Heljan LNER Tango 2-8-0

[APOLLO]

I've just checked on Hattons Website. There are eight variations of the Heljan O2 for sale, all shown with over 10 in stock. That's at least 88, so lets say 100 models in stock (probably more), that's £8900 worth of stock, which WAS £18500 worth of stock at RRP. A markdown for Hattons on these locomotives of £9600. 

 

http://www.hattons.co.uk/NewsDetail.aspx?id=294

 

If you want / need one get it while you can. Pity the other retailers with stocks of these locos selling for list or a bit lower. Something somewhere seems to me not quite right.

 

Brit15

 

 

[woodenhead]

Depends if Hattons had them in stock or bought them cheap to sell cheap.

Edited May 24, 2018 by woodenhead

[robmcg]

I've just checked on Hattons Website. There are eight variations of the Heljan O2 for sale, all shown with over 10 in stock. That's at least 88, so lets say 100 models in stock (probably more), that's £8900 worth of stock, which WAS £18500 worth of stock at RRP. A markdown for Hattons on these locomotives of £9600. 

 

http://www.hattons.co.uk/NewsDetail.aspx?id=294

 

If you want / need one get it while you can. Pity the other retailers with stocks of these locos selling for list or a bit lower. Something somewhere seems to me not quite right.

 

Brit15

 

I agree it is an unusually large discount, and one can only speculate.

 

My speculation is that Hattons bought all remaining stock from Heljan at about or under £60-70 per unit. Heljan may have over-produced, and want cash. 

 

I like the model, and bought a s/h one at £110 a couple of years ago, but sold it on.  I have bought another, and may buy two. Living outside the EU these cost £74.50-ish and Hattons worldwide postage is very competitive to say the least.

 

In case anyone has forgotten what nice models they can be here is an edited pic of my older one, sold on.

 

 

or if one prefers an enhanced shop-style pic...

 

 

pics edited will remove if required

 

cheers

Edited May 25, 2018 by robmcg

[No Decorum]

Here’s the O2/4 without even the rafters edited out! A fine model.

 

 

[adb968008]

The 02 is an excellent model with great haulage abilities.

 

I’ve bought two, and am contemplating two more, even though I don’t need them.

I have a “what might have been” plan for the 02 chassis.

[richard.h]

I'm very tempted by Hattons offer on these locos but have previously kept away from them as I have seen reports of front bogies derailing and the valve gear coming adrift.

Has anyone else had problems with the 02s or was it just a few of the earlier locos that suffered with teething problems.

[robmcg]

I'm very tempted by Hattons offer on these locos but have previously kept away from them as I have seen reports of front bogies derailing and the valve gear coming adrift.

Has anyone else had problems with the 02s or was it just a few of the earlier locos that suffered with teething problems.

 

I think a small ? number have had assembly issues, I've seen a few for sale with minor faults, but cannot speak for any with valve gear or pony truck issues, I'm sure Hattons will replace or refund any that are faulty. 

[micklner]

I'm very tempted by Hattons offer on these locos but have previously kept away from them as I have seen reports of front bogies derailing and the valve gear coming adrift.

Has anyone else had problems with the 02s or was it just a few of the earlier locos that suffered with teething problems.

 

   I bought a secondhand one , the valve gear fell apart, poor detailing , not sure if  the body was painted or a ultra thin coat of black paint. Cab windows too deep, etc etc. Its all been described on here before. What has been said is true in my experience.

   Mine was luckily very cheap and I could see why it was. Locos aren't sold at lower the half r.r.p if they were good uns.

[robmcg]

   I bought a secondhand one , the valve gear fell apart, poor detailing , not sure if  the body was painted or a ultra thin coat of black paint. Cab windows too deep, etc etc. Its all been described on here before. What has been said is true in my experience.

   Mine was luckily very cheap and I could see why it was. Locos aren't sold at lower the half r.r.p if they were good uns.

 

messages 381 and 382 in this thread cover the issues of faults, and most people have had excellent results from these O2 models which have been mostly very good indeed.

 

I have bought two O2 just this week and am not losing sleep over it. 

 

I suspect, as does Tony Wright (in msg. 382) that there was a small bad batch early on. All three he has had were perfect , paraphrasing his words, as are many which were described in subsequent posts by buyers after the unfortunate faulty few (which would be replaced by Hattons anyway).

