The LNER Encyclopedia

i reckon its time that the companies (hornby, bachmann, etc.) need to produce more RTR closed wagons (in all gauges, but especially OO). Hornby have made a start by reintroducing their 6-wheeled milk/sausage wagons, but more are needed. who agrees with this?

Providing they don't go follow Jouef, Lima, Rivarossi, Roco, Märklin, LGB, Heico etc. etc. into financial difficulties through diversity, I agree with you.

Im not suggesting an all out assult to begin with: start with one or two generic designs in various liveries, and slowly build up the diversity, according to popularity.

N seems to have that already - OO always seems to have more RTR N. O r am I missing something?

For N: Peco have a nice range of 10ft and 15ft wagons but most of the pre-Nationalisation are generic designs that have an RCH look about them. They look the part, but technically not correct. Peco have later BR-era stock, and 'old' Farish also had some generic wagons.

Dapol and Farish are now releasing an improved range between them. So now we have six wheel milk tankers, GPVs, 20 ton coal, good representations of the most common 16 ton coal steel, fish vans, etc.
There are also some nice looking modern stuff on the way such as a cargowaggon, HTA (is that the right code? the bogie coal hopper), steel carriers, etc. - all look like they'll be grand with the Class 66s.

Richard

I have 5 trucks and a breakvan. Ouch...

I agree - more vans, opens and everything else to be honest. When I look at the (very nice) Parkside Dundas range I see a lot more diversity than in either the bachmann or hornby OO ranges, suggesting there is some sort of demand. Although Hornby have done much to improve their locos and coaches, many of the wagons still look like toys (very thick sides, monsterous hooks etc). Much of the Dapol range is also rather crude in OO. At present, If you are looking to build a 30+ fish train, steel train or whatever, that's a lot of tedious kit building. Perhaps ok in a club, where you can get everyone to build two kits, but I think only the diehard lonester would tackle 30. Difficult for us to judge the cost/benefit for Hornby though, without more info. The sporadic availability of big-4 liveried wagons suggests to me that the wagon market is perhaps a bit different from the loco market, with purchasers attracted to fancy looking liveries. But then I seem to remembber a view that there was no commercial potential for a Q1. Perhaps its just a matter of time before Hornby discover that very dull looking but well engineered NE wagons and vans will sell quite well...

Actually, I was going to end it there, but I bet a sexy looking trestle wagon would sell well. It could probably be produced in bright engineering colours for later life as well, perhaps with the trestle removed. Come to think of it, I wonder why we've never seen an RTR blue LNER engineers wagon...

cheers
t.

anybody know if there's a working crane system for those 4-wheel container flats (like the ones Bachmann make, which represent all of the Big Four)? That would be an interesting venture for Hornby who tend to do quite a bit of that sorta thing (like the TPO and the Tipper set). A thing with magnets in it might do the trick