| Your Letters: |
| In reply to Duncan Smith's reply to Ian Sprigwell's reply to Genghis Khan's reply to Paul Atkinson's reply to Colin Foster's enquiry, I'm 100% sure there were 4 of them. |
| Hats off to Gordon Brown, it needed saying! The whingers should get a life! I bought one of them Hornby Blue Class diesels at the weekend and it's brilliant! We've never had it so good! There's opening doors and some lights and some pipes on the ends and seperate handlebars! You can see the pilot sitting in his room at the end and there's a fan in the roof to keep the passengers cool in the hot weather and there's even working blinds in the sides to keep some more passengers cool in some more hot weather! Well done Hornby I say and I'm looking forward to some Red Class ones as well! We've never had it so good! |
| Dear Steve, it's all right for you to go on about DCC all the time, but what about those of us with smaller layouts? |
|
Dear Steve, my friend's pet hamster Hammy has become stuck in my tunnel and won't come out. What shall I do?
This is a family site, kindly take your disgusting depravity elsewhere - ed. |
| Dear Steve, they're only model trains, for God's sake! Try taking a CD back just because it jumps and see what reaction you get! |
| Dear Steve. Well said, Mr Blair! These whingers don't know when they had it so good! The windows on the Hornby Class 50 are definitely correct - I saw one once in 1983 and it definitely had two. Well done Hornby - keep them coming! |
| Dear Steve. Spot on, Mr Straw! These rivet counters should shut up - they've never had it so good! The shape of the Deltic's nose is definitely correct - the real thing has a slope there too. Well done Bachmann - let's have some more! |
| Dear Steve, so what if the panel lines are printed on? The whingers should note that these can quite easily be added using an engraving tool and after a swift repaint, transfers and varnish things will be as good as new! We've never had it so good! Would you complain in a restaurant just because your food was cold? |
| Dear Steve, the new Deltic measures out perfectly against drawings and we've never had it so good. The old Lima model matched all known drawings as well, but was shorter because they were in imperial. We never had it so good back then, either! These days drawings are done in those Metrics, or so we're told, so obviously things come out different. You can't trust those Metrics. I saw a film about them with Keanu Reeves and it was scary stuff! |
| Dear Steve, congratulations on an excellent site. Will there be a colouring-in competition again this year? |
| Dear Steve, I find some of your comments a bit extreme. Try taking a new car back to a dealer just because bits keep falling off and see what kind of response you get!!! |
| Dear Steve, a lot of people seem to rubbish Lima mechanisms, but I find that with a little TLC their performance easily matches anything from overseas. Starts are silky smooth and top speed is superb. The only problem is that after a while they seem to get clogged up with carpet fluff. Can you tell me if it's possible to get track to run them on? |
| Dear Steve, you should be hung, drawn and quartered, then your remains burnt over water. Congratulations on an excellent site. |
| Dear Steve, it's all right for you to go on about DCC all the time, but what about those of us with larger layouts? |
| In reply to my reply to Duncan Smith's reply to Ian Sprigwell's reply to Genghis Khan's reply to Paul Atkinson's reply to Colin Foster's enquiry, thinking about it there might well have been 5. |
| Dear Steve, I couldn't agree more with Mr Blunket. Electronic tagging and shipment to offshore detention-centres is too good for these rivet counters! |
| Dear Steve, it's all right for you to go on about DCC all the time, but what about those of us with medium sized layouts? |
| Dear Steve, I was saddened to see that Hornby have announced another little-known diesel in the latest catalogue. Tragic when you consider there are still serious gaps such as Bulleid's S21C19 in the product range. |
| Remember to keep your contribution goggle-eyed, glowing, naive and definitely not offensive to anyone who might conceivably be thinking of sending me any freebies. Rivet counters, whingers and diesel modellers are fair game, though, so get stuck in. Your contributions will be edited to minimise the risk of trauma to readers who still haven't got over the passing of clockwork. Care will be taken not to alter the views expressed but they remain those of the writer and are unlikely to be shared by anyone familiar with big trains. |
Next Issue! Part 3 in out Great Catalogue Numbers series - a leading Triang collector talks through his Rs.
