So recently, the thought came to mind that some customers of previous Bachmann Thomas models might not feel obligated to "upgrade" their Thomas based on the tooling updates alone. It made me wonder what would be a way to further draw people towards a new Thomas and Percy model, even if they already own one, but then I remembered a common feature in a lot of models I purchased recently:



Working lights! Rapido and Dapol have both made a glowing firebox light a feature in recent models they've manufactured when space allows it. Modern technology has made working lights a much more accessible feature to have on model trains than it was 20 years ago. That said, I don't expect Thomas and Percy to have fully open cabs to allow such a feature.



But what about Thomas and Percy's actual front and back lamps? It would certainly be possible to give those working lights. I think a "plus" like this would certainly elevate the redesigned Thomas and Percy toolings even further than their previous iterations, and be a fancy new feature that would give people another reason to purchase it.

The reboot officially launched this evening, albeit not yet in English.

Despite that, one can still get the rough premise of the special. Thomas wants to be helpful, but he works too hard, makes mistakes, his friends help him out, and everything works out in the end. However, the overall pacing and presentation of the special makes this reboot feel closer related to "All Engines Go" than it does the Railway Series, classic model era, or CGI Brenner era of Thomas, which I find a bit disappointing.

Mattel also recently announced their commitment to implementing AI into their workflow, and it feels all too present in this reboot. When your eyes become tuned in to the nuances of animation and the details put into CGI, the inconsistencies pop out quickly. Unfortunately, this is the new norm, and where the future is going. I don't believe Brown Bag Films themselves did anything with AI, but I don't trust Mattel on the matter.

In a previous livestream, it was mentioned that for the time being Bachmann would stick to CGI style products. After watching the reboot, I think Bachmann made the right call. There's a lot of design choices going on in the reboot that conflict with Bachmann's "style" of making Thomas products.

I think it would be best that if Bachmann makes any model era characters, they make them styled after the model era, and not try to imagine up their own CGI style faces. Most people interested in model era characters will want model era faces on the engines in question. The average, less-detail oriented consumer on the other hand, probably does not know the major differences between CGI and model era faces. Heck, CGI faces are vastly different in design depending on if they're a Nitrogen era character, Brenner era, or BWBA era.

As for the new reboot...

I'm glad Bachmann is deciding to stick to the CGI era style for now. There's a lot of things going on in the reboot I'm not a huge fan of, such as how toy-like the rolling stock is now, rather than being prototypical. That alone wouldn't jive with how Bachmann likes to make new rolling stock. Even Bruno looks like his AEG cartoon design but with more "detail", rather than based on an actual prototypical caboose.

I feel like I'll better articulate my thoughts as the days pass.

I know Mattel would love for Bachmann to make Nia, and has probably been actively pushing for them to do so. However, I think a lot of fans were upset as it is that Rebecca got made before Hiro. If Bachmann did Nia before Hiro too, there would certainly be even more dissatisfaction among the fans.

I think she will eventually be inevitable, but there's plenty of more popular and better selling characters they could choose before her.

Quote from: Zorran202 on August 09, 2026, 11:58:21 AMI thought I read somewhere that for Thomas and Percy that they were just gonna reuse their chassis to keep costs down(?).

I mean don't forget their Large Scale counterparts, because Percy in that line has counterweights to them. The N Scale Percy, not-so-much, but we'll see how things go...

This is a good point, and shows that there is precedent to a Bachmann Percy having the correct wheels. Hopefully they remember that.

I don't know if I would call these concerns, more observations. Even if the new Thomas has a wider smokebox saddle and molded funnel, I would still consider it an upgrade from what is currently being manufactured if it resembles the N scale and Large Scale models. That said, if Bachmann can manage to make a narrower saddle and separate whistle piece, I would be a very happy customer.

I saw this mentioned on Twitter recently and I figured it would be worth mentioning here too:



On the Bachmann Oliver and Rosie, the whistles are molded into the cab, rather than a separate detail piece. This makes me wonder what direction they'll take for Thomas.



On the N scale model, his whistles are molds. I wouldn't be surprised if Bachmann went this route to keep the costs of a new tooling down, but it would be much nicer looking if his whistle was a separate piece.

Curiously, this wasn't the case for Stanley:



He got a normal separate piece for a whistle.

Even the N scale Percy and Gordon got separate pieces:



It makes me wonder what the rhyme and reason is, since we have different design choices in both scales.

I forgot about the 6 wheel tenders, that was another odd design choice.

I was also thinking recently about how Wonders of Sodor, a licensed game that came out recently, had its own take on Thomas and Friends' character designs, in an officially approved product no less.



