Out of curiosity, my wife looked up the set. They're now out of stock on the full price, and no "scuffed" ones to speak of. That listing is gone. Hornby must have someone monitoring your channel which I find very funny. Keep up the brutal honesty!
@@thedappercook lol. There's a difference between listings out of stock and removed from the site all together. The regular ones were showing as out of stock. If you've watched any of Sam's videos, Hornby is not a company you'd be soon defending.
What's especially frustrating is that the "real" Hogwarts Express was always depicted as having four coaches (except in one film where it had five for no apparent reason), so it wouldn't've even been that difficult to just include two more to complete the set.
With some licensing agreements, there are strict rules about discounting including discounts for end of range, damaged products and customer or reseller returns while the license is live. It could be that non A-1 packaging can be sold at a clearance price and the definition/audit process of non A-1 is loose enough for the supplier to use to clear over stocks without breaking the master agreement.
No , they have discounted Harry Potter product before , but that was before they adopted the anti retailer approach , you should not the most recent Hornby board appointment , a gent with specific specialist internet selling experience.
A way to fix that blue/white LED is to use some "clear orange" paint (Tamiya X- 26). A few coats over the LED tones down the color towards that "warm white" color that most modelers desire. I hate those blue/white LEDs. Several US companies use them, and they ruin what are otherwise beautiful models.
It does have corner scrapes and I'm fairly sure I know at least partly what this stock is about. This is retailer return stock, I saw pallets of this stuff going out to retail pre Christmas including easy build cars from Airfix. Likely returned for credit leaving hornby with B grade stock to shift.
Nonsense. What is described in the vid is the truth. Hornby want to charge stupid money for sub standard stuff. The end of model railways is fast approaching as people stop buying and the next generation stops coming in to it. Hornby etc only have themselves to blame.
That's an awesome idea Robert - thing is, I bet most of the preserved locos have been screen used from one time or another! Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I imagine they stuck the LED in the front like that, rather than it in a lamp, so modellers couldn't get a cheap hall class, so Hornby could sell models at higher price. Although conjecture it's probably also why it was a white light as well to make it even more of an inconvenience
Could always just snip the wires and paint /blank it over if you find it a bother, or remount it into a lamp body. Kitbashing is the budget modeller's friend.
@@Shipwright1918 To make it into a Hall in either GWR or BR livery you'd have to completely repaint it anyway so popping out the smokebox door and getting a spare would be a minor inconvenience. If only the Harry Potter film had used an LMS locomotive!!
@@SamsTrains It may not be "cheap Hall class" so much as "legally distinct Hall class" - the licensing agreement will have specified Hogwarts Castle, and under US law there can be legal issues around "confusion" between an IP-linked item and a generic item. The licence might well have demanded all-new tooling (note the Hogwarts Railways logo too) to avoid any suggestion that Hogwarts Castle was the same product as a standard Hall and losing IP protection.
Lovely looking train set! Looking at hornby's US website, it's one of the few things on there (yes, hornby has a different website for us yanks, with way less stuff). However, the set on their website is $315, or about 245 pounds!! Hornby at this point is the laughing stock of the OO modelling world.
Interestingly, the set is missing quite a bit from Hornbys earlier HP train sets. The Philosophers Stone, Chamber Of Secrets sets also had a trackmat, platform with a platform shelter in it, platform fencing and furniture n that cost around £100 back in the day. Controller wise, ya should have a look at the old school HandM Clipper or Duette controllers, they were and are still awesome kit
I think I know why... I remember reading about this.. When the new owner took over Hornby he said the company was all over the place. He was confused as to why Hornby was even making sets such as Hogwarts and Paddington when it doesn't fit into the company's style. "How is Hogwarts express going to fit into someone's accurate model layout of the 1900's" (he said something like that) So maybe they are finding a way to gradually remove stock such as this?
Yeah it's a good question isn't it? Fair enough if stand-alone train sets were popular among non-modellers, but are they these days? Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Yeah I'd agree with that last part - very money driven now! Of course all businesses are... but good ones make money by putting the customer first! Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I have actually seen the Hogwarts Express when it was stored in London's Clapham Junction, Battersea. It was secretly stored to stop train fanatics knowing where it was. The security gate was about 20 feet high covered in barbed wire Also there which I was allowed to tour through was the Orient Express which was being serviced. I was given a bar of Orient Express soap. 20 years ago, time flies.
Interesting review and a good train set….for the cheaper price! What on Earth Hornby think they are doing with the “scuffed box” business, but it’s yet more strange shenanigans from the so called biggest name in the business!
could be related to the licensing deal. maybe that deal doesnt allow them to sell at a lower price (== lower license payments!) without permission. Writing it off as B stock could be a workaround there
@@marks.6480 That's what I was suspecting as well, as Terf Castle Lady seems to be pretty picky when it comes to the license of her franchise, given how she's acted over the years towards people who are/were fans of her series, especially those who were fanfic writers.
The Lionel units look very nice. That 3rd rail just ruins it for me though. I have seen setups that have the middle line black but my eye goes straight to it. I like the size of the OO models but the error between track and scale is about 12% in OO and roughly 7% for HO scale. I just don't understand how they didn't engineer this better like....I don't know...a HUNDRED years ago? Joking aside, it should have been resolved accurately 60-70 years ago.
