Roy L S

I have to agree, having not been on to RM Web since this pic was put up until now, it really does lift the bar as far as transition wagons are concerned. I can't think of another N gauge RTR 4 wheel wagon with quite this level of exquisite detail, there are some that are really good like the Farish Covhop, but they don't quite reach this standard. Great value at the price too. Roy

I am also very keen to know how these are progressing. I appreciate CNY may have impacted delivery, but be good to have an update. Roy

I am now itching to place my order, the first chioce is easy, the red Esso one. The second choice? Oh dear, must I really limit it to only two??? Roy

I very much doubt that the Standard 5MT will be dropped after one production run with the money invested in it. So far 4,000 have been shipped to suppliers and even if the last few were sold heavily discounted that is a fair number and doubtless with a bit of research they will remain available in shops for a while yet. Universally it appears to have been well received, it is well made, accurate and runs very well. With the bigger tender in particular it is also a good candidate for a sound conversion. Each re-run will need it's own production slot so if these are limited it seems entirely logical to "rest" some products from the catalogue for a year or two and target sales of new products. How quickly items get re-run will no doubt be down to previous sales and sales projections. The Ivatt 2MT for example seems to have done well with two new models slotting into the range immediately the three original models had sold through. Roy

While I can understand frustration on the part of those who pre-ordered a 00 King from Hattons, to be fair nobody has been asked for any money up front and as Hattons are no longer proceeding it is surely a matter for Dave/DJM when or maybe even if the 00 King proceeds. There is already a King in 00, the only one there has ever been in N was the truly dismal Farish effort made late in Poole days. With Farish already soon to be delivering a Castle in N and Collett and Hawkesworth coaches already available I would think prioritising the N variant actually makes a lot of sense. Roy

A "no" from me too I'm afraid. I just couldn't justify one just as I can't a Castle, I just don't "do" Great Western. I am sure the model if it proceeds will be a stunner and I am another that wishes it success. Roy

Hi Ben Wouldn't that be 8000 Mk1 SKs? My understanding has always been that mainstream production runs are 1008 units and limited editions 504? Regards Roy

I think it is a very canny thing to do. People will buy the less popular liveried or variant of model that lands first and still buy the one they originally intended to when it comes along. Roy

I find myself agreeing Grahame. The C class was if I recall correctly a very good seller in 00 but I'm not sure there is going to be much more than a Union Mills sized market for it in in N. The 8F on the other hand will doubtless prove a popular choice and I'm glad dibs on this have remained with Bachmann. A sound fitted one is now on my must have list alongside a few Thompson coaches. However unless there is more detail to add to what has already been said, we have no details of either timescale or price and I too hope that we don't have another 4 year wait as we have become accustomed to in many other cases (and looks likely with some of the remaining projects based on progress to date). I am also concerned that thus far there are a lot of re-releases from last year's announcements that don't have planned release dates yet and that looks like a heck of a lot of production capacity to find at the factory. So, in summary a pleasing cross section of new releases with something for almost everyone but I do have reservations that alongside already planned announcements there will be a very long wait for anything and I am hoping that someone attending today's Trade event can clarify/reassure in that respect? Roy

Hi Grahame To be fair anything I have been referred to previously has been based far more on opinion than any hard facts or numbers, so I'm not going trawling for that.. BR blue is quite popular, no argument on that score from me, but any significant shift in popularity between that and transition? There has been little if any evidence produced confirming this and indeed any evidence that there has been (alongside the experience of retailers I know) is that transition still sells better by some margin than any other era. Without going onto too much detail as it is late, I would just refer you to a couple of examples: - The first the forthcoming Farish Class 40. Two green and one blue to be available at launch. This for a loco that bore BR blue from the late 60's right into the 80s. Second example - Mk1 coaches - look at some of the more commonly sought Mk1s, the BR Maroon SO and SK have both had more production runs than their corresponding blue-grey counterparts, and that's not even taking into account that is only one of the Mk1 liveries possible during the transition period. Time will tell whether your prophecy comes to pass but I do not think it is anything like as simple as saying - i.e. that people model what they remember - I don't and most I know don't either. It is much more to do with capturing a place at a point in of time in miniature and steam/diesel transition is far and away the most appealing because the traditional railways and their practices were only slowly changing so there were modern diesels using older infrastructure. Trip freights and small goods yards, wagonload traffic and more... Fast forward to the BR Blue era - the period I grew up in - for sure it had it's own fascination, some old traditions remained, but it was a time of run-down and rationalisation and was pretty gloomy, this continued well into the 80s.. Regards Roy

