Anyone Seen Winston?
- Thread starter James Day
- Start date
James Day
Guano Corner Rly - Runs weekly - Guano permitting
Well the Bachmann (US) Large Scale Thomas Rolling Stock Page has just been updated:
http://shop.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=756_777_780
Scroll down to the bottom and you will read that new products fro July are:
Box Van - Sodor Fruit & Vegetable Co.
$99.00
Box Van - Explosives
$99.00
Box Van - Great Western
So if Bachmann deliver on that prediction, we can expect them here in August/September, although the UK web site still just decribes them as on order with no date mentioned.
It looks like I will soon be able to asemble a very interesting freight train, with my exploives van right next to the engine, adjacent to the petrol tank wagon!
This just leaves me with one small question: WHERE IS WINSTON?
James
http://shop.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=756_777_780
Scroll down to the bottom and you will read that new products fro July are:
Box Van - Sodor Fruit & Vegetable Co.
$99.00
Box Van - Explosives
$99.00
Box Van - Great Western
So if Bachmann deliver on that prediction, we can expect them here in August/September, although the UK web site still just decribes them as on order with no date mentioned.
It looks like I will soon be able to asemble a very interesting freight train, with my exploives van right next to the engine, adjacent to the petrol tank wagon!
This just leaves me with one small question: WHERE IS WINSTON?
James
James Day
Guano Corner Rly - Runs weekly - Guano permitting
It could be blowing raspberries ....The pricies look as though Bachmann are moving into LGB territory too!
Mick,
It depends, as I don't think those box vans are bad value at £66 GBP, however I won't be paying phone number prices for the DCC Thomas and Percy with Sound. That can keep that!
James
Only thing that spoils them all are those hideous overscale couplings. I know they are done for small fingers, but the Playmobil ones work well for that and are fully compatible with LGB Couplings.Well the Bachmann (US) Large Scale Thomas Rolling Stock Page has just been updated:
http://shop.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=756_777_780
Scroll down to the bottom and you will read that new products fro July are:
Box Van - Sodor Fruit & Vegetable Co.
$99.00
Box Van - Explosives
$99.00
Box Van - Great Western
So if Bachmann deliver on that prediction, we can expect them here in August/September, although the UK web site still just decribes them as on order with no date mentioned.
It looks like I will soon be able to asemble a very interesting freight train, with my exploives van right next to the engine, adjacent to the petrol tank wagon!
This just leaves me with one small question: WHERE IS WINSTON?
James
JonD
James Day
Guano Corner Rly - Runs weekly - Guano permitting
Jon,
Couldn't agree more! A pity that they don't have the handy top button that the Playmobil ones have, which is a really useful feature.
On the bright side - at leat they are easily removed and replaced. I place mine in 'the circular file' and fit real LGB ones!
James
David1226
Registered
Henri
Thomas and his friends, in G Scale, are a bit like Marmite (other vegetable based yeast extract spreads are available), you either love it or hate it. Personally I hate it. I feel that it does the image of G Scale no good at all. I know that there are many on this Forum who love it and will strongly disagree The most popular argument put forward is that it encourages youngsters into the hobby, but get real folks, G Scale is well out of the reach of kids pocket money allowances. My heart sinks at exhibitions and garden open days, when amongst all the excellent models, out comes that damn blue engine.... errghhh......
David
David1226
Registered
Oh boy, don't want to start a pro & con war... I was just surprised to see so much interest(hey, blue!)
Henri
You need to check out the truly amazing videos by Forum member Jag. He has gone 100% Thomas & Friends, which I do find acceptable. It's the mix and match that grates with me. His videos are inspirational.
David
James Day
Guano Corner Rly - Runs weekly - Guano permitting
Oh boy, don't want to start a pro & con war... I was just surprised to see so much interest
Henri,
Whatever you do in G scale there are people who love it or hate - This applies to running Playmobil trains or even DCC!
It is your railway, so if you want to run it, you can run it!
Bachmann do a huge range of Thomas stuff for the US market in HO scale and in 2009 they started making it in Large Scale too. At first it was just two locos, the coaches and wagons, but over the years the range has grown.
There are now Five locos and I may live long enough to see them finally make Winston - the speeder. There are now four goods wagon types, mostly in done in many different colours to add variety and the two types of coaches.
They have made repeated ue of the same tooling to cut costs - for example Annie and Claribelle have the same body as the Emily and Xmas coaches, but different running gear.