The disappointing thing is I got an original Harry potter set when it first came out years ago, which had a castle class instead of a hall. The one used the horrific ringfield motor. And that came with a specific Harry potter track mat. And definitely looks like the very same mk1s you shown today. I believe it came from toys r us for £80 well over 10 years ago. And if you were to review today that it'd score the same as this new set.
I have been rewatching this religiously for the past 2 weeks I am rewatching Harry Potter and have got back into it. I am waiting for a chance to get this for my layout. Literally just the loco... Maybe a single coach because it looks so good. The led I don't care about being blue.
The 1st set released by hornby was Harry Potter and the philosiphers stone set....this was a decent set, as the loco had metal whistles, sprung buffers and a push together connection between loco and tender. The set came with 2 coaches, oval of track with siding, a track mat and a station for the siding...so seems to me the value has gone down but the price has gone up...
£242.99 is nothing if you are a train enthousiast in europe, i have Marklin and some of those trains are €500 easy but the quality of those loco's is really top notch they are really on a different level
Hey mate I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you for these videos I think you do an amazing job and you have inspired me to love trains like nothing else and I have now convinced my parents to give me a corner of my garage to build my own layout so thank you for inspiring me.
It's a pleasure James, thanks so much for your kind words! That's amazing news - good luck with your layout - send me some photos of it!! :D Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Let's just say that u have been blessed with a magical train in your train collection (and it's making Thomas and his friends jealous). It's an awesome model to have as a modal train from Hornby. The train is perfect, they brought the proper train from RL (real life) into an aweome looking model. I wonder what the next review is going to be that you will be doing Sam.
How very odd! Even the “named” sets - “Half Blood Prince” etc, came with additional accessories, platforms, overall roof, for example and they were cheaper than £241 - which,incidentally, I think is wholly extortionate. It’s just a very cheeky “try out” to sell what they have left.
I have a theory too: maybe the shipping container was dropped or the delivery truck had an accident, the set were shipped with (or something like that), so by a law (i think GB has a law too for that) they can not sell these as brand new, only as damaged product, despite it got damaged or not. Maybe! Or just there's a printing error on the boxes.
I bought one of these a few months ago (due to overly effective Instagram advertising) and mine is also not remotely scuffed, really pleased with it! I got the impression that these sets are all returned from high street retailers like WH Smith and Marks and Spencers etc, and some of them would have spent some time being shuffled around shop floors before being returned to Hornby as unsold, whereas others would have just sat in a warehouse or two prior to being returned. If I was being kind to Hornby I would suggest that they're offering all boxes that have been returned from high street retailers as potentially scuffed wether they are or not, and the unscuffed full price ones have never left Hornby's own premises before, but that's possibly being over generous - your theory also seems plausible. Enjoyed the review, I also feel like this set is great value for money at the reduced price, and it was an easy choice for me to help me get my kids more enthusiastic about (my!) model trains!
Thanks a lot for sharing Nat - it seems as though most of them don't have any scuffing... definitely getting that sense from the comments! That's a good thought - could be right there! Thanks for watching, Sam :)
This Sunday on the Antiques Roadshow a guy had the original number of the Hall locomotive. It was valued at less money than if it had been a fake one from the film! I think you are right about why Hornby were offering a cheaper version of the set. Younger fans of Harry Potter would have a job convincing parents to fork out over £200 for Christmas or birthday presents!
I thought you gave a very fair review. It inspired me to " Look through my Hoard ". I have a Mint Boxed R1048 set with a Cadbury Castle from 2004. Apparently the 4 coaches are from the Railroad Range. It seems to me there was much better value for money then. The Loco is really nice with brass chimney, whistles, etc. I have no idea what it cost originally and would be intrigued if someone new what it would be in 2022 adjusted for inflation. Great Video by the way 👍
I managed to get this set for £100 (back when Hornby’s RRP was £200) in the January sale at Hawkins Bizarre 2 years ago. I think they were closing down and selling everything at 50% off. Got a good deal I think! I love the set, it’s my favourite model. I love Harry Potter which I think biases me! However agree that there’s no way it’s worth £200+. £150 is more reasonable. The price increases from Hornby are awful, as so many have said.
Hi Sam, after seeing the review I had to check my Harry Potter train set; first one the philosopher stone. It to only had two coaches and I added to it another two to give it some truth. The reason I checked the box was it came with a very special track mat. Background of stars etc. Never used it but knew I had had seen something so out there, there must be others. I did get a dcc version with the lamp but it’s not great on dc… well done hornby. Anyway great review and hoped to help re the special HP track mat.. keep the review coming, all best Marc
The boxes possibly may not necessarily have damage but the box may be missing a print, text, or somthing that wasnt to the original design that the franchise and hornby agreed on
Had an old Santa Fe freightliner engine as a kid and it had a highly responsive motor and controller..... The thing literally exploded when I bought a hornaby controller that I was told was compatible by a hornaby employee, I don't trust them anymore and I don't recommend anything from hornaby unless you rebuild it yourself
I managed to get the actual Castle Class version for a Harry Potter loving friend, from Hattons pre owned, for £60. It compares well as it has sprung buffers etc. But it doesn't have the large headlight. I also individually got 2 HP coaches, one brake, one standard, £20 each, also from Hattons pre owned.
I’ve had that set for a few years and have outfitted it with DCC Sound using a Soundtraxx Econami UK steam sound decoder with a GWR exhaust chuff sound with the Gresley A4 whistle for a more movie accurate sound than the TTS sound fitted version of the engine.