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Yesterday's OMWB entry seems to have struck a sympathetic chord with many modellers, if last night's online discussions were anything to go by. Hardly suprising, really, as I know most of the sentiments I recycle here are the same views held by many frustrated hobbyists - I can't lay claim to any original thinking. A particular sticking point seems to be (and always has been) the limited number of D&E era freight trains you can reproduce, and hence the limited number of locations you can model. So let's have a look at a few typical trains and see how the land lies.
Don't forget, though, that I'm looking at the RTR mass-market here and not the exhibition/shunting-plank niche that the monthly magazines feed off. I'm thinking in particular of the largely untapped sector of the hobby - new or returning recruits, whether they're dedicated linesiders or previously frustrated modellers lost through lack of suitable product. These people are primed and ready to go, they don't need the hard-sell. In fact you'd have to be spectacularly inept not to take their money off them.
This is not meant as a snub to the kit-builders amongst us (is it possible to snub yourself, anyway?) but commercial realities will always intrude. The bottom line is that somebody buying a long rake of HTAs or intermodal twins is contributing a whole lot more to the retailer's coffers than I am, sitting here scraping the mould lines from the undergubbins of a 5 year old Parkside wagon and scavenging amongst my 20 year old Woodhead transfer sheets to see what's still useable. Plus, of course, it's just not possible for the typical individual with a broad range of real-life commitments to convincingly model the industrial-strength D&E scene, during remaining leisure time, without a substantial helping hand from the big-boys with their injection moulding machines. True, there'll be the odd windbag who'll opine that real modellers should scratchbuild it all anyway, but when was the last time you saw one of these patronising clowns dispensing this advice from behind a four track mainline layout wedged full with rakes of handmade HAAs, Freightliners and HSTs?
I'll kick things off with what, for my money, is the defining freight icon of the D&E era, the 'merry-go-round' coal train rumbling it's way towards power stations across the land from pit or port. This gives me the rare chance to start off by saying something positive, as Bachmann have in recent years released the ultra-modern HTA hopper seen above - a sound model and priced so that fleet service should be no problem for most consumers. Although this is precious little use to the 20th century modeller, it's a sensible one to have 'in the bank' for the future as it dominates this traffic more and more these days.
Despite getting a regular (and well-deserved) pasting in many places for their shoddy diesel models, Bachmann really are putting in some sterling work at the moment on the wagon front, having turned out more useable D&E freight stock in a short time than both Hornby and Lima together have managed in their entire trading histories.
Also on the cards from Bachmann is the impressive HHA hopper seen above behind Freightliner's 66524. This is another excellent choice for the future, and one which I'll no doubt be buying considerable quantities of, but only if there's a suitable loco to pull them with. Unfortunately this is where it all starts to come unglued, these fine wagon models have to have a Class 66 to pull them - no other loco will do. The late, unlamented, Lima model is of no value to the discerning enthusiast, being a classic example of the wrong shape/no detail/poor mechanism school of thought, so those rakes of hoppers are of little use for anything other than filling sidings at the moment.
Whilst Bachmann have got a Class 66 model in the pipeline, (as opposed to available now,) they don't have a very good track record with locos so this is not very encouraging to many of us. Should the model turn out to be a complete disaster like their Class 37, or even merely uninspiring like the Class 20, it will no doubt sell in whatever normal quantities the existing, low end of the market demands, but it won't break into new territory. Given that the Class 66 is the defining diesel of the modern scene it's an absolutely critical release. You can't recreate the current environment without it, so if it's not up to scratch then discerning buyers will walk away in droves, off to spend their money on the European scene, scuba diving or whatever.
In this respect the Class 66 is probably one of the most significant indicators for the future of the hobby. A flagship release at this point would do both Bachmann and the hobby as a whole a power of good, opening up a host of modelling and sales opportunities. But, because of the prototype's pivotal nature, another lacklustre release will be potentially catastrophic. A Dodgy Deltic takes the pre-80s East Coast Main Line off the modelling map, but a Shoddy Shed wipes out pretty much the whole country. This loco, more than any before it, needs to be the right shape, correctly detailed (the real thing is a mass of fine detail,) equipped with a decent six-axle mechanism, DCC-Ready and with full LED lighting. In short, it needs to be saleable. A good model of a Class 66 will not only sell more of itself, but will sell more rakes of wagons to go with it, not to mention drawing many new customers in over the years to come. On past performance I'm not convinced Bachmann fully understands this.
