Forum-1211528 Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 i was really exited for the 2021 Releases because I model scottish as well as Midland railways, I was looking forward to the Class 153 in the Scotrail highland livery...until I saw the expected release dateAUGUST!Thats close to End of year most of the 2021 range is coming towards The end of 2021 and knowin hornby it won’t release on time so why is it called 2021 releases? im still waiting for the Avanti pendolino which was announced janura 2020 and I’m STILL WAITING What on earth is going on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atom3624 Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 It can be a little frustrating I can understand. Most 'delivery dates' are 'enthusiastically provisional', but let's not forget what has also occurred throughout the world in the last 12 months, still escalating at present. A little patience will be all that's required. Al. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinB Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 It hasn't changed much. I remember as a little boy rushing off to the toy shop to buy the latest release, only to find out that it didn't arrive at the time stated in the catalogue. After a couple of months I gave up bothering. It seems they don't change. Looking at most of their new locos their release dates are about October to December 2021, from previous experience if they release them at all, they will probably be early 2022 or later. Just look at their 2020 catalogue and see how many of those locos destined for 3rd and 4th quarter got released, I know we had Covid, so I can forgive them but they rushed out the Stephensons Rocket carriages (probably, just to upset "Rails"). So what happens to those releases now? Perhaps if they focussed on what they can achieve in the required timescale it would be better. Lets face it a lot of those new models are photos of the original locos, so that probably means, they have not even started the initial development. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gary789 Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 I am in the same boat, I am still waiting for R3831 BR, Thompson Class A2/2 'Thane Of Fife'and i would really like R30087 LNER, A3 Class, No. 45 in wartime black, but putting out another £200 for an engine you dont know then you will get it is a bit to much :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulleidboy Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 I suppose looking on the positive side, if it says due Sept/Oct/Nov you know it is unlikely to arrive before that date - so you can forget it for a few months. If it is a Limited Edition, whenever it may be due, it is worth pre-ordering to make sure you get "whatever". I've never been bothered about delays, I place my order, and it will arrive when it arrives.There are some items, that are probably well advanced before there are even announced - the new four/six wheel carriages appear to almost ready for the shops - January - March. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinB Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 I must admit that is what I am beginning to do, put an order in and hopefully get it when it arrives. As long as you don't put down a deposit then no real issue, it is just annoying especially if the model is over subscribed and your model shop was the one that missed out. I have been waiting two years for the blue Merchant Navy loco. I know a coach is much easier to make but it is funny how they rush these out, similarly with the Terrier because someone else was about to make them. We will probably be able to get an estimate of real release dates when we see a prototype in the magazine, it seems to be six months on from that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Going Spare Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 True, the Avanti Pendolino was announced in January 2020 - but for 4th quarter release. So as of today it is just 8 days late! I am surprised it is not now showing later than an expected Spring arrival. What on earth is going on - well, a pandemic has not helped! I know of at least one of the (relatively small) Hornby team being in hospital right now with Covid-19 so be thankful all you have to complain about is your hobby purchases being slightly delayed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JJ73 Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 @ Mctrains :- I'm affraid it is the old - like what we always say here on the Hornby Forum (& what BB says above...) "it will arrive when it arrives!!!"@ Gary789 :- That a nice Loooking 4-6-2 Loco your waiting for - bet you wish you could have the real thing!!! 😉 😆 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Duke 71000 Posted January 8, 2021 Share Posted January 8, 2021 Mmmpphhh. Hornby's products are shipped in a container from Hong Kong to Thameshaven. That means at least 6 weeks at sea, assuming the ship doesn't call in elsewhere en route. And of course it still has to run the gauntlet of the Somalia Pirates before it reaches the Red Sea, and the Suez canal..... Scheduling the shipping is basically outside Hornby's control, but to be fair to Hornby their products tend to arrive closer to their release date than another organisation (Batchmann). Whose release dates seem to be years behind schedule, so they obviously ship using rowing boats !!! The Duke 71000 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum-1211528 Posted January 11, 2021 Author Share Posted January 11, 2021 Sorry for late the reply I was busy, I will just wait, but I gave up on pre ordering limited editions because Hornby just cancels pre orders and it was sold out before I could get it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VESPA Posted January 11, 2021 Share Posted January 11, 2021 Nothing new here. Every year I am let down by items not appearing when they say. This last Christmas I was going to have the Hush Hush Loco but as a standby bought a Bachmann BR black crane at £189 new just in case with a Dapol coach, van and transfers to make up a breakdown train. Well I did have something to show. I will in future just get something that I want mid year or Novemberish and at least I have something. Far too many spoilt Christmas presents in the past 15 years or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeremiahBunyan Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 The end of 2021 and knowing Hornby it won’t release on time so why is it called 2021 releases? - Manufacturers announce an annual range for models they intend on releasing each year. They don't make any promises on the delivery times. They give you an ETA.- During the year there's a number of things that can delay a model. Damaged tooling, tooling modifications, booking production slots, losing production slots, shifting factories and the list goes on and on and on.- There's a pandemic raging outside. Workers in Chinese factories have suffered a lot, spare a thought for them?- You've posted something worthless citing the August delivery date and making a basless claim that it will come next year. Even if it does, what's the issue? