NGS present day commissions

[Ben A]

Steve:  we can only do one model at a time.  If we do the choc cream TSO then there'd be a strong case for the BSO. However, even with just the TSOs and a mk1 choc/cream brake the train would be more authentic than not, surely?
I understand a TSO with a BSO would be ideal, but if that's not possible surely having a TSO is a good start, better than nothing?

Agreed... I would certainly comprimise on the brake, but not having membership rules me out even if I was to join now. I may join one day but I have a limited modelling budget and I spend what I have on tangible things!
Steve

Hi Steve,

That's fair enough - but if you were to join now you could vote, and you don't need to pay any money until the selected model is ready.

Cheers

Ben A.

[pape_timmo]

Sorry Ben, mistake on coach numbers, 2903 is the Queens saloon, not 2904 as I put above.

Cheers, Timmo

[Ben A]

Hello all,

Further to comments here and elsewhere, there is now a page on the NGS website with pictures and a link to the shop email address to make registering interest in any of these models straightforward.  It's here:

http://www.ngaugesociety.com/index.php?page=modern-image-com

And to recap, we are not looking for any deposit at this stage and you can vote for any that you would want along with how many you'd like.  If one gets to a threshold of 350 then it will be produced, but at the moment that is looking fairly unlikely!

Also, the closing date for this is the end of February.

cheers

Ben A.

[Steven B]

Hi Ben,

Is the 350 threashold the number of members or the number of models? Does the Society want 350 members to order one or more model or a smaller number of members ordering 350 between them.

Happy modelling.

Steven B.

[Ben A]

Hi Steven,

The NGS just needs to know it'll sell at least 350 before committing, as that is roughly the break-even figure.

It doesn't matter if it's 35 members saying they want 10 each, or 350 members asking for one.

And of course you can express an interest in any of the vehicles you'd be interested in; you'll only have to to buy the one that actually gets produced.

Cheers

Ben A.

[talisman56]

When this thread first went up, I looked at the options and then ignored it as none of the offerings are of any interest to me.

I am a member of the NGS, and have bought many of their kits (a goods yard full of SR-design vans to name just one...) and some of the RTR models, but cannot find any justification to run any of these on my layout.

I can appreciate what Ben and the NGS are trying to do in terms of meeting a very valid criticism of the range of items offered by the society, but it seems the calls for more modern RTR stock is from a very small group, who by themselves cannot raise enough 'votes' to get any of the offered models a kickstart.

I hope that this does not put the society off doing this sort of thing in the future, with another selection, of the modern era - or any other for that matter.

[Ben A]

Hello Talisman

The NGS will continue to produce RTR models as long as our members want to buy them.  And the members who DO buy them are predominantly those modelling the transition era.

We came up with the idea of a modern commission to offer something to those modelling the present day - for whom most of the existing RTR isn't appropriate - and to test the water to see if other eras had the collective clout to justify such a step.

There is still until the end of next month to get to the target, but at the moment it looks as though none of these products will get there.

We've still got the Collett BG coming out soon - and there are CAD images on the NGS website - and the Thompson steel sided BG is under development too.

cheers

Ben A.

[PostModN66]

Ben, or anyone, just out of curiosity, do you know how many present day (I call it post-modern) liveried items of rolling stock the big manufacturers would expect to sell?

My perception is as a group that we are pretty well served - quite a few releases in the last few years with many types of container flat plus steel hoods, silver bullets, various types of cement wagons,  numerous modern bogie coal and aggregate hoppers, monsterboxes, autoballasters etc etc.  Surely the manufacturers wouldn't keep producing them if it was such a minority interest.

Or maybe people who buy there items are less likely to members of the NGS or this forum?

Cheers  Jon 

[Ben A]

Hello Jon,

An interesting question. I'm not sure about Dapol nowadays, but a standard Farish production run for a new model is 1008 models.  For a relivery they will drop to 504 models.

I've also been told that in OO they won't normally allow a retailer to commission a limited edition until the standard model has been out for at least a year, though I've not checked this.

So across 3 liveries in 2012, there were 3024 class 350 Desiros produced, none of which are sold out according to the Bachmann website.  The 3 different 4-CEPs produced 6 month earlier are also all still in stock.

I suspect there is an element of "build it and they will come" but I've noticed that in the last. 12 months there has been a slow-down of modern models coming out of Barwell; the last loco was the very nice Class 70 but that was nearly a year ago.

Cheers

Ben A. 

[Chris in Prague]

Hello Talisman

The NGS will continue to produce RTR models as long as our members want to buy them.  And the members who DO buy them are predominantly those modelling the transition era.

We came up with the idea of a modern commission to offer something to those modelling the present day - for whom most of the existing RTR isn't appropriate - and to test the water to see if other eras had the collective clout to justify such a step.

There is still until the end of next month to get to the target, but at the moment it looks as though none of these products will get there.

We've still got the Collett BG coming out soon - and there are CAD images on the NGS website - and the Thompson steel sided BG is under development too.

cheers

Ben A.

I'm looking forward to both the Thompson and the Collett BGs, (must get my pre-order in for some Thompsons). The beauty of such BGs is that they lasted so long and carried so many paint schemes whilst appearing all over the country in parcels trains.

[Vonzack]

I will be voting for the Mk2a BSO in Network Rail. I would like to see a MK2 DBSO in Network Rail at some point, especially as the re-tooled DRS 37's are going to be released.

Cheers, Mark.

[PostModN66]

An interesting question. I'm not sure about Dapol nowadays, but a standard Farish production run for a new model is 1008 models.  For a relivery they will drop to 504 models.

Golly; such low numbers.  I find it hard to see how it can represent profitable business, and I wouldn't be surprised if things slowed down.  I generally feel rather well-served by the manufacturers and personally can tolerate the occasional bent pickup or similar minor quality glitch as I just feel we are lucky to get such good models at reasonable prices in a niche market.

504 items would represent only about 50 customers on the assumption that people would run rakes of about ten wagons.  Small enough numbers that the manufacturers could know us all personally if they chose to!

I guess we can rejoice that most "postmodern" diesel and electric locos and many DMUs are readily available, but thing look rather bleak with respect to further EMUs if there are so many 350s unsold.  Maybe I had better buy some more - I have two already!

Cheers   Jon   

[Karhedron]

I agree that the situation with the Desiros and 4-CEPs is disappointing. I wonder if that is why we have not seen the 2-EPB go through the Barwell shrink ray.

Bachmann have taken some flack in the past for their assertion that "electrics do not sell" but these figures do indicate that they may have a point.

[Vonzack]

It would be interesting to know how many 86's Dapol produced in each livery as these have been out for a while and are hard to find in shops, so must be pretty much sold out.

Can I ask Ben, with the production limit set to 350, this is surely for a re-livery of an existing model. I would expect any tooling costs etc to require much larger volumes.

Cheers, Mark.

[red_death]

We are getting dangerously close to commercially sensitive information, having said which it is no secret that Dapol have done runs of as few as 250 of one livery and even 2 x 125 of the same livery but different numbers.

Given the length of time it takes Farish to tool a new loco I'm not sure you can read too much into the Farish 70 being the last modern loco produced a year ago, plus there aren't that many modern locos they could do! The 66s, 67s, and 70s have all been done.  Dapol are doing the 68. There are not so many gaps to fill and where the gaps are tend to be MUs.

Cheers, Mike