And now, probably the most highly anticipated HO scale model since Duck and/or Oliver, Daisy has finally arrived and as usual I will give my thoughts on this model while bumping up this thread since it seems fans are currently getting their models in! Anyways here are my thoughts:
Before this model got announced, I’ll be honest when I say this, I genuinely did not think this was going to happen. Daisy was one of those characters who while she was very popular in the writing department, she was never really all that marketable in the eyes of Mattel. This is literally the first and so far only piece of merchandise of her that has been made since her return in CGI which was over five years ago. The fact that Mattel even approved of this is nothing short of incredible.
In addition, the fact that we are also getting another lesser known classic character from the Awdry era in 2022 is definitely worth celebrating. In addition to being the first ever large diesel in the Thomas & Friends range. This model has taken almost 3 years to come out since her announcement in the summer of 2019. I remember the night before not sleeping very well and the moment when I saw those announcements I genuinely thought I was hallucinating but a moment later it was real and I was incredibly blown away by this. There has been a lot of hype behind this model in particular, so now the question remains, how does this model itself hold up? Was this really worth the incredibly long wait?
The answer is, 100% yes. I don’t think I have been so impressed with an HO scale Thomas engine (not including narrow gauge), since the Bachmann Duck. This is definitely a quality model, it’s surprisingly very heavy and really does a great job matching the CGI appearance of the character almost perfectly. Without a doubt, I think that this is one of Bachmann‘s best models out there, not even up for debate.
Just like some of the narrow gauge engines, Daisy is one of those anomalies who actually looks better in CGI than and the model series and that is attributed to the fact that her face is not just BoCo’s with makeup or the bufferbeam running too low. The proportions of the model are spot on and definitely have the feel and look and look of Daisy. Right down to the detailing of her roof, the separately fitted brake pipes and buffers, to the face plate on the model with the correct amount of make up an eyelash detail, it is truly a stunning model. I also think the silver paintwork on her roof is really crisp and looks great from viewing this model at all angles.
My favorite details are right underneath her chassis, I was expecting somewhat minimal effort on this department but I love the brake and hydraulic details that are molded onto the chassis. The fact that Bachmann went above and beyond with Daisy really shows how much effort they were willing to put in this model.
The one common complaint I am hearing about Daisy from fans are her windows. And to some extent, I get it. The windows definitely make Daisy look a little more toylike and giving this model transparent windows really would’ve helped the look of the model. However, going into this model before it was revealed, I think it was almost obvious if not inevitable that Bachmann was going to go down this route if any of their other previous engines are anything to go off of. This is basically why I don’t let the lack of transparent windows bother me, but I do think that unlike some of the other faults that have been discussed another models, this is definitely an easy fix and can be done with some creativity from various modelers in the Thomas community.
Overall, aesthetically, I think Daisy is definitely a winner, unlike the Oliver model who does not exactly have a flattering CGI design, Daisy definitely has one of the best and I am glad that most of the best attributes to the CGI render made it onto the Bachmann model.
In terms of running, this is definitely a high-quality runner. As I mentioned, Daisy is a fairly heavy model and she seems to run very smoothly just like that of the Duck, Donald, and Douglas models. The rear bogey on Daisy is motorized, while the front bogey is not, but despite this, there are pick ups on the front of the model as well to help attribute to the models smooth performance. She seems to be running really well regardless of running at fast or slow speeds for that reason alone and again, I attribute that to the high quality motor and weight of this model.
Now, I figured I should do this for the sake of a review, even though on the show Daisy never pulls anything, I figured I would at least test the haulage of this model. Daisy can surprisingly pull a lot of rolling stock if you choose to let the model do so. Now granted, I understand that most if not every fan purchasing this model is probably not going to have Daisy pulling or pushing all that much, if anything at all. But I did think that detail was worth mentioning regardless.
Overall, I am 100% sold on this model of Daisy. Without a doubt, this is one of Bachmann‘s best models in the Thomas and friends range. It is clear why there is so much hype for this model and why this model is selling very quickly. This is the first ever ready to run model of Daisy, which as a result is attracting a lot of modelers and collectors everywhere to purchase this model. Even if you are not a fan of the CGI seasons, you will still appreciate the qualities that this model of Daisy has to show. I can safely say that while Daisy is not my number one favorite model personally, without a doubt she is very firmly in the top five.
I really want to thank Bachmann for continuing production on this model in particular in spite of the pandemic slowing things down for everyone. If anything, the pandemic unironically helped make this model all the more worth the wait. I am definitely looking forward to the upcoming Peter Sam and Sir Handel models, in addition to the N scale James and Toby models and the narrow gauge rolling stock. Thank you Bachmann for producing this model and continuing to listen to the fans and as always I’m looking forward to seeing everyone else’s thoughts on Daisy!
Speaking of… it looks like someone left the milk behind again.
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