Class 31, by Accurascale - It's time 2 Brush Up!

[rorz101uk]

Looking very smart! I’m waiting for the green livery class 30 and 2 Network Rail! I’m hoping 31106 will be produced! 

[Chilly]

12 hours ago, 97406 said:

 

Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

 

Want one of these oh yeah 🙂

[Geep7]

These are looking amazing. I too am waiting for my BR Green Class 31, and I can't wait. November can't come quick enough. One request though. Any chance of an early 1970's Western Region BR Blue loco with 4 character headcode in the next run?

[rob D2]

Interesting , the different BR blues.

the Bachmann one is darker and more satin , more ex works .

the Accura is paler and lighter, ex works plus a year kinda.

[Kirby Uncoupler]

17 hours ago, aureol40012 said:

Playing “spot the difference”.

I've only received Bachmann 31s so far, but these head-to-head comparisons are rather unfair, like choosing which twin sister to take to the dance? If only one manufacturer had produced a 31, we'd all be well satisfied, they are both excellent models. However, i'd say the Bachmann headcode box is a better shape, the Accura box looks too tall and stubby, but the Accura windscreens look spot on, and then again the Baccy footstep recesses look better defined. How do they run(?), which will pull more(?), what's the top speed(?), are the lights any good?

      Don't forget, real locos aren't all the same, especially after later modifications. I'll buy from both model ranges.

                                                                   Cheers, Brian.

[Dagworth]

Bachmann ones are definitely closer to the proper colour 

 

 

AS ones are an odd sort of tan/brown (maybe I can call it Golden Ochre?) 

 

Andi

[McC]

[MikeParkin65]

On 08/10/2024 at 17:31, aureol40012 said:

And side on.

 

Interesting the different takes on 70s BR blue……

Both excellent models but this is a fascinating comparison. One obvious difference to me is the bufferbeam cowling and the way it folds in under the cabside. Accurascale has 2 folds whereas Bachmann have just the second one beneath the handrail. Prototype photo's suggest Accurascale are correct with their version whilst Bachmann have missed the first fold.  Macro photo's can be cruel  but the Accurascale tooling of the bogie looks a lot sharper and more refined, I'm particularly impressed by the spring which looks convincingly 3d. Some of this is academic in the layout context of course in which I need my 'readers' on to properly see that there is a spring in the first place!

 

Presently a contented owner of a Bachmann green version but open to an Accurascale green version when they become available or in subsequent batches. 

Edited October 10 by MikeParkin65
I've had another look at my D5617 the first fold is there though its very subtle. I refer again to the need for those reading glasses!

[atom3624]

Bachmann blue looks a bit 'artificial' to me - perhaps straight out of the shops might be OK.

These units would have worn their paint for many years, so there would be many shades of supposedly the same colour - I wouldn't get too worried about it.

 

Can't wait to receive my 31 432 .... here's hoping this week - via a shop so may be a little delayed.

Al.

Edited October 9 by atom3624

[The Evil Bus Driver]

Rails have just taken payment for mine. Time to await the email saying its being dispatched.  Can't wait!

[Dagworth]

I've got a quartet of 31s sat on the layout, 2 of each. There are slight differences between them but where one wins on some points the other wins on others.

Bachmann has a very slightly more gloss finish which seems to account for the colour difference, the actual blue looks very similar to my eye.

The Bachmann yellow seems a tinge more green whereas the AS is a touch more red (I'm looking at the colours as a lighting engineer and that's how I compare yellows). I prefer the AS yellow.

 

The angle of the cab fronts is not the same between the models, AS leans back more, but I'm not sure which is correct.

The handrail under the centre windscreen to my eye looks like neither have it exact, Bachmann is too tall, AS is not tall enough! That is being really picky though.

The Accurascale 'face' seems better to me overall, the yellow extending a little further back on the cab sides is noticeable, and the ETH socket and OLE warning flash are better defined. Neither AS one has the blue stars, both Bachmann ones do.

The Accurascale one has four handrails missing on the roof and has holes in the lower bogie beams that shouldn't be there as mentioned by @Steadfast yesterday.

Accurascale has the hinges almost invisible on the roof engine access panels, Bachmann's are much more visible. Which one is correct is anyone's guess, see 

and https://www.flickr.com/photos/brianews/albums/72157626899029003/

 

On the whole the Accurascale moulding seems crisper than the Bachmann one.

I haven't had a chance to run any of them yet as I need decoders and don't have a runnable layout set up at the moment.

