REVIEWS
Read all the latest product reviews from the Hornby Magazine team covering 'OO', 'N' and 'O' gauge as well as a broad spectrum of model eras and product types. Plus, look out for the Video tag for feature videos included within reviews as well as the Hornby Magazine Express Video tag for our quick overview videos.
Hornby Loadhaul ‘Shark’ Surfaces
Hornby’s popular ‘OO’ gauge ‘Shark’ ballast plough brake van returns to the range, resplendent in Loadhaul livery as DB993826.
MARK CHIVERS
Bachmann ‘OO’ Polybulks Return
New from Rails of Sheffield are these exclusive ‘OO’ gauge JIA ‘Polybulk’ bogie covered hopper wagons commissioned from Bachmann.
MARK CHIVERS
Hornby's 'OO' gauge Loriot Y wagon arrives
New from Hornby is this eagerly awaited ‘OO’ gauge Great Western Railway (GWR) 25ton ‘Loriot Y’ two-axle machinery truck.
MARK CHIVERS
Hornby Skaledale Victorian terrace houses
Hornby’s ‘OO’ gauge Skaledale range of resin buildings continues to expand with a series of all-new terrace houses to help build up a residential street scene.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Heljan’s GWR ‘1366’ 0-6-0PT
Heljan’s ‘OO’ gauge GWR ‘1366’ dock tank is an attractive shunting engine which made its debut in 2016. MIKE WILD inspects this outside cylinder pannier tank.
MIKE WILD
Accurascale’s TPE Mk 5s debut
TransPennine Express has one of the most distinctive liveries on the railway and it is also one of only a handful of train operators to make use of diesel-hauled push-pull trains. MIKE WILD inspects Accurascale’s Nova 3 Mk 5 coaches for ‘OO’.
MIKE WILD
Accurascale’s Caledonian Sleeper Mk 5s
The striking Caledonian Sleeper Mk 5 carriages whisk passengers from London to destinations in Scotland overnight and now you can add them to your collection in ‘OO’ gauge. MIKE WILD gets the full story on Accurascale’s first ready-to-run passenger carriages and demonstrates their operation on our test track.
MIKE WILD
IXO London Transport RT for O gauge
For ‘O’ gauge modellers looking for suitable road vehicles, the IXO Models 1:43 scale range includes this classic London Transport AEC Regent III RT double-decker bus.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Hornby Class 60 60001 Steadfast
Hornby’s high-fidelity ‘OO’ gauge Class 60 gains a new identity for its latest release as first-built 60001 Steadfast in BR Railfreight Construction sector livery.
MARK CHIVERS
Riveting Stuff
New from Railtec Transfers are sheets of crisp three-dimensional rivets or bolt heads in waterslide form.
MARK CHIVERS
Humbrol sanding pads
Recently added to the Humbrol range of tools and modelling materials are these new flexible sanding pads.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Hornby magnetic couplings for OO gauge
The first of Hornby’s new magnetic couplings are now available in multi-coupling packs.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Bachmann Webb ‘Coal Tank’ 0-6-2T
For its latest venture into pre-Grouping subjects, Bachmann has selected a versatile LNWR locomotive which gave sterling service from the late Victorian era until the late-1950s. BEN JONES takes a closer look.
Hornby’s Peckett ‘W4’ 0-4-0ST
With strong pre-orders even before its initial release in 2016 release, expectations were high for Hornby’s diminutive saddle tank. MIKE WILD takes a closer look to see whether this tiny steam locomotive can satisfy its demanding audience.
MIKE WILD
Bachmann's Network Rail MPV for OO gauge
Bachmann’s model of the Network Rail Multiple Purpose Vehicle (MPV) made its debut in 2011 and offered contemporary layout builders the opportunity to purchase an unusual model of an enthralling prototype in ‘OO’. A new batch of these unusual vehicles is coming soon. Check out what we thought of the original release.
MIKE WILD
Bachmann's ‘OO’ Wickham Trolley is a tiny marvel
The Wickham trolley might not be a first choice as a ready-to-run model, but Bachmann has created a beautiful model all the same. MARK CHIVERS runs the rule over this miniature Type 27 variant.
MARK CHIVERS
Industrial Storage Shed
A brand new 4mm scale laser-cut industrial storage shed kit is now available from Scale Model Scenery.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Laser-cut lamp huts
Recent additions to the Scale Model Scenery range of laser-cut detailing accessories includes these 4mm scale Great Western Railway (GWR) and London, Midland & Scottish Railway (LMS) lamp huts.
JONATHAN NEWTON
DCC Concepts Legacy LED lamps
DCC Concepts has recently reintroduced its extensive collection of ‘OO’ gauge lamps, as part of its Legacy Models range.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Dylington Custard ‘ghost signs’
Scale Model Scenery’s range of model railway detailing accessories includes a selection of ‘ghost signs’, intended for applying to the sides of old buildings to represent a long-gone business, including this pack advertising Dylington Custard.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Peco’s Flexi Loco Lift
Peco’s range of model railway track and accessories includes this recently introduced multi-gauge Flexi Loco Lift which can be adapted for use across all scales from ‘N’ to ‘EM’.
JONATHAN NEWTON
RNAD wagons arrive from Bachmann
A new collection of Royal Naval Armaments Depot wagons has been created by Bachmann for its narrow gauge collection. MIKE WILD inspects two of the new arrivals for ‘OO9’.
MIKE WILD
Kernow Model Rail Centre's Beattie ‘0298’
Kernow Model Rail Centre’s Beattie ‘Well Tank’ project is bearing fruit with all four livery variations now approved for production (see Update) and the first Southern Railway liveried variant arriving in the
MIKE WILD
New 'OO' gauge ‘Hymeks’ from Heljan
The popular Class 35 ‘Hymek’ is back from Heljan with an upgraded chassis. MIKE WILD inspects a classic BR two-tone green version of the Western Region hydraulic.
MIKE WILD
Rapido’s Conflat P for ‘N’ gauge
New for ‘N’ gauge is Rapido Trains’ model of the Conflat P – a wagon type synonymous with the ‘Condor’ container train of the 1960s. MIKE WILD reveals all.
MIKE WILD
‘N’ gauge Co-Bo from Rapido Trains
Rapido Trains UK has released its first ready-to-run ‘N’ gauge powered locomotive modelling the characterful but spectacularly unreliable Co-Bo diesels. MIKE WILD casts his eye over this new arrival.
MIKE WILD
BR First Generation DMUs
Hugh Longworth’s long-out-of-print reference work British Railways First Generation DMUs returns with revised text and the addition of colour photographs.
MARK CHIVERS
Book Review: GWR Locomotives - the Prairies
The Great Western Railway (GWR) 2-6-2T ‘Prairies’ were some of Churchward’s earliest designs boasting two basic types: the smaller version for branch lines and the large type for outer suburban work in London and Birmingham.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Book review: Industrial Railways
Freight topics are particularly popular due to the varied nature of the payloads through the years and this latest volume from Amberley Publishing highlights some of the heavy freight diesel locomotives that were introduced by British Rail (and its successors) from the 1970s onwards.
JONATHAN NEWTON
Book Review: The East Coast Main Line – Peterborough to York
New from Amberley Publishing is this picture album showcasing the present-day rail scene on the East Coast Main Line (ECML) - a route with a long and storied history.
JONATHAN NEWTON