Accucraft April News

This month we bring you news of new releases in a couple of scales, firstly our 1:20.3 scale Isle of Man loco for 2017, Mona, and an ‘E’ Van to accompany her as well as the new Accucraft (US) 1:13.7 (7/8ths” scale) Decauville.  We also have news of some bumper bargain bundles from Accucraft (US) and an update on the 1:32 scale Black 5.  We will be attending the National Garden Railway Show at Peterborough on 9th April and will have the engineering samples of both Mona and the Decauville on our stand (and, just possibly, a new 1:19 scale locomotive!).  Please note our reminder about UK warranty repairs, particularly the note about Accucraft locomotives purchased outside the UK.

1:20.3 Scale Isle of Man 2-4-0T No. 5, Mona

Since we are just about to deliver Mannin it would seem to be a good time to announce our Isle of Man loco for 2017.  We have chosen Mona for our ‘Connoisseur’ range, in particular because in the form modelled she can carry the lovely ‘Ailsa’ green livery remembered by many who visited the island in the 1960s – this is the first live steam IoM loco we have offered in this colour.

Mona arrived with No. 4 Loch in 1874 for the opening of the Port Erin line.  She has idiosyncrasies that distinguish her, such as a chimney numeral in a slightly different style to the other locomotives and the name written ‘MO NA’ with a gap to allow for the injector overflow pipe. The locomotive also carried ‘5’ numerals on the side tanks, though the one on the driver’s side was removed latterly. No. 5 was a regular on the Peel Line and remained in service right until the 1970 season when she refused to hold steam and was mothballed.  She was purchased from the nationalised railway in 1978 by the Isle of Man Railway Society but April 2012 saw her return to railway ownership.  The UK RRP is £1550.00 for the live steam model, £1325.00 for the electric version.  You can see full details on the website.

Versions available subject to production batch:

S20-9G – ISLE OF MAN 2-4-0T Mona No. 5, Ailsa Green, Live Steam
S20-9R – ISLE OF MAN 2-4-0T Mona No. 5, Indian Red, Live Steam
E20-9G – ISLE OF MAN 2-4-0T Mona No. 5, Ailsa Green, Electric
E20-9R – ISLE OF MAN 2-4-0T Mona No. 5, Indian Red, Electric

S20-9G 6

1:20.3 Scale Isle of Man ‘E’ Van

A perfect companion for Mona or our other Isle of Man four-wheel coaches. The ‘E’ vans were four-wheeled brake and luggage vans fitted with lookout duckets, but otherwise entirely sealed with only two drop-sash windows at the guard’s door. None of these vans survive today, and they were effectively made redundant when later passenger coaches had their own braking systems. The primary purpose of the ‘E’ van was to provide luggage accommodation and braking for the original ‘A’ – ‘D’ class most of which did not have their own brakes when supplied in 1873/4. One surviving member of the class sat at the end of the Port Erin arrival platform at Douglas for many years and retained its pre-war two-tone brown livery. The Manx Northern Railway owned a pair of similar vans for use with the ‘N’ class carriages, but these seem to have been replaced in the 1890s and then used for goods traffic until they were scrapped in the 1920.

The roof is removable if required for customers to install their own interior detail, for example, or lighting.  An additional set of 32mm wheels is also provided.  Although the models are 1:20.3 scale they look well with 1:19 scale equipment and are probably larger than the equivalent scale models of Talyllyn coaches! You find full details here. Due for release late 2016 or early 2017.

R19-11-24C

1:13.7 (7/8ths”) Scale Type1 Decauville 0-4-0T

By the late 1800s, France’s Decauville Manufacturing Company had established themselves as builders of reliable and simple to operate narrow gauge steam locomotives. Many of their designs were intended for use in agricultural, mining, and light industrial settings. One such loco was a Decauville Type 1, 3-ton 0-4-0T built in 1899, construction #302, for the Dombe Grande Sugar Estates in what was then the Portuguese territory of Angola. The loco was named Bathala. In 1930, after three decades of dependable operation, Bathala was placed in a museum on the company’s grounds. This act ultimately led to her survival from the civil war and turmoil which impacted that country decades later.

After being ‘found’ again in 2003, and after nearly two years of negotiations, the loco finally made its way to Johannesburg. In what is perhaps a world record for locomotive restoration, the work was completed in only four months! Bathala can now be found operating at the Sandstone Steam Railroad in Bloemfontain, South Africa.

Accucraft (US) is pleased to announce this locomotive in 7/8ths” (1:13.7) scale live steam. Three fully lined versions are offered, maroon, green, and black.  We expect this locomotive to be popular; please place your reservations early!  UK RRP £1475.00, delivery date TBA but likely to be 2017.  You can see full details and more images on the website.

B77-531 2

Spring specials from Accucraft (US)

We are excited to announce some really great Spring Specials to kick-off another season of outdoor railroading fun! Look over the special offers listed below and place your orders as soon as possible. Quantities are limited to stock on hand. The offer lasts until 30th April, 2016. 

AC77-217 or AC77-218 28-ton Shay, live steam loco + 3 AM2214-01 Logging Disconnects – £2195.00

AC77-045 or AC77-046 Plantation 0-4-2, live steam loco and choose either two AM32-110A Short Flat cars or two (2) AM20-110A Iron Mountain Coal Cars – £895.00

AC77-720, AC77-722 or AC77-724 Baldwin 4-4-0, or AC77-411, AC77-420, AC77-421, AC77-422, or AC77-423 Mogul 2-6-0, live steam loco live steam loco plus two AM2201-01 Data only Boxcars – £1995.00 to £2195.00

Union Pacific 4-8-8-4 “Big Boy”, live steam loco and twelve (12) 1937 40’ AAR Boxcars (limited to available stock on hand) – £8755.00

Southern Pacific M-6 class 2-6-0, electric loco and six (6) 1937 40’ AAR Boxcars (limited to available stock on hand) – £2425.00

Contact your local dealer for full details and to check stock levels.

1:32 Scale ‘Black 5’ 4-6-0 delivery date

We have had many enquiries about the due date for the Black 5.  Unfortunately we have had to put this back to the end of the year.  We have experienced great difficulty getting the engineering sample to maintain steam and despite changing the cylinders from piston valve to slide valve and trying assorted burners we couldn’t divine the problem.  Only once we had torn the model apart did we discover that, for some reason, the factory had fitted an under-size flue.  A new boiler is now being made with our usual diameter flue and once this has been tested we should be able to sign the design off.  We hope you will understand why we could not proceed with production (when we knew we had an issue with the locomotive) and thank you for your patience.

Warranty repairs

For all warranty repairs, please contact your RETAILER in the first instance. Your retailer will contact us and we will then arrange for the item to be collected by our couriers. Please do not contact any of our service agents direct on warranty matters as all have to be processed through our system before being actioned.

Warranty registration cards must be returned to us as soon as possible after purchase, including those for U.S., Schug or Argyle models.  Please note that we do not offer a warranty service for Accucraft models purchased outside the UK, only for those bought through our UK dealer network.  If, for any reason, you have a locomotive bought this way it would have to be returned to the original dealer for warranty repairs.

To make shipping easier in the event of your locomotive having to be sent for service, please retain ALL original packaging. We do not carry spare boxes in stock to return your model to you. If improperly packed to be sent to us, we cannot be responsible for any damage. We will consider the warranty of any loco returned to us without the original packaging invalid and will charge for any additional packaging required to ensure its safe return.  If the model is fitted with radio control it is essential that the transmitter is sent with the model.

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