One last thing I noticed straight away, the Accurascale coupling protrudes further than the Bachmann one, but I will be removing them anyway so it's irrelevant to me.

Both of them look like 31s and I'm happy to give all four that are here homes in my loco fleet.

 

Andi

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 9 by Dagworth

[Accurascale Fran]

3 hours ago, Kirby Uncoupler said:

I've only received Bachmann 31s so far, but these head-to-head comparisons are rather unfair, like choosing which twin sister to take to the dance? If only one manufacturer had produced a 31, we'd all be well satisfied, they are both excellent models. However, i'd say the Bachmann headcode box is a better shape, the Accura box looks too tall and stubby, but the Accura windscreens look spot on, and then again the Baccy footstep recesses look better defined. How do they run(?), which will pull more(?), what's the top speed(?), are the lights any good?

      Don't forget, real locos aren't all the same, especially after later modifications. I'll buy from both model ranges.

                                                                   Cheers, Brian.

 

Hi Brian,

 

Just to pick up on this point, please see below; headcode box from the loco we 3D scanned with the CAD for our 31 overlaid. As you can see, a perfect match, and why we laser scan every loco we do to help us get these complex shapes and details correct.

 

 

Cheers!

 

Fran 

[97406]

Your eyes play tricks if you scrutinise and scrutinise an item for long enough. You end up losing all objectivity - I definitely do. Without staring at the models for an inordinate amount of time, I know which one looks more like the real thing and I’ve two on their way with DPD after checking my emails.

[McC]

42 minutes ago, Dagworth said:

Neither AS one has the blue stars,

 

No blue stars on our ones, as per the prototype. 

We generally recommend and encourage comparison to the prototype, rather than other models :) 

[Roy Langridge]

46 minutes ago, Dagworth said:

The angle of the cab fronts is not the same between the models, AS leans back more, but I'm not sure which is correct.

 

The Accurascale 'face' seems better to me overall, the yellow extending a little further back on the cab sides is noticeable, and the ETH socket and OLE warning flash are better defined. Neither AS one has the blue stars, both Bachmann ones do.

 

 

I think the two comments are related and in reference to the "lean" I know which I think is right and three will arrive later today. The Bachmann one has never quite looked right to me and comparing the models has shown me why - the cab front it wrong leading to the slope being too shallow, the cab also looking wider meaning the Bachmann offering looks more "squat" than it should. 

Roy

 

[Accurascale Fran]

53 minutes ago, Dagworth said:

I've got a quartet of 31s sat on the layout, 2 of each. There are slight differences between them but where one wins on some points the other wins on others.

Bachmann has a very slightly more gloss finish which seems to account for the colour difference, the actual blue looks very similar to my eye.

The Bachmann yellow seems a tinge more green whereas the AS is a touch more red (I'm looking at the colours as a lighting engineer and that's how I compare yellows). I prefer the AS yellow.

 

The angle of the cab fronts is not the same between the models, AS leans back more, but I'm not sure which is correct.

The handrail under the centre windscreen to my eye looks like neither have it exact, Bachmann is too tall, AS is not tall enough! That is being really picky though.

The Accurascale 'face' seems better to me overall, the yellow extending a little further back on the cab sides is noticeable, and the ETH socket and OLE warning flash are better defined. Neither AS one has the blue stars, both Bachmann ones do.

The Accurascale one has four handrails missing on the roof and has holes in the lower bogie beams that shouldn't be there as mentioned by @Steadfast yesterday.

Accurascale has the hinges almost invisible on the roof engine access panels, Bachmann's are much more visible. Which one is correct is anyone's guess, see 

and https://www.flickr.com/photos/brianews/albums/72157626899029003/

 

On the whole the Accurascale moulding seems crisper than the Bachmann one.

I haven't had a chance to run any of them yet as I need decoders and don't have a runnable layout set up at the moment.

One last thing I noticed straight away, the Accurascale coupling protrudes further than the Bachmann one, but I will be removing them anyway so it's irrelevant to me.

Both of them look like 31s and I'm happy to give all four that are here homes in my loco fleet.

 

Andi

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hi Andi,

 

Thanks for the feedback. Which two Accurascale 31s have you taken delivery of?

 

Cheers!

 

Fran 

[97406]

2 minutes ago, Roy Langridge said:

 

I think the two comments are related and in reference to the "lean" I know which I think is right and three will arrive later today. The Bachmann one has never quite looked right to me and comparing the models has shown me why - the cab front it wrong leading to the slope being too shallow, the cab also looking wider meaning the Bachmann offering looks more "squat" than it should. 

