Happy Easter everyone! Hope everyone is having a great day!

Excellent job, Mulfred100! Felt like a lost episode from Season 4, given its length (4 minutes and 30 seconds long) and beautiful, realistic visuals amalgamated with heavenly background music.

I also uploaded a new video today on all the failed attempts there were for one shot of TSS Episode 9: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LipnxmVPtQ&ab_channel=TerencetheTractor525.

Great thoughts on the Bachmann N Scale Thomas models, Kemptown Branch! I completely concur with them. The scaling of the N Scale Thomas model is particularly impressive with the thick side rods as the only factor that bugged me. Thus, if I were to purchase the model in the future, I would try to get the current rods replaced with thinner ones too.

Terrific work on Ffarquhar Sheds and the RWS Annie & Clarabel as well! Cannot wait to see how they will turn out once they are completed!

https://twitter.com/bachmanntrains/status/1369653181609807875?s=20

According to Bachmann Trains on Twitter, Origin James will be out in August.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJeRUCVaOUg&ab_channel=TerencetheTractor525

The ninth installment of The Sodor Series is finally uploaded! Hope everyone enjoys it!

Great rolling stock suggestions, as always, Chaz! As someone who models in HO, I will most likely not purchase these. Even so, with the N scale line off to a strong start, I am certain that these pieces of rolling stock would be well received from fans young and old. The idea of a Christmas Carriage, using the Henrietta tooling, is particularly unique. Great work, once again!

As far as new toolings are concerned, I am confident that Sir Handel will be Bachmann's next narrow gauge engine, and would certainly purchase one for my collection. I also agree that Sir Handel should be Bachmann's first priority as the next narrow gauge engine. However, if new toolings cannot happen right away, I hope that Smudger could be the second resort to still make up for Yellow Rheneas' announcement.

As far as the narrow gauge open wagons are concerned, I would certainly purchase them, but only if they are based on ones that appeared in the model era of the show and come in colors such as black and brown. Gimmicky Blue Mountain Quarry CGI ones that are red or green would not interest me, on the other hand. Hence, as shown in Chaz's post, these would be ideal:

Thanks for the responses guys. It's great to see that everyone supports a Bachmann Smudger, so here's hoping that he can become a reality for this summer, as a nice recolor. It would make up for the disappointment that was Yellow Rheneas, and to an extent, Ryan over Stepney.

As for an HO Sidney, even as a CGI character, I would support him getting announced soon because the model would utilize the same tooling as Diesel and Paxton. However, I see him more as a possibility for next February, especially with Daisy and now Ryan in play.

The introduction of Nia and Rebecca through Big World Big Adventures was a flop, which is why Mattel has chosen to make another revamp without Rebecca (that is ironically even worse).

Yet, in response to CGI faces, I, too, would be disappointed with that change, as they don't have the same nostalgic value that the classic model faces do.

All in all, it is important to remember that the Bachmann Thomas lines would not be as popular as they are today if it weren't for the original television series that utilized model trains. The realism of the models is what kept the majority of us older fans attached and loyal to Bachmann for all these years. If the show started as a CGI one, I definitely would not be a Thomas fan today and would not be surprised if the line suffered from the same fate that the Chuggington line did.

With the new Thomas & Friends Announcements for Winter 2021 revealed, I think that we can all agree that the line-up is solid. However, the one announcement that has especially received mixed thoughts from fans is the Narrow Gauge Yellow Rheneas. Thus, I wanted to bring up one Thomas product that would be a very pleasant surprise for the NMRA this summer to make up for that, as he also shares the same tooling as Rheneas: Smudger!

This idea first came up when thinking about one product that was announced with mixed thoughts from Winter 2020 (Busy Bee James), and what was announced in the summer afterwards (Origin James), which many more fans were happy with, plus both models utilized the same tooling.



I have zero doubt that a Bachmann Smudger would do much better than a Yellow Rheneas in terms of sales, primarily because he is a classic character from the model era. Hence, there is nostalgic value to him. Announcing Smudger would also provide an additional model that modellers can purchase to make Dolgoch, in case the Rheneas models are out of stock.