The older HAA family of wagons still accounts for a fair chunk of MGR traffic on today's railways, something that, like the Class 66, presents the contemporary modeller with a significant problem. Given the complexity of the prototype and the large numbers needed, this is a wagon where a decent RTR model from the trade is an absolute must, yet Hornby's two attempts at producing this wagon are fairly worthless to the discriminating modeller, being inaccurate even at the basic shape level.
Sorry Hornby, but the HAA (along with the equally woeful Coalfish) desperately needs retooling. Models of this calibre have no place in an adult product range. They're as wrong as Bachmann's Class 37 and at least they seem to be tackling that issue at last, if not exactly with good grace. Perhaps Bachmann should have a go at a HAA as Hornby seem disinterested in freight stock for consumption outside of their traditional trainset market?
The undemanding, happy with what they're given, not really bothered if things look right, sector of the market is already well catered for, but the more discerning buyer is still standing by the lineside waiting for decent products to come along to enable the recreation of a much-loved prototype in miniature. You'd think that tapping into this source of income before your competitors do would be a priority, but manufacturers seem unsure of life beyond the collector/trainset market in this country - despite the volume of better quality overseas products brought in to satisfy demand.
Prominent though it may be out there in the real world, the whole coal sector is denied to the modeller who demands any degree of fidelity - surely not an attractive advert for the hobby. The reason I've concentrated on the 2000 era, however, at the expense of my preferred pre-GM years, is that with a little bit of uncharacteristic thought from the manufacturers the situation could be turned around reasonably easily. All we need is a decent Class 66 and a competent HAA and we're up and running. By concentrating on matched stock, as opposed to the normal scatter-gun approach, a whole world of layouts based around coal movements becomes viable.
After decades of neglect there are too many holes in product ranges to put UK modelling back on a par with the rest of the world overnight, but you've got to start somewhere. If the manufacturers would start by looking at specific freight sectors with matched stock then we could have a series of quick wins and offer potential entrants to the hobby some options to throw cash at that currently just aren't there. Who knows, there could even be scope for a little bit of creative marketing in there, selling the more adult idea of realistic, operationally-themed trains and layouts. Selling quantity across the range to users, rather than individual items to collectors. I might be getting a bit too adventurous there, but it's all about establishing a beach-head and running up a flag.
And after the Portugal game there's no shortage of spare flags knocking around...
Currently On My Stereo: Marillion - Marbles
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As readers of these gibberings will know, I'm a bit of a wagon enthusiast - often to the detriment of progress on my layout. Visitors to Jones Towers can hardly have failed to notice the production lines of half-built 7mm and 4mm wagons snaking their way across window-ledges and book cases - regulars will have developed the habit of checking before sitting down or leaning anywhere. You need to be careful where you park your HAAs.
However, unlike some of the larger egos that occasionally burst fetidly on the surface of the D&E pond, I don't think that makes me a 'real modeller,' just an oddity or eccentric - a sub-niche within a niche hobby. Although, personally, I'm heavily reliant on the smaller manufactures and often champion the products from the likes of Parkside in these pages, I'm mindful of the fact that this is not in any way the commercial core of this hobby - just the fringe. The hobby's ability to survive (or even, whisper it gently, grow) is wholly dependant upon the RTR manufacturers and their product lines, something that hasn't stood us in good stead in this country over the years. A healthier, more buoyant RTR scene will produce a larger market for the manufacturers of the kits'n'bits that I like - not the other way round. The performance of Hornby and Bachmann is of interest to more than just their own shareholders.
