Quote from: Jacob Wilson on February 07, 2016, 03:52:33 AM
^ Above 1 Reply - @Reply #284 By AW98Productions: Pinchy won't make the cost of Diesel 10 sky high. All they need too do, is make Pinchy out a piece of moulded plastic, not something that moves around. All Bachmann need to do is go off the basis of what ERTL did when they released Diesel 10. The not difference is, is that Pinchy will need to be bigger to suit HO Gauge scale better, than ERTL's toy.

It won't be astronomically high, yes. But he still wouldn't be a cheap model, I imagine.

~Alex

Quote from: Jacob Wilson on February 05, 2016, 07:32:21 PM
^ Above 1 Reply - @Reply #268 By Chaz: If we think about it though, OO Gauge and HO Gauge are not massively tall gauges, and I find there is some gap between the top of the Locomotive and the bridge, tunnel or shed. HO Gauge is slightly less tall than OO Gauge, so a HO Gauge Diesel 10 may just fit underneath OO Gauge tunnels or sheds, or through bridges; Providing that Pinchy is not too tall!

I do not have problems of tunnels, bridges or sheds too worry about my layout, as I do not have these on my layout, as my layout is to small to accommodate this kind of detail . I do think though that if Bachmann did release Diesel 10, he would be popular and make Bachmann a lot of money!

I disagree, because of the design of such a great lumbering claw on top of the character's head, that's going to drive up production costs, straight off the bat; infinitely more so if it moves, which I believe children could easily get bored with if it didn't. But then I imagine it would be complex to mount onto the body of Diesel 10, and would be very easily breakable. Then there's the problem with the claw throwing him off gauge, badly. This is a non-issue for some people, yes. But to those who have layouts with HO/OO bridges (even footbridges over platforms would be an issue!) and tunnels, these people whom collect Bachmann products, are faced with a problem, it is inconvenient to purchase this engine that can barely be used on their layout. If Bachmann did make such a decision, I cannot describe how daft I think it would be, but for comparisons sake, here is a sports metaphor:
It's like acquiring the soccer ball during your game (or football if you prefer), then turning around, and kicking it into your own goal, y'know...the one you're supposed to defend. I think, Diesel 10 would have the opposite effect, and can only lose Bachmann inordinate sums of money for little success in return. Also, there is such little difference between the gauges of HO and OO, I doubt a HO Diesel 10 could even fit under a OO bridge or tunnel (same applies to Harvey, but let's keep him out of this for now).

Quote from: Chaz on February 06, 2016, 01:35:47 PM
I honestly don't understand the obsession behind Rosie or Stanley in the Thomas fanbase.  The two of them are blank slates, and there is nothing really that spectacular about either of them that makes them stand out, apart from their designs which is what makes them popular in the toy department.

The obsession with these two characters, from my perspective is that the obsession can only created out of their unique designs and liveries, Stanley I guess had an interesting enough introduction (despite my personal thoughts on "The Great Discovery", I can't deny that it was interesting). Personally, I don't care about Rosie as a character, but I would like a model, so I guess the marketing team has struck again. But I recognise that as a model, she'll never be released by Bachmann for the foreseeable future, because...

Quote from: Chaz on February 06, 2016, 01:35:47 PM
Their [Rosie and Stanley's] roles have been minimal on the show because the writers don't have a lot they can draw back on for them, so I would be shocked if either of them were to get anything more than their background usage or a speaking role at this point.

Bachmann cares more about characters that can give them strong sales and these two don't feel like big hits that they would be looking for.  I would think characters like Paxton or Daisy would make more sense because they have a stronger demand and Daisy fits the classic character trend in CGI, and Paxton would be a lot easier for Bachmann to make.  I think some people on this forum are either blind to to the fact that there is nothing in Rosie or Stanley's "potential", or they choose to be simply because of the following both of these two have in the fandom.  The two may have their place in toy ranges like wooden railway or take n play, but I honestly don't see a place for them in Bachmann.

I can't put that any better than Chaz already has. They are just blank slates of characters with little to no personality, but endlessly marketable designs and unique liveries.