I sneezed in the middle of the early access video.🤧 I'm not a Harry Potter fan to be honest. However, it was confusion and delay on the Llangollen Railway. The green diesel failed, so I wound up riding behind Mr. Blue 47. I'm sure you know what the diesel looks like. Thanks for sneezing my channel name. Could you do it again? I'm really stuffed up. I've sneezed twice today: riding behind Mr. Blue 47 and on the bus journey home.🤧😠
This is one of the only Hornby train sets continuously available in the US, for around $200. I had a Bachmann Hogwarts when I was a kid, sadly it was quite fragile and only the coaches survived to this day. I look forward to actually buying one of these and and add my old coaches.
I brought that train.set here in New Zealand it cost me $504 plus I brought extra 5 coaches two of them with free the rest cost me 40 New Zealand dollars and then I decided I wanted a sound chip but they didn't have it so I bought the engine with the sound chip and dcc in it and that cost me another 300 New Zealand dollars so I have both the analogue and digital one so it was quite expensive but I liked it. Both engines have a lot of grunt pulls very well and smoothly.
Part of me suspects that they started off with a good amount of scuffed ones. Put those on the site to sell them, thinking they wouldn't sell as the full price ones weren't really selling, and then the cheaper ones sold better than expected, and they would rather make some money than new money so they've kept the listing up and are just filling the orders from the main stock.
The price maybe ridiculous but somehow the product is kinda worth it...well obviously harry potter but at the same time it's not the normal/ usual set you can buy...They should add like 5 more coaches to the the 2 that was included in the set for a more realistic look. Cheers!
I’m thinking that the packaging might have been different. When it comes to expensive action figures, sometimes, there is different levels of packaging. These being something near the lines of “standard” and “collectors.” (The collectors being at a higher price) If I understand correctly, this is because some people never take the figure out of the box, and hence the box being in perfect condition is vital. But to those who don’t care about that, they don’t have to pay that price for extra protection, but run the chance of damage occurring through shipping.
Sam can I ask you a question please. My Hogwarts Express was running really well when all of a sudden it just randomly stopped, the light still comes on the front but the loco just won't run. What should I do any advice please?
Trainworld has a few of these sets and the engine and coaches on their own. I’m probably going to get the items separately for easier storage and transport. The separate coaches, of the three offered, two are the same as the set so there is only three offered. Either way I’m getting the whole train and adding Tsunami 2 for sounds.
Not a Fan of Harry Potter but young son was..! But I was forced to wonder, how The 'Death Eaters' would be able to hang on to the Carriages, if there are no separately fitted hand Rails fitted to the Coaches..?? This is a Tongue in Cheek observation obviously. Please don't take this comment Seriously..! As for Scuffing, its a Box. It's gunna get knocked about by Young One's. ( who this is Aimed at..!) So £90 off for a Scuff or two...! 'MEH...!!' Lets hope Hornby start doing that more, on other parts of the Expensive Range..!! Fingers Crossed..! Good Review Sam. Cheers all. Apologies to Potter Fans. Kim in Oz. 😎
I'm in contact with someone who's essentially a Hornby-licensed repairman. He had a Hogwarts Castle loco that was sent in for the LED fault (which I found hilarious), and as the customer had received a new one already, he fixed it and put it up for sale. I bought it off him for $25/£12.50. So I can't really complain about it given the price. It seems alright.
Rip off at full price. Likely an overstock judging by the ancient controller (the newer one is smoother but trips out very easily). They used to do some really good value high spec sets in the past; I bought "The Boxed Set" 15 years ago which came with the HM2000 controller - RRP of that alone is £145 today!!
You think you got a bargain, I just picked up the exact train set on clearance in John Lewis in Edinburgh for 66 quid. No joke so I bought 2. One left in stock in the whole of Uk as of 16:12 on 21st Feb 2023. So if you are quick…..
Hornby Mk1's even though the tooling is newer than the Bachmann, the quality is by far lesser. I bought a Hornby TSO when they released them on the back of a Hornby magazine review. I thought I'd accidently bought the railroad version. I'd rather have a 20 year old Bachmann MK1 over a new Hornby version.
These people ... Many Years ago I bought a Graphics Card that apparently had a damaged Box. What was the damage? It was glue residue from packing tape. totally fine product but not good enough for normal resell, it was reduced by 15% back then. Since that day, I always look in the reduced Sections first :D
I'm pretty sure when The Hogwarts Express train set by Hornby was originally released the Hogwarts express engine did have sprung buffers, and a copper funnel. I owned one of these sets back in 2002. However they've clearly made some changes to the model since then. But yeah i'm sure this engine model used to have sprung buffers, and a copper funnel in the early days of this set. Plus this set used to have a custom Harry Potter track mat, and a station. Again one thing this new set is lacking. Talk about making cuts
Returns, sale or return , require that Hornby sells them as secondhand, or seconds. Some of the returns will be overstock from Christmas, others will be due to Covid and companies ( not model shops ) going bust , receivership will claim back a little of the money from the return of stock , but then Hornby will have to sell them as seconds , even if in perfect condition, otherwise they will have to Pay excessive Tax . From what I have been told by accountants etc. Although I think it’s still overpriced, even at the reduced price. A good model representation of a fictitious train. Like the coaches. Not sure about the plastic controller.
