Hornby's TT Rolling Stock Keeps Getting Better | HAA | Unboxing & Review

[@Equoris]

I really love the fact that Hornby got onboard with TT (pardon the pun). I saw a lot of uproar in the UK about this when it happened, I didn't really understand it, especially from my perspective, from central europe, where this scale has been around for decades and is fairly popular. The fact that Hornby got into this, means that we can finally get more variety in rolling stock! British stuff was never available in TT scale up until now (to my knowledge), which is a pity, since the UK is pretty much the birthplace of railways! It brings a very welcome variety to the TT scene. Finally it's not all german and central european rolling stock! Added bonus is that Hornby choose a coupler for their TT range that is compatible with pretty much everything made in europe, and not some proprietary thing. What I have yet to measure is what wheel diameter Hornby uses and if it's compatible with replacement wheels I can get around here (the ones Tillig and old BTTB models use). By the way I also find it sort of curious how people in the UK seem to complain about Hornby's prices in TT (or other) scale. I'm used to much higher prices for similar offerings here, although Tillig and Roco, etc, are indeed slightly higher quality, it's also a lot more expensive. Hornby did a really great job balancing quality and pricing as far as I'm concerned...

[@OlivierGabin]

My opinion about what Hornby have to do as their forthcoming commercial policy is to concentrate on UK TT120, they have an edge on it and, with lower price, they can make it. For OO, they have to ditch this scale, everyone and their dog eat the wool on their back, and they have not done a retool policy as Bachmann does (their Black Five is an abysmal failure). In OO, they can have a great success if they decide to do only low price rolling stock in OO with a pricetag target of GBP 10-15 for a wagon, GBP 15-25 for a coach, GBP50-75 for a diesel and 75-100 for a steam engine. And they can do that with actualized old Lima models if they are not charging too high. For their railway range, they can sell their molds to other manufacturers, Dapol might be interested by the small kettles they have, and their GWR/SR rolling stock. They can rebrand some recent successful Railway range as Basset-Lowke (2MT and 9F for instance) before selling them after one or two more issues. I think they have found the right formula with TT. They just need mode quality control and be reasonable for the pricing. The HAA is a right model to propose now. Hope they will pursue.

[@Chaostheory1971]

Great review as always, Sam! If Hornby can produce good quality models reliably in TT scale, why can't they do the same in OO scale?

[@SamsTrains]

I agree - I think they can do in OO, but they struggle with consistency! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@railway187]

Hi Sam, another great review, thanks! However, usually wagons are checked on Gordon's hill and that's missing a bit 😊 maybe it's an idea to add a TT-track to your layout (if you can squeeze it in)? Greetings from Belgium 🙋‍♂️ Erik

[@lapiswake6583]

I have 4 of these, all I could afford before my layout's first exhibition 4 weeks ago. 3 of these specific ones in Railfreight Red with the canopy, and 1 in the later Coal Sector yellow without the canopy. And they all run perfectly, no issues. I'm modelling 1978-1983, so the idea is to get 3 of each number (Hornby having done 3 red and 3 yellow identities), remove the canopies from the red ones, and repaint the yellow ones into bauxite. Which looks good, except the silver paint decided to come off the coal sector one before the coal sector logos did... But, a bit of weathering helped hide it.

[@JerseyBill-x9r]

Wobbly wheel sets are one of my pet peeves and I would have hit the grading with a 2-star penalty plus replace the wheel set. Other than the afore mentioned you were on point with the review. Great video, Jersey Bill

[@RobA500]

I believe the difference in the wheels is they are fitted with disc brakes on the side with the patterning.

[@ItsTrainFun]

Maybe Hornby is a bit more expensive because they pay there people fair? The job I work at, our products are more expensive because we get paid more fair then other companies

[@vizmortlock]

As ever, the reasons for pricing can be many and not necessarily obvious. You make the point superbly. Whether or not it impacts a company positively or negatively is another consequential matter.

[@alexmccubbin2191]

Thanks for the video Sam! Would love to see the OO, TT and N gauge versions in a comparison video!

[@daystatesniper01]

The spotted wheel is for a disc type brake ,good review TT is taking off rock on !

