A Nod To Brent - a friendly thread, filled with frivolity, cream teas and pasties. Longing for the happy days in the South Hams 1947.

[Captain Kernow]

1 hour ago, gwrrob said:

Right, what have I missed.......

I know it's your thread, Robin, but please, don't you start as well... ☹️

[GMKAT7]

Good evening gwrrob,

 

Now that this lunchtime has given us something we didn't want and can't use, perhaps Friday will give us something we do want and will like/buy?

 

Or, to add to the Captain's disappointment, it will be Chigley's turn 🙄

Or, the Magic Roundabout train?

 

Cheers, Nigel.

[Kevin Johnson]

On 15/09/2024 at 14:03, gwrrob said:

Seen before, it's the autumn of 1957 as black pannier 16xx class , 1608 heads bunker first west with a coal train comprising of Bachmann 16T mineral wagons. This is the Model Rail/Rapido model which I still think is available.

 

 

 

Lovely shots Robin. I do like the black pannier.

[gwrrob]

44 minutes ago, Kevin Johnson said:

Lovely shots Robin. I do like the black pannier.

 

Thanks, it the most liked photo [ of mine] of the year.

[gwrrob]

Interesting…

 

[Tim Dubya]

34 minutes ago, gwrrob said:

Interesting…

 

 

Yes, but they won't be getting any of my folding.  So near, yet so far 😞

[Miss Prism]

Very generous 3rd class compartments!

[Skinnylinny]

1 hour ago, Miss Prism said:

Very generous 3rd class compartments!

Really? Certainly for 48' stock, the LSWR, Midland, LB&SCR, and many others seemed to think that eight third-class compartments was the right number...

[Miss Prism]

Hmmm, maybe the quarterlights are too narrow!

 

[Mikkel]

Interesting to see a modern version of the Triang coaches.

 

For GWR, I don't understand the roof vents - or lamp tops. Why not leave them off, as has mostly been done on the GCR variants.

 

Edited 12 hours ago by Mikkel
Elaboration

[Andy Keane]

Well a four pack of the Hattons version are now doing rather well on eBay: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/226359119322

There is clearly a market for these types of coaches.

[gwrrob]

An excellent video here from @That Model Railway Guy with all things Rapido @rapidoandy 

 

 

[Mikkel]

28 days!

[mattingleycustom]

The generic coach is a real oddity to me. Locos and wagons are increasingly prototypical, but when it come to coaches; particularly pre-Grouping coaches, it's a case of near-enough will do.

 

... and where's my bl**dy U Class?

 

Glenn 🤪

 

 

[gwrrob]

Rapido do read this thread , so feedback is welcome I'm sure. The success of the Evolution coach might yield something for us long term.

[GMKAT7]

Good afternoon folks,

 

Nobody is forcing anyone to buy the generic coaches.

 

Dapol have produced the Mainline & City Toplights, EFE the LSWR cross-country sets, Rapido the B Sets, etc.

Plus all the other WR and SR coaches produced by Bachmann and Hornby.

 

Dapol may well go on to produce the 'mainline ' Toplights.

So, for those of us who cannot paint and line pre-grouping coaching stock these generics are the next best option.

 

Plus, Rapidoex is still to happen, so you may get your bl00dy U class after all.

If it lands I will be buying one 😀

 

Cheers, Nigel.

Edited 9 hours ago by GMKAT7
Spelling!

[Dunsignalling]

57 minutes ago, gwrrob said:

Rapido do read this thread , so feedback is welcome I'm sure. The success of the Evolution coach might yield something for us long term.

I too think it's a "chicken and egg" thing.

 

Manufacturers (not just Rapido) don't consider there to be a big enough following for individual pre-group railways to generate sufficient sales of fully prototypical coach models in r-t-r form. 

 

Hatton's proved there is a viable market for the nearly right ("prototypically literate" sums it up so much better) across a wide spectrum, and Rapido are just extrapolating from that point aiming at the substantial sector of the hobby that (rightly or wrongly) places greater importance on locomotives than on carriages. 

 

Thing is, though, if the generics lead to a growth in the number of modellers following the pre-group scene, it might lead, in time, to a change of opinion on the commercial viability of at least some prototypical stock.

 

Perhaps we should think of the Hatton's Genesis and Rapido Evolution ranges as "seed corn".  

 

Those who won't touch today's well-thought-out generics with the proverbial barge pole rather than treating them as useful place-holders may therefore not be doing their own future hopes any favours. 

 

John

Edited 9 hours ago by Dunsignalling
Addition (in italics)

[Tim Dubya]

1 hour ago, mattingleycustom said:

The generic coach is a real oddity to me. Locos and wagons are increasingly prototypical, but when it come to coaches; particularly pre-Grouping coaches, it's a case of near-enough will do.

 

... and where's my bl**dy U Class?