Each is slightly different in their obvious marketable pandering, but there is a common issue. The issue here is that these 2 characters suffer from...Season 9-16 (and the specials between) syndrome, having unique designs and liveries, but little to no personality, existing purely to sell toys, and that's easy enough to tell, they have as much character than the Horrid Lorries from Season 5! And the Horrid Lorries all had the same basic personality, all 3 of them, and only appeared in their one episode, and never again, an episode that, once opening and ending credits are taken out of the picture, lasts 4 and a half minutes! Just 4 and a half minutes versus an entire special? And a few episodes that lasted...for over 6 minutes even without credits.

The problem with these characters, is that they aren't popular enough among the older fanbase to sell well in HO/OO, which, by numbers, has a larger older fanbase than the likes of say....Trackmaster and Wooden Railway. This becomes a problem, in that they don't appeal highly enough to the mature fanbase, but as HO/OO models, not toys, but models, means that it would be a high cost for parents to buy for their kids anyway, and let's face it, kids collecting the range are probably going to focus more on the main character by default, there will be exceptions, but really these two characters only exist to sell toys in other ranges, this doesn't translate across to HO/OO well, as these are models, not toys, they would be expensive to produce and wouldn't win over the hearts and minds of either younger or older demographic enough to be a viable investment for Bachmann, better than the likes of some other characters, but I'd say that a large engine like Hiro has a better chance, because (despite his large design creating high manufacturing costs), he has more of a following in both demographics Bachmann needs to appeal to. Not to mention he actually has more personality than those 2 blatant marketing scams disguised as characters that I mentioned earlier. These 2 characters need a drastic personality turn around and a lot of screentime for these issues to be fixed, in my opinion.

And finally, Harvey, Diesel 10, Rosie, Stanley, Marion and Belle, are, when it comes down to it; very gimmicking, for the sake of selling toys. But as we know, toys does not translate to models, Bachmann would financially bankrupt themselves if they tried to mimic Leaning Curve's release schedule and range.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand, next year for HO, I don't know what to expect. Maybe a new wagon or two, but that would be all I'm expecting, along with Oliver and Toad. For Large Scale, I only expect Winston. For Narrow Gauge: I expect Rheneas as our next engine, for rolling stock I don't know entirely what to expect, but I'm hoping for the Brown Brakevan, a Blue Brakevan (which is just a repaint of the brown one, so...twins philosophy I guess), and the Blue and White Coaches, but again, those are my hopes, not what I entirely predict, I don't entirely know what to expect.

~Alex

Quote from: SeaEagle on February 04, 2016, 01:11:37 AM
Cheers for the welcome Alex, didn't think there'd be many Australian's here but good to know. I don't have either of those loco's yet, and yes, as you suggested they're about $600 a pop!! A company called Eureka Models seems to make them but they seem to only do limited runs of them based on demand. You're right, Australian models get almost zero exposure overseas so there will never be great demand for them, hence the higher price. Those models look quality though.

If you're interested, there's a documentary called Pure Steam. I had it on video when I was a kid and watched it to death. It's about the 3801 and R761 touring together in 1988 for our Bicentenary, the Flying Scotsman is in there too and that's why they're my 3 favourite 'big' loco's. It's on DVD too, I found it at an ABC shop. It's called 'The Flying Scotsman Down Under'. The link to Pure Steam is below, Mr. Bob you might enjoy it too.

Also, where do you buy your Bachmann Thomas stuff here? I find it hard to come by, and eBay prices are going up as our dollar goes down  

https://youtu.be/1TXp0SV2JII

Hi James,

I usually bought from a local hobby stores (when I first started collecting I was in Canberra, but usually got something from stores in Sydney when visiting family (but it was usually all Hornby and from Hobbyco, once a cousin found a store in Sydney that stocked Bachmann Thomas but I have since forgotten its name), I now live in WA, but I haven't bought anything in a while, I drifted away from the hobby a while ago, and it took me a little while to drift back in, now that I have, I've wanted to get some circa 1950 BR stuff. I used to buy online, especially when the US dollar was beneath the AUS dollar a few years ago. My family visited the US during that time period too, I got a Bachmann Diesel and an Ice Cream Van in New York City they were very cheap. Train shows are always a good place to attend to, I managed to pick up a barely used Hornby 9F with a friend for only $60.00AUS each. He is very proud of our little 9F, I think we should nickname her [the 9F], but I'm unsure of what

And thank you for the documentary and the name of the company, I expected expensive, but around $500AUS, oh well, I guess I'll have the money one day, something gives me the feeling those 2 engines would look good with some BR (ex-LNER) Crimson and Cream Gresley corridor express coaches, or BR MKI Maroon Coaches, ah the possibilities.