I'm sure selling one of each reliveried loco to the collectors can keep a business ticking over quite nicely (unless you're Lima) but I'd imagine it's a pretty finite market. Tapping into the potentially more lucrative grown-up-with-brain-and-disposable-income sector and actually growing the hobby needs a far more comprehensive product range - whole trains, not just locos. This is something that Bachmann have quite clearly grasped (albeit in a very uncoordinated way) with their Mark 1 coaches and multiplicity of wagon releases. Unfortunately Hornby's catalogue (with the exception of tooling absorbed from other concerns) is still very firmly that of a company whose commercial strategy revolves around a Hull & Barnsley van - no doubt the shareholders were dancing in the street when that one was announced.
The D&E modeller has had very little freight stock to spend money on until relatively recently. Prior to Bachmann's involvement the non-kitbuilding enthusiast needed either poor eyesight or a very active imagination to try and run any kind of freight traffic on a layout. Things are now starting to move forward (although an industry that has only just got around to releasing it's first vaguely decent 16t minerals and BR standard brake vans is clearly not going anywhere fast) but there are still far too many fundamental gaps for the hobby to compete with other pass-times and seem viable to new recruits.
If pushed I suspect most people would quote the movement of coal as historically the main function of our railways, and thus you'd be forgiven for thinking that modelling the trains for this primary traffic would be well catered for. Not so. Bachmann have recently produced the modern EWS HTA hoppers for post 2000 modellers (we're still waiting for a loco to pull them, though) and also the common 16 ton mineral wagon for days gone by, but prior to that there was nothing unless you could live with Hornby's crude MGR hopper.
A glaring omission is the HTV hopper, which would be snapped up by steam and diesel modellers alike. This is an oft-requested wagon and articles on converting older, less suitable hoppers into reasonable approximations of these workhorses have been widespread. There's not even a kit available. Any RTR manufacturer not seriously considering a model of one of these needs to be considering some personnel changes instead.
The 3 panel version (shown above) would be distinctly preferable...
...although it's predecessor would do at a pinch. In fact, a manufacturer such as Bachmann could easily provide both variants - as they've done with other wagons in the past.
Another major traffic flow that's essential for the realistic portrayal of the prototype is that of oil products, but again this is a no-go area for the modeller. Not one single RTR tank wagon model of any quality exists in 4mm scale. There are aged offerings from Lima and Hornby if you're into converting old toys, but nothing to stimulate sales. The market needs a couple of the big, bogie tanks at least, if it is to break free of the loco collecting niche.
Scene: a model shop. A prospective customer and potential new recruit to the hobby sidles up to the counter.
Potential New Recruit: Erm, hullo. Have you got any 4mm models of the ubiquitous freightliner flat, used in considerable quantities throughout the post-steam era, seen in most areas of the country, and without which almost all modern layout scenarios would be tricky indeed?
Model Shop Assistant: Yes sir. We have these delightful 1960s vintage Hornby models, substantially more expensive than Bachmann's more recent intermodals, but highly sought-after. Also, and on special offer this week, we have various aftermarket add-ons for real modellers with hairs on their chests. We can offer replacement wheelsets and bogies so the wagon no longer derails. We've got a variety of brass strip that's useful to stop the long, thin, plastic from sagging in the middle. There's a good selection of replacement containers that actually have detail on them, not to mention liveries that are appropriate for the actual container. We stock a variety of replacement couplings so you can fit twice as many wagons in the same siding space. We've also got turned brass buffers and various thicknesses of plastikard so you can scratchbuild the ends of the rakes. That's what modelling's all about, eh Sir? Oh, and there's paint and transfers, of course...
Potential New Recruit: How much is that radio-controlled Cessna?
Currently On My Stereo: Marillion - Anoraknophobia
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I've added a page on equipping Bachmann's Class 44 with a DCC decoder to the DCC section of the site. I've got a lot of similar DCC photo-sets lurking on the hard-drive - I really must sort them out.
My Class 44 mood has been brought on by Gareth Bayer's model of 007 (eksherlent, Mish Moneypenny) in the latest issue of Rail Express. The erstwhile Ingleborough is my personal favourite amongst the Peaks, largely because it's one of the few I managed a half-decent photo of, back when I was knee-high to a grasshopper.
