Hi Jenny, Re. the firebox flicker. If Hornby had made it able to be controlled, it would need 2 extra wires from loco to tender to make this happen. This was the same situation on their Dublo Flying Scotsman model.
Decided to sit back with a glass of red & relax for this one... Your full reviews are professional, entertaining & informative. And let's face it: everyone loves the 9F.
I was to young to remember these 9fs hauling iron ore up the Ebbw Valley, below where I was born and grew up, in Brynithel. A birds eye view of the last day's of steam and the dawn of diesel in the Ebbw Valley. Born 1961.
@DaiElsan Ah, a fellow valleys boy! I was born & bred in the infamous village of Aberfan, although I left of University in 1988 and not lived there since. I now live in the Waveney Valley on the Suffolk/Norfolk border. I too cannot remember the 9Fs - sometimes double headed apparently - powering up the valley to Ebbw Vale works, but I do remember how the night sky used to glow during certain points in the steel making process. I do recall, however Pannier 9600, which has survived into preservation, toiling away at the colloery where my dad worked. 9Fs are magnificent.
Jennifer, Great review as always. A couple of observations if I may. You made mention of the die cast footplate. I think the boiler is likely die cast also. I say this because the centre section has a staggered horizontal seam either side about a third from the top. These are consistent with two Hornby 9Fs released in 2022 which have both the die cast boiler and firebox flicker features and were marketed by Hornby accordingly. Neither the die cast components, nor the firebox flicker feature are mentioned in Hornby's website narrative for the current tooling. Implies that these are absent. Which seems an odd thing for Hornby to do. Comparing your R30351 with R3987 and R3988 "Evening Star (running numbers 92194 and 92220 respectively), I fear I am unconvinced that the new offering is an all new tooling. The locomotive appears in all respects identical to R3987 barring name and running number. And the tender is the same as that for R3988 - aside from decoration of course, Evening Star being finished in Brunswick Green. I would suggest then that what we have with the latest release is a light reworking of a recent model. Nothing wrong with that of course - it makes complete sense for Hornby to keep at least one 9F in their range. But perhaps should not be marketed as a new tooling. Unless perhaps improvements have been made in respect of the power train which did attract some mixed reviews a couple of years ago....
My dad knew Dai, I used to play on the old locos in the scrapyard and I still know his son. He had a Red Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. I must get a Tyne Dock version of this loco.
Hi Jenny, very good informative review of a very important loco, I only have Hornby steam locomotives in my collection because they have never let me down, it’s been a few years since my last purchase which was the rebuilt hush hush model from Kernow’s for a superb price, I will probably buy the latest W1 hush hush when I see one for a great price, it’s the one with the new draw bar, this 9F should have that new style draw bar which looks so much better than the usual option with the wires showing, it’s the one thing that puts me off this model unfortunately as everything else is very good in my opinion, if there is a draw bar upgrade kit for this model then it would be a great option especially if it was a 5 or 6 pin capacity for lighting and control of the very nice glowing firebox, thanks for sharing.
Those blinking plugs drive me round the bend!! They come on both Hornby and Bachmann steam locomotives, and are the only real curse of model steam locomotives.
At last Hornby has actually brought this locomotive out!! It’s lovely to see Black Prince to run on one’s layout. Not for me, but it’s a gorgeous locomotive!!
Ah, Clark railworks, there the guys listing a graham farish class 25 for £999,999.00... And this 9f ain't for me, I'm going to just use my 2009 9f as it's pretty heavy, good puller and overall costs far less than this. Sure it hasn't got all the bells and whistles but eh. Nice model but it's a pass for me jenny.
What a great review of this iconic locomotive! Although prices are going up, as you say, they're still lower than that of Continental models. As an aside, when we were in the UK on holiday I picked up a preowned, earlier version of the Hornby 9F which had never run @ £120. It turned out to be a good model too.😊
Thankyou Jenny for an excellent review. This loco is something very special; it has a presence of its own like the Cock o the North. The new tooling and detail from within it make the price high; something which is becoming a norm but looking at this the model does give what you are paying for. All best Marc from Leighton Buzzard
Great review Jenny, thank you. I bought the latest 9F in 92167 guise when they were first released. I fitted it with a Zimo and sound. It's a lovely loco and would have been even better with steam.
Great review...😊 The rectangular boxes on the tender chassis is a water filter, these were connected to the loco via the injectors, any debris in the sheds water supply, would be caught in these two filter elements, they were changed or cleaned in service intervals... The manifold on top of the firebox has to be moulded as flat as possible as to release it from the tooling mould, that would be a join, not a brake...it will be on the other side too...
