Raft of new releases from Roco

QUOTE (simonj @ 12 Oct 2007, 19:27) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Some MAY be re-releases but its a good sign they are back on their feet.
Hello Simon,

Some are definitely re-releases, but I agree absolutely with you! Hooray!! Now that they are acknowledging that N exists again I am sure things can only get better! I think 2008 looks to be a good year now that we have re-Arnold, Fleischmann, Hobbytrain, Minitrix and Roco alive and producing. The 'big five' you could say! (as Arnold bought Minitrain and I am including European Kato and the rest of Lemke Collection in with Hobbytrain) I wonder what people think:

1. What are modellers looking forward to the near future?
2. What have they enjoyed most this year?
3. Is the future bright for European N?
4. What would they most like to see next year?

In my opinion:

1. The Hobbytrain SBB IC2000 double-deckers and articulated container transport wagons for starters...
2. THe Minitrix Transalpin Freight Set - absolutely brilliant models at brilliant prices!! The return of the Roco ÖBB Eurofimas in current livery too.
3. Very very bright.
4. I would like a model of any of these:


SBB ICN (RABDe500) tilting train, a spendid train and perfect for swishing through the Swiss valleys.


ÖBB 1216, also in different liveries like of the RTS company (although perhaps it is a bit soon for more Taurus shaped models??!!)


ÖBB 4010, a delightful train to travel on with a comfortable ride, and has/had some excellent liveries.


ÖBB 1012, as sophisticated as the Re 460 of the SBB and just as capable...but alas more expensive than a Taurus! (Trix did a model in H0 this year...so I cross my fingers a lot for this model...it would look perfect pulling my Rollende Landstraße!)

I also got part of the Minitrix DB wagon set from a local dealer. That set has only 5 different types so I bought three of them although the Alpine set seems to have a better selection/more attractive designs.

Are you aware there is a series on the Travel Channel (Sky 261) called "Swiss Railway Journeys". Next episode is on Sunday, also Thursdays.

http://www.travelchannel.co.uk/ontv/uksche...?day=14/10/2007

"The Engadine Line
More journeys along the picturesque railway lines of Switzerland. On this journey we take the Rhaetian Railway along the beautiful Engadine Valley from the world famous resort of St Moritz to the spa town of Scuol. We visit the old town of Zuoz the former capital of the Upper Engadine and delight in the picturesque little village of Guarda. Journey's end is at Scuol with its curative springs which have attracted bathers for well over a century."

http://www.travelchannel.co.uk/ontv/uksche...?day=18/10/2007

"The Gotthard Line North
Until the advent of railway engineering in the 1880's it was impossible for travellers to cross the Alpine backbone from Northern Europe to Italy during winter. Now we can see the route in its entirety and the dramatic scenery from the heart of the Confederation to the Mediterranean in the south. We also learn the origins of the Swiss Army Knife."

Which leads me to the questions:

"How come there is no decent model of the SBB Re 4/4'' or ''' with two electrical pickups and "boxy" headlights in N scale? Why is there no decent N model of the Ae 6/6, only the vintage Minitrix clinker with the black windows?"

And the Hobbytrain Re 6/6 seems a bit doubtful, too.

QUOTE (ME 26-06 @ 13 Oct 2007, 10:45) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Which leads me to the questions:

"How come there is no decent model of the SBB Re 4/4'' or ''' with two electrical pickups and "boxy" headlights in N scale? Why is there no decent N model of the Ae 6/6, only the vintage Minitrix clinker with the black windows?"

And the Hobbytrain Re 6/6 seems a bit doubtful, too.
Hehe! These are good points...I think there is an Re 4/4 from Minitrix, Fleischmann and Arnold and you would think that one of them was a decent model. I have never been captivated by the Re 4/4 for some reason and so only have one model myself (shocking for a so-called SBB modeller?!) of it in the Swiss Express livery, and quite an old model - Minitrix 51 2976 00:


http://www.modellbahn-spur-n.de/

I do however have five Re 460s! This makes up some ground... I do however have the Ae 6/6 'clinker' of which you speak, but only because it came with three Minitrix EC coaches in an eBay auction lot - it was well used by the original owner and takes about ten minutes of running to work properly, and this was after a good clean...a sufficient standard model to sit on a siding or at the roundhouse I think since it only me cost about £8! The red versions seem to go for lots of money on eBay (in the UK) for an externally unchanged model, even if the mechanism is better inside on newer ones...I wonder why?


http://www.spurweite-n.de/ A suitably bad picture!