Currently On My Stereo: Marillion - Holidays in Eden
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The arrival of the latest N Gauge Society Journal this morning set me thinking, once again, about the humble merry-go-round hopper and the difficulties it presents to the D&E modeller. The most accurate model to date has been the Minitrix offering in N (featured in the latest Journal, see centre pages) but unfortunately this has long been out of production - N gauge modellers often end up paying silly money for these things when they appear on the second-hand market. Fortunately the new model from Graham Farish draws ever nearer, and pre-production shots certainly look encouraging.
For those of a 4mm persuasion the situation is rather less inspiring. For a couple of decades the only option has been the rather crude toy-train era representation from Hornby with it's host of errors. Then along came Hornby's more recent attempt, which unfortunately fixed none of the old errors whilst introducing still more. How come a 20 year old offering in N is vastly superior to anything in OO? How can the latest N gauge product be a step forward (fingers crossed!) yet the recent OO release a step back?
If you get chance to compare one of the N releases to a OO example, don't be distracted by alleged 'super-detailing' but look at the basic shape. Or, if you've a 4mm example to hand, compare it to the photo above. The real thing is a big tub on rails, with the main bulk being the tub itself - the flat side of which comes right down to the red/brown framing half way up the wagon. This is fairly accurately represented in both N gauge models, but not, alas, in their 4mm cousins. Both Hornby models have a large gap between the flat bodyside and the framing, something that wasn't very impressive in the first release, but it's perpetuation in the re-tooled product is, quite frankly, beyond belief. Add to that the various new errors such as the tippy-toes chassis and you have a product that offers nothing of value to the prototype modeller, quite simply the shape and proportions are all wrong. The body looks too small against the exagerated mid-section, and the solebar looks too thin compared to the same mid-section and the rest of the vertically stretched chassis. Even if you could fix these errors, would you fancy doing a hundred or more?
Things have been quiet on Nigel Burkin's workbench of late, as he's all packed up and ready to go live in an igloo in the northern provinces, but yesterday's entry is worth a read. An industry with the basic commercial sense to put a cohesive range of desirable products in front of potential consumers is essential for this hobby to flourish. There's only so many nice, new HTAs you can sell to somebody when there isn't a suitable loco to haul them. A HST isn't going to shift as many units without a TGS. What's supposed to haul those Intermodals? Where are the basic building blocks of recent eras, such as HTVs or the original Freightliner flats? How can you hope to coax the credit cards from the wallets of those with the disposable income if the best you can offer them is the Hornby Freightliner? Children's toys are far better than that these days, yet alone most of the kit that more sophisticated adult hobbyists have come to expect from experience in other spheres.
If anybody out there wants to sell me a 4mm model of a HAA then I'll gladly take hundreds, but if you want to sell me a model of something that clearly isn't a HAA then you're out of luck. I'll continue to spend my money on CDs, Hi-Fi, computers, books, gardening, cars, DVDs, beer, wine and having my Hollyoaks calendar cleaned...
Currently On My Stereo: Marillion - Clutching at Straws
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Once again, there's precious little to interest the D&E enthusiast in the July edition of British Railway Modelling - with the exception of 3 pages from Nigel Burkin the magazine is completely devoted to steam. In this issue the obscure Wrexham, Mold & Connah's Quay Railway (a company that ceased to exist in 1905 and for which there are no RTR models available, for heaven's sake!) gets more coverage than the entire D&E scene that has dominated the real railway for the last 40 to 50 years - typical of the bizarre slant of this magazine and the reason I very rarely buy it these days.
Whilst skimming it in Smiffs, however, I did notice a letter of complaint from a D&E enthusiast about the steam bias of the hobby, but in many ways the letter is something of an own-goal. I suspect the magazine receives more coherently argued communications every month, but this one was included because it's very easy to refute. The 'in tests, 9 out of 10 dogs said woof' logic is, quite correctly, dismissed by the editor, who goes on to point out that steam outline models allegedly outsell D&E ones by a ratio of three to one. I looked in vain for an explanation as to why the magazine doesn't reflect this by giving 25% of it's space to D&E subjects...