[34theletterbetweenB&D]

...I have seen reports of front bogies derailing and the valve gear coming adrift. Has anyone else had problems with the 02s ...

 . It's a curate's egg of a model in my opinion.

 

The good stuff is good, overall looks and measures well, runs and pulls splendidly, has very fine flanges for RTR OO, which looks very well, especially in emphasising the correctly rendered unusually small diameter of the pony truck wheelset.

 

There's detail defects, and fragile detail. Need to be careful of the side rods which bend easily and the crankpins are screwed direct into the plastic wheelcentres, not a very robust construction. The fine flanges mean that it isn't too happy on set track radii, and any rough track may be revealed by derailment, gave it one try on a friend's set track layout, won't take it there again!

 

Mine has been trouble free including the running on my own layout but the absolute minimum radius it sees is 30". As for the detail defects these are fixable, and I have done a little, may get around to more. What I am waiting for are the announced releases of the earlier GNR build which were the versions I was really interested in.

[coachmann]

Locos are often sold at less than half price. No one could say the Bachmann Compounds were duds.

[No Decorum]

I'm very tempted by Hattons offer on these locos but have previously kept away from them as I have seen reports of front bogies derailing and the valve gear coming adrift.

Has anyone else had problems with the 02s or was it just a few of the earlier locos that suffered with teething problems.

 

If you compare them to Hornby and Bachmann’s LNER 2-8-0s, I’d say that they aren’t as well detailed yet are more expensive. On the other hand, they run superbly and are very powerful. I can only judge by the two I have and I’m very pleased with them. They have given me (touch wood) no problems.

[Ian Hargrave]

I have two.The first had a minor fault with a small piece loose from the front running plate.Apart from that ..no faults.Both have exceptional performance capability.At Hattons asking price,they are an outstanding bargain.

[robmcg]

I have two.The first had a minor fault with a small piece loose from the front running plate.Apart from that ..no faults.Both have exceptional performance capability.At Hattons asking price,they are an outstanding bargain.

 

I agree, my only O2 (so far) had a minor detail fault around the front, otherwise looked and ran perfectly.

 

It will be interesting to see what the appetite for these 2-8-0s is, there being so many in the market. One wonders what the production run of each variant was. 1,000?  Or were there more of one style than another?  Hattons still list more than 10 of each available but some must surely be going out the door.

 

I mean, how many British Railways versions can a man need?

 

 

pic from Rails ad.

 

Cheers

[richard.h]

Thank you everyone for your replies, I think the general consensus is they are quite good locos with exceptional haulage power and certainly at that price they are worth buying, so I think an order is due, having checked Hattons latest stock levels.

It's just that it can be a bit of a hassle returning products from here so I usually try and sort out any minor problems myself which probably invalidates the guarantee anyway

[robmcg]

Thank you everyone for your replies, I think the general consensus is they are quite good locos with exceptional haulage power and certainly at that price they are worth buying, so I think an order is due, having checked Hattons latest stock levels.

It's just that it can be a bit of a hassle returning products from here so I usually try and sort out any minor problems myself which probably invalidates the guarantee anyway

 

In my experience returning things from o'seas can be tiresome, but the bigger shifters like Hattons will honour warranties even if you have had a go at repair, just so long as it can be proven within reasonable bounds that the item arrived damaged.  I photograph a new model if it has faults, usually with the packaging.  Retailers presumably have discretion and make fair judgements. Again in my experience.  Fair return costs are reimbursed by most or all. 

 

I don't make a habit of returns, and make lots of purchases, I think that helps a retailer make a judgement.

[robmcg]

I made a pic of one of these lovely locos with effects based on  my early experience with a box brownie or similar camera in the 1960s, pouring rain, photography was an expensive trial for a 12 yr old!

 

 

pic based on Rails original, will remove if required.

 

cheers

[robmcg]

having bought a couple of these models at the reduced price, and waiting for delivery here in NZ I came across of a pic of LNER 3675 I took when I sold mine about a year ago...     just to remind me how good these models are.

 

 

unedited, for once.  faults around the front so it was cheaper than usual, but more than current retail.