Those 3 are some of my favourite loco's, Flying Scotsman is after all, the engine that brought me into liking real life engines more and more,there are plenty of other loco's I love though. But I feel if I go on much longer I'll drift a little too far from the topic at hand, I could always PM you later about it I guess

So, BOT (Back On Topic), fantastic models, Mr.Bob and James, I'm sure you'll get the hang of quoting soon. Anyway, regards all,

~Alex

Quote from: Jacob Wilson on February 03, 2016, 06:24:12 PM
^ Above 1 Reply - @Reply #24 By Rickenbacker 325: The Hornby Thomas face looks better and looks more like Thomas than the Bachmann Thomas face does. I am not trying to offend anybody, or compare the two Locomotives as both have advantages and disadvantages. It's just that the Hornby face does look nicer, sort of more happier and it displays Thomas' well-known cheeky smile!

Just because it more closely resembles what was seen in some seasons of the TV Series, does not make it "better", as such.

As Rickenbacker 325 said:

Quote from: Rickenbacker 325 on February 03, 2016, 07:04:03 PM
Like I said peoples opinions will differ.

~Alex

Thank you very much for the information, Mr.Bob, and models of UK engines, be it through Bachmann or Hornby's respective OO ranges are quite easy to come by, easier in fact, than models of Australian engines. I think I read somewhere that Australia is Bachmann UK's and Hornby's largest consumer outside of Britain and the US.

Ah, I didn't realise they were one window shorter in the CGI seasons, but as you said it's a hard kit, I feel I'd start somewhere else, maybe something easier. I have a mate who used a Ratio kit to create a good looking pair of "the Old Coaches" from Season 1, with the main assembly he did not seem to have much of an issue.

Quote from: SeaEagle on February 03, 2016, 02:46:12 AM
I plan to collect some non Thomas locos as well, aleady have a Flying Scotsman, got that when I was a kid. But I love those BR Prairie tanks so I'll get one of those and a standard pannier tank as well for starters. It should all fit with the Thomas stuff contextually, my layout will be small town/countryside Britain circa 1930's/40's. The only departure from that will be two great Australian loco's (I'm Aussie): The 3801 and the Hudson R761.  Hopefully two main lines for parallel runs and a branch line for the smaller engines with fiddle yard for the shunters.

SeaEagle, I haven't seen either of those loco's selling for anything resembling a reasonable price, did you manage to get them for a reasonable price? And also, what company produces them? Sorry for the questions, I am just rather curious about those 2 engines. I must admit, I've taken a brief pause from my Thomas collection to build up a collection of circa BR engines, but I intend to return to the Thomas collection as soon as possible, but I have digressed way too far.

Thank you for all your help, Mr.Bob, and best of luck in your endeavors, SeaEagle,
~Alex

Mr. Bob, if you don't mind me asking, how did you model Gresley's (somewhat) famous "hush hush" W1 class? I know a person who has considered that projects, and whilst I don't have the confidence to undertake it right now, I'd love take a crack at it myself in the future. You did an amazing job on it

Also, totally unrelated but I'm glad to see another Australian on the board, this is probably long overdue, but welcome, SeaEagle

One last remark, to anyone who seeks to run Red Coaches more accurate to those in Seasons 2 and 3, have you considered repainting the roofs and the coaches, and "filling in" the back windows, or by that point is it just better to use a kit to make them?

Regards to all,

~Alex

Quote from: Jacob Wilson on January 26, 2016, 01:15:56 PM
I guess it is a China Clay Wagon, but Bachmann have called it an Open Wagon. This is supposed to be an ordinary Open Wagon for the Narrow Gauge range. Myself and I think others are talking about Bachmann releasing a China Clay Wagon, that is for the standard HO range.

That's exactly the range ClrwtrMk2 meant though...he's saying that the Open Wagon and Box Vans from these Narrow Gauge wagons should be "scaled up" as it were, so that they are the size of standard gauge wagons, and can be used with the HO engines like Thomas, Percy and Duck. It would be the same tooling, just bigger, big enough to run on HO/OO track, and would be scale accurate with the HO engines.

~Alex

Quote from: Titanic5972 on January 24, 2016, 12:30:00 AM
Do the red Branchline coaches have interior mouldings? And Annie and Clarabel for that matter?

