Lochinvar

Max - I was simply expressing the hope that,when the "Portholes" appear,they would use the same sort of close-coupler as Bachmann already offer on their Mk1s. IMHO,it's quite elegant as well as effective. And I was contrasting that with the Hornby equivalent,which strikes me as an aesthetic horror. So,yes,I do need to find a better solution for my Gresleys (and for my intended Thompsons). So,Rocos,perhaps - but I've also heard of Fleischmann "Profis". I don't know what look like,even less about their performance. Any experience/views?

DR

Presumably/hopefully,these are going to come with the same close-coupling option as offered on Bachmann's Mk1s. It brings the coaches close enough together for my (and I suspect most other folks') purposes. It's also manages to look good - unlike the extraordinarily ugly effort that is currently disfiguring my otherwise quite splendid Hornby Gresley suburbans.

DR

Well irrespective of how the tender is coupled to the loco I have to say from the images thus far shown I have to say the chimney looks supect to me as did the one on the ex Replica current Bachmann B1, which I recall I removed and replaced with Dave Bradwell B1 brass example. Surely all they had to do was copy it from the L1

 

Bob

Let's wait and see what it looks like in the flesh - but you're right to be doubtful. Despite the huge strides in the accuracy of steam-era rtr models in recent years,the main manufacturers still seem to have a bit of a blind spot in the chimney department. Examples?....in the case of Hornby,the Royal Scot and ,in Bachmann's,the Fairburn tank. They appear not to fully appreciate how important getting the chimney profile absolutely right can be to capturing the particular "character" of a loco class.

DR

Cheers Paul!

Not guaranteed to be 100% reliable,but my own recollection of the period is that the 66A quintet had black backings throughout their short lives. This not (yet!) undermined by a photo suggesting otherwise. (The only doubt I have is that 72001 Clan Cameron MAY possibly have carried blue plates for a while,as a result of its specially-authorised working on the West Highland in connection with a gathering of the clan).

The Kingmoor locos quite definitely did have red backings. However,I have a feeling that they too carried black for some years after delivery.

On this basis,,Hornby have got "Buchanan" wrong,and "McLeod" (with the later emblem) right.

DR

For your intended Clan Gordon,any choice of nameplate backing colour would be,of course,be accurate!...but Hornby's use of red on Clan Buchanan is I think wrong. So far as I can recall,the Polmadie locos,72000-72004,all had plain-backed plates throughout their (short) lives (though Clan Cameron may briefly have carried blue). On the other hand,the Kingmoor locos ,72005-72009,did sport red but only ,I think,from the late 50s onwards. So,red will be right for Clan Mcleod,as it apparently is to carry the later tender emblem.

DR