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Griff's Oddities


traingeekboy
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I will try to get some images going of my rolling stock.

This first up is my newest addition. It is a Lima set from 2000. Got it for 108.00$ which seems pretty good.

 

I did some research on these and discovered that the paint is a bit off for how they were mostly seen in use. The bar in the driver, or pilota car, was removed fairly early on. I honestly don't understand Italian color schemes as to me it all looks the same.

 

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large.Resized_20171005_183209.jpeg.6d1fd8508a694ec3c67ca8e9fe7bc79b.jpeg

 

Sorry for the low grade shots, but I figure any picture is better than none.

I've got plenty more to come from my collection. In fact the other day I was peering through the cabinet drawers and was astounded to see things I had forgotten about. I guess I have been purchasing a lot of things and just squirreling them away for later, so I only saw them when I opened the package and off they went to be forgotten. :)

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Although the forum is set up so our loco and stock are divided by type, I am going to put all my images under one discussion.

I seem to have lost my mind and am buying what for me is a lot of modern equipment now. I was able to find a loco on ebay for 144.00$ which is not a lot since these Taurus locos usually go for a lot more. I got it motly for the shape as I like the Taurus design a lot. Since my interest is italian trains, this one isn't exactly correct as it only has 2 pantographs. The ones that do cross border service have 4 so as to able to run under the different voltages one finds on the continent. Still, it has the shape I like so who cares.

I think the biggest surprise for me is that after i pried it open to see the mechanical side of things, I discovered that it has a decoder already fitted. Over all i think i got a pretty good deal on this thing.

 

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  • 1 month later...

So a while back I was day dreaming about all the cool modern trains I saw in Italy and wishing my pockets were deep enough to purchase a few highly detailed models... 

Well, you know where this is going -- straight to EBAY!

Yup, I saw a train and coughed up a fair amount of cash, no really it was a good deal, and gritted my teeth while I waited for a model of a modern train that would never appear in eastern Italy, as it runs on a private line in southern Italy. Well, whatever -- It's a cool looking train and I have a weakness for the color red.

So here it is, a Vitrains model of the Sangritana minuetto EMU. 

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Now to spend an afternoon attaching all the detail parts. ;)

Edited by traingeekboy
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Why is it that foreign trains look so much cooler than British one's?

I suppose some of the newer stuff is getting close but there rather stayed liveries lets them down.

All there interested in is packing them and getting your money over here. Great example is the seats on the HST sets that dont even have a window to look out of.

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I think there is a noticeable difference in design consciousness between the various parts of the world. Right now europe is looking at doing a lot of competitive and collaborative train building and operating. Lots of private merchandise train companies are all over the rails with multi voltage locos for cross border traffic.

Siemens is building a lot of those locos and they're quite lovely.

And of course passenger trains are just modernizing over there too. Although my primary focus is Italy. I did get a chance to visit france and their trains are equally as interesting. As to windows -- I can't even imagine riding in a train with seats that have no windows. So far, I've never encountered it on continental trains. 

Now, having said all that, check out these two Italian model companies.

Acme is probably the best and most costly. I don't own anything by them yet. I can't afford to. 

http://acmetreni.it/index.php/en/

and VItrains here. I got a really good deal on that minuetto. It was like 100 dollars less than new price. It still seemed expensive to me.

http://www.vitrains.it/en

So yeah, these new trains are pretty, but you're gonna pay for that pretty and it's gonna get ugly. :) I look at these new bi-level coaches and they're 64 dollars, or 48 pounds each. Ok, I would like 8 of those please... oh and a loco. No, not really, I can't fathom the idea of spending that much money on my model trains.

 

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  • 2 months later...

My most recent addition to my fleet has caused me to realize I am going crazy on trains.

Well... It seems I've lost my mind this year when it comes to purchasing trains. I think part of it is the "I am working a lot, no time to do anything else, so I will pay myself in model trains" kind of thinking. 

I am definitely going to need to do an update on my photos, but not enough time to really do it now.

Just to list the newer items:

-A Slovenian railways Taurus in red with the four pantographs that would allow it to work in numerous countries. I owe you a phot of that one still.

-Set of four coaches with a matching loco. All FS livery. I got it because the new loco is the price I paid for the whole set. This loco also matches the previous set of coaches I first showed off here. I can theoretically combine the whole lot into an 8 car train. 

-An oddity. I have always wanted a Mallet. I found one by rivarossi for a east german railways steamer. Being the typical garden railway type, as long as it's a cool loco I have to have it. Time period? Prototype? no idea what those words mean.

