Steinkopf

Beautiful work as always Mike, your attention to detail coupled to your use of rather unique parts has yet again provided superb results. The texturing used on the Guards Van to achieve the weathered look is top notch, whilst the wide variety of connections you have used for the VFTY Timber Wagon to achieve the level of detail and look is spectacular.

Creator sets here are normally bunched close to City sets as well, I think this is part of the marketing ploy of where they can be seen to be complimentary to the City theme but be a standalone theme as well.

One point that I would like to make which has been neglected throughout this conversation is the paradigm shift within the City theme in regards to the type of buildings that are available, these days City sets are more orientated around the playability and interaction of components within a set. The number of civilian buildings in the City theme has been quiet low and they are normally tied in with another element of the theme, examples of this are 3661 Bank & Money Transfer, 60008 Museum Break-in, 60009 Helicopter Arrest and 60003 Fire Emergency, with these sets the action revolves around the building akin to a story unfolding in front of you. If you have a look at the number of house sets in the City theme there has only been one and that was 8403 City House from 2010, back in the golden era of LEGO Town in the 1980s there was a dozen sets with houses in them. The only way to get houses these days that are official sets to be part of your city is to now buy from the Creator range, compared to the past when houses came under the Town theme. I think in some respects the transfer of houses over to the Creator theme has been to broaden their appeal to the consumer, lumping them in with City means they are more geared towards boys, but having them in Creator you are hitting a far wider demographic. I have noticed that the creator house sets are very appealing to women in their 30s and 40s, this group of consumers would never have bought the set if it was under the City banner as its seen more as a boys toy, but they feel comfortable buying them under the Creator banner which has a more universal appeal compared to City.

Hello Joe The most well rounded magazine is called Continental Modeller, they are owned by Peco Publications who also produce Railway Modeller, Continental Modeller covers a wide range of prototypes from Europe, Asia, Africa, America and Oceania, they don't cover British or Irish trains as this is done in Railway Modeller. Model Rail Magazine also had an international version called Model Rail International but I don't know what has happened to it as I haven't seen it available for a while, the main magazine in Australia is Australian Model Railway Magazine, they only focus on Australian prototypes. I have to agree with you when you look at the Railfan and Model Rail community in the US in particular the magazines that there is little to nothing about overseas railways it's as if the rest of the world does not exist, I will acknowledge though that there are small pockets of modellers in the US that model British and European prototypes, one of the largest RhB layouts I have seen was done by a group on the West Coast.

Welcome to the forum jrathfon, with regards to LEGO trying to foster their own model railroading culture this is very difficult to implement, it is also moving against their core business model in that LEGO is a construction toy company that provides a broad spectrum of themes to their fanbase, rather than being a specialist manufacturer which the model train manufacturers are. I will add though that LEGO has been proactive with promoting LEGO trains to the public through the assistance that it has given to LEGO Train Clubs around the world, this comes in the form of LUGBULK as well as promotional material and a number of other things, I know this from my own personal involvement. Another thing is that LEGO has never seen itself as a model train manufacturer in any way shape or form, they see themselves for what they are a toy manufacturer, the provision of LEGO trains is more as a supplementary item that helps take LEGO city to a new level by providing an automated interactive element. This is where the LEGO Train Clubs step in and play their part, the unofficial role for the LTC is to help promote LEGO Trains as a viable alternative to traditional model railways, this is done via public events such as model railways exhibitions and other displays. One of my core aims has been to show parents what is possible with LEGO trains and how you can integrate them in with the kids LEGO collection to create their own layout, model railways is an expensive hobby to get into and parents have to divert money they spend on other toys such as LEGO to finance it. What I do is explain that with LEGO Trains you can have the best of both worlds, you can integrate an existing toy collection to take it too the next level, there is also the flexibility in that the children can create what ever they want and are not limited to the design and parts of a model kit. There is also the fact that with LEGO Trains you don't need paint or glues and the other stuff that you use in model railways which makes it a safer alternative, and last of all you don't have to mount it all on a big baseboard that takes up room you can set it up on the floor any way you like and when your finished you can tidy it up and store it in boxes taking up far less room.

Thank you for stepping in JopieK, you saved me from saying something I may have regretted . I too would like to see us all focus on the positives as we move forward, the vast experience and wealth of knowledge that we have here and can share amongst each other will help the train community grow stronger, sure we may not get a whole heap of shiny new boxes every year but when we are using the worlds most flexible creative medium who needs a set of instructions and a bunch of packaging that will ultimately end up in the rubbish bin .

