Roy L S

Another great choice of wagon, I'll certainly be ordering some of the early Bo-Rails as soon as the books open. Who would have thought even ten years ago that we would see the selection of PW wagons we now have in N. With the EFE Shark and Mermaid, more Dapol Dogfish to come (with NEM pockets this time) and also more of their Grampus on the way it is only a shame that Farish will not be persuaded to produce more Seacows! Roy

Taking into consideration the price point for this model, I think they have done a lovely job. Very tempted to buy a BR one and I don't do OO! Roy

It does, and even though I normally steer well clear of anything generic, here I made an exception, for one thing at forty odd quid it would be so rude not to, secondly pure nostalgia it is so reminiscent of the Tri-ang model. Some buffers and red paint on the buffer beams and it will be even closer to something vaguely British. Then the fun of trying to fit a chip.

Out of my modelling era, but what a fascinating prototype. I wonder if there would be demand for one shot down to N, it certainly seems to have had a long enough life and sufficiently varied use to be worth a look? Roy

3 Car 108s in BR Blue or White and Blue due June/July...

No dates yet for 5MT (tender re-tool for sound), 4F, J39 or Fairburn. Doubtless this means the sound fitted 5MT I have on order will be the subject of another price-rise on top of the one just notified before release. First world problems I appreciate but still frustrating. Roy

Hi Ben I wasn't suggesting for a second that there was any question of you guys or the factory delaying or holding back, my apologies if it came across that way, my question was out of genuine curiosity only. I do appreciate the huge spanner Covid has thrown in the works, and the context you put around the impact it has caused in your reply to my question is perhaps the most inciteful I have seen to date. Basically and put simply it is a case of having nothing to measure things by, production starts whenever it starts and finishes whenever it is done, even reporting progress along the way gives no reliable indication of when a product will be ready. Got it! Best wishes Roy

Hi Mike Thanks for the reply. I am probably not the only one who has no idea how frequently and on what basis communication is made between you/Sam of Sonic and the factory in this example and more generally in the wider area of Far East production. . For example whether the factory provides regular progress reports at specifically agreed points through the production cycle or they are more ad-hoc. This to an extent will I appreciate be down to what is customary for a Chinese factory and may not align with what we might expect, and it would be really interesting to understand how things works in practice if you are able to share (it may also head off questions like mine ). Of course I am also keen to see the 56xxs land not just in its own right (two on order) but because I am itching to know what Sam's next loco will be, not least because it feels like Sonic may be the only source of new tool N steam locos to the Market for a while. In that respect I think a lot of us whose modelling interests include steam owe Revolution and Sonic a debt of gratitude. Roy

just looking at the Revolution website as directed and ETA still given as late May/early June. Without getting my head bitten off can I just ask if this estimate still stands? I would assume that by now production and individual packaging will have all been done if this timeframe is to be achieved? Roy

Quality comes at a price and the latest Farish products like the 8F are of the utmost quality. I guess if you don't like it you can choose not to buy, but businesses need to make a return on investment and I don't see any evidence given rising cost of materials, wages shipping that they are ripping anyone off. Regards Roy

Mine arrived today. I can only repeat what others have said, they are terrific models, well done and thank you to everyone involved. Roy

I only have a small order of 3, all paid for so just a case of sitting tight and waiting!

Encouraging to note that RevolutioN are expecting delivery of these today. Hopefully not too long before they start to be despatched. Roy

Hi Ben Thank you. Personally I would prefer the weight reduced by more like 50%. The wagons become very heavy, even in a fairly modest rake (I have 12). It also seems to me as if the weight pushes down too much on the pinpoint axles causing friction and a curious surging "Zebedee" effect when they are all together and moving, bouncing the loco along the track. I am afraid much as I think they are amazing models, aside from the one I have removed the weight from, I have had to stop running them sadly The above said I do appreciate there are other views to consider not just mine Roy

Hi Ben Will the second run of Class B's have a much smaller internal weight (actually same question for the Class As as I have a small cut of these ordered). It was a devil of a job to get the weight out of one of my existing Class B's without causing damage to the delicate parts and this has put me off attempting any more. The one I have done appears none the worse for removal of the weight running wise, so I would strongly suggest something is done, the first batch is just too heavy, NMRA standard or not. Regards Roy

Yep, you have a point there and why spoil the fun?

