From Miniature to BIG

I definitely find the streamlined B17 quite attractive mainly because the B17 is my favourite class of locomotive. This model features the newer satin finish which is much better than the mat one my model has . It's also worth noting that the chassis is of a different design as it now features a flywheel and perhaps some other differences. But as there is no way I can justify spending over £220 on one I guess I won't be finding out any time soon. I do find it a bit confusing that Hornby haven't used their new drawbar even though they redesigned the chassis but I presume it was due to the fact that it caused numerous problems on the Black 5, which could mean that Hornby might be working on improving it which is definitely a good plan

With sooo many new LNER locomotives coming out this year hopefully this will lead to the production of a new bach of gresley teaks... Now that's definitely something that I'm interested in.... Especially if the quality is improved!

I know what you mean Donald, I had this on pre-order from last year (takes so long for some of these things to come through) and as such I had a bit of a discount.  But it was still around £180, but as it is a brand new design and the first ready to run of this design of this class I figured it was worth having one in my collection.  Also I do get loyalty points as well which will reduce a bit more too.

As for the model not only does it look the business it is very very heavy for a locomotive of this size.  I guess that must be the flywheel which to be honest I wasn't expecting as that's pretty much a new thing for Hornby in terms of the steam locomotives - I'm not an expert but I think some of the newer diesels/electric locomotives have them already (Class 66 for example?).  The finish and detailing is superb and the pictures don't really do it justice.  I have to also say until it was released I didn't even know they had made a streamlined version of the B17, but apparently it did exist for a while.  As the text I posted says it was really more a gimmick than for performance as it didn't improve the speed, just the look of the locomotive.

You do know there were some nice teaks released a few years back, around the time of the pandemic specifically when it was the Hornby anniversary thing.  But, they were quite expensive and very difficult to get hold of, especially the separate ones.  I have a few which came with the Dublo Royal Scot set which are very nice indeed and far more realistic looking than the old versions - although to be fair those versions were available what in the 70's?  Until recently they were the only thing on offer for LNER which was a shame.  They often have the separate ones in the release schedule, but they usually sell out to pre-orders even before they are released.  As they are so popular you'd think they'd do bigger runs wouldn't you?

I think the next big steam era carriage release though is going to be the Coronation coach set, that also was offered for pre-order last year, but I understand they are due soon.  They look as though they will be awesome, especially the viewing car.

The new finish Hornby are using is a big improvement although they are still behind someone like Bachmann who use a warmer green which though isn't as realistic looks a lot more pleasing to the eye











The old model still has a very impressive cab with many separate parts such as the regulator and clear plastic for the water gauges. As for the Gresley coaches they were first released in 2004 with the following versions:

BCK (Brake composite corridor 1st/3rd)  R4170 (2004) R4170A (2005-2006) R4170B (2006-2007) R4170C (2008-2009) R4170D (2010) R4170E (2011-2013)

FK (First corridor) R4171 (2004,2006-2008) R4171A (2005-2007) R4171C (2011-2013)

TK (Third corridor) R4172 (2004,2006-2007) R4172A (2005-2007) R4172B (2008-2009) R4172C (2010) R4172D (2011-2013)

RUB (Restaurant unclassed buffet) R4173 (2004,2006-2007) R4173A (2005-2006) R4173B (2008-2009) R4173C (2010) R4173D (2011-2013)

SLF (Sleeper first)  R4174 (2004,2006-2009) R4174A (2005-2008) R4174B (2010) R4174C (2012-2014)

BGP (Brake gangway pigeon) R4530 (2011-2012) R4530A (2011-2013) R4530B (2012)

*Note about the pigeon van: It was a last minute addition to the range and actually featured a better resolution teak effect  although still a mat varnish over the top

There was another variant of the teak finish between 2014 and 2018 however it was only used on suburbans and Br teaks. It was a genuinely horrible effect as it was mirrored 3 times on each side. It's actually very hard to describe it so for reference search up R4601 

In 2018, after 4 years Hornby Brought 5/6 of the coaches back with a brand new and much improved teak finish, finally with a layer of gloss over the top:

BCK (Brake composite corridor 1st/3rd) R4826 (2018-2021) R4826A (2023)

FK (First corridor) R4827 (2018-2021) R4827A (2023)

TK (Third corridor) R4828 (2018-2021) R4828A (2023)

RUB (Restaurant unclassed buffet) R4829 (2018-2021) R4829A (2023)

BGP (Brake gangway pigeon) R4830 (2018-2021) R420A (2023)

As of now, the only set to include them is the R1252M

I do have 4/5 (1BCK 1FK 1RUB 1BGP) of the 2023 versions already although as I have a buffet car and no third class coaches I'd like to get at least 5 more...

 

I just got hold of my latest addition to the fleet, the new Hornby Flying Scotsman model with working Steam Generator, I've not had it out of the box yet to take pictures so for now here's a link to the product page for the loco.  Best part is I managed to get a superb deal, there was a 15% off promotion and I had a bunch of loyalty points which reduced the cost to just over £100

Hornby Flying Scotsman with Steam Generator, Digital Sound

[Super]

Does your Flying Scotsman also have a " Flickering Firebox " Nigel?

Hi Super, yes, its fully loaded, it has the new Bluetooth enabled DCC decoder, so you can control it from a phone/tablet app, has tri-channel sound, control of the steam generator, flickering firebox, metal running plate (that's basically the floor etc... the boiler and bodywork sits on) this makes it a physically quite heavy model which is always good for traction.  Has the painted train crew models included as well

Awesomeeeeee!!!

[Super]

I think that a flickering firebox is the quintessential detail of a model train engine Thanks Nigel 😊

It's definitely a good addition for sure, something that Hornby have reintroduced in the last couple of years.  They used to do it a long time back (70s/80s I believe) but back then it was a normal old style incandescent bulb (remember those) as opposed to an LED like everything else these days.  I don't think I have one of the older ones in my collection, but there again I don't think they made them for that long, maybe they didn't work so well or didn't catch on with the public, who knows.  What we need now is for them to illuminate the running lights back and front on the locomotives, it should be possible with either micro type LED's or some fibre optics to a central LED.

I've had these coaches on pre-order for the best part of 2 years now, finally they have started to arrive.  These are 3 of the double coaches that form the special LNER Coronation train, I do have a 4th double that goes with these, but it arrived a day earlier and I didn't take pictures of it at the time.  Similarly I'm still waiting on the observation carriage which forms the tail of the full length train.  Regardless, enjoy these they are absolutely beautiful and worth the long wait;