Hi I think that you are a real genuine guy unlike so many of the others on here who get free models from manufacturers to lie. In reality Hornby Bachmann and now Heljan are ripping us all off. Accruscale produce exceptional models all day long and charge the right price that reflects this. Basically if Bachmann made a class 31 to the same standard as Accruscale are now making they would charge around the £200 mark just like they are with their new class 47. Also Bachmann VEA is £33 each but if Accruscale made this they would sell three for £75. Its a joke and I no longer buy anything from them. Rapido, Calvex etc also charge a real high price as well for what they do and as a result I can not justify any purchases from them either. Its a disgrace and its about greed and one or two getting themselves out of financial trouble due to various mistakes they made.
A GWR hall dressed a up as a LMS loco. Thats 2 fails straight away.A no way for me. Ugly as a GWR and a sham. Give me any LNER loco over that foreign rubbish
I think you should have used the price you paid, not an average of what you paid and the RRP, to calculate the Value. In other areas in which you rate things you always say “I can only rate what’s in front of me, not what the average might be if I saw every one made”, which means you should only rate the Value against the price you paid, which would have given the train set a better score.
I just bought the flying scotsman set (U.S. version) and the turnout (points) is short circuiting the loop every time I set it to diverge; is that just a problem with Hornsby turnouts or can it be easily remedied
I bought this train set a couple years ago and I was pleasantly surprised by its quality, my only complaint is that I would have preferred a third coach over the switch and spur track.
I have one of the origionals from about 2002, was a lovely train and coaches, didnt have that god awful light on it, the brass chimney cowl was actually metal and at the time i got it brand new it was my most detailed steam engine and coaches, ive still got it all but i think the brass cowl has fallen off the engine, i swear it had sprung buffers but i could be wrong. ill have to dig it out wherever it is
I am a bit lost for polite alternatives to expletives regarding the price of the power unit. The one company the young enthusiast looked up to 40 years ago has just become another vendor of expensive rubbish, made elsewhere!
Thing is: Harry Potter isn’t big. The first movie is 20 years old. The last 11 years. It’s well & truly off the boil. I’d say they over estimated the market.
Correct me if im wrong. But didn't bachmann make one like this? But i believe it might have had 3 coaches then just the 2. But after a few they went back to just having 2? I think.
I know i'm late to commenting, but I got a hornby flying scotsman set from a model railway shop near me and It had the harry potter track mat in it?! They must have got it mixed up
I remember getting a dirt cheap Nintendo DSi (old at the time, but not that old) because it was "scratched". The bloke had to keep turning it over in the light to even make the "scratch" visible!
Could it be down to the licensing agreement. We have different policies for returning branded, licenced and non branded/licensed, so it doesn't get returned to non authorised outlets and sold through non officially approved channels?
Is it possible to buy the engine and coaches separately? I don’t need a loop of Hornby track and power pack that’s just gonna sit in a drawer while the train is on my layout
I'm in shipping and a lot of the time companys will declare a intire case will be declared damaged instead of individual packages within a case saves time for there staff
Out of curiosity, my wife looked up the set. They're now out of stock on the full price, and no "scuffed" ones to speak of. That listing is gone. Hornby must have someone monitoring your channel which I find very funny. Keep up the brutal honesty!
Maybe they tipped over on Forest Gate Triangle?
I wish my wife looked up train sets.
@@Nathan93Baker same
Probably just sold out. Don't go down some conspiracy rat hole
@@thedappercook lol. There's a difference between listings out of stock and removed from the site all together. The regular ones were showing as out of stock. If you've watched any of Sam's videos, Hornby is not a company you'd be soon defending.
What's especially frustrating is that the "real" Hogwarts Express was always depicted as having four coaches (except in one film where it had five for no apparent reason), so it wouldn't've even been that difficult to just include two more to complete the set.
They have other coaches for sale (selfish money loving sods…
Anyway
With some licensing agreements, there are strict rules about discounting including discounts for end of range, damaged products and customer or reseller returns while the license is live. It could be that non A-1 packaging can be sold at a clearance price and the definition/audit process of non A-1 is loose enough for the supplier to use to clear over stocks without breaking the master agreement.
No , they have discounted Harry Potter product before , but that was before they adopted the anti retailer approach , you should not the most recent Hornby board appointment , a gent with specific specialist internet selling experience.
Interesting - thanks a lot to you both for sharing the info!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
A way to fix that blue/white LED is to use some "clear orange" paint (Tamiya X- 26). A few coats over the LED tones down the color towards that "warm white" color that most modelers desire. I hate those blue/white LEDs. Several US companies use them, and they ruin what are otherwise beautiful models.
It does have corner scrapes and I'm fairly sure I know at least partly what this stock is about. This is retailer return stock, I saw pallets of this stuff going out to retail pre Christmas including easy build cars from Airfix. Likely returned for credit leaving hornby with B grade stock to shift.
Ah, that does make sense. So they have to clear their stock then which is mostly B now.
It really didn't - it's quite normal to have the odd soft corner like that! Ahh interesting - could be right there!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Nonsense. What is described in the vid is the truth. Hornby want to charge stupid money for sub standard stuff. The end of model railways is fast approaching as people stop buying and the next generation stops coming in to it. Hornby etc only have themselves to blame.
Send it back for a full refund.
You should do a running session where you show models of trains that have been used in movies and TV shows
Are you sure you want to watch Underground Ernie on the layout again?
