Roy L S

Got my hands on my late crest sound model today, totally blown away by it. I think Farish have lifted the bar again with this model, the finish and decoration is exquisite and based on my experience it is the best British N steam loco and steam sound project to date. Like Jerry I hope this encourages Bachmann/Farish to invest in more N Gauge steam locos to this standard as without question the sheer quality and features of this model enable it to sell itself. Roy

I wouldn't hold your breath, I don't think "pending" means anything too exciting in this context for a Rails pre-order and they aren't showing in stock yet. I am looking forward to getting my two, but I think they are expected to arrive Dec/Jan which I guess means we may still have a bit of a wait.

Interesting. The retailer I have ordered my sound one through says that they do not show as part of this week's consignment on the e-mail he has received - did you speak directly to someone at Barwell to establish that they are already being shipped?

Talking about the shape, wasn't one of it's nicknames the "Wonderloaf"? I am sure I read that somewhere. Roy

Is it a Battle-Space Turbo-Car? (Showing my age!)

I don't think the next Sonic N loco is due to be announced until the 56xx has been released, and as yet I don't think we have been told that they are even finished, never mind on the boat?

I didn't think that the Late Crest yellow stripe model (sound fitted) was available yet? Regards Roy

Which is kind of ironic as the Bachmann website doesn't show them as even having "Arrived" yet!

The V2 would work for me. I still have three of the old type, one of which (Black one) has had the loco drive removed and a Farish B1 tender attached to improve haulage and provide for DCC (all reversible). However what would work better is a model to current standards with coreless motor, no boiler skirt and ready fitted speaker in the tender- I mean who wouldn't want a sound fitted V2?? Realistically though I doubt we will see much so no point in getting too excited, we still have the 8F to look forward to at the moment but then I think only the 319EMU for those for whom it is of interest? I would love to see is the Deltic chassis re-tooled with speaker and Next 18 socket, but given we have just seen some new releases of that model it seems unlikely anytime soon. So, maybe we should be ready for a surprise or two just in case, but not worth rescheduling your day for the announcements. Roy

True, and I have done quite a number, but to replicate the cab-side stripe and other details to the factory standard seen here would not be at all easy and a big gamble on nearly £150 worth of loco (even after discount). Not a moan about the price I think it is quite fair for a model of this quality and features but as prices go up I have less inclination to fiddle personally! Roy

Looks fantastic, hopefully means not too long before they arrive. It's been a long time, but it certainly looks like the wait will be worth it. Glad I have pre-ordered mine, I can imagine the late crest sound example will fly off the shelves. Roy

Yes, the original 94xx design was completely different, much better design and quality. Looking at the designs side by side, I would think that the change was about cost, the second version is truly cheap and nasty. Roy

The wheels rotate out of synch due to split gears on the driven axles, this causing the rods to drop off, the design and execution of the chassis was so dreadful that this fate awaited a very high percentage of model, some after hardly any time at all. The warranty back then was one month!! Good job the new chassis with integral motor followed not too long after these! Roy

Plus "The King and I"?

Sadly I think you have hit the nail on the head Grahame, lots of deposits paid = cash in supposedly to finance different models, levels of cash drawn from the business not fully factored into projections for projects or cashflow (if there ever were any such projections). The word "ponzi" goes briefly through my head except of course that, later cash received in this case didn't even fund earlier investors' models, indeed aside from the said "legitimate business expenses", some CADs and some iffy 3D prints we will never know for certain what the deposits were actually was spent on, although I suspect many have the same thoughts... Regards Roy

It appears Ben's post landed at the same time as mine. I would not have raised the question if there had already been an answer. Regards Roy

Fine looking models. Like some others have said, the only niggle I have is that the faces of the wheels are unpainted. Having looked at a random sample of my Farish locos the wheel faces are properly black, they appear to be painted rather than just chemically blackened. If there is still time in this production cycle it would be good to see this corrected, if not then not a huge issue, I can sort them myself when they arrive. However I would strongly suggest this is addressed for future production runs and/or future models. Roy

Nothing specific in the instructions relating to the steps Grahame, indeed the exploded diagram shows them in place! There isn't enough clearance for much bogie swing so I didn't try to fit mine. I do agree, a different design solution such as positioning the steps on the bogies would have worked but I suspect it was a case of not wanting to review things or alter the DJM tooling. I think the only change to the DJM spec has been the Next 18 decoder socket. Notwithstanding a few issues though I think it is still a very decent package, especially for the price - are you not even slightly tempted by a BR blue one? Regards Roy

They are supplied Grahame, but I think they would best be described as cosmetic as they foul the bogies when fitted. To be fair I guess the prototype was never intended to go around the equivalent to N gauge R1 and 2 curves it's minimum being 230ft which scales to about 19 inches.

It's all about compromise. space had to be made for the close coupling mechanism, inevitably removing it will have left a gap. Whether the feature was necessary is definitely a matter of opinion, I would have preferred bogie mounting personally but the designer decided it should be this way. Inevitably one can spot all sorts of anomalies in enlarged pictures, and the exhaust is clearly not as tight a fit as it could have been. It is not unusual, few models are perfect, take the first incarnation of new tool Farish 47s with the bogie spacing issue just for one. For sure the Clayton's exhaust "stack" should fit flush to the underside of the roof, but at normal viewing distances without being blown up many times actual size it is noting like so visible. Nothing is perfect but it seems pretty clear that the vast majority of people are well satisfied with their Class 17 models which have been priced very keenly in the current market, and for those for whom it doesn't cut the mustard there is always the Parkwood kit (joking!) or a go at a scratch-build I guess.... Roy

Not sure if it helps but here is a comparison next to the new tool Jinty. It is as can be seen a very small loco but looking at the prototype, it is clear that the tank/boiler section has been stretched upward to accommodate the motor. Nonetheless still a very pretty little loco and pushing the boundaries a lot back in 1971 I would think. Roy

I think right at the start the 94xx has a Buhler can motor, later changed to a cheaper clone of it.

Hi Justin Rather than cutting the tabs would folding the ends flatter potentially achieve a similar effect do you think? Regards Roy

A bit harsh! I measured the Clayton as being over-height by around 0.8mm but it has been confirmed accurate in all other dimensions by others......

It was the other way round Robert, the 94xx was first followed by the Holden which came in three colours, GE blue, LNER green and BR black. I agree it was nonetheless a brave step and sadly never to be followed up by another RTR LNER tank loco to date after the cancellation of the J72. Roy