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulleidboy Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 Sorry for late the reply I was busy, I will just wait, but I gave up on pre ordering limited editions because Hornby just cancels pre orders and it was sold out before I could get it Strange - I have never ever had a pre-order cancelled. If it is a Limited Edition you need to get your order in immediately. I looked at the 2021 list minutes after it was announced and had my orders in five minutes later. You could pay less by ordering elsewhere, but I have found that if you want to guarantee getting the model - order from Hornby. I have had the Blue Merchant Navy on order ever since it was announced - it should arrive this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96RAF Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 Your other option is to lodge a pre-order with your local or on-line model shop of choice but they can also be frustrated by only being given a quota of their original orders.My local model shop puts in a order bid for sales soon after the annual launch but has no real idea of what they may get until later in the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinB Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 I hate to say this but the Blue Merchant Navy was promised for last year and the previous year, so how do you know it will actually appear this year? They are producing some different ones so possibly this might be the year, but I wouldn't hold my breath. As to pre orders, I think we all know by now, the saga of the Stephenson Rocket trucks, I am still waiting for two to appear from a Retailer, worse still I paid a deposit on them (won't be doing that again). I assume the Retailer may have been promised more, hence the wait. If Hornby were not Hornby, do you honestly think that they would survive in the big wide world. I did eventually, get my Stephenson Rocket truck off the Hornby website, which I thought was a bit bizarre as at the same time they were telling their Retailers that they couldn't have them. I ordered my Hush Hush off the Hornby website as again they were offering pre orders for them where Hattons were saying that they were "sold out" on pre order, again how can that happen. I come from the software community where the term "vapour wear" is commonly used (means promised but never ever materialises), sadly some of the items in the catalogue are guilty of this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sx Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 I do hope that retailers and Hornby manage to get allocations sorted in a better way than happened in 2020. I was let down on 3 occasions with limited editions despite putting in pre-orders soon after model announcements last January. I tried using a mix of retailers including one that required immediate payment.So all in all I was disappointed 3 times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinB Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 That is really bad news sx, when I was putting in some advanced orders for products in their 2021 catalogue I did keep wondering if I would ever get the loco. I then resigned myself to if I don't then does it really matter. I seen this a lot of times in my life where a company treats the customer like dirt and then cannot understand it when the market changes, why they are not doing so well. I used to like dealing with "Rails" as they never let me down and the other large retailer I am not so confident with. Sadly, Rails no longer deal with Hornby, I wonder if they were worried about devalueing their reputation. Unfortunately, the smaller model shops are right at the end of of the pecking order for new releases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulleidboy Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 There was a degree of "assumption" in my comment - as you say there are a number of similar models being produced. At the moment this site does say "Expected: Winter 2020-2021" - so that could be "anytime now". Like you ColinB, I ordered mine in 2018 - actually on the 9th January 2018. Here's hoping. BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColinB Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 I have just put in an order for a diecast Merchant Navy (to replace my Wrenns that I don't want to modify for DCC) and the release date for that is late spring early summer, so perhaps this is the year. I suspect seeing as they are trying to push the Dublo range, they might in this case meet their timescale. If they decide to, it is funny that they can push products out quite fast, as has been demonstrated by a few examples recently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulleidboy Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 I too have ordered a diecast M/N - the BR version. Hopefully we will both be happy with the model when it arrives. BB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CORKY. Posted January 12, 2021 Share Posted January 12, 2021 There are 2 sides to the coin. Whilst it is a pain to find release dates are continually not being met, I for one have realised that this is part of life. The good part is, by announcing forthcoming models in plenty of time, it gives me a chance to plan ahead. I can wait for the loco in the correct livery, and not have to kit bash, only to find exactly what I wanted pop into the shops just as I finish. Part of collecting seems to be that the right loco with right coaching never seeming to be available at the same time together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBfan Posted January 13, 2021 Share Posted January 13, 2021 The announcements made at the beginning of each year are normally an intention to produce the model, with the delivery dates given using the information at the time. Numerous circumstances can upset the process and cannot be foreseen. Also if a certain model does not receive enough orders it can be put on the back burner. Hornby are not alone in this and when I worked in the retail trade a number of people expected the models to available on the day they were annouced. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyingfox4475 Posted January 13, 2021 Share Posted January 13, 2021 I had all my pre-orders from Rails from last year cancelled. I hope my orders this year from Hatton don't get cancelled. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
159001 Posted March 7, 2021 Share Posted March 7, 2021 If you look back you will see that historically Hornby has always delivered the majority of its models in Q2 and Q3 each year, it rarely releases much in Q1 for several reasons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96RAF Posted March 7, 2021 Share Posted March 7, 2021 I have had a couple of first hand experience of shipping delays.I ordered a Toyota Corolla (sight unseen from the brochure in 1967). To qualify for duty free status (in those days) you had to own the car for 12 months abroad then two years In UK.My car is scheduled to arrive well within the one year timeline but someone had a scrap in the middle east and the Suez canal was blocked, meaning my car came round the Horn, then to UK, then to the continental river ports before heading back to the Med Sea. It arrived just within the time limits.Second event was when we decamped to live in Cyprus. We had all the shipping details and watched the registers for the nominated ship leaving with our container. However tracking the container kept saying it hadn’t left yet, so we queried it and it was postponed, meaning having to change the marine insurance policy details, etc. Eventually our container ship arrived off Limassol on 31st Dec and yes we went down every day to see if it had moved off park into the port for off loading. What we did find was that the actual port calling roster is at the behest of the ships captain. If he wants to go clockwise instead of following the plan then that is how it works.Mr Hornby has no say in things at all once it is on the water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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