Review: Hornby Transport for Wales Mk4 DVT and Coaches incl. R40190, R40185, R40187, R40189, R40194 

Yeah, the locos do appear to be getting discounted by some retailers. That's a decent price, particularly if you didn't have the DB Schenker 67.

Thanks Onno

Thanks Dan

Thanks

@@EuviRail no worries

Thanks for sharing Simeon. Still on the lookout for the ideal coupler for these - surely Hornby should have done that for us? I'll be checking out the Hornby magnetic couplers when I can lay my hands on them.

@EuviRail I ran mine with Hunt couplings between coaches and they worked well distance wise, but I found the plastic used was too brittle for the strength of magnets as we had a few of them snap when being uncoupled

Hard to argue with those prices. 4 cars + DVT for less than £150 - the same price as a Bachmann Mk2F DRS liveried DBSO!

Thanks for that. I try to judge each model on it's own merits (or lack thereof). Hornby pricing, particularly for rehashed models like these is always a pain point. I would expect we'll continue to see these discounted perhaps by as much as 30-35% due to the regional aspect of the livery as you point out.

Thanks Alan. These are the only two 67 liveries I've seen used with them so far but there may be others.

Hi, yes, I have LNER Class 91 all set for review. Will be Sept as there are other videos queued up first. Looking forward to putting it through it's paces.

That was the "catching" I talked about when in push mode. This will occur with both the tension lock and the Lima couplers which will ultimately de-rail. It also occurs with the Accurascale magnetic couplers to a lesser extent. If these were 1-2mm longer they would be fine - which is a pity as otherwise they would have been excellent with these coaches.

@@EuviRail Hi, have you tried the Hornby magnetic couplings yet?

@@StormmyStormmy Not yet.Currently sold out from all my usual sources.

Hornby's MK4s have always had a cheaper feel to them compared to their MK3s. While they don't market them as Railroad models, they definitely feel like such models. The MK4 DVT does have lighting which the older version didn't have though the overall feel of the model isn't great either.

@@EuviRail let me guess, Hornby is only using plastic & flimsy pantographs now?

The 50s, 56s, 60s and 67s were good in their day and while still good runners they are showing the their age overall and should be priced accordingly which they aren't. On a positive note, I've never had motor or drive train problems with Hornby diesels unlike Bachmann and Accurascale locos in recent times so old designs aren't always bad ones. Railroad diesels were poor runners but have improved of late. Still, you're just not going to get a quality diesel for £85-£100. The Pendolino and Eurostar are Railroad level designs though in the case of the Pendolino it's priced as a full spec model which it isn't. I don't have experience with Hornby's new Class 91 but have heard it's not what it could/should have been and it's more expensive than most top notch DCC Ready models from other vendors. Hornby do appear to have been focusing on (expensive) steam models in recent years - to the detriment of their diesels and electrics alright.

I'd say Hornby Class 60 is their best but their 08, 31, 43, 50, 67, 87 and 800s also good. The rest are for the cheaper market which apart from a 66 I have not bought recently. The 66 is OK for the price. Paintwork good, no lights and runs OK. PS Forgot the 56 and 91s which are also good. Agree with the comment on motors too. Curiously the recent Bachmann 20s and 37s were marred by unsecured motors which need a bit of cardboard to fix. If I could only pick one diesel and electric manufacturer it would have to be Bachmann.

Hi John, prices have gone to pot alright. I believe the coaches will ultimately work fine in push mode with the right couplers attached, but it shouldn't be up to the customer to figure out which ones - Hornby should have done this. The fixed drawbars are hard to work with so this should have meant magnetic couplers were shipped with these.

Having had a lot more time with the retooled MK3s and the latest MK4s since I did this review, I would agree that the scoring on the MK4s should be lower. They haven't really kept up with the times. You can pick up the DVT + 2 coaches for ~£100 now which is more in line with what they are. Thanks for commenting.

LOL