If one wants a very very good model then I suspect it is to Lemaco one must turn:

http://www.spurweite-n.de/

Goedel

QUOTE (ME 26-06 @ 13 Oct 2007, 10:45) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Which leads me to the questions:

"How come there is no decent model of the SBB Re 4/4'' or ''' with two electrical pickups and "boxy" headlights in N scale? Why is there no decent N model of the Ae 6/6, only the vintage Minitrix clinker with the black windows?"

And the Hobbytrain Re 6/6 seems a bit doubtful, too.

Whats wrong with the Fleischmann version of the Re 4/4?

QUOTE (simonj @ 14 Oct 2007, 01:21) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Whats wrong with the Fleischmann version of the Re 4/4? ...

When you look at the real thing, or even a picture of a HAG HO offering (I have it myself, but am too lazy to make a photo, so I snagged this one from www.zuba-tech.ch):



I´d say, the answer to your question is "everything but the chassis and drivetrain).

(please note that initially, these engines featured halogen headlights, but no grabirons on the front left side)

QUOTE (simonj @ 14 Oct 2007, 00:21) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>Whats wrong with the Fleischmann version of the Re 4/4?
I've been looking into this, and remembered a dicussion about comparing the three makers' models on another website. This appears to be a good summary:

QUOTE (Yahoo Group: Euro-N (topic beginning message 58))When the Fleischmann model was introduced several years ago I asked myself the same question and came up with the following information :-

The Minitrix models are based on either the 1967-68 locos or the 1972-75 Swiss Express locos. According to the drawings in the "SBB Lokomotiven und Triebwagen" both series have bodies of a similar length but with underframes of different lengths. The 1967-68 locos have an underframe length (excluding buffers) of 13600 mm whilst the Swiss Express locos are 14110 mm. This gives the characteristic "overhang" noticeable on Swiss Express locos.

The Fleischmann model is of the 1969-85 series of locos. These have an underframe length of 14110 mm (same as Swiss Express locos). The bodies appear to have started life with the same basic dimensions as the earlier series of locos but the cab fronts have been "stretched " at their bottoms to cover the longer underframes. This results in the less steep appearance mentioned by Markus.

I should point out that as the bogies and bogie centreline measurements are the same for all Re4/4 ll/lll's they do not have an effect on the appearance of the loco.

Taking the Fleischmann/Minitrix comparison beyond just a visual one I also came across an interesting table in which the author also included the Arnold version. He compared and ranked them for the following attributes:-

Appearance....Running qualities....Scale dimensions....Price.

In order of the above the results were:-

Arnold....Room for improvement....acceptable....good....good.
Minitrix....good....good....good....good.
Fleischmann....excellent....excellent....good....excellent.

Based on my experiences with these models I tend to agree with this persons findings.
and

QUOTE (Yahoo Group: Euro-N (topic beginning message 58))The Fleischmann Model is to wide! The underlaying mechanic is borrowed
from a german loco.

One point for the arnoldmodell: there are more than 15 modells produced
(like painted as EBT, RM, SOB, MThB, SBB-Red, SBB->TEE, SBB->Bourret,
SBB-Green, SBB-Green with emblem Porrentruy and more....)

No other manufacturer has such a variety of Re 4/4''/Re 4/4''' Variants
produced!
The conclusion is that Fleischmann make the best all round model, but Arnold produce an incredible range of variants!

First up I agree with Goedel on looking forward to the IC2000 double decker carriages but whether or not that is near future seems to be anyone's guess; they were supposed to be out in 2006 originally. Does anyone know what factors brought the very long delay in these appearing in production?

