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I am a bit nervous about taking the splasher off to fit the new nameplate, I wonder if anyone has done/in the process of doing this and would be willing to show photos or explain in detail, I am tempted to just to remove the 'Ince' nameplates by rubbing them off and gluing my new plates on, bit of a compromise I know but I would hate to damage the new model by breaking the splasher or something silly like that. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I looked on the Hornby site for a service sheet for the new castles to help but it only has the old ones.

Hoping to get 'Ince' in next few days, has anyone got any photos of renumbering/naming of any of the new Castles? I will probably go with etched name and cab plates, but would just like to know if anyone has had any unexpected problems?

Ince Castle is the perfect donor for my Bristol Castle with it lubricator in front of the steam pipe, have just got my parts for Davis & Metcalfe lubricating system which some of the Castles including Bristol Castle carried, my old Bristol Castle will probably become 'Spitfire'

I have to disagree although I liked the Castles in all forms I did like the double chimney, some people feel it unbalanced the look of the loco but I saw the prototypes with doubles regularly in my youth and liked them. I believe because the Castles had so many little nuances,tweaks and variations it will be impossible to model every loco accuratley, however this is where our beloved small industries come in and can supply us with all those little bits we need to make our own version. I have some Davis and Metcalfe lubricator gear on order, but I would like to know where most people get their Castle detailing parts from in particular etched numbers and plates. With the latter in mind I wonder if anyone has renumbered/named their new Castle and how they did it because some of the postings seem to indicate there may be a problem. I am tempted to cut the nameplate off and stick an etched plate on with the three mounting bars sticking up from the splasher al la prototype

I have ordered both 'Portrait of Castles' and 'The Book of Castles' so hopefully will have a fairly comprehensive library of Castles so that I can pick which Castle from the new range to donate to my Double Chimney version of Bristol Castle. Bit of a minefield these Castles.

Yes Stationmaster good point, I am aware of the famous 'swap' with Windsor Castle. TBH I would like to model the latter loco double chimney etc. I was hoping (naively) Ince would be a straight swap but of course it will not be, so my dilema is finding a Castle from the new Hornby range that I could convert to Bristol Castle with the minimum of fuss, I am not aversed to a bit of super detailing so I have no qualms about chopping around a bit. Any suggestions on which Castle may represent the best option to convert? I am also looking for a good book on the Castle, I know that there is one in the 'Power of' series, but I believe there is a new publication, has anyone compared either book or can they recommend one or t'other. Just thinking what a nice boxed set Windsor Castle and Bristol Castle would make with their respective histories and background to the changeover.

Looks absolutely beautiful, I will be getting Ince Castle and converting it to Bristol Castle (What else!). I do have last years Bristol Castle which I have detailed, this will be getting a makeover to Dunmore Castle in slightly grimey condition to cover the antiquated tooling.

To paraphrase your last line Ian, neither will I be bothered (about buying CoT that is)

I am sure with the cost of tooling and the relatively few that will be sold through the NRM raises the question; will Bachmann produce other locos of the class for distribution through shops etc? Given the cost of the tooling I doubt that Bachmann would miss a marketing opportunity like this. So it may be worth waiting to see if they go en mass, just a matter of re number/name and a few tweaks then and probably much cheaper from someone like Hattons (I'm starting to dream/ramble now).I am a GWR person but when it comes down to one CoT or 2 SR Beattie Well Tanks from Kernow MRC...........no contest BWTevery time

Beautiful model of a beautiful loco, I loved the prototype and saw it at Didcot in my youth. Sad fact of life these days is that with the price of everything going up one has to prioritise and the price NRM are charging is far too much for my pocket. CoT is one of my all time favourites but it will remain just a dream. I think the price is way too high for a Ltd edition or any other edition. ??120-130 I may have stretched to but I believe this is aimed at the few who have the disposable income to justify this price. Only 250 being made I am sure they could have sold 4 times that if the price had been reasonable. I am sure I am not alone in believing this is a missed opportunity, shame.

How do you convert the TE in the spec to good old pounds?

Nicknames are inevitable part of being a railway enthusiast, I must confess I quite them and at least they sound as if they have got a bit of grunt. After hearing them and seeing them face on..........definately a Cylon (from BS Galactica) Where can you find the power specs on these?