[@davidstrains4910]

Overall a very nice wagon from hornby, I have a rake of 25 of these from hornby (old versions) in OO and have to say they are one of my favourite wagon rakes I currently have, to haul mine I use my cavalex 56s or my EFE class 58 in coal sector livery

[@SamsTrains]

Ahh fantastic - I might have to try one of the OO versions... I bet a big rake looks amazing! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@m10cachilles43]

​​@@SamsTrains I think Cavalex, Bachmann and Accurascale do HAAs as well, perhaps a HAA off is in order? Also means you get more of a 00 rake.

[@fredburley9512]

Thanks

[@SamsTrains]

Thank you so much Fred!

[@DennisLora2001]

Fantastic ratings Sam and great review video by the way plus that TT Hopper car looks good 👌 15:37

[@RSG003]

It would be really cool to see different track maintenance vehicles, like the Tampers, Stoneblowers and the huge ballast cleaning system five (BCS5)

[@adamwilliams192]

In N gauge we have 3 versions of this wagon from Mintrix, Peco and Graham Farish (although the Trix version is long out of production). That being said they are all very old tooling and we could do with a new version…I shudder at price though! Just a note; at around 7:56 you are talking about the separately fitted upper section. This is prototypical as originally as built the wagons didn’t have this “Canopy” and not all receive them. I was going to be critical of Hornby for calling this an “HAA”, but reading suggests only some wagons had a different TOPS code (HBA or HCA), with some retaining “HAA” with a canopy. Nice wagon for an emerging gauge, should be sold in multipacks as even the smaller trains were over 20 wagons.

[@SamsTrains]

Yeah I did think the Farish one looked a tad dated - thanks for the info too! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@damianinCanadaTT-OO]

@@SamsTrains so why price compare it then?

[@MayoHosko]

3:03 I’m going to hold this in my hands the next time I ride a merry go round

[@Louie-WanKenobi-og4rk]

When I first saw "HAA" in the title of the video, I thought Sam was laughing in joy.

[@SamsTrains]

hahaha!! Well I was but that's not the reason for the title haha!! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@CustomiZe_]

Maybe it might be worth fitting a TT coupling to a OO wagon to see if its the couplings that help with the reliability of TT wagons. Might be an interesting experiment 🤔 Might stop dapols egg vans from derailing 😂😂

[@kclassproductions]

Invite first glance I thought the HAA was a OO wagon, Then I saw turn TT logo and was quite surprised at the detail. Great review Sam

[@DHodgson]

Hi Sam, a great professional review as always, have you considered reviewing vintage TT scale items for a comparison?

[@robertcampbell8955]

Hi Sam, after your visit to West Hill Wagon Works it would be great if you could demonstrate and test the Hunt magnetic couplings on N, TT and OO. Standard TT couplings seem to have variable success on coupling, and can be awkward to uncouple. They also need straight track. Perhaps for a rake of wagons like this you could compare? I think 3 lengths are on offer for very close, close and standard couplings? Which would work best on R2 curves?

[@trevorbellTT120]

All my TT rolling stock have magnetic couplings, so easy to use.

[@briancooper562]

Just nit picking but a used hopper would be polished on the inside by the load filling and emptying and any horizontal outside surfaces coated in dust and 'overspill' needs a bit of weathering? The couplings look better then OO and N but not yet as reliable as N/009.

[@cdyvids22]

If TT is to succeed, hornby should make a loco not yet avaliable in OO, it would drive people in, maybe somthing LBSC, and they could make an E2 and jinny, since we're getting the j50, they'll have the chassis to fir bodies to

[@RocktCityTim]

I have a small home worth of HO motive power and rolling stock. I left N Scale back in 2006 because my eyes aren't what they once were and detailing was getting frustration. Now, we're getting a resurrection of TT. Needless to say, but I'll not be discussing TT with my wife 😆🗞

[@alanwhite4003]

I love all your videos, but I’ve a challenge for you. Something different, I think you’ll like it. Design a wall mounted display unit. About 4’ wide and about 3.5’ high, I’ll leave the rest to you? To display, an APT or a loco and wagons. All lit from the view point of the on looker and with running lights and sound (via switches). Nice to have a back ground and some tracks to be elevate. Please use your amazing experience. Try to capture the best of 00 layout, vertically. All the best.

