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For that, I cannot help you. Sorry. Al.

Yes, that misaligned smokebox door was horrible! One light was glued into place, another wasn't, plus replacing a lamp with a 'blanking lamp bracket' didn't blank out the light - poor design. Sorry Hornby, but everyone was hoping this was going to be a stunner, myself included. It doesn't look that way at the moment. Al.

Stickswipe, to those not familiar provides absolutely superb kits and 'aftermarket support' of lighting kits for locomotives not initially installed with them. Some modelling skill is definitely required, the hardest I find is drilling the holes. I have 2x Hornby 08's I've fitted kits to, which look superb, and 2x Bachmann 08's, for which I have the kits, but have just started - this includes 'flatting' the original non-functional moulded lamps, then drilling 0.5mm holes into each of them!! Get one right, you feel great, then realise there's another 3!! I'd left this a while, but decided to proceed y'day - and .... success!! Next is to continue with the kit!! I'm going steady on this one, but the holes have been done, which is a huge bonus. Al.

When I have mine out, I routinely haul 10 or 11 which she does with ease. Main issues are to ensure the traction tyres are in good condition, and to add weight - ~150g - to the power car - there's plenty of room. Al.

Sam gave it a good go, and well done Sam. Crankpins were all but good - one fell out! Running board was still slightly deformed - should never happen, and particularly on a metal one. He didn't seem to notice the misaligned sander which was obvious in the videos - easily corrected as it's not changed from the 'old model'. Loco / tender connection as described. Temporarily resolved with cleaning - which he said he also tried on his 1st one, but the contacts are not cut straight. This is one locomotive I 'wanted to consider', but luckily I already have 4 super detail ones and a list of pre-orders. I'm staying away from this one unfortunately. On an individual basis, if you purchase one and have issues, I recommend you contact both your supplier AND Hornby. I also recommend to ONLY purchase from a named Hornby supplier, as most manufacturers do not provide support for items purchased from '3rd parties'. Al.

Just received 3x Dapol EWS Turbots - used. These are typically superb little models, and extremely free-running - these weren't, quite .... Some idiot had decided to ballast them a little by gluing in tiny lead shot but most seems to have accumulated where the wheels are supposed to turn - not ideal. An hour's Dremel drilling later, and the bogies are free-rotating, wheels free-rolling again. Very strange. I normally purchase a pre-formed load - sand, aggregate, ballast, etc - and place a slither of 1mm thick lead underneath this. I'm awaiting the ballast loads, but lead is in place - wagons running as well as the other 11. I used the Dapol close connecting coupling for these - fits perfectly - buffers (sprung as well!!) just never touching. Al.

It does seem to be a 'common denominator' with the Black 5, and never mentioned on other models using 'the same' connection. Al.

I had the red one called Polly. Loved it!! She was a tad high geared and used to spin off the coupling rod screws!! Al.

Pity - love Clan Line. Love the way you often see her full bore, really showing what 'good steamers' they are in the difficult stretches / inclines on tours, only 6233 DoS can get close to. Al.

There seems to be a common problem with the tender socket for the loco / tender connector. Sam used his P2 2007 tender to test his locomotive. This implies an inherent problem with the electronics in the tenders - might be a simple fix - snagged wire in 'routine production' - which should have been picked up - no pun intended! - prior to despatch! Al.

I don't have my 50 out at the moment. For me, it's not clear to see what has been superglued and where. Is it the socket which permits the 'fishtail' to push into the mount which is glued into the central position? Where has this been glued? Al.

This could be the start of another exciting escapade .... couldn't it? .......

Just a thought. How many platforms are uniformly the same colour? Might be a nice opportunity to add an element or realism and variability. Al.

It's a pretty high-profile model 'though - should be more effort to avoid so many combined problems - on-in-four or not. There's obviously a lot of development from the previous 'super detailed' issue, with many / most original ideas still maintained. The valvegear is obviously different, particularly by the cylinders / sliders. The running plate is an obvious potential improvement - tempering / cooling should not have warped it, so this was a pity as well. Put simply, the Black 5, with all 842 full scale iterations, has long been one of my favourites, and most memorable from childhood, but the video has certainly calmed thoughts of considering a purchase. Al.

Somebody got the 'none Sam's Trains quality' model .... Al.

Well, everyone's favourite reviewer has produced one of the new Black 5. Draw your own conclusions - don't think his comments were unjustified considering his findings. Al.

Sounds like the original tooling is generally used in the tender - perhaps the upper moulding has been updated? I say this as the Stanier tenders - Scots, 8F, 5MT - always had a very 'meaty' metal weight in them. Al.

I've noticed the valvegear has changed. For the bodies already established, I've not seen any significant difference, but the running plate should now be metal (metal boiler now?). With such a substantial 'retool' Hornby seem to be replacing their previous 5-pole, no flywheel motors with 5-pole with flywheel motors - Merchant Navy, Coronation, Princess Royal to name a few. Al.

Hi BB, Easy response is that they weren't all painted the same day. Presumably this paint was brushed, perhaps sprayed or dipped, but nevertheless, on different weeks the mix could well be slightly different, even before the effects of the UV / sunshine, and our interminable rain! It all adds a little character and a bit of 'realistic variation'. Al.

I did have one H-D / Wrenn locomotive as a teenager, an 8F I rebuilt - several issues with the motor, but got them resolved giving me a reliable runner ... Inspiration here was that bridge over the local main road I'd mentioned earlier, servicing the local power station. Al.

If you rub methylated spirits on decals / transfers / tampo-print then it will remove them, yes. If you simply 'damp' the surface, probably not. If you have an old 'basher' anywhere, try it out on this. It is always a good practice to seal in with a light cover of varnish, yes. Al.

Origin of interest in railways for me would have been the proximity to a power station. Younger years I would see Stanier locomotives - I presume they were 8F's, but at 4, 5 years old I wouldn't have known the difference - wheels were hidden. Later, later teenager years there were the class 25's and 40's hauling those coal wagons in / out of the power station. Then later again it appeared the same branch was a main route to the container terminal of Liverpool, and I would regularly see 47's storming across 'the bridge' to / from the docks. Al.

For me it's been a combination of aspects - inspiration, time, abilities and of course finances ... they all play a part, plus patience. It's so easy to see somebody else's 'masterpiece', but why not you as well!! Al.

She was momentarily on my workbench, just working on the axle boxes to limit the 'wobble' of the Hattons' Class 66 'Patriot'. Absolutely superb locomotive, and the 'wobble' is nearly eliminated now - easy job, simply removing the covers, enlarging the hole in the bogie frame / surround, then re-attaching the AB's onto the axles, and aligning them as best as possible, as the glue is setting ... Short video. The wheels on each bogie of those wagons have been worked on to be as free-moving as possible, but each wagon weighs ~175g (x12 = 2.10 kg !!). The sheer power of this locomotive is phenomenal, and this is on less than half power!! (~42 of 100 on the Gaugemaster 'D'). Al. PS: Yes, that's an Accurascale Class 37 in the siding.

50 years ago I decided the original oil was too expensive and started using neat paraffin in my Winston Churchill and Pannier tank with that infamous synchrosmoke!! The smoke effect was pretty good, but Mum was too impressed with the smell, and also the rails became a little 'slippery', quite apart from the paraffin attacking the plastic bodies!! Al.