Roy

 

 

I actually thought the Bachmann one was the old Hornby model at first in that comparison photo of the cab fronts.

[Dagworth]

15 minutes ago, Accurascale Fran said:

 

Hi Andi,

 

Thanks for the feedback. Which two Accurascale 31s have you taken delivery of?

 

Cheers!

 

Fran 

248 and 409. 248 will become 247 and absolutely filthy! 

 

Andi 

[dj_crisp]

42 minutes ago, Accurascale Fran said:

 

Hi Brian,

 

Just to pick up on this point, please see below; headcode box from the loco we 3D scanned with the CAD for our 31 overlaid. As you can see, a perfect match, and why we laser scan every loco we do to help us get these complex shapes and details correct.

 

 

Cheers!

 

Fran 

 

 

I hope you also checked it looking from above!

[McC]

Just now, dj_crisp said:

 

 

I hope you also checked it looking from above!

 

Our 3D Laser Scans take every visible part of the loco, including the roof from above ;) 

[Accurascale Fran]

4 minutes ago, Dagworth said:

248 and 409. 248 will become 247 and absolutely filthy! 

 

Andi 

 

Hi Andi,

 

We hold our hands up on 248 missing the stars, our fault. 409 correctly missing them though! 

 

 

Look forward to seeing the customisation!

 

Cheers!

 

Fran 

[Ian Hargrave]

Cart before horse etc….4X Suburban coaches arrive tomorrow. Horse plus a few more a bit later. Strange but the only blue I recall seeing at KX was Deltic 1 . Shedloads of green Brush 2…and the blue ( oops, forgotten D5578 ) & orange eccentricities.

[dj_crisp]

1 minute ago, McC said:

 

Our 3D Laser Scans take every visible part of the loco, including the roof from above ;) 

 

Cool - looking at it dead on the curve looks flat which your 3d scan shows. I still think it looks a bit flat at the base of the headcode box but each view to their own eh and maybe i just need to see it in person one day ;)

 

1 hour ago, Dagworth said:

I've got a quartet of 31s sat on the layout, 2 of each. There are slight differences between them but where one wins on some points the other wins on others.

Bachmann has a very slightly more gloss finish which seems to account for the colour difference, the actual blue looks very similar to my eye.

The Bachmann yellow seems a tinge more green whereas the AS is a touch more red (I'm looking at the colours as a lighting engineer and that's how I compare yellows). I prefer the AS yellow.

 

The angle of the cab fronts is not the same between the models, AS leans back more, but I'm not sure which is correct.

The handrail under the centre windscreen to my eye looks like neither have it exact, Bachmann is too tall, AS is not tall enough! That is being really picky though.

The Accurascale 'face' seems better to me overall, the yellow extending a little further back on the cab sides is noticeable, and the ETH socket and OLE warning flash are better defined. Neither AS one has the blue stars, both Bachmann ones do.

The Accurascale one has four handrails missing on the roof and has holes in the lower bogie beams that shouldn't be there as mentioned by @Steadfast yesterday.

Accurascale has the hinges almost invisible on the roof engine access panels, Bachmann's are much more visible. Which one is correct is anyone's guess, see 

and https://www.flickr.com/photos/brianews/albums/72157626899029003/

 

On the whole the Accurascale moulding seems crisper than the Bachmann one.

I haven't had a chance to run any of them yet as I need decoders and don't have a runnable layout set up at the moment.

One last thing I noticed straight away, the Accurascale coupling protrudes further than the Bachmann one, but I will be removing them anyway so it's irrelevant to me.

Both of them look like 31s and I'm happy to give all four that are here homes in my loco fleet.

 

Andi

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some very interesting observations. Onto colours I've always found yellow to vary between manufactorers and also paint produces.... even between batches so find this colour quite fun to paint match. There are different shades pre/post 84 (in thoery) and then proper modern shades so the later models shouldn't really match the early ones. And then theres the fun of yellow fading. I now never spray straight from one tin so my locos will always have loads of variablility! I've always quited liked Bachmann's blue to start to weather from... has a nice richness to it if thats the way to describe it.

 

[John B]

Thanks for that pic Fran - bookmarked to replicate the weathering when my order for 409 arrives!

[Mark C]

2 hours ago, The Evil Bus Driver said:

Rails have just taken payment for mine. Time to await the email saying its being dispatched.  Can't wait!

Me too...I suspect my Rails' Class 31 will arrive before my three from AS!!