 

cheers

Edited May 29, 2018 by robmcg

[Black Marlin]

I bought one not long after they first came out, plonked it on the rolling road and burned out the motor in less than two minutes at half power. It was returned, a new motor fitted and I've had no problems since. There do seem to have been a bad batch among the first releases, and some of the mechanical errors were not minor faults!

That said, I am now debating with myself whether my next heavy LNER freight loco should be a pre-war O2 or a pre-war Q6...

[Chuffed 1]

My Tango from Hattons was delivered today. After reading this thread I was very disappointed. There were no loose bits in the box and after carefully checking the loco over, found nothing missing.  Worse, after putting it on the rolling road it ran increasingly smoothly for forty minutes in both directions. The motor didn't burn out and the motion didn't lock. After an hour it was running like the proverbial swiss watch.

 

Thwarted, I checked the body and chassis for design and/or production faults, and apart from the lack of a regulator and a chimney cap that looked like the dog had given it a chew, seemed impressively well made. Even the replacement Romford pony truck wheels that had come as part of an ebay job lot were only marginally better than those fitted. The drivers and brake rodding are to a much finer standard than usual.

 

Well done, GNR Dave! Thanks to your timely alert I have acquired a very classy, finely made, large tender loco for less than the price of an ageing tank. A very nice bit of kit indeed, and I don't even model Eastern Region!

[robmcg]

My Tango from Hattons was delivered today. After reading this thread I was very disappointed. There were no loose bits in the box and after carefully checking the loco over, found nothing missing.  Worse, after putting it on the rolling road it ran increasingly smoothly for forty minutes in both directions. The motor didn't burn out and the motion didn't lock. After an hour it was running like the proverbial swiss watch.

 

Thwarted, I checked the body and chassis for design and/or production faults, and apart from the lack of a regulator and a chimney cap that looked like the dog had given it a chew, seemed impressively well made. Even the replacement Romford pony truck wheels that had come as part of an ebay job lot were only marginally better than those fitted. The drivers and brake rodding are to a much finer standard than usual.

 

Well done, GNR Dave! Thanks to your timely alert I have acquired a very classy, finely made, large tender loco for less than the price of an ageing tank. A very nice bit of kit indeed, and I don't even model Eastern Region!

 

Mine was delivered today too.

 

It looked great, runs ok,  but has damage to front; bent lamp holders and frame pieces in front of smokebox, could only have happened with shoddy packaging/handling at factory, or poor assembly, possibly a combination of these.  I did not in any way damage or knock the model when opening it.

 

 

 

Repairable but annoying.

 

I have two more coming, we shall see how the percentage undamaged is, I haven't had an undamaged NEW loco from Heljan nor Hornby in a quite a while. 6 received, 3 Heljan now, 3 Hornby recently, all with faults like missing lamp brackets, smokebox dart handles, or much worse as in one rather disassembled 47XX described in that thread at the time.

 

It's a gamble and I have to say I no longer open boxes with anything other than trepidation and may soon stop buying new models. Except with a high chance of necessary repairs.  Six out of my last six requiring work, (3 Hornby 3 Heljan) sometimes beyond my capability e.g smokebox dart handles but I stress these were Hornby not  Heljan, my many Garratts were ok, only a few handrail staunchions to re-fit into body etc.

 

I live in NZ and extended air travel may be a factor, but has never been an issue from 2006 to c2015. I lost most of my primary arm function in a crash years ago and am a little clumsy thus I do rather like to buy undamaged models. My clumsiness does not extend to damaging models when opening boxes.

 

p.s. the far frame extension had to be removed and re-glued, the absolute limit of a friend's delicate skill with tweezers, and the bent lamp irons have been coaxed in warm air back to near vertical, nerve-wracking, ... some day I hope to receive a model without these manufacturing or packaging errors, but am no longer confident of this. 

 

The whistles look bent too.  Am I nit-picking? I do not like having to bend things which may break off....

Edited May 31, 2018 by robmcg

[robmcg]

addendum to above; 

 

the frame part at the front we glued on upsidedown, a close inspection showed the tag which goes into the front footplate was on top, but obviously should have located into a lug (which we had not been able to see, even with good light and reasonable vision, perhaps because of residual stuff/acrylate glue).

 

The part is dimensionally almost identical either way up.

