Taigatrommel

The pricing of the track, points particularly, has attracted attention where I've been reading too. At £7.99, they're less than half the price of Tillig or Kuehn points.

It'll be hard to comment on the sleeper spacing until I see it for real. The points are listed in the brochure as 631mm radius with 15 degree angle.

A thought has occured to me about the track standards adopted by Peco and Hornby... Peco's code 55 uses the same rail profile as their code 55 N, which will connect to their code 80 N track with some packing beneath the sleepers. With Hornby's being code 80, and presumably having been in communication with Peco for the close timing between range launches, I wouldn't be surprised if the same is possible in TT.

Some observations from someone who models German TT... Code 80 track is what Tillig use. IMO it does look very heavy. Taking stills from a video, I don't think it's Tillig track though, the chairs having no bolt detail. The sleeper colour and general construction style looks like Kuehn's, but Kuehn use code 70ish and again, the chairs have more detail. Hornby track (still from video) Kuehn track (on my kitchen table) My Arnold (Hornby production) TT locos run as smoothly as I would expect from any current generation model. I have a 2-10-2 steam loco and a few electrics, plus a couple of small shunters (ASF and Köf). The 4 wheel shunters are not something you'd want to run over dead frog track though. Curiously, though current draw is well within spec, they overload Zimo/Bachmann Next18 decoders after a relatively short period of continuous running. This is the same in other TT locos I have with Next18 sockets I haven't had the same problems with other decoder brands (eg Kuehn), and the Next18s I took out my TT stock seem to work fine in Farish N gauge. The coupling style has a slight improvement over Tillig's, which is an alignment whisker on the bottom - this really aids coupling up on where the track is less than perfect or NEM pockets are a bit droopy. Kuehn and Busch both sell their stock with this style of coupling too. It's 100% compatible with Tillig couplings. On the subject of couplings, the socket is the same as N gauge, so there are plenty of aftermarket options. My opinion on this? I'm looking at the British N I've collected over the last couple of years and strongly debating its future in my possession...

As they're the small windowed 308s, you could use Replica mk1 suburbans as your basis. The centre car is a bit of an oddity though, the windows look toilet window sized but with different frame arrangement.

I searched for "Stott Park Bobbin Mill download" and found the download, also without needing membership, but without having a Mac ;)

Is this the colour you're looking for? It's from a Met-Camm pullman rather than Mk2.

Nothing ever came of it unfortunately.

I hope this helps: https://www.tt-board.de/forum/wiki/?title=Drehgestellbaukasten&fbclid=IwAR3e-gqZ6jZre4tSuzYo1oLpt10Gk4T_5wjPTjX-mC_M0eRjGFv6v3yTJng Thanks to Benjamin Scanlon who shared it to a facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/ttscale/)

A couple of ships from Revell I forgot to mention: Harbour tug (1:108): https://www.revell.de/en/products/modelmaking/ships/civil-vessel/harbour-tug.html Ocean Exploration Vessel (1:125, actually Jaques Cousteau's "Calypso"): https://www.scalemates.com/kits/revell-05101-ocean-exploration-vessel--102359

I totally forgot to mention Herpa's lorries! Scania, DAF and M-B from memory. Good value too. My favourite TT road vehicle is Herpa's Barkas B1000, it's very nice indeed. Unfortunately it's of little interest to the British market.

Digital Schnitstelle, ie they're DCC ready with a plug/socket for the decoder.

I've been modelling in 1:120 for over a decade, and I found myself wondering what I could usefully offer in terms of knowledge to those whose interest has been piqued by Peco & Heljan's announcements in the scale. Instead, I find myself coming round to what I've found most challenging ... obtaining non rail vehicles. As you might imagine, there's a fair selection of East German and Czechoslovakian prototypes. Generally a Tillig start set will have a Wartburg 353 included. It's actually not a bad model, and with a little paintbrush work looks OK. Anyway, getting right to it, here's a selection of what I've been able to get so far that might be of interest for those modelling British... Front row, left to right: VW Beetle. Distributed by Tillig, the maker's mark on the bottom says Weiland. Lada estate. Utterly awful model made by Schirmer. You'll get a pack of five for less than €5, and still somehow feel cheated. VW Golf Mk1. Busch. Pretty nice, very good decoration. Generic 1990s estate car from Auhagen. It's got elements of Golf, Astra and Octavia, and a grille that matches nothing. Very much a background item, but still somehow preferable to Schirmer's Lada... Skoda Fabia, an unfortunately discontinued model from VV Model. A good 'un. VW Golf Mk4. ADP. Looks pretty crappy out of the box, improved with paintbrush work. Massively overpriced at €20ish. VW Passat B5. Also ADP. Has a slightly squashed look, and also benefits from paintbrush work. Also very expensive for something not that great. Back row. MAN lorry. From Schirmer, much better than their Lada but a bit plasticy looking. Available as rigid chassis and artic. Simson S50. By Kres. Pretty nice, but €30 for two motorbikes! VW Transporter T4. From Roco, sometimes branded as Minitanks. Decent, up there with the Busch stuff. This is missing rear wheels as I'm mid-conversion to a rolling model to use with Magnorail. Going to shows on the continent one sometimes sees other items. Of this lot I've only shown the ADP as I've found them on eBay, but very few shops carry them. Further to this, I think there are a couple of Matchbox buses that are close to 1:120. Our real saviour is RailNScale, who 3d print a nice selection of cars for the 1960s to 1980s. They're available from Modellbahn Union. I also found a front loader from Tomy that was 1:110. The VV Model range is worth examining. At present, the web store with the largest range of TT road vehicles is probably Mein-MBS. https://ttmodelar.eu is worth a look too. Like an idiot I decided to model a dock scene. Wow, finding boats was hard... Liuetenant GILLET is a Del Prado model from a french magazine series, and ebay find. Actually 1:130. I plan to convert this to a tug. Also 1:130 is Shell Welder, an old Frog Models kit now reissued under various Eastern European brand. There is an etched detailing kit available. I've got this far with it and decided that I'll convert it to a freelance bulker of about 500 tons. It's not an amazing kit. I realise that there's much more out there, but finding it isn't always easy.

