Coachman

This is not artistry

Personally I am not willing to risk my hard earned on CAD designed scale items that are not scale in one of the most important areas re height. They are not toy trains. I did not care about such things as a boy with Hornby OO but as things have become soo very detailed it is a tragedy that roof and buffer heights do not align between models of the same scale. yes I know that buffer heights can vary on the real thing but that is not IMHO something we should replicate as it is due to maintenance/wear issues. The couplers on my 08 are not as level and secure as they are on the MK1s. I do not see why a close coupling was necessary as it is a very delicate assembly and does not even sit level. It's a shunter! Coupling is its bread and butter. I just see frustration here. How come Euro manufacturers of even budget models get it right? (Piko Hobby). As an example Graham Farish brought out close coupling on its blue riband mk1 coaches. Great? I found them troublesome. Their wonderfully detailed mk2fs have gone back to good old bogie mounted couplers albeit with nem sockets. So all in all my confidence is shot. I have cancelled my pre order for the HST and am returning the 08 + Mk1s. Lovely looking models but not worth the risk.

buffers slightly high too. if this repeated in the MK2s and MK3s it WILL look terrible. The British loading gauge is soo tight that most vehicles are built to the max height. Lovely little loco but the coupler mountings are a bit shonky and very delicate.

The 08 is way too high. The MK1 is correct but the 08 is substantially higher when it should be fractionally lower.

Watch this space. Plastic is not the best for the main conrods

How right you are. The scraping issue did not occur in the past as the coach bodies were miles above the wheels. Check out some older railroad coaches to see what I mean. The newly designed railroad and top of the line? MK1s in OO scraped too. Maybe having factories in China doesn't help? It sure helps with the price tho.

No you just need to have been modelling N gauge for years!

It would be great to have Hornby's major paint colours available as a spare part. Uses range from renumbering, repair, modification, matching kit built rolling stock to Hornby's etc etc.

May I point out the elephant in the corner with it's trunk raised? Having coaches with different numbers is all well and good but no train had a string of composite coaches ( ok the southern's ACE did but they were mostly brakes for portions that split en route). The eastern would have had dedicated first and second coaches. I believe they will appear in time. I've always thought that rub on transfers supplied with coaches would be best. Perhaps with register marks to help with the correct positioning of same. Once the other coaches come out you may regret having too many CKs. Me? I'm waiting for blue and grey mk1s. Ho hum.

Did I hear correctly? A couple of you said "as long as it looks right ". Music to my ears. I have been punting this point of view for years against some resistance from others. I can't remember exactly what underframe detail differences a class 43 or a Mk2 had but as long as they look right and existed on the prototype I am happy. I am VERY happy with the look of the HST. I will be getting the analog version and making my own "bruff weeeeee" sound in my head along with that initial cloud of exhaust! Or maybe out loud if the wife is out of earshot.🤣

Well I used to watch them shunt coal hoppers to be hauled by class 66s at Ayr (Scotland) and both of these are in the catalogue!

How long does Hornby take to process an in stock order anyway. I'm waiting on a MK1!

You can get a simple but safe controller on eBay for a fiver and use an old wall brick to power it. If you want to run the 08 on analogue. Don't cancel your order on that account. Mod note - I have re-read this whole thread and cannot immediately find reference to the ‘fan boys’ that you reported as being insulting. It is a common term applied to those who avidly follow a person or topic particularly on social media in lieu of the generations old term ‘fan club’. Unless you are talking about ‘…TT FB group…’ in which case FB is a common abbreviation for Facebook. Duly had my wrist slapped. I mistook FB for fan Boy. I'm not very up on these shorthands. I just hate the thought of new modellers being ridiculed.

Perhaps IMHO it is better to ask if there is room for a stay alive capacitor considering Hornby's points are insulfrog? P.S. not a sound fan

Remembering Hornby's earlier range the non aircon mk2 coach is a missing link in TT120 & their OO offering. Class 101 dmu is a no brainer too. back in the 70s they had buffet coaches and sleepers in the range. Blue and grey please!!!!