‘Locomotion’ No. 1 in Motion

‘Locomotion’ No. 1 Engineering Sample

We start this New Year edition of Engine Shed by showcasing the ‘Locomotion’ No. 1 engineering sample. When testing the engineering sample (also referred to as the running sample), the locomotive and tender ran smoothly on our development track. The parallel motion can be seen in action, running smoothly around the curves.

Our engineering sample contains the general build of the preserved ‘Locomotion’ with different parts and some initial details. We’ve added two crew figures, one sitting on top of the locomotive’s boiler barrel and one perched on the side of the tender.

As this model is in development, we have decided that due to the size of the locomotive, the couplings supplied with the model will be magnetic chain couplings and Era 1-style Hornby couplings.

For the first engineering sample, the model performed better than expected. It ran smoothly over points and due to the model having pickups and all wheels, there was no loss of power over the plastic frog area of the point.

We are now making a few minor changes to the design of the motion gear to increase strength and reliability and adding provision for a small sugar cube speaker in the tender.

‘Black 5’ Decoration Sample

In a Signal Box Live on 1^st November last year, Hornby Development Manager, Carl, and our new Head of Brand, Martyn, spoke to Mike Day about new products and updates on model development. On the turn table, they showcased decoration samples of Stanier’s ubiquitous ‘Black 5’ locomotives. Please also note that the Caprotti variant is still in tooling development.

See below for a closer look at R30224, the LMS ‘Black 5’ No. 5200 decoration sample:

Overall, we were happy with the LMS Black livery on this decoration sample. The build had some quality issues such as the handrails not being straight. This will go through further development as the vendor makes amends in the factory.

Class 755/4 ‘FLIRT’ Decoration Samples

The Class 755/4 ‘FLIRT’ EMU decoration samples have arrived in Margate. In this section, we will examine the R3964A Greater Anglia Class 755/4 'FLIRT' 4 Car Train Pack. Please see images of the decoration samples below.

Overall, we are really pleased with these samples and noticed only a few issues. The feedback was sent to the vendor for them to action.

We are extremely pleased with the Greater Anglia red, white and grey livery as it was painted to a nice finish. Ben, our decoration expert, spent a lot of time developing the base colours so they were exactly right. Four samples were sent back to the factory with the last sample shown below being correct.

The Greater Anglia logos on the body sides were too low, they are meant to be slightly higher up.

The pantograph was assembled backwards in the wrong position on one sample. On this unit, the pantograph was moulded black. This should now be corrected to a dark grey colour. They were also missing their springs which meant the pantograph could not stay up under its own weight.

The bike and wheelchair print on the windows were printed on the inside. They should be printed on the outside of the window to appear bright white. We also noted that the green cycling print above the window is painted in the wrong shade of green.

The power pack lacks a metallic pigment, and the separate parts should have had higher metallic elements. This is the same for the grills as well.

The fan and grill print on top of the locomotive was missing and this will now be amended.

For the window surroundings, on each car, there is a window with a raised edge. This has been coloured in black on the product artwork, but it was left clear on the samples.

There was some missing lining around the cab door handles which will now be added.

P2s Steaming Ahead!

The steam generator P2s are finally chuffing! The production units of the No. 2007 ‘Prince of Wales’ are undergoing final testing as can be seen below:

Our steam generator models are an innovative step forward towards replicating a prototypical steam locomotive on a layout. The water vapour emitted from the chimney enhances the realism. This exciting new feature will soon be seen on other Hornby models, like the Black 5’ locomotive in BR Black, No. 44726.

R30225SS BR, Stanier 5MT 'Black 5', 4-6-0, 44726 With Steam Generator - Era 5 (hornby.com)

Pre-order yours so you don’t miss out!

And that's the end of another Engine Shed. We hope you enjoyed the updates on our samples, most notably the ‘Locomotion’ No. 1 engineering sample and the P2 steam generator models! Please email marketing@hornby.com with any questions or comments that you have. See you next time!