Like a said in my review The ultimate 9f and it definitely is am very happy with the model i brought I know the price point is going to be a bit of talking point Hornby should be proud of the model Keep safe ARP
I enjoyed this. My love of British steam began in 1986 when the "Black Prince" was used in the opening scenes of a favorite movie...The Canterville Ghost with John Gielgud. Of course, back in the 80s it wasn't easy for someone stateside to learn about these. My dad took a picture of the screen, gave it to our neighbor across the street who was from England, she sent it to her brother explaining the situation and he not only responded with an identification, but also a great book on British steam...which I still have! Thus, it all started for me with the 9F! 🤗
No, just designed before the new connectors came out. Hornby use a number of different factories in China and some take longer to process models than others, especially those in regions that suffered from Covid shut downs and materials shortages. N.B. I've several models with the new connector an A1 Flying Scotsman, five A4s, two P2s (one streamlined) and a BR Black 5 and all have worked perfectly so far. Many others have also had no probs. Perhaps the LMS Black fives had a bad batch?
@@speleokeir Not sure. But can only go on what was said by that reviewer. However, it would still need a 6 way connection to allow for the firebox to be controlled by the decoder.
@@class66 apologies. I should alway have my glasses on. I thought you said that 21 pin is the best. As in generally. Obviously it is for this loco having a 21 pin socket. Cheers.
Hornby as you wellknow miss Kirk is no longer interested in providing good reliable models at a reasonable price Instead they re-hash the same old models over and over again and continually jack up their prices by 20-----30----40% A quick respray with new livery does not equal a new retooling I believe that Hornby could in the future withdraw from trains all together
Hi Jenny,
Re. the firebox flicker. If Hornby had made it able to be controlled, it would need 2 extra wires from loco to tender to make this happen. This was the same situation on their Dublo Flying Scotsman model.
Decided to sit back with a glass of red & relax for this one... Your full reviews are professional, entertaining & informative.
And let's face it: everyone loves the 9F.
Love a nice glass of red wine 🍷 too. Especially a good Côte du Rhone 😂
I was to young to remember these 9fs hauling iron ore up the Ebbw Valley, below where I was born and grew up, in Brynithel. A birds eye view of the last day's of steam and the dawn of diesel in the Ebbw Valley. Born 1961.
@DaiElsan Ah, a fellow valleys boy! I was born & bred in the infamous village of Aberfan, although I left of University in 1988 and not lived there since. I now live in the Waveney Valley on the Suffolk/Norfolk border.
I too cannot remember the 9Fs - sometimes double headed apparently - powering up the valley to Ebbw Vale works, but I do remember how the night sky used to glow during certain points in the steel making process. I do recall, however Pannier 9600, which has survived into preservation, toiling away at the colloery where my dad worked.
9Fs are magnificent.
@@stephendavies6949 the glow in the sky was the works tipping slag.
@@DaiElsan Yes, I remember it well
Jennifer,
Great review as always. A couple of observations if I may.
You made mention of the die cast footplate. I think the boiler is likely die cast also. I say this because the centre section has a staggered horizontal seam either side about a third from the top.
These are consistent with two Hornby 9Fs released in 2022 which have both the die cast boiler and firebox flicker features and were marketed by Hornby accordingly.
Neither the die cast components, nor the firebox flicker feature are mentioned in Hornby's website narrative for the current tooling. Implies that these are absent. Which seems an odd thing for Hornby to do.
Comparing your R30351 with R3987 and R3988 "Evening Star (running numbers 92194 and 92220 respectively), I fear I am unconvinced that the new offering is an all new tooling. The locomotive appears in all respects identical to R3987 barring name and running number. And the tender is the same as that for R3988 - aside from decoration of course, Evening Star being finished in Brunswick Green.
I would suggest then that what we have with the latest release is a light reworking of a recent model. Nothing wrong with that of course - it makes complete sense for Hornby to keep at least one 9F in their range. But perhaps should not be marketed as a new tooling.
Unless perhaps improvements have been made in respect of the power train which did attract some mixed reviews a couple of years ago....
My dad knew Dai, I used to play on the old locos in the scrapyard and I still know his son. He had a Red Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. I must get a Tyne Dock version of this loco.
If you buy a Rolls Royce, you pay Rolls-Royce prices!! This is a PREMIUM model. The way to make it even more premium is to fit the HM7000 sound chip!!
Hi Jenny, very good informative review of a very important loco, I only have Hornby steam locomotives in my collection because they have never let me down, it’s been a few years since my last purchase which was the rebuilt hush hush model from Kernow’s for a superb price, I will probably buy the latest W1 hush hush when I see one for a great price, it’s the one with the new draw bar, this 9F should have that new style draw bar which looks so much better than the usual option with the wires showing, it’s the one thing that puts me off this model unfortunately as everything else is very good in my opinion, if there is a draw bar upgrade kit for this model then it would be a great option especially if it was a 5 or 6 pin capacity for lighting and control of the very nice glowing firebox, thanks for sharing.
To me, if it has DCC Sound fitted rather than having to buy a MH2000 sound chip, it’s just a better version of a great locomotive.
