Blaine

This is taken from another site and explains an interesting angle. This also applies to a lot of slightly older, but still in manufacture Bachmann products In 2000 the transfer of Hornby production to China had already taken place. Their results for 2000 show that gross margin was 35.4%. Now, if it is true (as they would like us to believe) that Chinese manufacturing costs have been the problem, then you might expect this gross margin to decline or at least be hard to maintain. By 2001, however, the gross margin had climbed to 39.9%. Let's run the clock forward a decade:- By 2011, Hornby's gross margin had climbed yet again to 46.2% Perhaps that was an aberration? Let's have a look at their latest 2015 set of accounts:- By 2015 Hornby's gross margin had climbed further to 46.7% That's why you cannot blame China. The manufacturing share of Hornby's costs has declined from 100 - 35.4 = 64.6% to 100 - 46.7 = 53.3%. The impact of this greediness is easily shown by looking at the breakdown of a typical Hornby product bought directly from them. The customer pays £120 for a loco, the taxman takes £20 leaving £100. It costs £53.30 to make it so Hornby are left with £46.70 contribution towards costs and, hopefully profit. Imagine for a minute that Hornby still operated with the year 2000 35.4% margin. The manufacturing cost would still be £53.30 but the margin would only be £29.20 producing a selling price of £82.50. Add tax and the customer pays £99. I would certainly be willing to make more purchases if prices were 20% lower.

Hopefully it is a frequent timetable

Its not your capital outlay thats been put on the line here so why the concern. If there is no improvement Hornby could enter administration (again) and that would be unfortunate. They are still the leading brand name for model railways (in the UK/IRL at least) but their loss would be felt. They could begin by improving quality control and delivery times of their products

Yes Mother - and people bought it too.

Perhaps, dont forget similar models were sold as 'Irish Passenger Set'

Proves that people will buy any old rubbish

One simple word - America. They love this kind of thing, from Elvis trainsets, to Downton Abbey trainsets, even Operation Iraqi Freedom trainsets....

I never did watch Downton mainly as Top Gear was on at the same time - but trains/railways were not integral to the plot of even a single episode. There are 'people arriving/leaving on a train' scenes, nothing more http://downtonabbey.wikia.com/wiki/Downton_Railway_Station Its not like the aforementioned Thomas the Tank engine where the series is about trains

See attached.....

Has to be heard for real alas

Edited - wrong thread - Sorry

710-714 are withdrawn, some are at DCDR 737 is withdrawn,possibly scrapped 728/780 are out of use at Limerick Junction (observed in summer 2015) 770 is only used within Portlaoise PW depot 800 is scrapped Few additions to stock too, notably 751 and 781

Dont forget the trainset market too. People will always want track, only the more seriously minded folk want it right. Until relatively recently points still had wooden sleepers when the rest of the line was concrete so its not imperative they bring out concrete sleepered points

http://www.modelrail-scotland.co.uk/index.html Well worth a visit, a smaller, friendlier version of Warley. Flights are also cheap from Ireland at present, given there is no 6 Nations Rugby in Scotland that weekend. Friday is the cheapest day to fly and Glasgow International Airport is a short taxi/train run away http://www.secc.co.uk/attend/how-to-get-here.aspx The MRSI will be exhibiting with O'Connell Street, and Bleach Green Junction will also be attending from Ireland

Couriers will deliver them. Its only the post office that now cant carry paint/chemicals

Peco are far too late to the party. The only advantage they have is availabilty. The rest of your arguements dont work with me so Ill simply ignore them,like most of your posts

Thats just a polite way of saying 'Thank You for your suggestion'. All the UK liveries will come first as they will sell more. Ireland is still a niche market and on the edge of their radar Will wait until I have seen one, despite all of the CAD engineering available today, models still get through the design stage with things wrong

Judging by that reply its what you have heard, read or have seen. Its not actual experience that you have of any of the above track manufacturers. Looks like you have just trawled a few forums and copied and pasted what you have read about what someone else has said. So no real opinions brought to the discussion, just recycled material. Rumours mean very little. Wait until actual announcements are made Ive worked with the C+L track and it is very good, along with Marcway points. Its been available for a long time. At least now its slightly more readily available than it was before

There has been proper scale track available for quite some time http://www.finescale.org.uk/index.php?route=product/category&path=346_375_383 and points http://www.marcway.net/point.php. Just now a mainstream manufacturer makes the track - but not the points. They are only 40 years too late Personally, I think this committment is down to the fact that almost all modern stock comes with finer-scale wheels (compared to pizza-cutter wheels that demanded code 100).

Indeed, all too easy to jump to conclusions in these times

Where has that been said? If Oxford have enough interest they will produce them in the 4 Irish liveries (CIE/IR/IE/Executive). But Id say given the huge number of UK liveries there could be a bit of a wait

This post is both puzzling and amusing. You are all for raising the standards in model railways and now are here suggesting a backward step is taken, back to the standards of the 1970's and before. Instead of speculating about it - do it. If it pleases you, mission accomplished

Well you seemed very happy to buy the similar quality and similarly priced IFM coaches and regard them highly. So these should suit your own personal needs precisely. Complete with their wooden chassis and dodgy shades of orange. They are not to be considered RTR, just pre assembled kits.....

The centre motorcoach on the BR Class 442 Wessex units had a central door layout identical to the Mk3 EGV prior to their rebuilding. Development work to the structure of the BR Mk3 coach undertaken for IE, specifically the floor being able to take greater weights (to permit a generator to be installed) and power operated plug doors, provided the key to the evolution of the Mk3 design that became the class 442 EMU.

Ah tanx bud xx