I would also love to see the RABDe 500 tiliting train but I'm not holding my breath as the CISALPINO ETR470 never made it into N. Perhaps a CISALPINO Re484 with a set of EWIV coaches from someone - not Wabu as they are out of my price league

A revamp of the classic Swiss locos would be good I'm sure. I do not have an Ae6/6 as they do come across as below par although I am perhaps not as downbeat about the Re4/4 s currently out there. I have one from Arnold which is a very neat model and good runner (I think they may have had more than one version as opposed to paint schemes with later ones rather better) although the one I have is the same running number (11178) as the current Fleischmann offering in SBB red (7344). The Minitrix earlier Re4/4" in green is nothing special perhaps and does look a bit dated. How good is the one in Re420 guise in the new BLS set?

A revised BLS Re4/4 would be great - only the Arnold one around second hand (170) and any minor variations attracting big money (only ever seen one and it went for over £200 on e-bay). KATO/Hobbytrain did the BLS Ae4/4 and Ae8/8 but not the more common Re4/4 sadly. The new Hobbytrain Re6/6s are also a good model imho. Minitrix appear to have stopped producing the variety of Re460/465s although again KATO appear to be ticking over in that area.

Is it fair therefore to compare models from the likes of HAG, Lemaco and Fulgurex to the big 5? Much more exclusive and costly and therefore should be a better standard perhaps. Linking to the other thread about Wabu I, like Goedel again, would love to see somone completing the "package" with baggage cars and driving trailers both SBB and BLS. The price they fetch certainly suggests a market out there but what size take up makes it economical for a company to do a new model? Are Swiss models in sufficient demand across the main market which I suspect is Germany for the big 5? If not there is clear evidence of people with more money than sense when it comes to Wabu items

As an aside from rolling stock I wish there were some readily available Swiss signals in N; Micro Scale of course produce some high quality stuff but again at a price.

I think the future is bright as the German economy continues to improve and with the companies perhaps on better footings now. That said I suppose the Swiss (and Austrian) stuff is a relatively specialist area and minor compared to the market for DB/DR which is where the big 5 will most likely pitch their stuff.

QUOTE (Geoff Booth @ 15 Oct 2007, 17:48) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>First up I agree with Goedel on looking forward to the IC2000 double decker carriages but whether or not that is near future seems to be anyone's guess; they were supposed to be out in 2006 originally. Does anyone know what factors brought the very long delay in these appearing in production?
Hello Geoff, a good question and I suppose there are many possible answers - delay in a suitable size production slot at the factory, the models taking longer to design or being more complex than forseen, perhaps an early announcement was designed to put off others (such as Minitrix or Fleischamann who have both done lots of DB double-decker coaches and both have done Zuerich S-Bahn ones too...). From what I have heard about Hobbytrain I understand that they never cancel an annouced-in-the-catalogue model, only it can take a few years for it to appear. I am encouraged that model shops as far afield as the UK are taking advanced orders now, and specifying exact or at least slightly-approximate prices...it has got this far...fingers crossed!!

QUOTE (Geoff Booth @ 15 Oct 2007, 17:48) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>How good is the one in Re420 guise in the new BLS set?
A very good question! www.Spurweite-N.de only has one review which is very positive, but only one swallow review a summer concensus does not make. The new Minitrix BLS coach set is absolutely excellent I can safely say since I have it, and to be unconventional I got the BLS Cargo Taurus 'design study' from Hobbytrain to go with it! Sorry about the picture quality:



Im my opinion the livery works seriously well! I'm not so sure about the new SBB Cargo Taurus 'design study' though - has anyone seen that in the flesh?

QUOTE (Geoff Booth @ 15 Oct 2007, 17:48) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>I think the future is bright as the German economy continues to improve and with the companies perhaps on better footings now. That said I suppose the Swiss (and Austrian) stuff is a relatively specialist area and minor compared to the market for DB/DR which is where the big 5 will most likely pitch their stuff.
I agree completely, except to say that the Swiss are in general mad about trains more than the Austrians and I would say have a larger share of the model prototypes made. I'm not complaining though...I love both! And Roco are Austrian of course.