I need to contact Ayjay/Southern Region Models re EMUs

[Bob G]

Hello all

I need to contact Aryan Snowshill of Ayjay/Southern Region models. He owes me a lot of money.

I seriously wanted to sponsor a new N gauge supplier. I did not buy his 2-BIL after reports, but I did want two of his resin SUBs to make into a de-icing set.
After a lot of prompting him to deliver, I did get my two SUBs (they cost me £180 BTW).
Disappointingly they are not the right body length and are missing two compartments, but at least they look "reasonable" (ish). Perhaps not £180 worth of reasonable but they will do.

After seeing Grahame's review of the 3D printed Tin Hal in the NGS magazine, and after seeing adverts for a 3D printed 4-COR in N too, I ordered two of each, with my deposit paid in April 2015 and a total of £610 paid by the end of 2015. All I have had since are empty promises. Oh dear I missed the first print run. And yet I have seen him and the shop he used to sell at trade shows, Harrison Brown, advertising to sell his models.

So he has used my money to build kits he then sells at trade shows, and doesn't supply me, who paid in advance.
He is now no longer answering my emails and I want my money back.
His emails tell a story of a number of personal challenges and promises to deliver, but he never does.

Please take this as a salutary lesson in how not to do business, and I let you make your own judgements on my foolishness in trusting this supplier to deliver on his promises.
I did not buy through Harrison Brown, but direct off the southern region models website, but Harrison Brown do not return my emails either.

Very disappointed.
Bob

[Newportnobby]

That's a sorry tale, Bob, and I hope you have some success in recouping your outlay.
Presumably your next step is the small claims court (if you can track the blighter down)?

[Bob G]

A business has to put its customers first, or it will fail.
I should know. I'm self-employed.

[njee20]

A business like this trades on reputation too. I'd post in as many places as absolutely possible - RMWeb, Facebook etc.

More likely to yield a result than small claims court.

Presumably you didn't pay by credit card or anything?

[Bob G]

I have this afternoon got a delivery date for the tin HALs (13 June), so here is hoping that this date will at least be the right one.
If not the entire order is cancelled.
And if they look ropey then I can cancel the 4-COR order.
its a shame when you have to use the threat of court action to get what you want.

[Tank]

I was in a similar position with two N gauge sellers for a long time.  One was put in prison and has disappeared, and the other refunded me in the end.  I do hope you get what you want.

[Bob G]

I have disposed of my Carl Peplow models. They seemed rather tainted knowing what we know now about the modeller.

I don't put this proprietor in that category. He has explained to me a catalogue of disasters over the last year, but I guess he should not take advanced payment if he cannot supply within commonly accepted delivery times. It is six months since I paid the balance of the order, and over 14 months since I paid the deposit.

[colpatben]

I have this afternoon got a delivery date for the tin HALs (13 June), so here is hoping that this date will at least be the right one.
If not the entire order is cancelled.
And if they look ropey then I can cancel the 4-COR order.
its a shame when you have to use the threat of court action to get what you want.

Bob

What is your current status re Ayjay Models?

Did you receive the Tin Hals, or cancel the order and get repaid?

Aryan has told me that the 4-COR revised CAD is approved as of last Friday, (I understand there was a problem with the roof line) but now they are ready to go into the print stage.

I have decided to get a set as my first foray into kit building!

[Bob G]

Hi there.

Yes I got the Tin Hals.
Actually they are quite cute.

I've had to do a lot of surgery to the motor unit truss rods to fit the Greenmax unit I had for the MU drive, but it fitted OK in the end. They are designed for Tomix, I believe.
I also cut up some old Farish Mk 1 coach inserts to make the interior corridor and compartments in the trailer coach. Bits from a Brake Composite Corridor and a Second Corridor did it.

The bits I don't like (typical 3D printing issues) are
1. the bogies are a bit brittle - I think the best job (for good running) will be to use NGS SR 8' bogies for the trailer inner and motor inner (as an overlay/replacement over the Greenmax 8' bogie) and a Farish Mk 1 bogie for the 8'6 outer trailer, again with the supplied power bogie overlaid on a sanded down Farish bogie. The supplied power bogie sides are good.
2. the usual 3D printing lines.

I did not think it necessary to replace the piping with overscale wire.

I too am looking forward to the 4-COR.

HTH

Bob

[njee20]

So he's incompetent rather than a thief? I guess that's an improvement. 

[Bob G]

I don't think there is anything in what I said which suggests the kit manufacturer is incompetent.

There are lots of N gauge kits that I don't follow the instructions on and get good/better results than the kit manufacturer suggests.
That's mostly because kits are closer to scratch aids than the Airfix kits of old, and there is plenty of room for improvement.
The modern NGS wagon kits, for example, are much closer to the Airfix end of the scale.

I do begrudge paying for 3D printed material which I don't use though. All those bogie bits are wasted if I am going to use proprietary items from Farish/NGS to ensure good running, but its my choice.

HTH
Bob

[njee20]

It wasn't because of anything you did, but multiple people resorting to forum threads to get in touch with a company who have their money suggests a degree of ineptitude on the part of the manufacturer to me!