Frankly, I'm suprised the ratio is only three to one. I'm a certifiable D&E enthusiast, I'm not shy when it comes to offering an opinion on the shoddy state of the UK hobby and I'm regarded in some quarters as a Very Naughty Boy indeed. Yet I buy considerably more than three times as many kettle models as I do diesels and electrics. What choice do I have? I can't buy something that isn't there.
Look at Hornby's 2004 catalogue. The D&E enthusiast has the Class 31 to look forward too, whilst the boiler bunny probably can't sleep at night with the excitement of the forthcoming Granges, A1s, A3s and A4s. You don't need a degree in economics to take a guess at what sales figures that little lot will generate. In it's entire history the company has only produced one vaguely decent D&E loco (the Class 50) yet in the short time I've been back in the hobby they've released Princess Coronations, Streamlined Coronations, Princess Royals, 8Fs, Black 5s, Q1s, Fowler Tanks and enough types of Bulleid Pacific to shift the earth on it's axis. Is that responding to market forces or producing them?
On the Bachmann front, the numbers are more encouraging, certainly, but the quality just isn't there in the diesel range. I'll buy the A1 Pacific but I won't touch the Deltic. I adore the Std 4MT tank loco, but would sooner give up the hobby than buy the woeful Class 37. Get the picture?
Before you can draw any meaningful conclusions from sales statistics, you need a level playing field - something which we simply haven't got. The hobby in the UK is centred around steam purely because the industry has always produced steam locos and steam magazines. Had the manufacturers operated with a diesel bias for the last 30 years then diesel models would most likely be the ones currently selling in greater quantities - that's the problem with trying to build a business strategy based on past realities rather than future potentials. US & European markets aren't kettle-centric in this way (look at their magazines and catalogues to see a much healthier situation) because they're not carrying the baggage of an incestuous and backward looking industry. Whether anyone will ever have the business acumen to try and exploit the largely untapped D&E market in this country remains to be seen - I have my doubts, personally. If your market research people are telling you the Wrexham, Mold & Connah's Quay Railway is where it's at then you're seriously f.........
Currently On My Stereo: Marillion - Marbles
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At a time when propaganda from the apologists, collectors and assorted riders-of-the-gravy-train has almost reached fever pitch, it's easy to forget that sub-standard products such as Bachmann's Class 37 or Deltic reach the market as a direct result of incompetence and not because it's the natural order of things. It doesn't matter how many times enraged editorials try to defend printed-on details as toolmaking necessities when decades of products disprove the lie. It doesn't matter how many times armchair experts claim something can't be the correct shape when the products of the rest of the world show that it can. It certainly doesn't matter how many times the phrase 'tooling costs' is inserted into a paragraph as justification for yet another particularly shoddy piece of research or manufacturing when other companies manage to produce goods of merchandable quality - especially when these fit-for-purpose products come from the small players rather than the multinationals.
As I've mentioned here before, the likes of Parkside, Bratchell or DC Kits seem to manage to produce plastic mouldings that are the right shape, so why can't the big boys? I'm not claiming that the small manufacturers always get it right (I'm unimpressed with the liberties taken in the DC Kits Class 120, for example) but, generally speaking, they don't come up with horrors such as the Bachmann Class 37's cantrail shape - in a nutshell they're far more competent at their job and don't treat their customers with such disdain. Yet still the establishment will defend to the death any old rubbish that the mainstream manufacturers produce...
I mention all of this because Bratchell Models are currently taking pre-orders for high-quality, injection moulded kits of the ubiquitous Class 150, a prototype that suits a wide variety of locations and liveries. Although Bratchell's original Class 320 EMU release wasn't of any interest to me (purely on geographical grounds) I was very impressed with the quality and accuracy of the product. A far cry from what is generally offered in the RTR arena and very welcome indeed. If production of this kit (and thus subsequent releases that share common components) is to be given the green light, sufficient orders need to be received to justify the financial commitment - the clock is ticking. Surely it makes sense to support these manufacturers that are willing to invest in better quality products, rather than throw money at those who just don't seem bothered?
