BlueLiveryFan04 Posted February 4, 2019 Share Posted February 4, 2019 I really wish that Hornby made a new Class E2. It will be like bringing Thomas back to the railways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWR-Gordon-4 Posted February 4, 2019 Share Posted February 4, 2019 Scotsman 20040804, welcome to the Hornby Forum. 😀 Good suggestion! 😉 😀 Perhaps you should email Hornby Hobbies, with this suggestion. GNR-Gordon-4 (HF) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The son of Triangman Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 The old one wasn't bad, if the mould for Thomas was replaced it would leave the E2 mould clear for use as an E2 again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkingthedog Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 As they are not making Thomas any more perhaps the E2 will reappear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWR-Gordon-4 Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 Why does Thomas have to be discontinued for Hornby to have an Class E2 Class in production? I'm guessing if the E2 Class does come back, it will be in the RailRoad range. RailRoad and Thomas & Friends are two seperate ranges. A Thomas shouldn't afftect also having an E2 Class in their catalouge, as well as Thomas, in my opinion. GNR-Gordon-4 (HF) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkingthedog Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 You know very well they’re not making Thomas any more Jacob, so they can produce the E2 instead. Thomas doesn’t have to be discontinued but it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWR-Gordon-4 Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 That's the reason why the Thomas & Friends range is discontinued and I am sad it is discontinued. GNR-Gordon-4 (HF) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkingthedog Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 No Jacob it’s not the reason. You said they could make both but they can’t can they. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Howbi Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 The old Thomas molds are not accurate enough being too short for a new E2 model, also Thomas has splashers which do not appear on the E2..........another manufacturer makes 4 examples of the E1 from which the E2 was derived, a very nice looking little engine.........HB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkingthedog Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 Ah a voice of reason. Thank you HB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LCDR Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 Although it was a handsome little engine the Billington E2 class 0-6-0T could hardly be considered a important class in terms of numbers built or widespread use. Only ten examples were ever built and they spend most of their lives either in suburban London goods yards or Southampton or Dover docks. To make matters worse the early five were different in appearance to the second five which had extended side tanks and other detail differences. When compared to the Great Western 0-6-0PT 57xx class , Fowler's 3F 0-6-0T 'Jinty' or Gresley's J50 0-6-0T "Ardsley" class. the E2 was fairly insignificant. Probably because the Southern carried considerably less freight than the other three post Grouping companies. the requirement for large class of shunting engines was very small . The three sections of the Southern indeed continued to use elderly locomotives inherited from their constituents and none of them were adopted as a standard class in the same way as the other railways did. Therefore the Western and Southern Divisions continued to use the B4 and G6, the Central Division used the E1 and E2 and the Eastern Division used the P, R1 and T. If it had not have been for the War it is highly probable that by 1950 the 350 hp English Electric 0-6-0 diesel shunter would have replaced most of these. As it was the Southern grasped the opportunity to buy some US built War surplus 0-6-0T locomotives in 1946 for use in Southampton Docks and continued to use the old ladies for shunting elsewhere. If Hornby wanted a Southern shunting engine then rather than trying to make a silk purse out of a pigs ear by trying to resurect already hacked about E2 tooling , they ought to consider the G6 . (The USA, B4, and P are already in production by other makers) or possibly a new version of the former Hornby Dublo R1. I am not overly enthusiastic about a new R1 however especially as the Wainwright P is now in production, and the similar looking H which was although normally a passenger engine was often used for shunting is made by Hornby.. The G6 is remarkably similar to the O2 0-4-4T, so much so that the smokebox, boiler, tanks, cab footplate and bunker of one could be substituted directly for the other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LCDR Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 As an aside, I met Rev. W. Awdry at a model railway exhibition once a long time ago and asked him why "Thomas" was based on an E2. He told me that he originally wanted "Thomas" to look like a LMS 'Jinty' but the artist who did the illustrations for the first books drew it like that so it kind of stuck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWR-Gordon-4 Posted February 5, 2019 Share Posted February 5, 2019 LC&DR, did you know Rev. W. Awdry was going to be at the exhibition, or was it a chance encounter? GNR-Gordon-4 (HF) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LCDR Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 I knew he was going to be exhibiting his layout. However I used to go to the Central Hall Westminster every year to the Model Railway Club exhibition anyway, it was an annual family pilgrimage. He was a very pleasant person to talk to, especially as then I was a teenager, but he still made time to patiently answer my questions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWR-Gordon-4 Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 Cool. 😎 Did you get his autograph? GNR-Gordon-4 (HF) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LCDR Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 No although my son did many years later when he signed his copy of "Four Little Engines". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWR-Gordon-4 Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 That's cool, also. 😎 Thank you letting me know about this stuff, LC&DR. 😀 GNR-Gordon-4 (HF) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Postman Prat Posted February 7, 2019 Share Posted February 7, 2019 Like LC&DR I used to go to the exhibition at the Central Hall. I, too, had a chat with Rev Awdry - a very nice, pleasant man. Just think, it's possible I met LC&DR all those years ago!!! 😮 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkingthedog Posted February 7, 2019 Share Posted February 7, 2019 That was a great venue. Went several times and guess what, I didn’t speak to the Rev. W. Awdry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Howbi Posted February 7, 2019 Share Posted February 7, 2019 As a lad in the 1950's I used to go to the Boys Own shows at the Central Halls, coincidence that 50 years later I helped design sound studios for the spiritual owners, the worst clients we every worked for......... 😮.........HB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWR-Gordon-4 Posted February 7, 2019 Share Posted February 7, 2019 Just think, it's possible I met LC&DR all those years ago!!! 😮 If you did meet LC&DR all of those years ago, you wouldn’t have known! 😉 😀 GNR-Gordon-4 (HF) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The son of Triangman Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 To throw more into the mix, it has been mentioned by a respected member that good Rev. wanted Thomas to be based on a jinty. The good rev. used to exhibit a layout at one time with a Tri-ang jinty done up as Thomas. Another train of thought is that the good rev. was sitting in a train down in the posh south near London and he saw an E2 amble by on a shunting turn and chose that loco as the basis for Thomas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LCDR Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 He certainly did. I saw the 'blue Jinty' on his layout on one occasion, but he did also have a blue E2 which I believe was a Finecast kit. I can only report what that lovely man told me at the time of course, but he did give me the impression that the artist was the one responsible for choosing 'Thomas's' shape. 'Annie' and 'Clarabel' were always bogie coaches, albeit short ones. Not the 4 wheel travesties that appear on the TV shows or in Hornby and Bachmann train sets. My 'Annie' and 'Clarabel' are Graham Farish OO bogie non-corridors in teak finish, in better keeping with the spirit of the books. Triang 9" suburbans would have done just as well if done in teak, but these were already in that scheme! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWR-Gordon-4 Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 There's a lot of difference between The Railway Series and the Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends / Thomas & Friends TV series'. For example, the express coaches in both are different colours. The Hornby and Bachmann Trains models are based upon the TV series, rather than The Railway Series, which is something that the owners want, hecne why not many characters that have only ever appeared in The Railway Series have had a model railway compatible product released. GNR-Gordon-4 (HF) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The son of Triangman Posted July 17, 2019 Share Posted July 17, 2019 The good reverend had a Tri-ang Jinty converted into Thomas on his own layout. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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