maq1988

Mine arrived today - sadly I've no where to run it but this is an excellent example of doing things well. Incredibly well packaged. I've always liked the RTC livery since I found a picture of 97201 in Vic Berry's yard, which is very close to where I live.

It's been said before but this is where N really does come into it's own. Such a sense of scale with the viaduct, lengthy trains and the general surroundings. I don't think I've ever seen static grass so well achieved in this scale. The double-headed 37s on the coal train for me is the best. I've surely missed it back in the pages of time but what is the track work?

Had a look around Test Car 2 today, it certainly stands out in it's fresh paintwork. Much better than how it was looking in the fading Serco livery. Sadly didn't get time to read all of the info boards or listen in on how things work as I had to make an incoming train. I can't think of many places where you can get 10 diesels in a single day (20, 25, 25, 33, 37, 45, 47, 50, 101 DMU and a Warship). Keep up the excellent work.

It was only this morning I'd looked at the Minerva sub-forum and thought 'it must be time for another announcement soon'. The Manning Wardle wasn't my thing but it's great to see you developing more and actively looking to expand the range.

To echo the above Test Car 2 is looking good - I've always liked the Blue / Red livery. On a side note at the recent model event it was good to see the vans parked up looking fresh - it's nice to notice that care is being taken of the rolling stock that may not normally be 'in service', unlike things like coaches that get daily use. It often feels to me that wagons etc are put to one side for use as storage space or as much longer-term projects because they don't help toward generating revenue. Keep up the good work.

... and on to the event... It seemed a lot quieter today than previous years. Maybe the threat of a mud bath kept people away? There was a good mixture of OO and N, although I felt that O gauge was a little lighter this year. The walkways seemed to be a little wider which is why maybe it felt less 'busy'.

Completely agree. I can understand people's frustration with the situation Dave may have lost a good deal of money himself, and his own livelihood. His business has gone under and will no doubt he will have taken a blow to his reputation. Every business starts with no history of being able to deliver products. Every business must try and build a reputation of being reliable and 'safe' based on starting with nothing. Unfortunately people get caught up in the fallout if things go wrong.

Well I wish everyone who has paid monies the best of luck in resolutions. Hopefully some of the hard work on projects that has been put in will be continued elsewhere - I still want a J94 in N and O. Whether you've agreed with Dave's methods in the past or not I'm sure this is not the ending anyone wanted.

I share in the not joining Facebook crowd - however would be happy to see the general listings on the Hattons site as they are now. I would be interested in Midland Mainline between mid-1960s and mid 1980s. My focus is primarily on BR Blue although I'd happily run green livery diesels. Both passenger and freight formations.

Shame about the J94 - it's a model I'd like a couple of. At this point the first manufacturer to get out a DCC ready sound or non-sound J94 gets my money, both in N and O.

As someone who prefers the mixed goods wagons / minerals / box vans when visiting the GCR your hard work doesn't go unnoticed. I have more pictures of wagons than I do of the locomotives!

Looking good - I've wanted one for years, ever since I saw a kit built one being used as a shunter on a garden O gauge layout. Something about how it looked and how small it was appealed to me. The green looks quite vibrant but nothing a bit of weathering wouldn't tone down.

Research shows that the RRP for the Mk1 I was using for comparison (374-061A) was £19.70. So comparing RRPs it's over a 102% increase. Basing on £16 retail -> £34 retail it's an increase of 112%. I do wonder what the costs would be if they were manufactured in the UK. I can't blame the Far East for wanting better pay / living conditions

In 2011 a 'Blue Riband' Mk1 was £16 from a well known online retailer, at £40 it's a huge increase over 8 years. It does make modelling a harder prospect, especially in N gauge where running longer rakes was one of the draws of me moving from OO. Shame as I need a good few Mk1 and the Mk2f, if/when they appear.

Sounds daft, but anyone happy to do a photo from about a foot away? See how it looks then from sort of a 'viewing distance'. Would be good to have something to show scale, like a coin. Close up shots can be quite cruel I guess.

Again, not my video but a more in-depth close up of the 142. Thanks must go to Torre Vale for recording it. After a closer look I might be able to forgive the lack of interior and the wrong window size. The internal cabling doesn't look great but the video suggests things could be done to make some improvements. Admittedly I've never actually fitted people to my other DMUs so maybe I'm being overly harsh.

Not my YouTube video, but a very quick look at the Pacer The corridor connection looks better than the pictures show.

Well said TomE. I suspect you are right with it being a millstone around Dapol's neck. They'd gone too far to cancel, and too far to correct anything. This would appear to be an absolute joke of a release from Dapol - it's not the standard that I'd expect from any manufacturer in 2019. Surely something could have been done to make the inner chassis profile lower, and at least have the makings of an interior. It's a two-unit DMU, it won't need the haulage capacity of a 9F, so a thinner (albeit lighter) chassis should have been an option. I don't need a Pacer, I wanted one. However I'll be voting with my wallet. Dapol. Poor show.

Based on the photos at Hattons I've just cancelled my pre-order for a Northern Spirit version (DCC fitted). A lack of any interior at all seems to be a huge huge oversight, especially as the original specs had it as light-bar ready. How daft would that look? I also await more photos and reviews before committing. Edit: I've got to say that it's a huge disappointment to have a product take so long to get to market to have it fall at the last hurdle, and with a RRP of over £130!

More OO9 stuff, I'm not an OO9 modeller but it's good to see that Bachmann feel its still a market they can add to. The Baguley-Drewry is a nice little addition, and one that could get me in to OO9 - I'm not a huge fan of OO9 steam.

Well this popped up quietly. I'm sure I'll never have the space to let it roam free this might have to be one of those cases of something you just have to have. Nice to see another manufacturer dip their toes in N gauge, and I hope it proves to be a winner for Hattons and hopefully other N gauge items to come.

Thank you! I'm off to pre-order the open cab 'ARMY' version with the intension of having it resprayed. Would be nice to see what the haulage and performance of it is like, especially without the 'pickup' wagon.

Ooooo. Yes please. Very glad to see more investment spent on smaller locos. I'll be getting an NCB one - along with a Ruston 48DS. It is new for Hornby to announce a new product so close to the scheduled delivery date? One would hope that the quick turnaround time between announcement and shipping would be beneficial to them. Saves having to wait up to a year+ for what will no doubt be another popular model. Off to pre-order.

Missed these. Ordered a triple pack of no-doors black. Only a small order, I'm sure these will be just as nice as the previous RevolutioN items.

Has anyone noticed in the last few days the Hatton's current website has been incredibly slow? Pages are refusing to load for me and I'm getting a lot of 500 - timeout errors.