BACHMANN HELJAN CLASS 25 COMPARISON 

Heljan don't do bad products in my opinion.

I think the Heljan makes the Bachmann look like a caricature of a class 25

Its a bit like comparing a battered old Ford Escort with a new BMW 3 series. A fairer comparison would be with the Bachmann class 24/1 as that should be the benchmark for the Bachmann retooled class 25. The old Bachmann 25 never was that good a model to look at, it was the mechanism underneath it which was such a ground breaker for the UK market. The Heljan model is a bit bitter sweet, yes it looks good but you can see where they skimped on it, presumably to rush it out to market first. The DCC functionality is particularly poor, even the old Bachmann model equals it there. The poor definition around the windows and really poor fitting glazing don't help the Heljan model, just look at the poor fit of the headcode panel and the way the windscreens lean back into the cab moulding in your own model here in this video. Its a shame, the Heljan model is more of a 'what if?' than a definitive model. It will be rather interesting to see the SLW and Bachmann retool compared with this one, I have a feeling this won't be the best one of the three, and at only £5 cheaper than the SLW model on rrp, it probably won't be the best value for money of them either.

What an interesting comparison -thanks for posting it. Both a bit of curates egg to be honest. Heljan have go the roof shape better and their model has more finesse than the much older Bachmann tooling. Neither model has the 'face' quite right in my opinion- neither of them scream 'class 25'. I am struck at how good the Bachmann bogie looks and it has a better and more convincing relationship to the body. Every Heljan 25 I have seen has the cab steps leaning inwards - yours too. A shame in my opinion that Heljan didnt respond to concerns raised earlier in the development of their model as I think it will shortly be eclipsed by the forthcoming Sutton version

Pity you didn't have them facing the same way around. Prefer the Bachmann

Hi R, Both look good, but I think the BR Blue model has a superior sound. Plus, I noticed on the BR Green loco that for some reason there was only 1 tail lamp, the other seemed to be white & acted as a marker light. I never worked on these types but I think the BR Blue is again, far more accurate in this field too. Other than that, they certainly run well & sound good with Keith's sound files. All the very best to Y & yourself & stat safe! Boa

Leaning towards the Heljan.