Whether the range will get much bigger I don't know.
Quality wise it is reasonable. There are no skates and the LGB like durability is not really there. I have already had to obtain and fit new wheels to my earliest locos as the old ones were worn out!
Design wise it is very pretty, but they have not incorporated simple things like swivelling bogies/couplings like LGB and Playmobil did. This means where and how the stock can be run can cause issues with binding on sharp curves and reverse r1 curves are forbidden!
That said I love it and run it for my own amusement, as well as to entertain children who visit.
James
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Stayed at mine last night, no delayed delivery issues.
Of course not made by Bachman, but still a Winston. Guest from my Local Pub overnighting whilst Mum and Dad at a Wedding in Norfolk. Very well behaved fellow. Hope your Winstons when they arrive well behaved.
JonD
Of course not made by Bachman, but still a Winston. Guest from my Local Pub overnighting whilst Mum and Dad at a Wedding in Norfolk. Very well behaved fellow. Hope your Winstons when they arrive well behaved.
JonD
James Day
Guano Corner Rly - Runs weekly - Guano permitting
A nice dog, but to be Winston, I thought that by law, it should be a Bull Dog wearing a Union Flag waistcoat?
James
James Day
Guano Corner Rly - Runs weekly - Guano permitting
Well no dogs to report back on, but today I got the phone call that I was waiting for from GRS - My three box vans are finally on the way......
I have asked for them to send some more LGB couplings too, to replace those rather nasty Bachmann ones with those excessively large hooks.
Sadly at present the GCR is not running weekly or even weakly, as there is no longer any track down! Just a lot of track and many other items slowly being washed, serviced and repaired ready for Guano version 4!
Pictures soon
James Day
Guano Corner Rly - Runs weekly - Guano permitting
So the three vans arrived today:.
I have taken off the couplings with the preposterously large hooks and replaced them with real LGB ones. The conversion also uses the height adaptor brackets that are still thoughtfully provided with each van.
The vans are much as described in my post 'Ice Cream Anyone'. The colour schemes are good, without being too silly. Together they will help make up a very nice train. I just need a couple of flat wagons now, or perhaps a pair of bolster wagons?
So there we are then Bachmann's 2015 and 2016 programme for large TTE has finally been completed?
No, sadly there is still no sign of Winston!
James
I have taken off the couplings with the preposterously large hooks and replaced them with real LGB ones. The conversion also uses the height adaptor brackets that are still thoughtfully provided with each van.
The vans are much as described in my post 'Ice Cream Anyone'. The colour schemes are good, without being too silly. Together they will help make up a very nice train. I just need a couple of flat wagons now, or perhaps a pair of bolster wagons?
So there we are then Bachmann's 2015 and 2016 programme for large TTE has finally been completed?
No, sadly there is still no sign of Winston!
James
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James Day
Guano Corner Rly - Runs weekly - Guano permitting
Two snippets of news that may interest those waiting for Winston:
Firstly the US Bachmann site is now displaying an inage of an actual model instead of a CGI image;
http://shop.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=popup_image&pID=6021
I have to say that I am quite impressed. I particularly like the wheels, although the lamps look worryingly delicate! There is no date for a possible arrival in the shops though
However, whilst the UK site still has no image, a speculative date of Dec/Jan is quoted for the arrival.
This is promising!
James
Firstly the US Bachmann site is now displaying an inage of an actual model instead of a CGI image;
http://shop.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=popup_image&pID=6021
I have to say that I am quite impressed. I particularly like the wheels, although the lamps look worryingly delicate! There is no date for a possible arrival in the shops though
However, whilst the UK site still has no image, a speculative date of Dec/Jan is quoted for the arrival.
This is promising!
James
chris m01
Registered
I think Bachmann made a big mistake in making the Thomas stuff way too big. If they had made all of the wagons to around 1:32 scale they would have sold to adults as well. I don't think the youngsters would have noticed them being a little smaller. As it is they are just too big. Likewise the Stirling single - there have been some great conversions but it is still nowhere near scale and for me just looks so wrong on 45mm track.
The whole Thomas range does seem somewhat expensive for what it is. They are very simple, low detail models and the tooling for the early models must have been paid for ages ago.
The whole Thomas range does seem somewhat expensive for what it is. They are very simple, low detail models and the tooling for the early models must have been paid for ages ago.