N Scale Diesel and Paxton were announced in 2023, and only now they finally had samples shown. Once their painted samples get shown in like a few streams, there's a good chance they will be available by the end of this year, along with the express coaches. Also won't be much longer before we see Henry's unpainted N Scale sample.

With the Class 08 tooling complete for N Scale, we're bound to get 'Arry, Bert, Sidney and Mainland Diesel at some point in N Scale, as simple repaints with new faces. Though 'Arry and Bert are discontinued in HO Scale, while Sidney and Mainland Diesel are coming soon to HO Scale. The next diesel for the N Scale range that isn't a Class 08 should either be Mavis or Daisy. Mavis would recycle Thomas' chassis, and would be the first model of her to actually have side rods. Daisy would give the N Scale range a diesel with bogies, and she's an iconic character. If Daisy gets an N Scale model, that would be her second piece of merchandise since her return in CGI.

But, the next N Scale engine should still be Edward, so we can have the original Steam Team complete, while the next tank engine should be Duck, and the third big tender engine for the N Scale range should be Spencer. Both Edward and Duck would 100% be new toolings, while Spencer can recycle Gordon's chassis, and his tender would be a new tooling, along with his streamlined A4 body. Spencer shouldn't be too hard to make in N Scale.

Anything is possible, now that the N Scale backlog is finally starting to clear.

At last, we finally got to see the first unpainted samples of N Scale Diesel and Paxton, and shouldn't be much longer before their painted samples arrive. We did get an update on N Scale Henry, and he's finishing the design phase, so it won't be too much longer before we see his first unpainted sample. We also saw a face sample of HO Scale Sidney, showing he has a perfectly-proportioned face, unlike Paxton's HO Scale model, which had a disproportionate face. It won't be too much longer before we see the first samples of HO Scale Sidney and Mainland Diesel within a few streams. Paxton's unpainted N Scale sample didn't have stepladders, but they'll be there on the final model. Maybe we can get 'Arry and Bert in N Scale too, which are discontinued in HO Scale.

We were also shown the fully painted N Scale Express Coaches, but we saw those on Facebook last week, and those will be available by the end of the year, alongside the Narrow Gauge Gunpowder Wagons, HO Scale Open Carriage, CGI Milk and Tar tankers. We weren't shown N Scale LBSC Thomas or Origin James, but those too should be available by the end of the year.

Within a few streams, we should see Bulgy's painted sample, along with the fully painted samples of N Scale Diesel and Paxton, HO Scale Sidney and Mainland Diesel samples, and the first unpainted samples of N Scale Henry, and HO Scale Flying Scotsman. We're starting to get more exciting reveals. With the N Scale backlog finally starting to clear, maybe this NMRA will finally be the time for Bachmann to announce N Scale Edward or Duck.

Next Thursday's stream will most likely have Matt showing off the fully painted N Scale Express Coaches, and possibly N Scale LBSC Thomas and Origin James. Not sure if we can expect the unpainted samples of Diesel, Paxton or Henry just yet. Might be in a few months before we see the first unpainted sample of HO Scale Flying Scotsman, and Bulgy fully painted. Why Flying Scotsman is so expensive could largely be because he has two tenders. I'm hoping we'll soon also see the first samples of HO Scale Sidney and Mainland Diesel. Just one of those two costs about as much as I paid for both 'Arry and Bert in 2014. I remember the days when one small engine costed $60. Now we're paying twice as much as we did for models over a decade ago.

This month's Trainworld stream has been postponed to next Thursday. Something must have happened.

But they did show the first real image of the fully painted N Scale Express Coaches. Should certainly be available by the end of the year.

Flying Scotsman just went up for preorder, and he's $230. So his price has finally been revealed. Better start saving up then, as he is not cheap. Nothing from Bachmann is these days. Even rolling stock is getting expensive. Costing as much as large scale models did before.

The CGI series is being revived, but with one notable difference being the colored irises, which carried over from All Engines Go.

The 2026 reboot appears to have actually been made with the older fans in mind, unlike All Engines Go, which wasn't, and it completely alienated older fans. So far, it's been much better-received. At least it actually looks like Thomas. Maybe there's a chance characters like Stepney or BoCo could return in the reboot. If they do, and Bachmann eventually makes them, it would be strongly advised the models wouldn't have colored irises, so that they wouldn't look so out of place compared to what we have. After all, the N Scale models didn't have the additional rivet details, and Emily didn't have her number 12.

