I've got two of Accurascale's 31s on pre-order, but my layout (when I eventually build it) will be mostly DMUs... which don't seem to be in their wheelhouse. Only thing I've got from them is a couple of their HAA hopper packs.
Which liveries did you go for?
One in BR blue, and the "skinhead" in Railfreight grey.
That's...a lot.
The price will probably come down not too long after release, as many recent models have. However, you risk missing out if you aren't prepared to pay that original price.
Having spent a lot of time looking at certain retailers bargain sections over the last few years, it has struck me that NSE Mk1, Mk2's and 159's have lingered somewhat, so can you blame them for not doing more NSE stuff? A classic livery for sure, but if modellers don't put their money where their mouth is, can you blame them for not doing more of that livery?
Don't tempt me, already got more stuff on pre-order and I'm running out of space!New Post for the Autumn announcements on 2nd August:
Mostly new varieties of existing models this time. Video announcement here:
The Motorail car carriers in the EFE Rail range would look great on Fort George, @Iskra
EDIT: Ooh, refurbished CEPs too... Must. Not. Buy...
411.608 or any one with the tapered windscreens?
I still don't have anything up and running, but doesn't stop me buying models that represent what made the 12 inches to the foot hobby fun for me back in the day, but that in itself has caused me more recent problems (lack of space and £ wise !), as it can become addictive, and this is turn is due to the 'pre-order' or miss out mentality we find ourselves in. I don't blame the manufacturers for this, it is what it is in a supply and demand situation, so it's not easy if one has interests in numerous scenarios for which models are either available or will be soon!
And they ended their days on the South Eastern
This is both poor form now and poor business from Bachmann. They are clearly targeting the same models as Accurascale which is somewhat underhand and wasteful for the hobby as we could have those product slots producing something that we haven’t already got. Additionally, they are unlikely to be competitive on price or quality so Accurascale are likely to win this head to head, and like the 37’s they’ll end up being poor sellers and getting discounted in an increasingly weakening and saturated market. A total waste of time.
Agreed. I've noticed lots of the "big" model rail YouTube channels doing videos about the future of the hobby following on from the Hattons closure and Warley cancellation. Whilst I feel that some of the alarmist rhetoric is an overreaction (and possibly a self-fulfilling prophecy), the two biggest manufacturers really don't help themselves, do they?
Especially when they're both targeting the higher ends of the market. A Hornby Railroad or Railroad Plus Class XX can live quite comfortably in the same ecosystem as an Accurascale or Bachmann Class XX, but when you're both after the same slice of customer pie, it feels quite unsustainable - especially when Bachmann is inferior to Accurascale in most metrics. I'd much rather have brand-new models over trying to beat other manufacturers to mrket.
So now Hornby, Bachmann and Accurascale have all made the same class of loco. Waste of time. Will cost an arm and a leg no doubt and I won’t be buying it. An AC EMU would have been much more welcome.
Contrary to competition legislation. If the old annual anouncement regime was in place of annoucing a model before they had hardly done anythin b the 31 would probably have been announced in 2021 judging by the comments in the video. Accurascale announced theirs in Feb 2022.
That's also how I interpreted their reps' video comments. The model, apparently, has been in preparation and development for several years. If their R&D costs were already "sunk", then it would have been far more folly to abandon the model as a knee jerk to Accurascale's 2022 announcement.
And a suite of tooling options enabling the Bulleid profile 4-SUB and Tin-HAL too.
To be fair I think there are enough third rail EMUs already: an Overhead one is more needed.
Yes, I've set aside 9:30-10:00am to watch it