Instead of using the BWBA models, they did their own take on all the "extra" details. These designs were very well received by the general fandom, and it's easy to see why; the new details are much more subtle and tasteful, enhancing the CGI models without feeling intrusive. I don't see Bachmann adding these specific details, but it would be a fun project for anyone who wants to "enhance" the upcoming Thomas and Percy redesigns.



Though, Percy's drive wheels didn't regain their counter-weights.

The point is though, that based on this and Sir Handel, Mattel does allow some creative liberties.

There are definitely a lot of "inaccuracies" with models currently in the works; Thomas' smokebox saddle, Percy's CGI model missing the counterweights, Scotsman having the wrong tender lining on his CGI model, and of course Diesel 10s elevated body.

Personally, I think Bachmann knows to do their research and pick which details will best suit the taste of the fans, but Mattel does have the final say on how accurate the models are to their actual designs. It's a miracle that they allowed Sir Handel to be as derivative as he is.

Quote from: TrainFan97 on August 05, 2026, 10:22:24 PMVery likely in the near future, Henrietta's HO Scale model will be updated to have a face, then Hannah will also finally exist in HO Scale, and while they're at it, they could also update Annie and Clarabel's HO Scale models to look like their CGI designs. Don't know if they'll retool Toby, but he could use a CGI face, and an updated chassis with side rods, something his Large Scale model lacked, but his N Scale model has.

I thought about bringing up the idea of Annie & Clarabel being updated, but I backed down on it because it would open up the can of worms if Bachmann would also need to update the other 4-wheel coach toolings, when nobody really has any issues with them. Their only noticeable flaw is the coaches should have a slight curve on their sides when the Bachmann models are flat. I feel like Annie and Clarabel are right on the middle of the fence in terms of if they should be retooled or not. I don't see people criticizing how they currently look, but I don't think anyone would have a problem if they got updated either.

There's definitely an economical line to draw on what's practical to retool and what isn't, and I think that's worth taking into consideration here if future predictions are going to be realistic.

I echo the sentiment that a Bachmann Henrietta revision would be very welcome. It would give them a chance to update the tooling to accommodate her face, and make Hannah too. I feel like that is going to be in the cards in the next few years.

If Flying Scotsman re-uses Gordon's chassis but with updated valve gear, I could see Bachmann killing two birds with one stone and giving him the updated valve gear too.

Quote from: RailsByRick on August 04, 2026, 09:13:47 PMThanks for bringing this up. It's one of those things that once you see it you can't unsee it. I hope Bachmann keep this in mind in the design process.

And just to piggyback- some more accurate wheels for Thomas and Percy would be much appreciated. The Edward driving wheels I'd say are acceptable for Thomas, but Percy needs newly tooled wheels to be accurate. Percy's wheels lacked the counterweight in CGI. This detail was also reflected on the N scale model.

Percy's drive wheels having counter-weights is a detail I would not mind seeing Bachmann deviate from, since they're usually very faithful to the CGI models. Percy's CGI model only doesn't have counter-weights because Nitrogen based it on one of his duplicates from the model era that erroneously excluded them.

One thing I have seen people mention recently that is still a problem on both the G Scale and N scale Thomas models is the width of his smokebox saddle:



Meanwhile, on his actual design, the saddle is fairly narrow:



My guess is Bachmann has used a wider smokebox saddle so that the splashers can be flush with the body as one single mold. It does make me wonder if it is possible to design a body shell with the proper narrow smokebox saddle while still being economical if that's the case. I would assume it's unrelated to the eye mechanism, as Edward has his thin smokebox saddle. If Bachmann can fix this in the new tooling, it would certainly help Thomas look "thinner" in the front.

I feel like just because a character appears in CGI, it shouldn't mean they get automatic priority over characters who haven't. Fernando is a prime example of a character Bachmann -could- make, but it begs the question of who the market is. He doesn't have any sort of cult following within the fandom like Paxton, Sidney, or the Mainland Diesel did, which is a common trend among characters introduced in the BWBA era; the era as a whole largely failed to make a cultural impact on Thomas fans both young and old.

Adding to that, Fernando would be "alone" in terms of merchandise; if a Thomas fan hasn't made their own custom Raul or Gabriela, there wouldn't be much incentive to purchase a Fernando, which just goes back to the previous point; not a lot of people made customs of BWBA era characters because they didn't have the same charm as the CGI characters before them.

To put it simple; if Bachmann made Fernando, I think they would be fishing for a market that doesn't exist, and that would be a waste of their time, resources, and money.

On the other hand, Splatter and Dodge I am very confident would fly off the shelves. If a Thomas fan knows who Diesel 10 is and buys the Bachmann model of him, they 100% know who Splatter and Dodge are, and will consequently want to purchase them as well. Splatter and Dodge are the perfect upsells to Diesel 10.