Blev

As a subscriber, I've just checked my account on-line where I discover that Issues 2 & 3 are in the post + the A3 Mallard poster and a letter. And the letter is described as "outofstock letter". Anybody know what this might be about? B

The quality of the castings is not an issue, the use of mazak is. Mazak is a fundamentally unstable material which depends, for example, on the use of very pure zinc in the alloying process. The slightest defect in the mazak manufacture means that at some stage between 2 and 25 years, that beautiful A4 bodywork is going to turn into a white, powdery mess. B

To be honest, this is starting to not look good. I'm a subscriber so I'm still awaiting delivery on parts 2 and 3 but from the news on here, I'm losing faith. First off, there's the lacquer on the brass parts which will need removal. Now on big bits like the cab or chassis, that's entirely feasible - relatively easy to soak and scrub - but get down to some of the smaller parts and we could be talking damage. On to the bodywork and I would be very happy with plastic - the FS boiler was a great piece of modelling - or even ordinary whitemetal would be acceptable if disappointing but if it turns out to be lumps of mazak, and painted at that, then I'm bordering on cancellation I'm afraid. So, a bit of patience, wait for the parcels and re-assess in a couple of months. B