 

clearly not cut out for doing minor modelling repairs, this is a nightmare   but will look better in the morning maybe.

 

Has been crudely re-glued and I will paint it with weathering powder and/or matt paint someday.

 

No enjoyment at all.    Sorry.

 

here is the first attempt

 

 

the second attempt is crude and will require paint to hide the glue.  A mess.

Edited May 31, 2018 by robmcg

[No Decorum]

Mine was delivered today too.

 

It looked great, runs ok,  but has damage to front; bent lamp holders and frame pieces in front of smokebox, could only have happened with shoddy packaging/handling at factory, or poor assembly, possibly a combination of these.  I did not in any way damage or knock the model when opening it.

 

Img_9793a_r1200.jpg

 

Img_9793ab_r1200.jpg

 

Repairable but annoying.

 

I have two more coming, we shall see how the percentage undamaged is, I haven't had an undamaged NEW loco from Heljan nor Hornby in a quite a while. 6 received, 3 Heljan now, 3 Hornby recently, all with faults like missing lamp brackets, smokebox dart handles, or much worse as in one rather disassembled 47XX described in that thread at the time.

 

It's a gamble and I have to say I no longer open boxes with anything other than trepidation and may soon stop buying new models. Except with a high chance of necessary repairs.  Six out of my last six requiring work, (3 Hornby 3 Heljan) sometimes beyond my capability e.g smokebox dart handles but I stress these were Hornby not  Heljan, my many Garratts were ok, only a few handrail staunchions to re-fit into body etc.

 

I live in NZ and extended air travel may be a factor, but has never been an issue from 2006 to c2015. I lost most of my primary arm function in a crash years ago and am a little clumsy thus I do rather like to buy undamaged models. My clumsiness does not extend to damaging models when opening boxes.

 

p.s. the far frame extension had to be removed and re-glued, the absolute limit of a friend's delicate skill with tweezers, and the bent lamp irons have been coaxed in warm air back to near vertical, nerve-wracking, ... some day I hope to receive a model without these manufacturing or packaging errors, but am no longer confident of this. 

 

The whistles look bent too.  Am I nit-picking? I do not like having to bend things which may break off....

 

No, I don’t think you are nit-picking. Heaven knows, we pay enough for these things. It must be difficult to monitor output from China, especially for Hornby, which uses something like half-a-dozen factories. What Heljan’s arrangements are, I don’t know but it seems that after problems emerged with the L&B locos, another factory was employed to do the job. Having said that, other producers manage to keep a tight enough control to ensure a good product. As has been said repeatedly, Hornby needs to take more care and Heljan a lot more care.

 

Should they be more like Bachmann and take the time to get things right? 

[locoman462]

Picked up my Tango 63982 last week from Hattons and was therefore able to request sight and testing of two models. Both locos showed no sign of any damage whatsoever and after

test running both decided that there was nothing to choose between the two, settled on the first example. To date, after running in on my rolling road followed by continual

running with a twenty five wagon load on the club layout, can declare myself very happy with the loco. I appreciate that I am fortunate in being only 10 minutes drive from

Hattons, thus giving me the opportunity to inspect before buying but question if the type of packing used is up to the journey half way around the world to be followed by

further journeys either within the UK or across the globe to destinations as far away again.

[APOLLO]

Having read these posts I have just checked mine, which arrived last Friday. (Next weeks birthday pres from Mrs !!).

 

On opening the box the rear tender handrail was loose, touch fiddly but soon back on. I've fitted both tension lock couplings, again fiddly to remove existing screw link ones. It runs superb, hauling 20 odd wagons with no sign of slip on my high level goods lines (where it will live) however it shows a tendency to derail (front driver) on a particular peco 100 LH curved point. I have had trouble with this particular point before, so I don't suspect the loco. It also runs / hauls superb tender first over all points so it will be on the layout this way round till I find time to replace the point (thankfully easy to get at).

 

Overall pleased, a nice looker / runner but somehow it looks / feels a little "flimsy" when alongside similar Bachman / Hornby 2-8-0 locos.- though it hauls better than most of them (Baccy 9F excepted). Certainly not worth full RRP at £185 - a bargain though at £89.

 

Points score - 9/10

 

Brit15

Edited May 31, 2018 by APOLLO