I think the reason Bachmann hasn't announced Luke yet is because they're not ready to announce him yet, that they need to see if his tooling is feasible first, in order to avoid another situation like Duncan. So there won't be a repeat of what happened with Duncan, with all of us looking forward to him, only for Duncan to get cancelled, especially over a year after being announced.

We most likely won't see Duncan back on the cards until after Douglas finishes overhaul. That way, Bachmann could actually make Duncan based on Douglas, instead of his CGI render like originally planned. Rusty was based off his CGI render, which is very different from how Midlander is now. Because Rusty was smaller and simpler, so he was more doable. He's unfortunately too small for an open cab for crew to fit inside.

With this new direction of no longer announcing products unless it's certain that they will be out, waiting times between announcement and release could also be reduced. Bachmann tends to announce products much too early, long before they even know the cost before going into production, so we end up waiting years for them to be released, with some being cancelled. It literally took five years for DCC Sound Thomas and Percy to be released in HO Scale.

The biggest cancellations that disappointed me were Duncan, and the 80th Anniversary set. Thankfully, that's not going to happen anymore going forward. No more announcing a product unless it's guaranteed to be coming, that it's economically feasible to get into production. Many bullets will be dodged. No more being disappointed that a certain product isn't coming. As of right now, the only announcements will be products that will be released. Avoiding more cancellations in future.

It may not be until the unpainted sample gets shown off once Flying Scotsman does go up for preorder on Trainworld. Might be sometime before. Hopefully sometime soon, Flying Scotsman will be available for preorder. I need to really save up. Once the price does get revealed, this model will not be cheap. I'll also have to invest in three red express coaches, with one being a brake coach.

Flying Scotsman already has the design ready, and should be within a few months before the unpainted sample does come in. It's not certain he will be out by the end of this year, but fingers crossed, especially if the painted sample does come in by summer. If not, then early 2027. He needs to have the tender lining to match the shape, and not the Fowler tender lining.

Quote from: Yard Master on January 27, 2026, 09:59:24 AMHi everyone,

We want to apologize for the cancellation of Knapford Station and other items- it's just as disappointing to us as it is to the fans.

In trying to keep up the rate of new product announcements and releases from years past, our engineering team and factory were not able to keep pace and over the past few years, the length of time for them to study a project and submit a tooling cost and retail price increased. Compounded by tariffs and the general state of the economy, when we did receive costs, they came back higher than expected.

To elaborate more on Knapford Station: We made the new version half the size and half the number of parts as the first release with the goal of reducing the price. The cost we were given by the factory was higher than the last time we sold it, for a kit that was half the size- It wouldn't be economically feasible for us, nor would it be fair to the consumer to raise the price that much.

We think that this year the production delays have stabilized, and that we will be able to get costs much faster than we have the last 2-3 years. And we are no longer going to announce products until we receive a final cost from the factory, so that we are not announcing projects only to cancel them when they are not feasible.

Good to know for future reference. Now we know why the Knapford Station reintroduction was cancelled. Being half the size, it was actually going to cost more than it did before, which just simply was not economical. We've had several products being cancelled over the past few years, so to prevent this from happening again, it's best that you're no longer going to announce products unless it's certain they will be out.

The days of product cancellations will now be in the past. That way, we no longer have to worry about being hyped for a product, only for it to be cancelled.

Products getting cancelled is really starting to become an issue for Bachmann. It's not making the company look good. Instead of announcing products, getting everyone hyped up for them, just for them to be cancelled, maybe it's better they don't announce it unless they are CERTAIN it will be out. Better that something doesn't get announced for several months, and have it released, than to wait a year or two for it to be cancelled.

Many are really disappointed that the Knapford Station reintroduction was cancelled, yet they still got Rebecca out there, despite having such a high price.

On the more positive side, it may only be a few more months before they have an unpainted sample of Flying Scotsman to show. Don't know if he'll be out by the end of this year though.

So the 20-Ton Brake Van from the cancelled 80th Anniversary set is what celebrates 80 years of Thomas as a character, and is being released as a separate product. Would've liked to have seen the dark gray van or the orange wagon with coal load as well. Maybe they'll get separate releases at some point.

