Bachmann 2017

[mick b]

Latest announcements are out . LNER = zip .

The Thompson coaches are arriving in BR livery next month , the Teak version are not even mentioned as to their status.

[davidwest]

Unfortunately a very poor selection

[mick b]

Hornby have had lot of publicity re their finances , but are still releasing a much better and more imaginative programme in general.

Bachmann appear to be a lot of hot air, with little being actually made.It does make me start to wonder about their financial situation.

They don't seem to be progressing with items or producing hardly any products at the moment. They were claiming extra staff for development recently , yet no sign of any improvement ?? Some items are years behind being made.

[Ocean Swell]

March station buildings/canopy, Weybourne road bridge/ water tower and Downham Market Signal box in scenecraft range. Plus a couple of new B1s (LNER green and BR late).

O6 and Thompson coaches in N gauge.

[Atlantic 3279]

Weybourne road bridge? Umpteen Dad's Army "clone dioramas" coming up?

[James Harrison]

Weybourne road bridge? Umpteen Dad's Army "clone dioramas" coming up?

Hornby do a nice little engine that would be suitable for that

Seriously though; some very nice Victorian/ Edwardian pregrouping tank engines now for those modelling the north west and the south east. Pretty please we can have one too?

[mick b]

[quote="Ocean Swell"]March station buildings/canopy, Weybourne road bridge/ water tower and Downham Market Signal box in scenecraft range. Plus a couple of new B1s (LNER green and BR late).

No imagination re the buildings modelled all GER based plus a GCR goods shed listed too (they have already done the GCR Station buildings and a bridge, not a lot of good for the rest of the LNER area. They could have easily done one each for GNR & NER as well ,with far more appeal to the buyers.

The LNER B1 has already been done with the same number all they are doing is putting the old body on the latest chassis . No idea re the BR version I haven't checked.

[Caledonian]

Getting a move on with the new chassis J72 would have been nice, but it still appears to be in the drawing office.

[65447]

March station buildings/canopy, Weybourne road bridge/ water tower and Downham Market Signal box in scenecraft range. Plus a couple of new B1s (LNER green and BR late).

No imagination re the buildings modelled all GER based plus a GCR goods shed listed too (they have already done the GCR Station buildings and a bridge, not a lot of good for the rest of the LNER area. They could have easily done one each for GNR & NER as well ,with far more appeal to the buyers.

The LNER B1 has already been done with the same number all they are doing is putting the old body on the latest chassis . No idea re the BR version I haven't checked.

The additional buildings for March should not be a surprise given the recent appearance of the signal box. Weybourne is ex-M&GN not GE, so could be said to be GN or could also be said to be MR.

Hornby have produced both GN and NER railway buildings in the Skaledale range so no point in duplication; a common sense decision by Bachmann to add to the coverage.

Downham Market SB is in NSE paint finish - looks b****y awful in the image on the Hattons website:
http://www.hattons.co.uk/251443/Bachman ... etail.aspx

[Kestrel]

not to mention the overscale staircase

[Hatfield Shed]

... Bachmann appear to be a lot of hot air, with little being actually made.It does make me start to wonder about their financial situation...

Last I looked, the parent company Kader having got itself into the financial do-do some years past, was recovering nicely. Part of that recovery involved divesting itself of the former Sanda Kan operation which was becoming uneconomic to operate. Now that was far and away the biggest single small scale model railway manufacturing unit in China by common report. They lost a whole lot of expertise in doing that, and while they naturally don't talk about it, developments elsewhere point toward what has happened.

Hornby were hit badly by the Sanda Kan wind up: that was their Chinese Development and Manufacturing partner gone, and the product stream slowed to a trickle about five years past. But what do we see now? Hornby have - judging from the codes on their packaging - past half a dozen contractors engaged in knocking out products various, and much of their recently tooled product has mechanism design formerly only seen on Bachmann product. The expertise needed to set up these new D&M contracting businesses must have come from somewhere: former employees of Kader's model railway production outfits is my assessment. Also, Rapido openly admitted they had a former Bachmann designer on board.

That's a fit for the slow down in product development and delivery by Bachmann, quite simply their parent company has lost a factory worth of the necessary experienced staff to do the work. And Kader may well be prioritising investment elsewhere, rather than rebuilding their model railway capacity. I have been inside large corporates, and the divisions that have made the profit - especially when those profits have recently pulled the business out of the financial mire - get heard above all the others when it comes to future direction of the business.

[mick b]

Good comments re Bachmann.

On the "dark side" there is a load of waffle from the leader saying re how wonderful they think they are doing.

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index. ... -overview/



Within is a comment that their prices are going up by 6% next month on OO gauge with a vague only 25% of the range comment affected.
4% on N gauge as well.

[Dave S]

Good comments re Bachmann.

On the "dark side" there is a load of waffle from the leader saying re how wonderful they think they are doing.

http://www.rmweb.co.uk/community/index. ... -overview/



Within is a comment that their prices are going up by 6% next month on OO gauge with a vague only 25% of the range comment affected.
4% on N gauge as well.

Can someone explain why it's refered to as "The dark side".

Ta

[James Harrison]

After having a bit of a whinge yesterday about the non-progression (so it seems) of the GCR liveried Director announced back in March, I've had an email from Hattons today to the effect that delivery is anticipated for July/August 2017 and the price is going up (again) to £175-ish. I ordered mine when announced at £135.

I make no claim to being a brilliant mathematician but a £20 price rise on top of a previous £20 price rise is a fair bit more than a 6% increase.

[Manxman1831]

Can someone explain why it's refered to as "The dark side".

Ta

Tends to be ran as a mouthpiece for Andy York's benefit, and woe betide if you disagree with his thinking. Some of the membership can be exceedingly hostile to those of independent thoughts, and will actively disrupt any discussions made by them. And definitely don't have any sour words against Hornby or Bachmann...