Well as one of those souls who will gladly hold up his hands and say I was a sceptic, I have to say that the arrival into stock of the brand new Hornby class 08 (BR green post August 1968 version only so far) has immediately made me eat my words.
The new Gronk model has without any doubt got the WOW factor! The finesse, quantity and quality of detailing leaves the Bachmann version for dead, whilst the finish is infinitely superior. Running qualities too are absolutely mind blowing and on a par with the best of my fleet of USA models.
The only thing which immediately hits me as being slightly disappointing is the thickness of the springs on the outside frames. I make no claims for accuracy of the model - it's only a matter of five minutes or so since our supplies arrived and were unpacked, but anyway there are others with more prototype knowledge than me who can eulogise or criticise as appropriate.
Best wishes, John Turner,
53A Models, Hull, UK.