Hi Grahame What evidence is it you speak of? I think we have perhaps exchanged more than once on this subject in the past. As far as I know there has been nothing published suggesting any significant shift in popularity or sales of late and BR blue has always been popular. According to retailers I know Transition remains by far the most quick to sell. As another recent indicator, perhaps, of the recently commissioned NGS Thompsons it is the lined maroon one that is according to the website closest to selling out. No mention of how the BR blue one is doing. What cannot be disputed is that right now between them Transition and BR blue are combined be biggest single market and one where many products overlap significantly and there are doubtless the safest bet for manufacturers. Even some early M2s were turned out in BR maroon after all! On the subject of the 74 specifically, I would have thought a relatively short lived and small class with limited geographical spread and limited livery choice is always going to be a niche product in any scale probably worthy of the crowdfunding initiative in 00. However personally I would be surprised if there were anywhere near sufficient demand in an N Market which is (we are told) somewhere between 1/4 and 1/5 of 00. Regards Roy

I discussed it with the new designer (Steve I think from memory and apologies if memory is failing!) at the N Gauge Society AGM. There is most definitely design work ongoing, he was telling me just how small it is compared to something like the Jinty and the challenges that presented mechanism wise. That was clearly around six months ago, so hopefully it has progressed some more in the intervening period. The good news is that the J72 is one of only a few in backlog that we have yet to see an EP of, so fingers crossed. Regards Roy.

Hi Les I doubt it, Colin's production runs are very small and while it is great for him that he has sold out, we are talking only probably 2 - 300 models total. I personally still predict another pretty thin year, my hope is for a range of Thompsons but not a lot else. Regards Roy

Thinking about it, with the NGS commissioned Thompson BGs soon to be distributed, and their development in 00, there must be some logic to a range of Thompson coaches being on the radar? Roy

I hope I am wrong, but I tend to agree with Grahame, I am not expecting anything of significance to be announced. There are still models from previous announcements that are not even at CAD stage yet and re-liveries without delivery dates and I think they may want to deal with those first. If and when we do see new announcements, from what Bachmann have said they will take place much later in the development process so at least there shouldn't be the long delays between announcement and delivery experienced in recent years. So, safe to say I will not be frothing as much come the new catalogue. To be honest I'll be happy to have the already listed weathered Ivatt - with a Wickness sound install courtesy of Zimo/Youchoos of course! Roy

I wasn't criticising the 00 J94, it seems to have been justifiably popular from what I have seen. I was just making the point that gear coupling steam loco driving wheels isn't a necessity, adds complication and brings with it it's own issues. It certainly doesn't in itself improve haulage capacity. I think the latest BachFarish coreless motor loco drives illustrate this point perfectly. Arguably it represents the current "state of the art" for British N steam, mine are all beautifully smooth and controllable runners and all rely on rods to transmit drive to the other wheels. Roy

Hi Hiffano Saw this on Facebook and glad it is now being made visible on Forums. Along with the J50 a loco that is long overdue in N Gauge. I look forward to finding out more as information is released. As I said on FB, I will definitely be in for a BR one or two if you do late and early crest, and as for a Quad-Art set, well, having ridden the only remaining set on the North Norfolk Railway behind the N2 only a couple of years ago, that would be the icing on the cake. As regards "All wheel drive" if this refers to gear coupling, I think that Bachmann have very effectively demonstrated that it is not necessary in N and in fact taking my Ixion Manor which has this as an example (beautiful model in every other respect) with the over large holes in rods needed to accommodate the slack in the gears you do get the rather odd situation where the wheels move before the rods and the rods can slope one way or the other! In a recent magazine when extolling the virtues of the geared coupled wheels on the lovely 00 DJM J94, it was suggested that the gear coupling meant greater haulage capacity which is surely utter tosh? The two factors influencing haulage capacity are traction (i.e. weight and distribution thereof) and gearing, how the wheels have power transmitted to them is irrelevant. What it may do is allow for finer rods... Anyway, I am really delighted that you are looking into this and will keep an eye out for more information.. Regards Roy