By interior mouldings, do you mean things like chairs and tables etc? Because I don't think the models by Bachmann have these, nor do I think the models from the early TV Series had them.

~Alex

Quote from: UPTODAY on January 23, 2016, 03:14:41 PM
THANK YOU ALEX!!!took out that spring and my new acquisition,James,made six laps around the main line with no derailments!!!!!
HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY!!!!!!
UPTODAY

Glad to hear it worked then, best of luck with your other engines

Quote from: Titanic5972 on January 23, 2016, 09:05:27 PM
I'm planning repainting the red coaches to something closer to what was in the original tv series, more of a mix between BR Bauxite Brown and GWR Indian Red. They look far too bright for my liking.

Dont forget the light grey (or gray if you prefer) roofs of the coaches.

Also to me in some light, those coaches look a BR Crimson colour...but it depends on the lighting of the shot, as in others they look a bit darker, and I'm assuming they are a little darker too.

Anyway, best of luck, and please post pictures if you can

~Alex

I imagine the spring was fitted to prevent the front bogey from moving too freely, worrying it could "flop around" as such and break. Edward, Henry, Gordon and Spencer don't have this feature though, I imagine Bachmann decided to strengthen the drawbars that hold in the bogeys instead of using a spring to hold the bogeys in place.

I feel this has strayed a little from this topic's intended course, anyone else have any new acquisitions to speak of?

~Alex

Quote from: UPTODAY on January 23, 2016, 01:50:15 PM
Hi,everyone,still thinking on the James front truck derailment,probably better look back in the previous threads.
PERPLEXED IN PORTLAND,
UPTODAY

I think I can assist here, I have a friend who has a Bachmann James. In James's front bogey, there's a spring underneath the screw that holds the bogey in place, unscrew the bogey completely, remove the spring and then re-screw the bogey back in place. The bogey itself should now move much more freely, provided the screw has not been over-tightened. This should solve the derailing problem.

Best of luck,
~Alex

Breaking off of detail would depend on the person, not what developmental conditions they may or may not have. For example: I personally have high functioning autism, most of my engines are in pristine condition and I have never broken off any details myself...apart from when my Bachmann Thomas' motor burned out and I stripped the body for parts in case I needed spares in the future.

I understand not all people are the same though, and also the type of autism has a large affect, be it low functioning or high functioning autism.

Anyway...short answer:
Thomas loco's by Bachmann: not DCC equipped already.
Bachmann Junior range (Bachmann UK): DCC/DCC ready.

Enjoy the hobby
~Alex

To my knowledge, the Skarloey Railway has no equivalent of the GVT Coach (which is part of why I hope Bachmann may make their own coach tooling next year). But I suppose beggers can't be choosers. Still, thank you for sharing the picture of the real life GVT Coach and some of your knowledge there, Sparks

On a side note I find that the GVT Coach really sticks out from the other Talyllyn Railway Coaches (probably the different livery and smaller size), it actually looks quite charming in amongst the other coaches

~Alex

Quote from: Sparks on January 04, 2016, 12:43:31 PM
I think for coaches, it will boil down to either Bachmann repainting Pecos 4-wheel GVT coaches, or the possibility of them making Talyllyn coaches that they can repaint into Thomas coaches too. Time will tell on that matter, since a lot of people speculate Skarloey is going to be retooled into a Talyllyn model.

Whilst I unfortunately think you could be right about the Peco GVT 4 Wheel Coaches being repainted there Sparks, I personally would love it if Bachmann made their own tooling for the Skarloey Railway Coaches, which could then be retooled into Talyllyn Railway Coaches. But you are correct, only time will tell.

~Alex

Quote from: Jacob Wilson on January 04, 2016, 11:38:10 AM
Did I get that right then Alex, of why we have to be careful of what we post as Members on the Bachmann Trains Forum?

That's the part I was specifically referring to specifically, so yes. That's at least part of why we must be careful (I think). After all, producers sometimes feel like their consumers can reflect the producer themselves, for better or for worse, but I sense we have gone off-topic here, so I'll just leave it at that for now, and continue to imagine the potentially glorius future of Bachmann's Narrow Gauge range (I mean, I will be one extremely happy fan if the Blue and White Coaches are released, along with a matching Blue Brake van of course).

~Alex