-somewhere in here I also purchased an old lima diesel for about 10 bucks. I now have two of these. I will be making one nice one out of the parts from both. 

-Since todays arrival is still active on ebay I can simply steal an image from there.

 

s-l1600.jpg

 

Yup, it's a KOF. yet in a fairly modern german coloring. It's a brawa model. Amazing little thing. Very fine grab irons that look to be metal wire. In my attempt to open it up, this is standard for me now -- I get an engine I crack it open to see under the hood, I managed to pry off a piece that now needs re-glue-ing. This is standard too. I am always breaking pieces off of locos, but I have learned to re-attach them! Walthers Goo is the fix all for things like this. 

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I'm glad it's not just me who's unable to resist a bargain - even when there's no other justification for the purchase.

That little KOF pictured above is a strange one. I thought it was just a body in need of a chassis at first. What type of work would it be put to?

I've learned through painful experience to be very careful when handling new models. It seems you can barely extract them from their boxes these days without some part or other breaking off and to be honest that's one of the reasons I've decided to reduce the number of items I've been purchasing. I've been watching a loco on ebay for the past week and I've no reason for doing so other than the fact that it's listed at a bargain price. I already have a similar one so why am I tempted? It can quickly get out of hand.

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Mick,

Well first off. I have a lot of models that are like chinese puzzles when you try to figure out how to open them up. In this case, I thought maybe something would be behind the sidestep, when I tried to pry it out the pin broke. It's an easy fix as it's just a cosmetic issue.

Me ham-fisting it and breaking things is just customization/ personalization. :)

I've peeked around the web for these Kof's. It is a german private rail company and this is a fairly modern color scheme. So you see all kinds of fascinating images of them online. 

mw-bei-niedersaechsische-mittelweserbahn

 

mwb-koef-v-255-rangiert-118567.jpg

I think I mentioned that while in Italy I picked up a monogram on Siemens locos on italian track. I am now pretty obsessed with that kind of loco which is a broad term: Siemens locos from about 2001 onward. There are currently two vendors selling a lot of european models on ebay and they begin with a very low bid of 9.95$ I watch a lot of these items and just wait for something cool to get underbid then snatch it. I've missed out on some neat things, but you have to learn disappointment if you want deals. I recently had my eye on a Faller Car system set. I have done a lot of research on pricing these. Somehow a bidder decided it was worth more than brand new price for a second-hand set. I don't get that. The batteries have been sitting and you can't be sure what is in the set.

The european models can really get too expensive. Modern coaches are ridiculous. If you google Acme or Vitrains you can see that a single coach can be 60-70 dollars, often even more. 

Yet back to the KOf, it is a Brawa brand model. Brawa models are very pricey. I got the switcher for 52.00$, which is about a quarter of what I see it going for in most places.

 

Here is a shot to give you an idea of how small it is. But it also comes with a decoder plug and has those sprung buffers. 

full&d=1517344767

 

 

This is my Mallet by Rivarossi, if I hadn't shown a picture before. The photo is from the ebay sale. What is cool about this unit is that it is ready for a drop in smoke generator. Needless to say  I will be needing one of those just because it's fun. 

s-l1600.jpg

 

So yeah. No reason why a east german loco is going to be next to a west german kof on a Italian Catenary Railway. he he he 

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On 1.2.2018 at 19:23, traingeekboy said:

Mick,

Well first off. I have a lot of models that are like chinese puzzles when you try to figure out how to open them up. In this case, I thought maybe something would be behind the sidestep, when I tried to pry it out the pin broke. It's an easy fix as it's just a cosmetic issue.

Me ham-fisting it and breaking things is just customization/ personalization. :)

I've peeked around the web for these Kof's. It is a german private rail company and this is a fairly modern color scheme. So you see all kinds of fascinating images of them online. 

mw-bei-niedersaechsische-mittelweserbahn

 

mwb-koef-v-255-rangiert-118567.jpg

I think I mentioned that while in Italy I picked up a monogram on Siemens locos on italian track. I am now pretty obsessed with that kind of loco which is a broad term: Siemens locos from about 2001 onward. There are currently two vendors selling a lot of european models on ebay and they begin with a very low bid of 9.95$ I watch a lot of these items and just wait for something cool to get underbid then snatch it. I've missed out on some neat things, but you have to learn disappointment if you want deals. I recently had my eye on a Faller Car system set. I have done a lot of research on pricing these. Somehow a bidder decided it was worth more than brand new price for a second-hand set. I don't get that. The batteries have been sitting and you can't be sure what is in the set.