That's an awesome idea Robert - thing is, I bet most of the preserved locos have been screen used from one time or another!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I imagine they stuck the LED in the front like that, rather than it in a lamp, so modellers couldn't get a cheap hall class, so Hornby could sell models at higher price. Although conjecture it's probably also why it was a white light as well to make it even more of an inconvenience
haha very cynical, but you could be right, lol! ;D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Could always just snip the wires and paint /blank it over if you find it a bother, or remount it into a lamp body.
Kitbashing is the budget modeller's friend.
And? Take it out, and plug with some plasticard and filler... Then paint! 🤷♂️
@@Shipwright1918 To make it into a Hall in either GWR or BR livery you'd have to completely repaint it anyway so popping out the smokebox door and getting a spare would be a minor inconvenience. If only the Harry Potter film had used an LMS locomotive!!
@@SamsTrains It may not be "cheap Hall class" so much as "legally distinct Hall class" - the licensing agreement will have specified Hogwarts Castle, and under US law there can be legal issues around "confusion" between an IP-linked item and a generic item. The licence might well have demanded all-new tooling (note the Hogwarts Railways logo too) to avoid any suggestion that Hogwarts Castle was the same product as a standard Hall and losing IP protection.
Lovely looking train set! Looking at hornby's US website, it's one of the few things on there (yes, hornby has a different website for us yanks, with way less stuff). However, the set on their website is $315, or about 245 pounds!! Hornby at this point is the laughing stock of the OO modelling world.
It is actually! Ahh it's still on there in the US? They say it's now gone from their UK site!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I purchased mine for $209
Interestingly, the set is missing quite a bit from Hornbys earlier HP train sets. The Philosophers Stone, Chamber Of Secrets sets also had a trackmat, platform with a platform shelter in it, platform fencing and furniture n that cost around £100 back in the day.
Controller wise, ya should have a look at the old school HandM Clipper or Duette controllers, they were and are still awesome kit
I think I know why...
I remember reading about this.. When the new owner took over Hornby he said the company was all over the place. He was confused as to why Hornby was even making sets such as Hogwarts and Paddington when it doesn't fit into the company's style. "How is Hogwarts express going to fit into someone's accurate model layout of the 1900's" (he said something like that)
So maybe they are finding a way to gradually remove stock such as this?
Yeah it's a good question isn't it? Fair enough if stand-alone train sets were popular among non-modellers, but are they these days?
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Hornby is certainly going downhill in terms of business management and customer happiness, they seem to be a money factory now
Yeah I'd agree with that last part - very money driven now! Of course all businesses are... but good ones make money by putting the customer first!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I have actually seen the Hogwarts Express when it was stored in London's Clapham Junction, Battersea. It was secretly stored to stop train fanatics knowing where it was. The security gate was about 20 feet high covered in barbed wire Also there which I was allowed to tour through was the Orient Express which was being serviced. I was given a bar of Orient Express soap. 20 years ago, time flies.
Can you review a Class 395 train set? They are available at WHSmith for £69.99.
That sounds awesome, thanks! :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Interesting review and a good train set….for the cheaper price! What on Earth Hornby think they are doing with the “scuffed box” business, but it’s yet more strange shenanigans from the so called biggest name in the business!
Thanks Adam - haha I don't know - it's very strange isn't it?!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
could be related to the licensing deal. maybe that deal doesnt allow them to sell at a lower price (== lower license payments!) without permission. Writing it off as B stock could be a workaround there
@@marks.6480 That's what I was suspecting as well, as Terf Castle Lady seems to be pretty picky when it comes to the license of her franchise, given how she's acted over the years towards people who are/were fans of her series, especially those who were fanfic writers.
@@freebrickproductions im pretty sure she is not involved in the licensing deals. that is usually farmed out to a marketing team.
Trust me stranger shenanigans have happened at Goodmayes.
I just got the Lionel hogwarts express and that came with three coaches that light up and it is stunning.
Very awesome Johnn - I've never seen that one myself! :O
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
And you get a bell.
The Lionel units look very nice. That 3rd rail just ruins it for me though. I have seen setups that have the middle line black but my eye goes straight to it. I like the size of the OO models but the error between track and scale is about 12% in OO and roughly 7% for HO scale. I just don't understand how they didn't engineer this better like....I don't know...a HUNDRED years ago? Joking aside, it should have been resolved accurately 60-70 years ago.
Hogwarts castle will forever amuse me, it’s a Hall class pretending to be a Castle class, that just seems funny to me
I'm pretty sure the break down of the multiverse has something to do with that.
Its like a Class 31 thinking its a toffee apple? Or is it the other way round?
The disappointing thing is I got an original Harry potter set when it first came out years ago, which had a castle class instead of a hall. The one used the horrific ringfield motor. And that came with a specific Harry potter track mat. And definitely looks like the very same mk1s you shown today. I believe it came from toys r us for £80 well over 10 years ago. And if you were to review today that it'd score the same as this new set.
Sam do you have anything from Accurascale?
Only pre-orders at the moment!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Pfft, only a single diode. For 250 quid I would've expected a *F U L L B R I D G E R E C T I F I E R*
the older Hogwarts Express had a Trak mat and a Station Halt with it more cost cutting by Hornby?
I have been rewatching this religiously for the past 2 weeks I am rewatching Harry Potter and have got back into it. I am waiting for a chance to get this for my layout. Literally just the loco... Maybe a single coach because it looks so good. The led I don't care about being blue.