Hello Joe I apologise if I offended you it was unintentional as my comment was not aimed in your direction, I have no problem with people being collectors as it is one of the facets of our great hobby, I just get a bit irritaited when I see some people continually complain and argue the same points over and over again that their needs are not being catered for yet they fail to see the good work that has been done. What I would like to see is more acknowledgement from members of the community as to the positive steps taken by TLG, especially when it comes to the level of detail and the quality of the designs with the sets that they have released over the last few years. You only have to look back at the 4.5 volt era where the trains were basically a bunch of bricks whacked on top of wheels akin to a wooden toy train, the designs have progressively improved over the years to the point of where the trains now look like a very reasonable representation of the real thing. Then there is the design team which includes people such as Pierre Normandin, he is a long term AFOL and train builder who is also a founding member of the former MonLUG from Montreal in Canada, back in the early 2000s MonLUG was one of the most progressive and talented train clubs of that era. The level of detail they achieved on their layouts back then was superb and was nothing short of inspirational, here is a link to some of MonLUGs work http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=78194 . I too miss the heady days of 12v and 9v Trains when LEGO Trains was a standalone theme and there was large range of sets available, sadly those days will never return but on the upside LEGO is still giving us sets and providing us with parts that never existed back in the glory days. Before the introduction of the Emerald Night there were no driving wheels for steam locomotives and all the sets that had steam trains in them prior too that used normal train wagon wheels, we have now seen four sets come out with the steam locomotive wheels in them, three of those sets have Black wheels whilst the other has them in Red. Another point of note is that LEGO in its own way is actively trying to draw children into Trains using other themes as a crossover point with sets such as Toy Story Train Chase, Monster Fighters Ghost Train and now the Constitution Express from the Lone Ranger, sets like these help draw in kids who may not necessarily be interested in trains to get involved with them.

Yet another community announcement from the spokesperson for the Disgruntled Collectors Union, if you are really after extra wagons rather than being the "victim" of the so called "Clever Salesman on Ebay" why don't you just buy another set, afterall you will need more track to run those wagons on buying a whole set would be a really good idea, you can call it a win win situation. If you want a bit of variety with your rolling stock you could always make something else with the leftover parts, but if you find that all too hard I am quite happy to make some really nice wagons for you, prices will be inline with what an official set would realistically sell for such as $40.00 for a simple wagon with load to $70.00 for a more detailed Bogie wagon, postage is extra. I can make a wide variety of designs for you ranging from flat wagons to sliding wall vans and chemical tankers, unfortunately they won't be official sets but on the upside they will probably be better looking and far more detailed than official sets.

I got into 9v Trains in 2003 and I do remember what happened back then as far as stock was concerned, most of the range was readily available in a number of retailers and the stock moved very slowly, likewise the same thing happened with Shop@Home with a large number of sets being available but only really selling when on discount. The same thing happened in the mid 1990s, I remember seeing a major department store selling massive amounts of 9v wagons such as 4536 at almost half price, at the time I was modelling traditional model railways and I had no interest in LEGO Trains at the time, if only I could wind the clock back sadly I can't. The biggest problem with Trains compared to traditional sets is they are not a standalone item in their own right, a parent can buy their child a truck or a car and doesn't have to buy road plates as the child can simply drive it on the floor, a train set on the other hand requires track for the train to run on. I think LEGO has come up with a decent solution of providing parents the ability to buy a decent basic train set that acts as an entry level, then there is the track packs that make it possible to expand upon the basic sets, after that there are more detailed sets such as the Horizon Express or Maersk Train which gives the enthusiasts something more realistic and detailed to supplement their train sets. When it comes to promoting the hobby it's not just the responsibility of TLG it is also the responsibility of the enthusiasts, for us to make the hobby grow and provide a more viable market opportunity we as a community have to do our part as well, in many respects this is done by the growing number of Lego Train Clubs around the world. A key role that LEGO Train community members can and do play is to show children and their parents what is possible with LEGO trains, this can be from the basics of how a train set can be integrated with a LEGO collection and turn it miniature world, then to the more advanced showing people how you can turn a pile of LEGO elements into a detailed piece of rolling stock. I always get a kick at shows when I show people some of my models and they are gobsmacked that they are built completely out of LEGO, my best moment was when I showed some of my trains to an old family friend who built my first model railway, he is a member of a local group of modellers who are well renowned internationally and he was stunned as to the level of detail that can be achieved.

Beautiful work as always helos, you have captured the look and style of this locomotive magnificently with this build, I am especially impressed with how you have been able to replicate the sloped sides.

I agree with your point about keeping the theme alive for the next generation of builders, I do believe that trains will still be supported at the current levels of a few sets being made available every 3 to 4 years, unfortunately I don't think it will ever return to the heady days of 12v in the 1980s or 9v in the early 1990s. The level of competition these days from other mediums of child entertainment such as gaming consoles has impacted heavily on the toy market, the decline in LEGO trains corresponds very much with that shift in the market with the late 1990s being a clear indicator, especially when you take into account the introduction of systems from SEGA, Nintendo and Sony back then. I also look forward to new train sets but for me it's about what new parts will come out with them, 7898 gave us the classic locomotive cab front and cab roof, the Emerald Night gave us steam locomotive driving wheels whilst 7938 and 7939 gave us the inverted slope cab front piece.

