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43 Posts
As everyone knows, Hornby aquired the old Lima range a couple of years ago & has steadily been re-introducing some of the models back into the market. However, whilst Hornby are producing such quality products like the T9, Class 60, Class 56 etc etc, why have they failed to really do any improvements to the ex-lima range (except fitting new motors) ?
For Instance :
The Class 101 - big front couplers, tan coloured interiors for all livery's, painted marker lights (Lima's were clear & more realistic) etc etc..
The Class 20 - Oh dear, I was waiting for this one but they have fitted small buffers, moulded windscreen wipers and there are no add on detailing parts supplied such as headcode discs like you got with the Lima ones.
Imagine a Class 101 built to the same standards as the Bachmann 108? It would sell by the shedfull and be a very welcome addition. Now I know this would mean a complete re-tooling but surely they could have improved the former Lima tooling instead of just producing the basic model that they are at the moment. What about lights for instance?
The Class 20 again is a model with a lot of potential (Lima's bodyshell was reasonably good), with some real improvements such as seperate wipers, proper sized buffers & some add on detailing parts would have increased the appeal of this model.
What I'm really trying to say is that a lot more could have been done with these models and also the others that they have reproduced (Class 59, 73 etc), rather than just the same as we had from Lima, bar a new motor & a better paint job!
Simply re-producing old Lima stuff is all very well but stick it in the Railroad range instead of charging the prices they do as they really do need a bit of work to make them look ok against the newer, better models of today.
Guess we have been spoilt though in the last couple of years - 10 years ago all my models were Lima & I was perfectly happy with them, even if I couldnt hear myself think when they were running......!
For Instance :
The Class 101 - big front couplers, tan coloured interiors for all livery's, painted marker lights (Lima's were clear & more realistic) etc etc..
The Class 20 - Oh dear, I was waiting for this one but they have fitted small buffers, moulded windscreen wipers and there are no add on detailing parts supplied such as headcode discs like you got with the Lima ones.
Imagine a Class 101 built to the same standards as the Bachmann 108? It would sell by the shedfull and be a very welcome addition. Now I know this would mean a complete re-tooling but surely they could have improved the former Lima tooling instead of just producing the basic model that they are at the moment. What about lights for instance?
The Class 20 again is a model with a lot of potential (Lima's bodyshell was reasonably good), with some real improvements such as seperate wipers, proper sized buffers & some add on detailing parts would have increased the appeal of this model.
What I'm really trying to say is that a lot more could have been done with these models and also the others that they have reproduced (Class 59, 73 etc), rather than just the same as we had from Lima, bar a new motor & a better paint job!
Simply re-producing old Lima stuff is all very well but stick it in the Railroad range instead of charging the prices they do as they really do need a bit of work to make them look ok against the newer, better models of today.
Guess we have been spoilt though in the last couple of years - 10 years ago all my models were Lima & I was perfectly happy with them, even if I couldnt hear myself think when they were running......!