While some may argue that Smudger would not make sense without a model of Duke first, take a look at Yellow Rheneas. Rheneas appeared in the yellow paint scheme at the end of a movie for 20 seconds with Victor and Luke, two other engines that Bachmann have not made. Furthermore, while others may argue that Smudger is not relevant anymore, neither is Yellow Rheneas. Plus, take a look at the Spiteful Brake Van or even Toby's Museum Coaches. Those were both only seen briefly, yet the reception for them was positive because they have appealing designs and nostalgic value, which Smudger also has.



All in all, I hope that this suggestion can be passed along for the summer, as I know for a fact that many fans would be ecstatic to see a Bachmann Smudger announced, and make up for Yellow Rheneas' announcement. I, without a doubt, would purchase a Bachmann Smudger, unlike Yellow Rheneas.

As always, here are some follow-up questions for other fans:

1. Would you buy a Bachmann Smudger?
2. Do you think that Smudger would have been a better announcement than Yellow Rheneas?
3. Do you think that an announcement of Smudger for this summer would make up for the mixed reception on Yellow Rheneas?

Thank you very much for reading my post, and I look forward to reading everyone's thoughts!

It is that time of year again! Before I go into my thoughts on the new announcements for 2021, I wanted to thank Doug Blaine of Bachmann Trains for taking the time to make Thomas videos for last Wednesday's TrainWorld stream as well as the Amherst stream that occurred yesterday. I hope that this is something that can be done more in the future, as it was very nice to hear about the updates on all the upcoming products such as Daisy. Looking forward to the exclusive TrainWorld stream on February 18th as well!

Now for my thoughts:

First in line are HO Thomas & Percy with DCC Sound & Board, a great announcement! Even though I do not plan to purchase these, I know that many other Thomas fans wanted to see these made and am glad that Bachmann came through with the request.

Next to discuss is the new HO engine: Ryan. Initially, I was frankly somewhat frustrated with this announcement as I was hoping to see Stepney as the next HO engine with tooling announced, especially after all the time and effort that was put into explaining why and how he was the number one engine with new tooling that everyone wanted to see announced next. However, seeing that Ryan does go hand in hand with Daisy in the CGI era, I understand why Bachmann resorted to announcing him first, and I do look forward to seeing how the model turns out. Specifically, I hope that the HO Ryan will have an open cab, like the Rosie model.

In response to TrainFan97's posts on future HO engines, if I am going to be honest, I do not think that we are going to see any more newly tooled HO engines for at least a few years. This also explains why I was slightly frustrated with Ryan's announcement over Stepney. Nonetheless, here's hoping that Stepney is still a possibility for the future, as none of the other CGI engines interest me except for Hiro and Sidney to an extent.

Moving on to Toby's Museum Coaches, these were a very nice surprise! As someone who cherishes the model era of the Thomas television series, it is nice to see another announcement from that era. In yesterday's stream, the models looked absolutely stunning, and even though the brake coach only appeared in the television series, I will happily be purchasing both of them once they are released.



With the museum coaches announced, one other coach that I would love to see and purchase from the model era is Gordon's Special Coach. Considering that it is a repaint of Spencer's Special Coach, I could see this as another possibility for the future.

In terms of narrow gauge, while I do not mind the announcement of Yellow Rheneas as a recolor, I do concur with others who have stated that Smudger would have been a better announcement as a recolor. Yellow Rheneas was certainly an odd choice, and I do not plan to purchase this one.



Yet, overall, given that engine recolors can now happen in narrow gauge, I hope to see Smudger announced in the next few years. Would purchase a Bachmann Smudger model in a heartbeat!





On the other hand, the newly announced narrow gauge box vans were a pleasant surprise, and a very smart move by Bachmann for multiple reasons. Firstly, in the television series, they are almost the same tooling as the narrow gauge brake vans, but without the ticket windows and door detail, making them an easy, but effective new tooling for avid fans. The price is much more reasonable than the previously announced Peco ones as well. Overall, if Bachmann bases the new tooling for these vans on the model from the television series, I will definitely consider purchasing two red box vans, and maybe even one blue box van.



Here's hoping that the same can be done with accurate narrow gauge open wagons next year, but that is a completely different discussion for another time.

