I've typically purchased most of my stock secondhand, and other than a few Peco wagons and NGS kits everything else has been Bachmann / Farrish.
On then most popular auction site there are listings for Lima (coaches and locos) and Minitrix (coaches) but I've got a niggling feeling that there are reasons why these are often a lot cheaper than GF offerings but for the life of me can't remember what it is (wrong scale for N ?). Could anyone care to enlighten me before I waste money I can't really afford to.
Lima - locos oversized with dreadful mechanics that barely worked. Coaches undersized to compound the oversize loco issue. However their GWR siphons and horsebox were nice, well proportioned models.
Minitrix - Mk1 coaches excellent when released but surpassed by Farish offerings whilst their Gresley's were the best coaches of their time and still stack up well today.
Just my opinion. Minitrix locos ignored as not being questioned in the op.
The Lima Mk1 CCT was also good for its time (and unlike the rest of the Lima coaches was roughly to scale). The LNER/BR standard brake-van is a good match for use with Tomix's Thomas the Tank Engine models but not much else. The open wagons don't look out of place alongside pre-2000 Farish models.
Minitrix made a decent selection of wagons - the HAA coal hopper was much sort after long after it was discontinued (and before Peco & Farish both produced versions of it).
Both ranges had continental models painted up in fictitious BR liveries so be careful with what you buy if you're fussy about being prototypical.
All Lima and Minitrix rolling stock benefit from having their pizza cutter style wheels replaced. You also won't find NEM coupling pockets allowing easy swapping of couplers.
Steven B.
As the chaps have stated above.
Forget Lima locos as they were poor even back in the day, forget Lima coaches dues to the scale issues. Some Lima freight stock probably ok to use but don't pay much for it. Some finishes a bit "plasticy".
Minitrix stock pretty good for its time but generally superseded by more modern production. Minitrix locos good old reliable models though compromised (some more than others) by use of German chassis. Availability of spares becoming more troublesome.
Thanks for the clarification guys...
It was mainly related to the MK1 coaches, which seeing that they are underscale would explain the lower prices these seem to go for..
Originally the plus point for Lima coaches was that they were very free running and had a low centre of gravity compared to early Farish models. They forgave poor track laying and small radii as a result. As stated, all have been superseded by more recent models.
The depth of the windows compared to the 'printed' Farish windows shows up on Minitrix coaches as I think it does on some of the Dapol ones nowadays - they work out as being inset by a scale 6 inches (15 cms)
Lima Mk1:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/4512/37039504133_2175853e23_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Yr499e)
Lima Mk1 RMB (maroon) (https://flic.kr/p/Yr499e) by Rail Squid (https://www.flickr.com/photos/railsquid/), on Flickr
vs. modern Farish Mk1:
(https://live.staticflickr.com/4499/37039504223_70e3f418b6_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/Yr49aM)
Farish Mk1 RMB (https://flic.kr/p/Yr49aM) by Rail Squid (https://www.flickr.com/photos/railsquid/), on Flickr