Where does it say the models will be 4mm?

Not a model suitable for all but the latest part of the transition period, by 1966 steam was in retreat and confined mostly to just a few remaining strongholds ,so definitely not on my shopping list. That said, there's no denying it is an interesting choice, long lived and lots of variations, I would envisage it will be very popular for those modelling pre-TOPS blue diesel period onwards. Roy

There appears plenty of room for a 6 pin socket (even if right angle) in the cab area, personally I would do that at the expense of the existing cab detail. Roy

Agreed, I would personally prefer to forego the cab detail. I could never see the point of it, it was barely visible (all three of my M7s were moved on due to poor performance and a thoroughly cheap and nasty chassis). The chassis on this looks a whole lot better in design terms but what misjudgement (misunderstanding?) of the N market it is to omit DCC. Maybe as well as the weight issue there was also a focus on keeping the RRP below £100? Roy

Are the Ayjay kits any good? I have seen some finished models which to my admittedly untrained eye (as far as EMUs go) looked nice to me. Website below and in the text N kits for "4COR ,2BIL and TIN-HAL kits are now being put into production" - Jan 2021. I can't help but like the 2Bil, maybe it just reminds me of the Triang EMU from the early 60s (Not that I ever had one they were long out of production by the time I was old enough to have a hankering for one!). www.southernregionmodels.co.uk If someone were to do a 2BIL RTR in N I would just have to have one as a "Rule 1". Roy

Not voting in the Model Rail Survey I am curious to know, what was this loco competing against to win the category or was it an open vote for any new model people wanted to include? Roy

I am not a OO modeller but having a general interest in UK model railways of all scales I have followed this thread quite closely. I have to admit that given the reported issues with this model I was more than a little surprised that this loco won the best locomotive category. I can't recall another model with so many reported issues ever doing this. However I am left wondering, does it more reflect what it is up against in the category? Is it the overall sheer volume of sales that has led to a lot of happy customers notwithstanding problems reported or does it reflect the audience Model Rail attracts? Possibly it is all three plus others too, and while I personally find it hard to reconcile a loco with the range of faults and defects as reported on this thread winning the category, the fact remains that it did. In some ways I am pleased for Hattons, as they are an old name in the model railway business and have had their share of knocks and setbacks not always of their own making, so this is a nice positive story. As an N gauge modeller it would appear they have no plans to do anything more following suspension of the Garratt, but having reflected, on balance if they did and partnered with a credible factory/manufacturer I wouldn't be put off - there has been a lot of call for the LMS Twins - they commissioned these in OO, I'll just end with that thought .... Roy

The only issue with that is that all the announced "New Tool" steam locos have now been released, unless one includes the partial re-tools for sound (N Class and 5MT) and diesels don't fare any better. Personally I don't think it matters which are chosen, such is the pent up demand I would think almost any new production in sensible livery choices will rapidly disappear from the warehouse at Barwell. Roy

Even more interesting is to look on the Bachmann Website as far as items no longer appearing goes. As just one example, only 20 steam locos in total are listed and of those just 6 are actually in stock at Barwell (Castle x1, 8F LNER only, Jinty BR Late Crest and 3 x WDs). There are 3 locos (N Class) due April/May and the remaining 11 (4F x3, J39 x3, 5MT x3 and Fairburn x2) "Awaiting" which clearly means somewhat further off. Not a criticism, merely an observation, the challenges around production and shipping must be pretty tough at the moment to see stocks shrink to this level. Roy