[@djstevemilan]

Better than my 00 HAA hopper for detail.

[@KibuFox]

Not even going to mention the big crack at 7:14 on the inside? I mean sure that could be fixed with some CA, or hidden with a live coal load... but a crack... really? I would note, the lack of free rolling is likely intentional. Since they can't put a lot of weight in these cars, and likely expect a modeler to add their own weight to get more in line with prototypical weight, having a car not free wheel easily allows you to 'simulate' weight without having to add more weight otherwise.

[@alexmccubbin2191]

I think it’s a hair or eyelash? But you could be right also, very hard to tell! 😊

[@atlasduff4628]

That is a hair, it clearly lifts off the model surface on the left hand side. I would have marked this down more for the wobbly wheel set though.

[@jamesdunloptrains]

Awesome video today Sam really nice wagon

[@Irishtrainspotter]

Hi sam do u know any tender locos for around 160 pound online?

[@Wembley76]

I noticed with mine that there's a problem with coupling. All my other types of wagons are fine

[@bryantan863]

The new TT HAA wagon from Hornby looks very nice, even if it has a bit glue marks inside the interior. Shame that it is quite expensive and who knows how much more expensive it will get when Hornby will jack up their prices again on September 1st. Still, it is a better quality piece of rolling stock compared to other TT scale rolling stock Sam.

[@leekmuncher7474]

Hi Sam, just curious about how you get your average score based on the individual star grades? Cheers 👍

[@Jimyjames73]

What a nice little HAA Hopper Wagon!!! 🙂🚂🚂🚂

[@briandesens144]

Nice video Sam

[@SamsTrains]

Thanks Brian!

[@briandesens144]

@@SamsTrains you're welcome

[@darknut9696]

Does Hunt coupling have TT:120 scale magnetic couplers?

[@zysom]

Hey sam, I was wondering if you could do a review on the hornby class 91 i bought one and it's been great so far!

[@NWRJ_WStudios]

Hi Sam, I have a question. What should I just to clean my track. I've using a cotton bud with rubbing alcohol at one end, and it's really hard to do? Cheers Jasper & Willow

[@Gatherleymodeller.]

I want to start tt

[@SamsTrains]

Sounds great - good luck! :D Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@Alpha-oo8]

Is that a crack inside the wagon, or was there a hair in there?

[@leelishman7137]

Bit short sighted if there's no weathered options,they wouldn't really look that pristine unless you just wanted them for a non realistic train set

[@Armand_2013]

Hey Sam I have a question, from the Bachmann Thomas and friends from the USA does it work on a UK tracks and controls?

[@SamsTrains]

Yes! All the HO thomas locos will work on the same 12v analogue controllers, and on HO/OO scale track (with the exception of the narrowgauge engines) Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@peterkneissl3358]

Are there coal loads available for this car?

[@Keihana]

Great video!

[@harrytodhunter5078]

Certainly a nice wagon but definitely the price is, as always, the big issue here. High prices killed british TT in the first place, it might happen again if Hornby dont do something about it.

[@alanwhite4003]

I’m not into TT. Not going to change my investment now, 😂😂😂

[@fredburley9512]

Overpriced do you think? A 25 wagon hopper train would be in the £450 - £500 area if you were a serious modeller. It's nice but....I think I'd rather do second hand N or OO scale. 👍

[@robertlucido3686]

Tomorrow's my birthday, keep an eye out for my birthday running session, or if you want, I'll leave you the link for it

[@NWRJ_WStudios]

It's a very interesting piece of rolling stock Sam, but I don't think I'll be getting it. But still great review ;) Cheers Jasper & Willow

[@williamsquires3070]

I think Hornby should spin off their OO-scale stuff, and concentrate on TT-scale… that, and get rid of those silly, not-so-reliable couplings. Either use the older “Arnold” one-piece N-scale couplers, or use the Micro Trains N-scale knuckle couplers. Or design their own tension-lock TT-scale couplings. 😊

[@kiwitrainguy]

From another comment, those couplings are compatible with TT scale trains from other manufacturers.

