assembly for one end. IF it should have come with two (I simply don't know if it should have or not) I'll have to contact Dapol, mostly over just the principle of getting what I paid for than anything else. Matt

You make a good point Mike about the later 26s, though with the discs removed from them and plated over (at least the two stacked ones in the center were plated over) the lights on the later 26s wouldn't be visible either so I think my question about Dapol's reasoning not to mould holes in the discs is still valid. In theory, yes, drilling out the holes would be a simple matter. I even have a drill bit and pin vice small enough to make the holes, but 1.) the discs are only about 2mm in diameter and are not very securely attached to the sprue, 2.) my manual dexterity is not what it used to be. In fact I'm not sure I could have ever have tackled such fine work in this scale. Again, I'm very happy with my 26s and how they look with the supplied discs fitted, even with the lights blocked off. I just think it would have made more sense for Dapol to supply pre-holed discs, especially as Farish supplied them with its Class 24s, Matt

Yes Ben, of course the discs are suppose to have holes. Perhaps I wasn't understood. The point I was trying to raise was that the electrical complexity added to the model and the corresponding additional cost (which must be passed on to the consumer) seems to be all for naught when the manufacturer supplies discs without holes with the model, which I can attest it has at least with D5301 and 26026. Perhaps other liveries came with discs that had holes. It's still a very fine model and one of my favourites. Matt

This may be a dumb question, but now having fitted the headcode discs to my D5301 (BR Green, SYP), why did Dapol provide lights for each of the four headcode disc locations when after you fit the discs supplied, the lights are covered and not visble? I considered drilling out the discs when they were still attached to the sprue but ultimately decided the hand coordination required for such fine work was beyond my skill. This doesn't even rise to the level of a quibble with me as I really adore Dapol's Class 26. In fact, I just received 26026 in Rail Blue today (I genuinely wonder how many other copies have made it to the States. Mine must be one of just a handful.) and I will fit the discs to it, too. But it just seems odd to me that Dapol would have gone to the trouble and expense of lighting the model if the lights were just going to be covered over. On Farish's Class 24, even with the discs fitted the lights are still visible and that kind of makes more sense to me. Photo attached of (l to r) a Farish 24, a Dapol 26 with discs fitted, and a Dapol 26 without the discs fitted for comparison. Matt

Yes. Unfortunately, this percentage is comprised of well-intentioned wives at birthday and Christmas time... Matt

This is a bit OT but I was browsing Hattons' website this evening and was surprised to see that I could pre-order a Farish Western (Western Champion in maroon w/SYP) for only £81.14. Yes, that's £81.14. From the picture supplied, it appears to be the same old Poole tooling we've all come to love and enjoy: http://www.ehattons....tockDetail.aspx Now, since I could pre-order the new Dapol Western we're all drooling over for just 2 quid more (also from Hattons'), let me be the first one to ask the Bachmann folks in Barwell who might happen to read this thread: Do you actually think anyone is going to buy your Farish Western? In all seriousness, re-issuing that old model in the face of what we all legitimately expect will be an overwhelmingly superior Western model from Dapol, and for almost the same price to boot, strikes me as being as daft as making N gauge British outline buses to 1:160 scale. I just don't understand why Bachmann has decided to waste capital (regardless of how little) to re-issue that model when the Dapol is so clearly going to be a better value for money for the consumer. I know the tooling was amortized years ago but the Farish Western is no cash-cow when nobody is buying them. I wonder how long it will take before they are heavily discounted? When they are they might be a good source for spare parts... Matt

Finally got to try a pair of these today before I broke one of them. Observations: 1.) Well done, Dapol. These work as advertised. 2.) You can make them couple to MT couplers and there are no problems with differing coupler heights, but the two types are incompatible for using the automatic uncoupling feature. In short, the MT couplers are too small and cannot swing open wide enough to allow the Dapol couplers to get free. 3.) The shanks are actually long enough, so buffer locking isn't a problem, after all. 4.) Once you install them in a Farish Mk1 coach they are very difficult to remove from the NEM pocket. They are less difficult to remove from the NEM pocket of a Stanier coach, but they still require a good tug. 5.) The tiny spring can be released when the coupler knuckles are compressed togetther tightly - like when trying to pull the coupler out of the NEM pocket of the aforementioned Mk1 coach. 6.) Once the tiny spring is out, it may be impossible to refit. I ended up accidently pulling the spring into a unusable shape trying to do that. Since there were no spare springs included with the couplers, you're out of luck at that point, Lee, Dapol Dave I think posted here that he thought spare springs were included in the 5 packs. Since you just received three 5-packs, can you please let us know if there were any spare springs included? I've got a couple of the 5-packs on the way, and if there are spare springs, I can have a go at fixing the coupler I broke. Thanks. Matt

