One of the many fine RTR steam locos available currently is Hornby's 8F, a model that, as well as having a host of fine detail, actually manages to capture the shape and sit of the prototype. Those wanting that little bit extra can build on the sound foundation provided by Hornby and the latest issue of Model Railway Journal features a superb example by Tim Shackleton using the Brassmasters detailing kit - well worth a read.
Of course, this kind of talk is liable to be a tad depressing for the dedicated D&E enthusiast, even without considering other options available in the form of kits, so it's as well to remember that not everything is a bed of roses in boiler-bunny land...
I don't pretend to know much about matters GWR (they all look the 'king same to me) but I have been casting an inexperienced eye in that direction of late, mainly looking for green kettley-things to sit alongside proper diesel-hydraulics. Amongst the many fine, new generation steam releases from Hornby in recent times (I don't think even Bulleid himself had quite that many Pacifics) there has been at least one turkey - the GWR King. Despite what at least one misinformation minister in the monthly comics tried to claim, this is NOT a new generation model but a re-hash of the old one that GWR buffs have come to know and loathe over the years. So, whilst it has at long last received a motor in the loco and been spruced up with some extra detailing, it still retains a lot of the old faults. As it doesn't look much like a King to a novice like me, I can fully understand why more knowledgable folk tend to start muttering about bargepoles.
Beyond being at least a generation behind other current releases from the same manufacturer, my sample is a truly dreadful runner, with, amongst other things, wobbly wheels, sticking motion and a pony truck with a life of it's own that bounces ahead of the loco like a kid in a go-kart. Not a loco to enhance and detail, but one to replace with a kit-built example if you really must have a King. At least this is an option for steam enthusiasts - where does the D&E modeller wanting a 37-shaped Class 37 turn?
Naturally I've not suddenly become sympathetic to the plight of the poor GWR modeller, there's a healthy dose of self-interest at work here. The complete absence of useful RTR models of any of the GWR main line 4-6-0 classes is purely a concern because it means there's nothing to sit alongside diesel-hydraulics in a Western Region layout scenario - rest assured I'm not mad enough (yet) to actually want to build anything GWR from kits in 4mm. This is the same stumbling block found across the D&E board - lack of compatible stock of comparable quality. We've got a healthy number of modern wagons with no motive power to pull them, for example, and the only two quality locos released so far (the Class 50 and the Hymek) have only a tiny chronological overlap. I've found that extending my layout-planning back to the transition era hasn't exactly helped matters, at least if I want to stick with a main line theme. Eastern region, despite a reasonably healthy selection of locos (especially if Hornby's forthcoming A1, A3 & A4 models are at the 8F end of the market,) is seriously compromised by the lack of a decent Deltic - the signature locomotive without a doubt. Things WCML would need a Class 40 and, call me Mr Cautious, I'm not banking on the promised Bachmann offering being even vaguely English-Electric shaped. Western Region is still-born for reasons highlighted above, but somebody suggested Southern, hmmmmm....
It's becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the siren call of the kettle world, I must admit, and I think I need to make a determined effort to avoid coming out of the closet as a total boiler-bunny. One thing that's regretfully attractive is the definite difference in attitudes and products. While obviously most people are happy to paddle around in the anything-goes end of the pool, the market is mature enough to support a good range of high-quality kits for the more discerning buyer, not to mention a better standard of RTR - basic consumer choices, in other words. Contrast this with the sad state of affairs in the D&E camp - a generally dreadful selection of RTR offerings with virtually no kit alternatives. Worse still is the increasing "accept what we're given" attitude that's creeping in of late, with many hobbyists starting to sound like they want to work for a magazine and, in one or two extreme cases, deliberately falsifying data to play down faults.
As a friend of mine said recently (it should be noted at this point that I'm the only person I know still trying to model D&E in 4mm scale) "you get the models you deserve." We must have been pretty evil in previous lives to deserve those Deltics and 37s.