[Ravenser]

QUOTE IMHO that's the real issue, going head to head with Bachmann's third attempt at this class - if Vi catch a cold on this, they might not be so keen to stick with the UK market. I hope whoever advised them on choice of prototype has a broad back...

Very much agree. If only they'd gone for an 86 or an 87 where there's no credible modern competition we'd all be turning cartwheels and they'd be getting a very much more welcoming response.

Arguably this is the model Lima should have introduced in 1997, when we'd all have been awed by it. Just shows how far the bar has been raised in the last decade for OO diesels

Decent AC electrics and EMUs are a gaping hole in 4mm coverage , and realistically Vi Trains (given their continental catalogue) and Heljan are the best bet for plugging the gap. So I wouldn't want them to flop with this . But I still deplore the duplications this year - 2 new rebuilt Royal Scots, 2 new 37/4s...
C'mon guys we could have had an ROD and an 86 instead....

As for haulage tests can I be provocative and suggest a head to head test with any Bachmann 37 anyone can find? I doubt if the Bachmann loco would be disgraced (I have a hazy recollection the new Bachmann 37/4 will have a new 6 axle drive mechanism, or it this merely confabulation? )

 

[Ravenser]

Gary:

I will bet money the Vi- Trains 37 will not pull 50% more than a Bachmann 37. But the only way to find out is to do a test

 

[Ravenser]

QUOTE Ah well so much for go easy on it.

Welcome to UK 4mm D+E....

 

[Ravenser]

QUOTE Old Lima and Hornby stuff seems to have a good shape to me and millions like me. Is it simply a point scoring thing?

The bodyshell was generally the strongest part of Lima and older generation Hornby. It was often compromised and inaccurate when you started digging , and Lima's finishing was poor but the real killers were elsewhere.

Quite a lot of work in terms of rewheeling, extra pickups, and ballast had to be done to get decent running out of them.

The new generation of models have vastly better mechanisms , run much much slower, more smoothly and don't stall on pointwork. Haulage power has not been compromised - quite the opposite. Neil Woods wretched 91 is a fair sample of the limitations of the older models : a Bachmann 20 let alone a new 66 or 60 leaves it for dead

It would be cruel to do a running test between a Lima 37 out of the box and a Bachmann 37

The real issue with Vi-Trains 37/4 is that Bachmann will be releasing their own 37/4 in 2-3 months, and the usual discounters are already advertising that for around £50. In that situation, unfortunately every facet of both models will be scrutinised to decide which one to go for.

It isn't about whether this model is good value for £50. Its about whether it beats all the other £50 RTR OO 37/4s out there

 

[Ravenser]

QUOTE +IMHO, it wasn't bad - ok I did feel the best was the bachmann (but the RRP £15.00 more) the lima and hornby also rans.

Take out the heated language and I reckon most folk would go with that assessment - although you're a bit kind on Hornby and Lima , as their mechanisms were vastly inferior.

A lot depends on the price at which the latest new tooled Bachmann 37/4 is available in 2 months time. If Vi-Trains still have a modest price advantage it will probably come down to which model is available in the particular livery /condition you want

 

[Ravenser]

Hatton's are advertising a selection of Bachmann 66s in Freightliner green/yellow and in GBRailfreight Blue/mustard for £56-£58 . They also have a few of the DCC sound EWS livery locos left at £125 and the sound does sound pretty authentic - these seem to be the only EWS liveried models around at present , even though EWS is the main operator of 66s

(As Peterborough stabling point seems to have about 4-5 GBRailfreight 66s on shed every time I go past, this might sit well with a 91)

Signal Box Rochester seem to have a few DRS blue and Freightliner 66s, MG Sharp have EWS, Freightliner and GBRailfreight 66 for £65, Rails of Sheffield seem to be out of stock bar some limited editions, but expecting further deliveries

Basically pick your box shifter of choice and he should have some . Plug ugly (they're not called Sheds for nothing) ubiquitous on the real thing ,and will pull the side off a house

I may have been slightly misleading in speaking of "older models". What I mean is those models tooled up some years ago, to old standards , as opposed to recent releases from new tooling. The 91 was originally tooled up in the early 1990s , so it's 15 years old and hasn't been upgraded at all in that time , although it's still in the catalogue. The body tooling for the Hornby Hymek and 37 dates from the late 1960s (!!) and the last mechanical upgrade was in the early 80s . Both are still in the current catalogue even though totally outclassed by the Heljan Hymek (2003) and the Bachmann and Vi-Trains 37s

On the other hand Hornby's 50 (2002) 31 (2004) and 60 (2005) are all high quality models with centre drive mechanisms, lights, DCC Ready etc. This year they replace their old 56 with a new state of the art model. The Bachmann 66 is 2 years old

I see Signal Box are trying to clear Hornby 37s at £45 a pair (one dummy unit) - why bother when you can buy Vi-Trains or Bachmann for a fiver more? And one Scottish retailer is attempting to shift Lima 37s in the same livery as Gary's for a fiver MORE than Vi-Trains model. Hopeless...