The european models can really get too expensive. Modern coaches are ridiculous. If you google Acme or Vitrains you can see that a single coach can be 60-70 dollars, often even more. 

Yet back to the KOf, it is a Brawa brand model. Brawa models are very pricey. I got the switcher for 52.00$, which is about a quarter of what I see it going for in most places.

 

Here is a shot to give you an idea of how small it is. But it also comes with a decoder plug and has those sprung buffers. 

full&d=1517344767

 

 

This is my Mallet by Rivarossi, if I hadn't shown a picture before. The photo is from the ebay sale. What is cool about this unit is that it is ready for a drop in smoke generator. Needless to say  I will be needing one of those just because it's fun. 

s-l1600.jpg

 

So yeah. No reason why a east german loco is going to be next to a west german kof on a Italian Catenary Railway. he he he 

Class 96 is from the Royal Bavarian State Railway.

A Bavarian would kill you if you call him an East German ....😂😎

Most finished their service in the Federal Railways of West Germany. Only three came to the Reichsbahn of the GDR (not to be confused with the Reichsbahn of the German Reich, in which the locomotives were of course).

I also know the problem with opening locomotives and cars. on some models, I do not dare to install a digital decoder, because I'm afraid to break them when opening.

My last purchase on Ebay you would certainly like it very much. I bought the ETR 301 "Il Settebello". Settebello is Italian for 'Beautiful Seven' as well as the name of a card in the card game. The train also has 7 cars and was very luxurious (beautiful)...

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Edited by ThomasI
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Well, I stand corrected. I would never want to offend a Bavarian. I am pretty sure that a couple years back I purchased some epoche ii or iii passnger cars that were very beautiful, so they would go Well/Badly with my Bavarian Freight locomotive. :D

I know the Settebello very well. I rode in the lounge at the front of the train in the 70's. It was night time and the view of everything was amazing. I went from Porto Gruarro to Monfalcone italy. How this happened is another odd story I'll tell at another time. ;) 

I saw one of those on American ebay a while back and bid on it. Once it got over about 200.00$ I said, Nope I don't really need that. he he he Lovely train and a very good model manufacturer.

 

It is strange that with the train being so famous, there was no earlier model made of it. One would think Lima and Rivarossi would have thought to do it as sales would have been very good. 

 

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What you may not know is that the train is named after a specific card in the game of Scopa. If you manage to pick up the seven of denari, or coins, you get a whole point. 

 

133307107-fcd1e2ef-f694-46ca-b1a5-eba03e

 

I would love a Sette Bello, but right now I am chasing these items. They aren't easy to find actually. 

first: An OBB transalpin end car by Lima. I have all the other things and found them very cheap on ebay. 

4645603bc44f59c29f72eb10ba239e257.jpg

 

Second on my list of hard to find items: Kibri oil refinery Esso Ho scale

kibri-ho-scale-esso-oil-refinery_1_ed64f

 

Neither is easily found as they are not made anymore.

 

Correction, the lima can be found, but I paid less for the loco than what they ask for the one car. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Lima-201072-HO-Gauge-OBB-TransAlpin-Passenger-Trailer-Car/142665028354?hash=item21377f9302:g:kAYAAOSws0JaZkHv

Edited by traingeekboy
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Hello!

I found this Transalpin:

https://m.ebay.de/itm/Lima-H0-Transalpin-Wagen/222814314022?hash=item33e0c49e26:g:vMEAAOSwbwJaQn1M

I don't think shipping from the UK is much cheaper than from Germany...

I also have a Transalpin,  but from Roco. From the Settebello there was also a model of a company called Ottimo that does not exist anymore. But it was very expensive and has collectors value today. The Settebello was a game card that was also very valuable to have had in the game, I was aware, but as well as you I did not know.

I recently bought something on Ebay in Texas, the last missing part for a Frecciabianca. Fortunately for me, the seller refused to send it overseas so I decided to send it to my cousin in Maryland. And he sent it to me. The customs then considered it as a gift and even though it had a value of more than $ 400 it was then duty-free as a gift. That model trains, if they are a gift regardless of value, are no import duty subject was new to me.

My family in the US will now often have to send "gifts" to me. 😂😎

If that works the other way too, I'm happy to help ... With Tony in Australia, that worked quite well with the Thalys bar car.

A happy Thomas from Germany

 

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