I can understand HO and N Scale not having any new engine announcements, as they both have several on the backburner, but Narrow Gauge? There's almost no backlog for that one. The NMRA for sure should announce more products for Narrow Gauge, including an engine. Most likely Luke. Guess N Scale Edward or Duck won't get announced until we start seeing more N Scale samples awaiting release.

Apparently, those at the event got to see N Scale LBSC Thomas and Origin James, and even the fully painted samples of the Express Coaches, this soon after the unpainted samples were shown off, but there are no photos of them online anywhere. I wasn't there, so I didn't get to see them.

I guess the reason why it's taking so long for samples of HO Scale Sidney and Mainland Diesel is because they had to actually fix the eye mechanism so their faces would look perfect, unlike Paxton. I know part of the reason is because they're trying to perfect Salty's reintroduction.

Definitely one of the weaker catalog announcements, especially with nothing new for Narrow Gauge, even though the Gunpowder Wagons are the only products for that range we're currently waiting on. Guess we'll have to wait until summer before they announce any new Narrow Gauge engine. Disappointing...

No new engines were announced. Rolling stock only.

HO Scale is getting a new 20-Ton Brake Van, CGI Fuel Tanker and the Ffarquhar Quarry Wagon, N Scale is getting the Blue Open Wagon and Mr. Jolly Van, and Large Scale is getting the Funfair Vans, along with the reintroduced Milk Tanker. Regarding engines, HO Scale at least has Sidney, Mainland Diesel and Flying Scotsman to look forward to. N Scale has Diesel, Paxton, Henry, LBSC Thomas and Origin James. The latter two still have their HO models illustrated in the catalog, but those who went to the event must have seen the actual samples, which haven't been shown online yet. Guess those are the products that Matt teased in the stream earlier this month... The tail lamp on Origin James being a decal ruins it. Could've been molded and separately fitted like on HO Red Rosie. There could still be hope that unpainted samples of N Scale Diesel/Paxton or Henry get shown soon... Still hope for the February stream, or March.

Not Thomas products, but Blue Talyllyn was announced with Ffestiniog Railway Gunpowder Wagons.

At least HO and N Scale still have engines coming, but the lack of anything new for Narrow Gauge is what really made it disappointing when there's almost not a backlog for it at all, with the only new Narrow Gauge announcements being for the Talyllyn line. May not be until summer before we get more exciting announcements. Wasn't there supposed to be a product celebrating 80 years of Thomas as a character, or was it the Ffarquhar Quarry Wagon?

This is it. Tomorrow is the day the yearly catalog goes up. Once the PDF file is available, we'll get to see what new products we can look forward to.

Regarding currently announced products, those with painted samples awaiting release are the HO Scale Open Carriage, CGI Milk Tanker, reintroduced Tar Tanker, and the Narrow Gauge Gunpowder Wagons. Products currently shown in the unpainted stage are Bulgy and the N Scale Express Coaches. Products that haven't had samples shown yet include HO Scale Flying Scotsman, Sidney, Mainland Diesel, China Clay Wagon, Diesel Fuel Drum Flatbed, N Scale Diesel, Paxton, Henry, LBSC Thomas, Origin James, Red Open Wagon and Sodor Scrap Wagon. Like I said, we may see unpainted samples of one or two of those upcoming N Scale engines in the February stream, as teased by Matt Stern. Images of N Scale LBSC Thomas and Origin James might be shown in the catalog.

As for the reintroduction of HO Scale Salty, this year should really be it.

I didn't know that meant it was being uploaded on Saturday instead of Friday, since we're more used to it being uploaded on a Friday. That one year, it was so late, it was uploaded on a Monday at the end of February.

So it's four more days we have to wait then. Won't be until the very end of this week when it's up. THEN we'll see what exciting products we have to look forward to.

As of this year, product announcements will now happen four times a year, but it's not guaranteed a Thomas product will appear in all of them. I'm guessing the next announcement after this one will be in May. Other Thomas products are possible for the other quarterly announcements, but no promise for all of them.

On a side note, Bachmann's Facebook has shown higher quality images of Bulgy and the N Scale Express Coaches, which are currently in the unpainted stage, and will have painted samples in the coming months. Might see their painted samples within the next few streams. In a few weeks, we might see an upcoming N Scale engine or two in the February stream that's also in the unpainted stage.