[@danielkelly4368]

Do you think that Bachmann is going to release the narrow gauge engines from Thomas the tank engine.

[@SamsTrains]

They might do yeah!! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@thomasfrancis5747]

Available from the Talyllyn Railway online shop but some items currently out of stock.

[@eaglenix]

I think when it was being assembled in the factory, they must of added the wrong pair of wheels, because that didn’t seem right.

[@SamsTrains]

That does seem to be accurate judging by the photos! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@eaglenix]

@@SamsTrains No problem, keep up the good work. 😁👍

[@alanhorwood1993]

HAA hoppers have clasp brakws on 2 wheels and disc brakes on the other 2 which is why the wheels look different and why you see only 2 sets of brake shoes

[@SamsTrains]

Ahh duly noted, thanks so much for the info! Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@traintimeboy]

Sam you should try hom! It’s narrow gauge on tt track! Nice video!

[@SamsTrains]

That sounds interesting thanks for the suggestion! :D Thanks for watching, Sam :)

[@damianinCanadaTT-OO]

"I do rank things comparatively". So why not with price. As I have said before why not look at Piko pricing. Hornby is in line and even cheaper than that

[@DanWest-i7y]

Ok, Sam, be honest !!! When are you dumping your 00 collection and going over too full T 120?

[@oninbridders]

Price: you pay for the people and not the product. Frustrating when you are trying to remove cost.

[@AndrewCutts-f8w]

That looks great, but I still wish that Hornby hadn’t brought out those pointless private owner wagons and spent the money on a single ‘Bubble Car Class 121 for those of us wanting to make a shelf layout. Something that Hornby seems to have forgotten about.

[@anthknill]

Sam loves TT. Just saying 👍

[@timothyghost8899]

11,000 is a big number

[@andykopgod]

TT looks quality, im just worried it wont last.

[@davidmeynen8120]

i thought with the addition of the hood or top canopy they then became hba\ hca but i could be100% wrong just a thought sam

[@ianjeffery6744]

A lovely model, but ruinously expensive if you want to run scale-length trains behind one of the equally pricey Hornby TT120 diesels! This really isn't a scale for those who need to be careful with their limited £££. Maybe there's scope for a budget TT120 range, with less in the way of detail?

[@JustinFrazier_360]

That's cool

[@SamsTrains]

Thanks Justin!

[@kellyashfordtrains2642]

Azuma has told me you're allergic to cats and dogs. Is this true? Like your wagons by the way, not that stinky box on wheels. 00 gauge HAAs run a bit more smoothly. I had a pair of them a long time ago, but don't have them now.

[@Alextrains502]

Cool

[@SamsTrains]

Thanks Alex! :D

[@lindaoffenbach]

Not too bad but not exactly top notch either. If only H had their Quality management under control as Bachmann has, but given they have not the price should be accordingly. On the other hand, one should simply expect a flawless product, even at Aldi level... So, no excuse really. Looks nice though. Cheerio.

[@mrbluesky2050]

so, £1000.00 for a full rake, PRIOR to Hornby's price hike, dodgy wheel sets, and poor couplings plus, as yet, no really suitable loco to pull them ( yes I know 400's were seen on early MGR's ) but Hornby have missed a trick with not, as yet doing a class 47. And, over and above this, are they giving TT120 priority over 'OO'? with their current situation? " There may be trouble ahead..."

[@davidstrains4910]

@@mrbluesky2050 just referring to your comment regarding a suitable loco the class 50 currently in the TT range is a suitable loco, although the 50s were mainly a passenger locomotive they were sometimes hauling freight, there are some photos online of 50s hauling MGR wagons, granted it was a rare working for them but they did haul them from time to time so currently hornbys TT 50 is suitable for these wagons until a more suitable locomotive is released.

[@ianhudson2193]

Best get them while you can before Hornby's new owner in the next 18 months dumps TT.....🤷‍♂️

[@LarsPW]

The red frame looks very plasticky.

[@dilwich]

I'm sad to say i still believe TT will be a bad move for Hornby.

[@LNER985]

@@dilwich No it isn't.