I know not everyone will have the required cash available at the drop of a hat (it's touch and go whether I'll be able to afford what I want, to be honest) but it'd be a shame to see this project founder because people would sooner buy whatever colourful toy this month's comics happen to be marketing. If you'd sooner see decent D&E era models rather than plastic lumps then pay a visit to Bratchell's website and order what you want - while the opportunity is there.
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As most people will by now be aware, Bachmann's revised tooling for the much-maligned Class 37 bodyshell has at last been displayed to the public. Everyone and their proverbial dog has been e-mailing digital snaps to their friends, and self-appointed internet experts throughout the land are weighing up the pros and cons online. Having had several sets of images sent to me by kindly souls I can see that major revisions have been made in that problematic cantrail area and things are much, much improved. Obviously it's difficult to form any conclusions without the finished product in your hands, but, despite errors evident in various departments, the model is clearly in a different league to it's predecessor. And a model with fewer errors is going to be acceptable to more people and is likely to shift more units, which is surely good news for all relevant parties - manufacturer, consumer and retailer alike.
On the sidelines, though, it might be entertaining to watch some of the squirming that could follow this release, more so if you do your homework and study form beforehand. Re-acquaint yourself with Model Rail's glowing review of the original horror in their February 2003 issue and have another read of their infamous editorial in the April 2004 edition. Have a look at page 56 of the June 2003 BRM, where "more extreme elements in the hobby" are maligned for daring to point out the glaring errors which are then played down as "very subtle." There is no formal review to dissect in BRM, alas, as although I personally made sure that Nigel Burkin had a sample in his hands (paid for out of my own pocket) the powers-that-be decided for whatever reasons not to carry a review. Nigel himself, of course, maintained his integrity by including a truthful summary of the model in his column at a later date, but this only served to provide a contrast to the rest of the mag.
Ask yourself why, if the original model was so bl**dy good, Bachmann have bowed to consumer pressure and undertaken major tooling alterations on an unprecedented scale in under 18 months? Ask yourself why the shallow gloss of the monthly comics was so dissimilar to the opinions of many consumers, self-appointed experts or not? Ask yourself why the only honest review appeared in the February 2003 Rail Express as opposed to the establishment modelling magazines?
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Precious little in the way of updates on here of late, I must admit, largely due to my spending a fair bit of time up in Scotland. With almost all of Fiona's family now living north of Edinburgh, visiting is a much more time-consuming business and best made into short breaks - great fun, but it doesn't do much for railway modelling!
As I managed no photography this time around, here's a little something from back in 1978. Although this wasn't my first trip to Scotland it was the first time I had the use of a half decent camera.
Currently On My Stereo: Porcupine Tree - In Absentia.
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On the face of it Roco's BLS Ae 8/8 electric loco is completely plug'n'play on the DCC front. It's equipped with the inevitable 8 pin socket and, like most European models these days, also has a factory-installed void (can you actually have a factory-installed void?) ready to take the decoder. This double-motored articulated unit has all electrical connections carried across the central join in an ingenious (if slightly fiddly) manner which enables all the lights and motors to be controlled from one decoder - a far cry from UK outline products such as the Bachmann Voyagers. If I had to criticise then I'd be obliged to point out that the lights as supplied don't quite work in the distinctive Swiss fashion where the rear of the loco is lit, regardless of whether a train is attached, but frankly I look forward to the day when that's the most significant problem UK models have. Thanks are due to both Nigel Emery and Tim Hall, by the way, for pointing me in the right direction as regards Swiss lighting.
Unfortunately these behemoths (good word, that!) are serious current-hogs and need around 1.5 amps continuous, somewhat more than most decoders will supply and thus limiting your choice. One obvious contender is the Lenz LE1835E which has a current rating of 1.8 amps and I have a number of these in service already. The down side is that Lenz only make this decoder in the long, flat format, whereas most European models have the decoder void sized for the stubbier, double-sided types. A major step backwards for Lenz given that the older LE1024/1025 family was available in both formats - I've had to hack bits off a £200 loco just to get the decoder to fit when it was supposed to be plug'n'play.
Currently On My Stereo: UK - Danger Money.
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