For N Scale, I am thrilled to see Toby joining the line, and look forward to seeing how the model will turn out, as it is the first engine in the Bachmann N Scale Thomas line that Tomix has not already tackled. After him, I hope to see Gordon announced, but Emily seems more likely to me as of now. S.C.Ruffey was inevitable, but a welcome addition, nonetheless.

Finally, for Large Scale, I think that it is fair to state that everyone saw Paxton coming after Diesel's announcement, considering that both models utilize the same tooling. However, it is wonderful to see that Bachmann took the time to adjust Paxton's eye mechanism in order to make a face plate that is more accurate to how he appeared in the show. As for the rolling stock recolors, there is nothing to really state, other than the fact that it would still be nice to see the red branch line coaches announced for Large Scale in the coming years, especially with Toby's Museum Coaches as recolors that could be announced afterwards as well. Yet, that too, is a discussion for another time.

In regards to discontinued products, in addition to the original narrow gauge red and blue box vans that were based on the Peco tooling, it seems that the HO Cargo Car, Cream Tanker, and Round Water Tower are now discontinued. The discontinuation of the round water tower is the most surprising to me, given the countless times it appeared in the show and very reasonable retail price. However, I am relieved to see that no resin buildings have been discontinued for this year, given how wonderful those models truly are.

All in all, the announcements for this year are solid. The only factors that slightly disappoint me are that Ryan was chosen over Stepney as the new HO engine with new tooling, and the same goes for Yellow Rheneas and Smudger. Yet, given the circumstances stated above, here's hoping that Stepney and Smudger can still be a possibility for the future. I would be ecstatic to see both of those announced at some point.

Thank you very much to everyone at Bachmann Industries, and I look forward to watching the exclusive Bachmann Thomas TrainWorld Stream in the coming weeks.

It seems that the Thomas motorized line just revealed a new troublesome tanker that will be part of a new Percy Takes the Plunge pack:



Ironically, Percy and the troublesome wagon have CGI faces, but the face of the troublesome tanker is based on one of the faces from Toad Stands By, a model series episode, and it looks absolutely stunning!



Fans have already suggested it for a future Troublesome Truck #7: https://twitter.com/SodorRyModeler/status/1350846386359726083

I'm all for it!

Happy New Year everyone! There is no doubt that 2020 was a hectic year for us, but I am optimistic for 2021 nonetheless. With that stated, it is hard to believe that we are only one month away from seeing what will be announced for this year. I agree that this year's batch will mostly consist of recolors. However, here's hoping that the announced products will still be exciting additions. My current predictions:

HO Scale
Stepney, Chocolate Covered Percy, or Jack Frost Percy (with moving eyes)
Red Express Coach
Red Express Brake Coach

Narrow Gauge
Brake Van- Brown

N Scale
Toby
S.C.Ruffey
Tidmouth Milk Tanker
Spiteful Brake Van (utilizing Graham Farish Tooling)

Large Scale
Paxton (with moving eyes)
Troublesome Van

There are many other rolling stock recolors for HO that have been previously mentioned that I would love to see such as the Circus Train and Toby's Museum Coach, but stating all of them in one list would be excessive.

https://twitter.com/TerencetheT525/status/1336743400817778689?s=20

I posted the image of Troublesome Truck #6 on Twitter earlier today, and Thomas fans have been commenting and retweeting their thoughts all day. The overall reaction seems to be mixed.

For me, I would have also been happier if Bachmann based it on one of the troublesome tankers from Toad Stands By. However, I would not go as far as stating that it looks terrible either. The main thing that I would have done differently is the paint scheme, as the purple is a little too bright for my liking.

Quote from: cp5150 on December 09, 2020, 09:40:01 PM
Hey guys I'm new to this forum thing, and model trains in general. When do you think we will get the 2021 catalog? I saw that some people said January or February but someone else said July. I'm just curious. Also TT#6 doesn't look half bad and I'll probably get it when I get TT's 3, 4 and 5.

Welcome to the Bachmann Forum! As long as the catalog does not get released early, as it did this year, it should be released at some point in February.

https://shop.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=756_772_775&products_id=7197

Looks like the image for Troublesome Truck #6 has been revealed too.