Those blinking plugs drive me round the bend!! They come on both Hornby and Bachmann steam locomotives, and are the only real curse of model steam locomotives.
At last Hornby has actually brought this locomotive out!! It’s lovely to see Black Prince to run on one’s layout. Not for me, but it’s a gorgeous locomotive!!
The buffers on this particular locomotive are made of polished steel rather than brass!! It might even be nickel silver!!
Jenny, did you refer to the animal on the BR logo as a “FERET” …… have HORNBY dropped the Lion😉
Ah, Clark railworks, there the guys listing a graham farish class 25 for £999,999.00...
And this 9f ain't for me, I'm going to just use my 2009 9f as it's pretty heavy, good puller and overall costs far less than this. Sure it hasn't got all the bells and whistles but eh. Nice model but it's a pass for me jenny.
What a great review of this iconic locomotive! Although prices are going up, as you say, they're still lower than that of Continental models.
As an aside, when we were in the UK on holiday I picked up a preowned, earlier version of the Hornby 9F which had never run @ £120. It turned out to be a good model too.😊
Thankyou Jenny for an excellent review. This loco is something very special; it has a presence of its own like the Cock o the North. The new tooling and detail from within it make the price high; something which is becoming a norm but looking at this the model does give what you are paying for. All best Marc from Leighton Buzzard
Great review Jenny, thank you. I bought the latest 9F in 92167 guise when they were first released. I fitted it with a Zimo and sound. It's a lovely loco and would have been even better with steam.
Great review...😊
The rectangular boxes on the tender chassis is a water filter, these were connected to the loco via the injectors, any debris in the sheds water supply, would be caught in these two filter elements, they were changed or cleaned in service intervals...
The manifold on top of the firebox has to be moulded as flat as possible as to release it from the tooling mould, that would be a join, not a brake...it will be on the other side too...
82F is headcode for Sherringham/Fakenham.
82F is headcode for Sherringham/Fakenham.
Like a said in my review
The ultimate 9f and it definitely is am very happy with the model i brought
I know the price point is going to be a bit of talking point
Hornby should be proud of the model
Keep safe ARP
I enjoyed this. My love of British steam began in 1986 when the "Black Prince" was used in the opening scenes of a favorite movie...The Canterville Ghost with John Gielgud.
Of course, back in the 80s it wasn't easy for someone stateside to learn about these. My dad took a picture of the screen, gave it to our neighbor across the street who was from England, she sent it to her brother explaining the situation and he not only responded with an identification, but also a great book on British steam...which I still have!
Thus, it all started for me with the 9F! 🤗
I once had an HM controller!! But that was in the day when controllers were all analog.
The 9F was and still is one of the great locomotives ever built in Britain. It is good to know that more than one was saved. Martin. (Thsilsnd)
All looking very good for the release of the TT:120 version. 👍
I love 9f's... This is top of my wishlist for my 00 gauge garden railway
Go for it
Thanks for that video, Jennifer
Nice model. New tool but uses the old plug tender connector? Maybe Hornby realised their new connector had reliability problems.
After seeing another You Tubers issues with the new drawbar system on the Black 5 model. Maybe not a nad idea to stick to tried & tested methods.
No, just designed before the new connectors came out. Hornby use a number of different factories in China and some take longer to process models than others, especially those in regions that suffered from Covid shut downs and materials shortages.
N.B. I've several models with the new connector an A1 Flying Scotsman, five A4s, two P2s (one streamlined) and a BR Black 5 and all have worked perfectly so far. Many others have also had no probs. Perhaps the LMS Black fives had a bad batch?
@@speleokeir Not sure. But can only go on what was said by that reviewer. However, it would still need a 6 way connection to allow for the firebox to be controlled by the decoder.
The first run of the new 9f was released before the new connector came in
Yes, the Hornby 9F is a better model than the Bachmann 9F, and 92203 being a local locomotive is a favourite.
Nice Jen❤, really nice, thinking of ordering mine now👍
Nice Loc, wrong scale, but nice loc ...
On my Wishlist!
Is 21 pin DCC the best choice
Can I ask why?
Built for Hm7000 chips straight in ..? Be embarrassing if hornby produce stuff that isn't compatible with that...
@@class66 apologies. I should alway have my glasses on. I thought you said that 21 pin is the best. As in generally. Obviously it is for this loco having a 21 pin socket. Cheers.
Did you notice the joint lines of the two parts of the smoke box top? Looks good, runs well and for myself ....overpriced.
The joint on the top of the smoke box is correct as it's the access panel for the superheater header but it is a bit over scale width/depth
Hornby as you wellknow miss Kirk is no longer interested in providing good reliable models at a reasonable price Instead they re-hash the same old models over and over again and continually jack up their prices by 20-----30----40% A quick respray with new livery does not equal a new retooling I believe that Hornby could in the future withdraw from trains all together