VESPA

I am not talking about anything different here from a base BR Maroon MK1 coach with "E" prefix for the car train and the same or similar in BR black or engineers red. Models already made that just need another paint job. Both Hornby and Bachmann have cranes and both have MK1's but none with "E" prefix. Both also have a plethora of steam and diesel locos to suit a straightforward passenger train. It 's a bit like buying a car without suitable wheels. End of conversation from me. I must get some L&M cattle trucks for a BR freight train as they will do.

Off topic but it could happen. If you want a part that is part of a unit as such, then the part may end up as that unit uping the price up to 10 fold and making more profits. Instance of a Porsche Boxster inlet at nearly £2000 because a broken plastic part isn't available new at what could be £5 (that is excessive for what it is) Trawll ing the internet for days and obtained for £30 secondhand. That would be a way if carefully done to get extra profits. Costings are always carried out with products in the making and suitably priced against similar competitors. There are many makers out there that are making tender locos for £149 and not £249 so that money is made in the initial rush to be first. Under production with a bad decision on initial quantities forcing a second run could be a flop. Far too much NEW models in a year are also crippling with say 7 or 8 items for new release. I think that the big makers are making far too much new design product for the market to cope with. I am at present looking at making up a 1960's Anglo Scottish Car Carrier" train. I have an ER restaurant car with 3 Newton Chambers vans on order but trying to find ER Mk1 coaches is proving impossible either new or secondhand. Why don't those making models have suitable other models ready to go or in production for the correct period?

This is what happens when you price your product far too high and that includes 99% of model railway makers. How can a loco be £250 on release and then end up at £110 to. shift them. The same thing happens every year. I bought 10 Bogie Bolsters from Hornby a few years back at about £3 in a mad sale to generate money. Now I think I would just manage to get One for the same outlay. Trying to up the price to absorb losses doesn'twork, it kills off your regular followers. I wonder who will be next?

Regarding saving for what you want I have always done that, I would love a brand new Bentley and am more than able to buy one to order. Then the brain kicks in and says it's not a sensible buy. I have a very nice Jaguar bought new which suits me at present. I wanted the Turbomotive so bought it and I await the Caprotti Class 5, which I will buy but nothing else so far,

60 years ago I first visited Hattons in Smithdown Road with Old Mr Norman Hatton. as time crept on he knew I was collecting Hornby Dublo and would put some items to one side to see if I was interested. I got a brand new 3 rail Diesel Shunter boxed with tested tags for £3 but refused a boxed as new 6 wheel brake van for £110.

I too have an interest in Mail trains. I have the Hornby LMS sets and GWR sets along with Bachmann sorting vans and TPO mechanism vans These are based on MK1 coaches and are really scale items. My plan would be to run 2 netted ate the front and sorting vans behind with full brakes or two open corridor and a brake 2nd. If that was a real set up the interconnecting corridor doors would have to be locked on two adjoining carriages. Many years back the 7.30 pm Mail train from Crewe would stop at our town station to collect mail bags by the hundred and proceed all the way to Perth through the night. From what I remember these were just full brake/ parcels vans. The loco was always a "Britannia" class until diesels took over in the mid 60's as they became more into use, usually a class 40. You couldn't move on the platform those days, at that time, for trolleies full of sacks and GPO workers. They appeared about 7.00pm and were gone by 7.45 and all trollies stored away. Some of my photos in the National Archives show this merry dance with Britannia 70010 Owen Glendower at the head of the train.

I predicted this to my wife 18 months back. Every visit and no customers. The problem now lies with prices and peoples pockets. Mine is no longer big enough to fork out such vast amounts. I bought 2 Bachmann Royal Mail special club offers and a Hornby Turbomotive last year. I am sure there are many like me who have pulled the pursed strings closed. Watch out now for others to fall by the wayside including the big makers leaving just a few smaller brands struggling to survive. £289 for a loco ????? that is in fantasy land.

In the 60's travelling to Crewe with a 3 coach train, we calculated the loco 70044 Earl Haig travelled at 108 mph for about 3 miles. When the driver was told he said his speedo recorded 112mph. That was the 10.26 am from WBQ and usually had more coaches.

I really did think my post would be removed within a couple of hours. Thank you to the moderators for letting it stay. I watched something on TV recently about the Margate factory when it was Lines Brothers/ Triang Toys. They quickly turned their hand to making Thompson Sub Machine Guns by the thousand during WW2. It was one of the biggest toy factories in the world making all sorts of fantastic toys, so why not get back into other "Toys", take on the Chinese and make model railways exactly that without gimmicks, such as girraffe cars and rocket cars

Methinks there is mid teen to mid twenties person organising lots of Hornby things and failing dramatically. No way am I using teenage websites for a hobby followed by mainly over 40'S ( being nice there when I meant grey aces of the fat wallets) I don't see any other makers in the mags making silly toys for model railways. No, they are going for excellence in accuracy without gimmicks of having a chance to win a Beatles or Cocoa Cola pop van fron tooling made in the 60's. No longer is Hornby Railways a toy at the prices being asked and should be Hornby Model Railways and the cheaper stuff rebranded from Railroad to Toytown Trains, with regular competions in the Beano. ANNOYED you bet I am annoyed. "What would you like for Christmas Johnny, a trainset of the latest XBox gizmo with loads of games?" "Oh I would like Smokey Joe with a Beatles wagon and circle of track as nobody else will have one at my age" Hours of pleasure discussing it on Thick Tok, Poo Tube and Clatter. Christmas for me this year, a very cheap, almost give away price LMS Turomotive and two Bachmann Royal Mail club specials vans. Miserable present now my new Aston Martin has just become a tad expensive. Johnny has changed his mind and is now getting the XBOX a new 65" tele and a new Iphone S6000 with inbuilt tardis technology for time travel to avoid airport queues. I doubt this post will last until Christmas

Well this is an old thread with the same theme as many before. If you have no, little or poor advertising to get customers will be nigh on impossible. As the thread is from 2019 when locos were about £108, then to try to sell choo choos will be nigh on impossible at £260 at todays rate. I can see prices increasing a lot more as customers find other hobbies such as collecting Ferraris and Lambourghinis which will soon be cheaper than a loco.

There is a short film on the Hush Hush out there from ??? Pathe News or similar. I saw it mentioned the other day and thought to look later but was busy later modifying my car a bit.

As RAF states the Turbomotive rarely ran in reverse with a load, due to its lack of power in the right hand turbo.It's main reversing being to manouvere itself and very light loads if required locally ie within a shed or yard. It was only used between Liverpool and London Euston on trains such as "The Red Rose" As it was rarely used I think leaving it off the model is a good idea (although it is supplied in my box). I can never get to grips with couplings on the front of passenger locos in 00 guage. All mine do not have one. Hornby Dublo never fitted them either. OK I can see an LMS Class 5 hauling a train in reverse but even that was "usually" a rare event. I have two volumes of info on the Turbomotive which makes great reading of this loco from it's initial idea by Stanier to development of other country's efforts. Sweden built three turbo trains and all are preserved. The US had quite a dabble into their design and made some MASSIVE locos with that method of propulsion. It is a fascinating subject.

Well Hi! my name is Diana Prince and I already do a similar job for free. I am fully aware how to handle cookies, cup, cakes, muffins and fries. I have the skills to make buildings and wagon loads from these and how to use a choc drop for a caboose tail lamp. OOOOOOH I have just had a bad dream.

No thank you. Why would I want to waste time on that when I mention on a webpage a comment made in a newspaper. I would rather read War and Peace. I also wish I hadn't bothered wasting my time on this website again.