They will, but are easily knocked off the track. When I first saw the headline I thought this would just be track for the continental market - that from the market leader, Tillig, is rather coarse, while competitor Kuehn's is a little fragile and less widely available in German shops than Peco. The 66 never did make it to market.

If I hadn't managed to find a GSA, I'd probably have ended up with a Merc W123 or W124. Would you guess that I like comfortable cars...?

I took the GSA to a Citroën specialist (spécialiste?) today to have a couple of minor issues (known at the time of purchase) looked at, feast your eyes on the selection in his yard! DSs certainly have the exterior cool, but the CX interiors seem like the sort I would very happily spend a long journey in. The rear legroom looks like it compares favourably to our Skoda Superb! Externally I've always found them a bit ungainly, I feel the shape suits the shorter GS/As better... I daren't take a ride in one, I'm sure I'd be swayed! There were restored cars around the corner, but there's an buzz for me of seeing the unrestored ones.

There's a well restored 1980 example for sale in Swindon currently, they're asking £6500. That's got the GS dash rather than the satellites and bathroom scale speedo/rev counter. The dashboard is pure 80s even if the body isn't!

Is that the slab track from when the bed was lowered for electrification?

Flat 4, air cooled. It sounds a bit like a diesel at idle, but sings a different tune when revved. It seems to be general practise to go to fairly high revs before changing up too! So far I'm happy with it, there were no pretences from the seller about it being a perfect example but I made a 130 mile trip with no bother. My regular mechanic thinks that I've gained a good 'un, but isn't keen on doing extensive work on it as he only has a two bay workshop and it could be an automotive bed blocker. Luckily I've found a specialist in Gloucestershire who has certainly owned a GSA in the recent past, and has people who are happy with his works on their rather more valuable DSs. The GS/A specialists are Chevronics in Hitchin, but that's a 2.5 hour drive and if I have to leave it there for work, getting home would involve a train journey via London. CXs really are spaceship looking, though very similar in general visual terms to the GSA to my eyes they look a bit stretched out. I'm sure they're even lovelier to ride in though!

I'm not sure whether this belongs here or in modern classics, but I bought this a couple of weeks ago... I've been wanting a GSA for many years, and have been actively looking for one for a couple. I know it's not the correct wheel trim for its age, but that's what it came with and I prefer them to what it should have! I'm presently working on finding undercover storage that's not too far from home. I'm on the waiting list for a council garage and a storage place near a regular bus route from town. It's a very different car to the German diesels I've had so far...!

I'm late to the party, but here's my pic of the train passing Tuffley Junction. D1015 66719 Tuffley Junction 17 Sept 2021 by Richard Self, on Flickr

The Ardrossan pic has inspired me to contribute to this thread. I've not taken many photos over the last 18 months or so, but this is one of the few. 380014 Saltcoats 30 August 2020 by Richard Self, on Flickr

I'll try and make the trip across the county, a small show is just the ticket right now.

As it's over 55 years since Tri-ang ceased TT production, I'd say any ecosystem is entirely based around kit and scratch building! This is what makes me admire the 3mm modellers so much. My suggestions were entirely based around taking advantage of an existing ecosystem including such important features as track, even if not British, to offer a probable lower risk entry than having to invest in a small range of 3mm scale models to kick start interest. Of course, Rapido securing pre-orders for a single tooling via membership of a society is not risky, but may only stimulate a small number of new entrants to the scale. Personally, I'm not convinced either 3mm scale or 1:120 would be a great money spinner given how few sales even N has relative to 00, hence hypothetically seeking revenue from beyond our isles to start!

Some further comments which are honesty the realms of fantasy, but I'll say them anyway as I follow the European 1:120 TT market... Rapido's product suggestion is related to a tie-in with the 3mm Scale Society - as such, it's pretty well unrelated to 1:120 products, I recognise this and what follows is purely my own daydreaming. I have huge admiration for the skills and creativity that I've seen from 3mm scale modellers, so I'd also like to make clear that my view of 1:120 as the way forward is not a case of me having anything against them! If I were to be launching British TT now, it would be 1:120 scale following a particular path to take advantage of existing markets and gain income before the risky step of UK only items. The class 66 is the obvious opener to me, having a noticable presence in Germany (the largest market) and Poland (also a TT market- see MTBs range for example). I would accompany it with suitable wagons that run in Britain and on the continent, eg a car carrier or container wagon. That gives you your initial train packs. The follow on would be a class 86, as Hungary has 86s and some TT market (see Deak Modellsport for example), though not as much as Germany or Czechia/Slovakia. There's quite a range of ferrywagons that could be added to this imaginary range before UK specific types get added. A class 56 is a final loco type that offers genuine scope for transnational sales before UK specific models are considered. As an income gaining add-on, 1990s onwards road vehicles are seriously lacking in 1:120 scale. I'd probably start with a Skoda Octavia, but the choices are wide open. Corgi produced 1:120 scale static models of various steam locos. A mk1 could make a nice accompaniment for any of the ones that appeared in BR liveries. They could also sit well with an 86, and as railtour stock behind a 66 or 56. Now one has an income stream and a UK specific item of rolling stock, it's time to try a UK only loco. Well, it's the 47. I'm not sure this choice needs expanding upon! With the 66, 86, 56, wagons and mk1 coaches supporting, if the 47 flops (other than from making a hash of it!), well, it's probably not worth pursuing the scale further.