The 1st set released by hornby was Harry Potter and the philosiphers stone set....this was a decent set, as the loco had metal whistles, sprung buffers and a push together connection between loco and tender. The set came with 2 coaches, oval of track with siding, a track mat and a station for the siding...so seems to me the value has gone down but the price has gone up...
Yes I know of those older sets - different loco altogether of course though!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
I wonder if the other reviews are shared with the set, ie whether sold reduced or not.
Hmm good question!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
£242.99 is nothing if you are a train enthousiast in europe, i have Marklin and some of those trains are €500 easy but the quality of those loco's is really top notch they are really on a different level
Hey mate I just wanted to say thank you. Thank you for these videos I think you do an amazing job and you have inspired me to love trains like nothing else and I have now convinced my parents to give me a corner of my garage to build my own layout so thank you for inspiring me.
It's a pleasure James, thanks so much for your kind words! That's amazing news - good luck with your layout - send me some photos of it!! :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrains Your welcome Sam, how would I send you photos?
Let's just say that u have been blessed with a magical train in your train collection (and it's making Thomas and his friends jealous). It's an awesome model to have as a modal train from Hornby. The train is perfect, they brought the proper train from RL (real life) into an aweome looking model. I wonder what the next review is going to be that you will be doing Sam.
haha I sure have Paul - and maybe Thomas and his pals is jealous... I'll have to have a word!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrains OK Sam.
How very odd! Even the “named” sets - “Half Blood Prince” etc, came with additional accessories, platforms, overall roof, for example and they were cheaper than £241 - which,incidentally, I think is wholly extortionate. It’s just a very cheeky “try out” to sell what they have left.
The trainset is not listed anymore on the Hornby website XD
I guess if you buy the "scuffed" box set you will have enough money to buy 2x £45 coaches with the saving?
I have a theory too: maybe the shipping container was dropped or the delivery truck had an accident, the set were shipped with (or something like that), so by a law (i think GB has a law too for that) they can not sell these as brand new, only as damaged product, despite it got damaged or not. Maybe! Or just there's a printing error on the boxes.
Thanks Tom - yes that's being suggested quite a bit - could be - we'll never know for sure!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
The version I have with an LED has a soft yellow colour. Unfortunately the main gear cracked and it is out of service now.
Wow did you buy this from the Hornby website as a 'damaged bargain'? :)
Yaay guessed it.
Yeah I did, ahha!
@@SamsTrains retailer returns likely the end result of a sale or return deal with someone like Argos or Hobbycraft.
It is also possible that the lower price for scuffed packaging is to offer the product for cheaper to people who won't keep the box on display
I bought one of these a few months ago (due to overly effective Instagram advertising) and mine is also not remotely scuffed, really pleased with it! I got the impression that these sets are all returned from high street retailers like WH Smith and Marks and Spencers etc, and some of them would have spent some time being shuffled around shop floors before being returned to Hornby as unsold, whereas others would have just sat in a warehouse or two prior to being returned. If I was being kind to Hornby I would suggest that they're offering all boxes that have been returned from high street retailers as potentially scuffed wether they are or not, and the unscuffed full price ones have never left Hornby's own premises before, but that's possibly being over generous - your theory also seems plausible.
Enjoyed the review, I also feel like this set is great value for money at the reduced price, and it was an easy choice for me to help me get my kids more enthusiastic about (my!) model trains!
Thanks a lot for sharing Nat - it seems as though most of them don't have any scuffing... definitely getting that sense from the comments! That's a good thought - could be right there!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
wow I didn't know henry was the train from harry poter
Great video would it be cheaper in getting the hornby Olton hall and 2 maroon coaches all 2nd hand with loco better quality
This Sunday on the Antiques Roadshow a guy had the original number of the Hall locomotive. It was valued at less money than if it had been a fake one from the film! I think you are right about why Hornby were offering a cheaper version of the set. Younger fans of Harry Potter would have a job convincing parents to fork out over £200 for Christmas or birthday presents!
Will you ever review some of the southeast network livery dmu's or diesel and electric engines
I did the same thing and bought a ‘scuffed packaging’ hogwarts express set for £100!!! Absolutely no scuffs at all
It's very strange isn't it? Thanks for sharing! :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
@@SamsTrains Honest, Maybe they tipped over on Forest Gate Triangle?
Centre of the Omniverse Nd all that!
I thought you gave a very fair review. It inspired me to " Look through my Hoard ". I have a Mint Boxed R1048 set with a Cadbury Castle from 2004. Apparently the 4 coaches are from the Railroad Range. It seems to me there was much better value for money then. The Loco is really nice with brass chimney, whistles, etc. I have no idea what it cost originally and would be intrigued if someone new what it would be in 2022 adjusted for inflation. Great Video by the way 👍
I managed to get this set for £100 (back when Hornby’s RRP was £200) in the January sale at Hawkins Bizarre 2 years ago. I think they were closing down and selling everything at 50% off. Got a good deal I think! I love the set, it’s my favourite model. I love Harry Potter which I think biases me! However agree that there’s no way it’s worth £200+. £150 is more reasonable. The price increases from Hornby are awful, as so many have said.