 

Glenn 🤪

 

 

 

and mine!

 

I am a little baffled about these tbh.  I'm not sure if it bodes well for prototypical/99.9% accurate rolling stock for the future.  Why bother if people just want (expensive) fantasy/toy models 🤔

 

...... where's my G6!

 

 

 

and LSWR Corridors 🤫

 

[GMKAT7]

Good evening Tim,

 

Wills/SEFinecast and Roxey Mouldings to the rescue in that case.

 

Cheers, Nigel.

[Penrhos1920]

1 hour ago, Dunsignalling said:

Hatton's proved there is a viable market for the nearly right ("prototypically literate" sums it up so much better) across a wide spectrum, and Rapido are just extrapolating from that point aiming at the substantial sector of the hobby that (rightly or wrongly) places greater importance on locomotives than on carriages. 

 

Thing is, though, if the generics lead to a growth in the number of modellers following the pre-group scene, it might lead, in time, to a change of opinion on the commercial viability of at least some prototypical stock.

 

Perhaps we should think of the Hatton's Genesis and Rapido Evolution ranges as "seed corn".  

 

 

But without knowing exactly how many of each design Hattons sold no one is going to be certain that the market does or doesn’t exist for a similar prototypical coach.  So unless some millionaire enthusiast decides to commercialise a few of Dean’s coaches in OO we’re no closer to getting them.

[Tim Dubya]

1 hour ago, GMKAT7 said:

Good evening Tim,

 

Wills/SEFinecast and Roxey Mouldings to the rescue in that case.

 

Cheers, Nigel.

 

Yes indeed, I have the Roxey kits in stock already.  The G6 @ £49:99 (ex chassis) from Squires is tempting too 🤔

 

Talking of which, would anyone know what the modern equivalent of a "Dublo 0-6-0 chassis" would be?

 

[Dunsignalling]

34 minutes ago, Penrhos1920 said:

But without knowing exactly how many of each design Hattons sold no one is going to be certain that the market does or doesn’t exist for a similar prototypical coach.  So unless some millionaire enthusiast decides to commercialise a few of Dean’s coaches in OO we’re no closer to getting them.

 

Agreed, but just because "we" don't know doesn't mean that nobody does. Don't forget that the guy who developed the concept for Hatton's now works for Rapido.

 

Clearly the people whose money is at risk consider that fully prototypical pre-group coaches from a single railway currently remain non-starters and that's all that really counts.

 

The only answer is to get many more people interested in modelling the period, and the generic stuff is one way of attempting that. Problem is, as it always has been, that "pre-grouping" is a very broad umbrella grouping involving getting on for a couple of dozen companies, with potential customers spread not only between them, but also divided between sub periods such as Victorian, Edwardian, and post-WW1. 

 

Unless the potential customer base grows massively or somebody can come up with a much cheaper way of producing high quality r-t-r models in relatively small quantities, it's a problem that we're, in all probability, stuck with.

 

 

 

[Dunsignalling]

34 minutes ago, Tim Dubya said:

 

Yes indeed, I have the Roxey kits in stock already.  The G6 @ £49:99 (ex chassis) from Squires is tempting too 🤔

 

Talking of which, would anyone know what the modern equivalent of a "Dublo 0-6-0 chassis" would be?

 

There's almost certainly no direct equivalent, but a Bachmann Jinty would be the first thing I'd run a ruler over. Modern r-t-r loco chassis tend to be fractionally wider than old ones, though, which might be an issue. 

 

I presume that Squires also took over the SEF range of chassis kits, which include one designed to fit any body kit made to accept the Dublo mechanism. That's what will go under mine when I finally find the time to finish it....

Edited 6 hours ago by Dunsignalling

[Fair Oak Junction]

@Dunsignalling has summed up the issues very well. Coaches are very expensive to produce, and are already pushing the upper limit of what a lot of people are prepared to pay. Love them or hate them, generics are the best way of maximising reach and profit. There is a myriad of pre-grouping liveries and detail differences so if we want nothing but fully accurate models then we are going to be waiting a long time! It would take many years and an awful lot of investment to produce even a quarter of the companies and coach types that people want.

 

Would I love some properly accurate Midland clerestories? Absolutely! But I could be waiting an age for anyone to do them, and I have neither the skills or desire to kitbuild. So I will happily buy the Midland generics Rapido have just announced and I'll love seeing them sat behind my Bachmann Compound 1000.

Edited 6 hours ago by Fair Oak Junction

[County of Yorkshire]

Not a fan of pastiche model rolling stock, but good luck to those that are. 
 

I do think it hobbles any business case for prototypical RTR stock of similar vintage and appearance. Though so long as Dapol’s corridor GWR toplights see the light of day, that’s ok with me! 
 

The psychology is interesting. We don’t see pastiche locos and wagons, so why coaches? Why are they seen as more acceptable?