To Dapol Dave: Having had two 5 pair multi-packs on pre-order from Hattons since December 9, and noting above your comment that the multi-packs are arriving at Dapol today, when will the multi-packs be delivered to stockists? Many thanks, Matt

When this model makes it to N gauge my wife is not going to be happy with me... I will parrot those who say these new CADs look right. In fact, absolutely fantastic. All I ask is that everyone involved in the design and manufacture be sure they are on the same page and that these are made to 1:76 and 1:148. Matt

I suspect Bachmann know this... That, along with the longevity of the class, the small variations to the basic design and the variety of liveries carried over the years is going to make this model a cash cow for Bachmann - assuming it isn't manufactured to 1:160! I am looking forward to seeing this model come out. Matt

I apologize because I know this is OT, but I've noticed in this thread the mention a couple times that "they aren't getting it." If my assumption of "they" are Chinese CAD developers and production engineers, I have to ask: why not bring back the development and production work to the UK? Certainly UK developers would "get it" and it would seem more efficient to work with people who did than with people who had to have things explained to them several times before they still got it wrong. Here in the States, there has been a bit of a trend to bring back manufacturing work that had been sent overseas simply because the cost savings of Chinese manufacture simply are no longer what they use to be and the headaches are much less. I imagine QC improves, too. Just a thought. Matt

Since Dapol Dave is reading this thread, and the topic of availability has come up, when will the "bulk packs" of 5 pairs of couplers be available? I pre-ordered two bulk packs from Hattons on 8 December but they still do not have them in stock. Are they still on the boat? I am eager to use these couplers! Also, this is OT, but I wanted to thank Dapol Dave for reading these threads and taking an in interest in his customers concerns. Having had very poor luck with five or six Dapol locos in the past (all returned), knowing the company had a "face" made me not completely give up on Dapol, and the Class 26 I bought was a real winner. Matt

There is a picture of a UM 700 class 0-6-0 here: http://www.semgonline.com/model/um700rev.html Matt

Wow. I haven't looked at this thread in some time and the CADs look absolutely fantastic. Clearly a lot of hard work has is going into this. When this model makes in into N, I may decide it is worth the price after all especially as I was so pleased with the Class 26. However, I agree with those who have raised concern about the bodyside curve as depicted in the CADs. To my eye the sides do appear to be too flat. The cab handrails even more so. In fact in the 3/4 view CAD, the handrails look completely straight - certainly straighter than the body. Given that they are depicted as white lines on the CAD I am wondering if they are drawing the eye away from the slight curve to the body? I'm just not sure. Comparing the various CADs posted here by Dapol Dave, the curve in the most recent head-on CAD looks flatter than the curve in the head-on CADs posted earlier, and I think the earlier ones look better. Dapol Dave's comment, "but if we put more curve do we risk the model being even more wrong?" was illuminating and I'm glad I don't have to make that decision! However, I do think "if it looks right, it is right" and IMHO, while very close, I don't think it looks right. Matt

The video of the Warship confirms a concern that I wrote about in my first post on this topic on 7/12 - the coupling shanks are too short. Did anyone else notice that the Warship's buffers had been removed? The Farish Warship and Dapol's own Class 26 have buffers that protrude quite a way and while I am just "eyeballing" things from the video (as my couplers haven't yet arrived), I am not confident that these couplers are long enough to give the buffers enough clearance on first or second (9" and 10-3/8") radius curves, and that's a problem if you don't want to remove the buffers. Would someone who has fitted the the Dapol couplers to a Warship or Class 26 please test this and post whether or not my concern is correct? I know that the trend has been for closer coupling, but at somepoint practically has to win out. If my concern is correct about buffer interference I hope Dapol will manufacture it's new couplers with longer shanks in future. Microtrains has short, medium, and long shank versions of its couplers as does Bachmann. So I hope Dapol will follow suit. Matt

Funny. That was exactly my thought. The whole point of the new Dapol coupling is that it eliminates the giant hand from the sky. Matt

I purchased two more locos from Union Mills and in keeping with my aim to make pictures of UM locos available for those who might be interested in them, I am uploading photos of them here. The locos are a J39 0-6-0 and a Drummond T9 4-4-0. Note the J39 is the current tooling, with daylight under the boiler. Matt

The metal pins need to be within the magnetic field for the couplers to work. The closer the pins are to the magnet (without touching it of course), the better they will work. Not having used the Dapol magnets I don't know how strong they are. The Microtrains magnets with which I am familar are fairly strong, but are not strong enough to work well under the sleepers. They need to be placed between the rails. As for disguising the magnets, all you need to do is paint stripes on them to match the colour of the sleepers and the colour of the balast. I have found the Microtrains magnets to be very hard and extremely brittle. I think you'd end up with a broken magnet if you tried to machine it. Matt