Just remembered to check back and see how this wagon is progressing as things have gone a bit quiet on here. I have had a quick look at the DJM website that said as of June things were progressing towards a deco sample. Dave, I'm sure the 00 J94 release is probably taking up a lot of your time at present but when you get a moment could you give uns a quick update. Many thanks Roy

I have to say I am in total agreement with Les on this. A big advantage of N is the ability to build a layout in the smaller spaces typical in modern houses. To do this often it entails a board 2ft or so wide. It may still be reasonably long, say 8-10ft in a small bedroom which makes a representation of a main line (equates to 16ft in 00) viable. The need for even large locos to negotiate R2 curves as a minimum is therefore essential, let's not forget these so called "gasworks" curves will very often be hidden from view. Frankly I very much doubt that the sales lost by making an N model loco only negotiate (say) 2ft radius curves as a minimum will be anywhere near offset by those enthusiasts wanting closer gaps between wheels and frames etc, and surely in any case that is where the finer tolerances 2 mil comes into it's own? Roy

Having seen the original quote on the NGF Facebook page, it refers to the gap between the top of the bogie frame and the bottom of the body. Definitely a bigger gap than it could be and hopefully it will come down a smidge. It has to be remembered that this is a very recently delivered first EP and was taken to TINGS without any testing or evaluation. Apparently it ran faultlessly both days (from what I have read) and I am sure things like the fan grille will be made to fit better and the nose ends modified (or it could just be an assembly issue?). Personally with the technical spec promised I would be pretty happy with it as it is but even more so if some corrections were possible. Roy

For a first EP it looks very nice indeed. Was there any confirmation of the technical specification? Good to know there should be a space for a sugar cube designed in, but even better if one of the initial offering (green please) came sound fitted. After all who could resist a "Whistler" that whistles??!! Roy

Farish Ivatt 2MT 2-6-0. B1, J39, A1, A2, 4MT 2-6-0, Scot, Jubilee, Black Five all have cab backhead detail and seats etc where prototypical. Roy

Hi Grahame I agree there would be nothing to stop me apart from (at this stage anyway) a pretty demanding full time job and range of other commitments that take up almost all of my time. Even were I to have time available I would still not have the same "clout" in the right circles to raise the profile of such a project in the way that Ben, Mike and Dave can, and as I see it, aside from picking the right model to start with, promotion is everything (as the success of the Pendolino clearly demonstrates). However that was not my point. It has been said elsewhere that the lack of success of the 21/29 may well have down to the demographic of those who would purchase such a model and a reticence to support crowd funded ventures given that even with a very strong "push" from Ben and Mike the very credible proposal didn't make the cut. I was more reflecting on why this might be the case. The Union Mills analogy is an interesting one as it is true that Colin produces models which he likes (and some quite quirky) in small batches which fortunately appeal to a sufficiently large group of people, but he identified a niche market and has a very different approach to production, definitely not looking to sell thousands of a single model. Dave (Now as DJM) on the other hand already has a very credible track record in N and 00 steam locos. Anyway, I will say no more, I wish Dave and all those supporting this project (a very handsome loco indeed) success, and I look forward to watching things progress. Regards Roy

I am really pleased for those who have wanted a 92 in N, and I truly hope the project proceeds. It just seems such a shame that all the crowdfunded proposals for N models are geared around modern prototypes. Is it really the case that there is no similar appetite for a similarly crowdfunded steam loco due to different demographic and these modellers being less willing to buy in to principles of crowdfunding? I for one would be delighted to support a worthy project, something with a long life and/or wide appeal, maybe a 78xxx 2-6-0 or 84xxx 2-6-2 Tank, am I really in a minority? Roy

Plus CADs of the forthcoming Class 40 with the news that it is now signed off for tooling with a first EP due in August. Without giving away many specifics I was told it promises to be something very special apparently with even greater levels of detail and higher mechanical spec. Next 18 Decoder will mean both sets of lights switchable on DCC for one. Also being demo'd was the sound fitted 108 DMU. I had a play using their dynamis setup, and was very impressed by the sound file, but the great news for non DCC convers is that the basic sound also works on DC, From discussions with others in the room we seemed mostly to agree that it was a shame that the first sound release was in BR blue, had it been in green, especially with the usability on DC there appeared many customers! However it has to be acknowledged that they had to start somewhere a body swap with a green one is feasible as chassis are identical - one to explore certainly! Roy