Garfield

I'm not going to comment on what another manufacturer may or may not decide to do with an incoming product line, but as Fran said, it's off the table.

Hornby don't do Mk3s in IE livery.

Even so, once there's one set of IE Mk3s model on the market there's no point in doing another set...

Conversely, the saying "your layout, your choice" comes to mind. Above all else, it's about enjoyment - some people like the finesse of P4 standards, some are happy with OO. It's a broad church and all are welcome.

I wouldn’t say that, JB. The Eurostar units have been around since 1994-ish and they’ve operated an intense schedule of services since then, with a hefty amount of mileage clocked up in the process - which is finally catching up with them...

You mean the UTA?

I'm still trying to warm up after that...

Like these ones?

Hi Steve, The ballasts, bubbles and magnesites shared a common chassis, but the container flat was slightly different. The chassis in the Prestwin kit is quite different from the Irish patterns, apart from having the same wheelbase. Patrick

From meeting many of our customers over the past 18 months or so, I've been pleasantly surprised at the age range. Many are in the 30-50 bracket, which is at odds with the perception that the hobby is mainly the preserve of the older generation. As Fran said, Marklin's kids' sets are among the most popular toys in Germany. They're also compatible with the regular Marklin sets, which helps promotes quality parent/child time, too, as well as nurturing interest in the hobby. There's a distinct lack of an equivalent product in the OO market... On a related note, there's very little promotion of the hobby towards people who don't already have an interest in railways, certainly here and in the UK...

Try reducing the file size and uploading again...

Straight out of the top drawer again, David. Hope to see this layout in the flesh at some point!

Brilliant!

And after it's all done, we all agree on my choice...

No plans to introduce any more than the two packs available at present.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all of you! Like the rest of the IRM team, I'm really looking forward to unveiling several new projects in 2018!

Pressure is for tyres, JB!

Hmm.

The blue strips appear to be some kind of tape, possibly used to hold the ‘Bulk Cement’ stencil in place while the paint was applied.

For those curious about what a freshly outshopped orange bubble looked like, here's one of the photos we used as a reference point. Thanks to Barry Carse for providing his photo for research purposes, and for allowing us to post it here now.

That's what I'm referring to.

No need, though. The decals get weathered along with the rest of the wagon when the weathering paints/powders, etc. are being applied. And it's a straightforward process to distress them if desired...

There’s more than that.

Wrong thread for this really as they’re not 121 class locos but Dave Bracken (@wrenneire) may be able to assist you.