Hi Sam, after seeing the review I had to check my Harry Potter train set; first one the philosopher stone. It to only had two coaches and I added to it another two to give it some truth. The reason I checked the box was it came with a very special track mat. Background of stars etc. Never used it but knew I had had seen something so out there, there must be others. I did get a dcc version with the lamp but it’s not great on dc… well done hornby. Anyway great review and hoped to help re the special HP track mat.. keep the review coming, all best Marc
they do have a harry potter themed train map from there 2000s sets but they didn't include it
The boxes possibly may not necessarily have damage but the box may be missing a print, text, or somthing that wasnt to the original design that the franchise and hornby agreed on
Could be! The point is though that the description said "scuffed box", and there was no damage at all!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Had an old Santa Fe freightliner engine as a kid and it had a highly responsive motor and controller..... The thing literally exploded when I bought a hornaby controller that I was told was compatible by a hornaby employee, I don't trust them anymore and I don't recommend anything from hornaby unless you rebuild it yourself
I managed to get the actual Castle Class version for a Harry Potter loving friend, from Hattons pre owned, for £60. It compares well as it has sprung buffers etc. But it doesn't have the large headlight. I also individually got 2 HP coaches, one brake, one standard, £20 each, also from Hattons pre owned.
I’ve had that set for a few years and have outfitted it with DCC Sound using a Soundtraxx Econami UK steam sound decoder with a GWR exhaust chuff sound with the Gresley A4 whistle for a more movie accurate sound than the TTS sound fitted version of the engine.
They are just trying to make extra money
I sneezed in the middle of the early access video.🤧 I'm not a Harry Potter fan to be honest. However, it was confusion and delay on the Llangollen Railway. The green diesel failed, so I wound up riding behind Mr. Blue 47. I'm sure you know what the diesel looks like. Thanks for sneezing my channel name. Could you do it again? I'm really stuffed up. I've sneezed twice today: riding behind Mr. Blue 47 and on the bus journey home.🤧😠
I know Bachmann & Rivarossi did a Hogwarts Express Train Set- maybe you should do a comparison between the 3 of them!
This is one of the only Hornby train sets continuously available in the US, for around $200. I had a Bachmann Hogwarts when I was a kid, sadly it was quite fragile and only the coaches survived to this day. I look forward to actually buying one of these and and add my old coaches.
I brought that train.set here in New Zealand it cost me $504 plus I brought extra 5 coaches two of them with free the rest cost me 40 New Zealand dollars and then I decided I wanted a sound chip but they didn't have it so I bought the engine with the sound chip and dcc in it and that cost me another 300 New Zealand dollars so I have both the analogue and digital one so it was quite expensive but I liked it. Both engines have a lot of grunt pulls very well and smoothly.
Part of me suspects that they started off with a good amount of scuffed ones. Put those on the site to sell them, thinking they wouldn't sell as the full price ones weren't really selling, and then the cheaper ones sold better than expected, and they would rather make some money than new money so they've kept the listing up and are just filling the orders from the main stock.
The price maybe ridiculous but somehow the product is kinda worth it...well obviously harry potter but at the same time it's not the normal/ usual set you can buy...They should add like 5 more coaches to the the 2 that was included in the set for a more realistic look. Cheers!
Did you know that the real hogwarts express actually had a big headlight on the bottom of its smoke box door so Hornby technically got it right
I looked at this set last year, when it was £180. I bought a ‘scuffed box’ version when it came out in November 21. Thanks for the review Sam
9:16 seems like the livery is post-preservation since it has the orange cantrail stripe below the roof gutter
Ahh very interesting!
I’m thinking that the packaging might have been different. When it comes to expensive action figures, sometimes, there is different levels of packaging. These being something near the lines of “standard” and “collectors.” (The collectors being at a higher price)
If I understand correctly, this is because some people never take the figure out of the box, and hence the box being in perfect condition is vital. But to those who don’t care about that, they don’t have to pay that price for extra protection, but run the chance of damage occurring through shipping.
Ahh interesting - thanks for sharing Elliott, appreciate it!
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Sam can I ask you a question please.
My Hogwarts Express was running really well when all of a sudden it just randomly stopped, the light still comes on the front but the loco just won't run.
What should I do any advice please?
21:35 The headlight is magically enhanced, which turns it blue.
Ahh of course - silly me! ;D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
It's more expensive to get a high temperature colored LED than a cool temperature color LED. Hornby is full of surprises.
Trainworld has a few of these sets and the engine and coaches on their own. I’m probably going to get the items separately for easier storage and transport. The separate coaches, of the three offered, two are the same as the set so there is only three offered. Either way I’m getting the whole train and adding Tsunami 2 for sounds.
Yeah it's probably easier to get them separately, particularly if you don't need all the extras like track etc! :D
Thanks for watching, Sam :)
Not a Fan of Harry Potter but young son was..!
But I was forced to wonder, how The 'Death Eaters' would be able to hang on to the Carriages, if there are no separately fitted hand Rails fitted to the Coaches..??
This is a Tongue in Cheek observation obviously. Please don't take this comment Seriously..!
As for Scuffing, its a Box. It's gunna get knocked about by Young One's. ( who this is Aimed at..!) So £90 off for a Scuff or two...! 'MEH...!!'
Lets hope Hornby start doing that more, on other parts of the Expensive Range..!!
Fingers Crossed..!
Good Review Sam.