Your a very lucky man getting to run your trains on Reinhard "Ben" Benekes layout, I know many an AFOL train builder who would give their eye teeth to spend some time with Ben and run trains with him.

Come on now boys, I think you are all missing the point here in that LEGO in its pure essence is a children's construction toy with almost boundless building possibilities, the fact is TLG has to make sets that have universal appeal and with trains it is very difficult due to wide variety of trains used around the world. Making US styled sets may appeal to American buyers but may not attract much from European buyers, likewise a European styled train would suffer the same fate with American buyers. When it comes to the crunch if LEGO does not make the trains or accessories that you want make your own, that way you get exactly what you want, its not that hard it just takes a bit of imagination and the ability to source parts from places such as Pick a Brick or Bricklink which I think anyone here is more than capable of doing. I took that step about 7 years ago when I realised that LEGO was not going to produce the sort of trains that I wanted, since then I have never looked back and I have built a substantial collection of trains.

The next issue is in the editorial stage and will hopefully be out soon, all of the team at Railbricks volunteer our time to the magazine and sometimes the demands of life can mean that some things get put on the back burner, but don't worry a new one is on the horizon and will be worth the wait.

Thanks everyone for the comments. Here is a shot from above showing how how she negotiates the dreaded TLG standard curved track.

Hello Everyone It's been a fair while since I have posted a locomotive on this forum as I had taken a bit of a break from building in general. My latest build is the KLS/LBB Class 48 0-4-4-0 Mallet type locomotive, this loco has been on my to do list for a number of years and it's only until a few weeks ago that I decided to finally tackle her. I have always wanted to build a decent sized steam locomotive to use for freight trains on my LBB and had been inspired by a number of designs from the late 1800s, I wanted a locomotive with either 6 or 8 coupled wheels which created a bit of a problem as far as building it was concerned. The length of the locomotive would cause a number of issues which included the swing of the body on curves and the ability to pull stock in either direction, also there is the coupling of the wheelsets since I don't use custom rods and I dont like the way the wheels are coupled on designs such as the Emerald Night. During my seach for ideas I came across photos of the G9 Class 0-4-4-0 Mallet locos that were built for the KPEV during the 1890s http://www.flickr.co...aar/6776650649/ I was immediately hooked, given the fact the locomotive is articulated it gave me the ability to have decent lengthed locomotive that would be able to negotiate curves easily with a moderate swing on the body compared to a locomotive with a rigid wheelbase. Due to the extremely tight curvature of tracks on the KLS system all locomotive designs had been limited to having 4 coupled wheels for driving them, this caused a number of issues in particular the lack of growth potential and hauling power. Prior to 1895 freight services had been hauled by 0-4-0 and 2-4-0 Tender locomotives, these locomotives were initially up to the job but when freight traffic started to grow rapidly in the late 1880s the need for larger locomotives became apparent. The decision was then made to order a batch of 0-4-4-0 Mallet type locomotives to handle heavy freight services, their articulated frames meant that it was possible to run large locomotives that were capable of traversing the tight curves found on the KLS lines. These locomotives proved to be quite capable and were reasonably successful, their only problem was the high costs in maintaining them which in turn lead to only one batch of 8 locomotives being acquired. All members of the class worked up until the 1950s when steam was eventually replaced on the network by either electric or diesel traction, one locomotive has been kept in running order to preserve this rather unique class of locomotive.

Great work there Sven, I really like how you revisit your MOC's and rebuild them into more detailed versions as well as improving the overall look of the model.

There is one in Oz already and it's sitting in my lounge room :p .

Nice work there ZueriHB you have captured the clean and sleak look of this locomotive really well, I also like the fact that you have been able to keep her 6 wide. I am also really keen to see your coaches when they are finished, the shots you have them so far they look very nice.

I received my copy of 60026 yesterday afternoon http://www.flickr.co...rd/8899576928/ .

Beautiful work there TheLET, I thought Flickr user and LUGPol member Kris Kelvin model of the Rocket was very impressive and hard to top, but your model surpasses that easily, the detail you have poured into the tender and the motion is superb. Here is a link to Kris Kelvins rendition .

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Beautiful work there Captain K, I was lucky enough to spot her the other day on Brickshelf. I really like the fact that you study the subject that you model and when you do build it your pour in as much attention as possible, I have a Plasser und Thuerer catalogue that I use as reference when I am building some of my Permanent Way machinery and your model captures the look of the prototype so well.

It's good that we have had a positive outcome with this individual, I had also sent a firmly worded message informing him that we were aware of his unscupulous business practices as well as sending a complaint to eBay regarding the issue.

Very nice work there Thomas, you have done an excellent job in capturing the look of this iconic class of locomotive, especially when it comes to the bulging of the long hood which is a prominent feature of this class. I also like how you have been able to cram in all the PF components into such a small locomotive, that in itself is a difficult feat.