Cheers all. Apologies to Potter Fans. Kim in Oz. 😎
I got mine on hornbys eBay page for the same condition before last Christmas and it cost me um-mm... £100.00 yes £100.00
I'm in contact with someone who's essentially a Hornby-licensed repairman. He had a Hogwarts Castle loco that was sent in for the LED fault (which I found hilarious), and as the customer had received a new one already, he fixed it and put it up for sale. I bought it off him for $25/£12.50. So I can't really complain about it given the price. It seems alright.
Rip off at full price. Likely an overstock judging by the ancient controller (the newer one is smoother but trips out very easily). They used to do some really good value high spec sets in the past; I bought "The Boxed Set" 15 years ago which came with the HM2000 controller - RRP of that alone is £145 today!!
You think you got a bargain, I just picked up the exact train set on clearance in John Lewis in Edinburgh for 66 quid. No joke so I bought 2. One left in stock in the whole of Uk as of 16:12 on 21st Feb 2023. So if you are quick…..
Hornby Mk1's even though the tooling is newer than the Bachmann, the quality is by far lesser. I bought a Hornby TSO when they released them on the back of a Hornby magazine review. I thought I'd accidently bought the railroad version. I'd rather have a 20 year old Bachmann MK1 over a new Hornby version.
These people ... Many Years ago I bought a Graphics Card that apparently had a damaged Box. What was the damage? It was glue residue from packing tape. totally fine product but not good enough for normal resell, it was reduced by 15% back then.
Since that day, I always look in the reduced Sections first :D
I'm pretty sure when The Hogwarts Express train set by Hornby was originally released the Hogwarts express engine did have sprung buffers, and a copper funnel. I owned one of these sets back in 2002. However they've clearly made some changes to the model since then. But yeah i'm sure this engine model used to have sprung buffers, and a copper funnel in the early days of this set. Plus this set used to have a custom Harry Potter track mat, and a station. Again one thing this new set is lacking. Talk about making cuts
Returns, sale or return , require that Hornby sells them as secondhand, or seconds. Some of the returns will be overstock from Christmas, others will be due to Covid and companies ( not model shops ) going bust , receivership will claim back a little of the money from the return of stock , but then Hornby will have to sell them as seconds , even if in perfect condition, otherwise they will have to
Pay excessive Tax . From what I have been told by accountants etc. Although I think it’s still overpriced, even at the reduced price. A good model representation of a fictitious train. Like the coaches. Not sure about the plastic controller.
Hi I think that you are a real genuine guy unlike so many of the others on here who get free models from manufacturers to lie. In reality Hornby Bachmann and now Heljan are ripping us all off. Accruscale produce exceptional models all day long and charge the right price that reflects this. Basically if Bachmann made a class 31 to the same standard as Accruscale are now making they would charge around the £200 mark just like they are with their new class 47. Also Bachmann VEA is £33 each but if Accruscale made this they would sell three for £75. Its a joke and I no longer buy anything from them. Rapido, Calvex etc also charge a real high price as well for what they do and as a result I can not justify any purchases from them either. Its a disgrace and its about greed and one or two getting themselves out of financial trouble due to various mistakes they made.
I have a theory,they had one that was scuffed and they probably thought they were all scuffed and lowerd the price and name
When years ago I was into N gauge trains all the trains I had were five pole motors, why are they not standard on all trains now?
A GWR hall dressed a up as a LMS loco. Thats 2 fails straight away.A no way for me. Ugly as a GWR and a sham. Give me any LNER loco over that foreign rubbish
These two train sets have different catalogue numbers, R1234, R1234M. Don't know what the difference is or are they just selling off old stock!
I think you should have used the price you paid, not an average of what you paid and the RRP, to calculate the Value. In other areas in which you rate things you always say “I can only rate what’s in front of me, not what the average might be if I saw every one made”, which means you should only rate the Value against the price you paid, which would have given the train set a better score.
I just bought the flying scotsman set (U.S. version) and the turnout (points) is short circuiting the loop every time I set it to diverge; is that just a problem with Hornsby turnouts or can it be easily remedied
I bought this train set a couple years ago and I was pleasantly surprised by its quality, my only complaint is that I would have preferred a third coach over the switch and spur track.
Hornby should have included some chocolate frogs, or a bag of Betty Bott’s All-flavor beans. It IS a Harry Potter themed train set, after all!
I have one of the origionals from about 2002, was a lovely train and coaches, didnt have that god awful light on it, the brass chimney cowl was actually metal and at the time i got it brand new it was my most detailed steam engine and coaches, ive still got it all but i think the brass cowl has fallen off the engine, i swear it had sprung buffers but i could be wrong. ill have to dig it out wherever it is
I am a bit lost for polite alternatives to expletives regarding the price of the power unit. The one company the young enthusiast looked up to 40 years ago has just become another vendor of expensive rubbish, made elsewhere!
Thing is: Harry Potter isn’t big. The first movie is 20 years old. The last 11 years. It’s well & truly off the boil. I’d say they over estimated the market.
Correct me if im wrong. But didn't bachmann make one like this? But i believe it might have had 3 coaches then just the 2. But after a few they went back to just having 2? I think.
I know i'm late to commenting, but I got a hornby flying scotsman set from a model railway shop near me and It had the harry potter track mat in it?! They must have got it mixed up
I remember getting a dirt cheap Nintendo DSi (old at the time, but not that old) because it was "scratched". The bloke had to keep turning it over in the light to even make the "scratch" visible!
I asked my sister if she wanted this and I was willing to pay that amount but she said no because she doesn’t like this stuff
Could it be down to the licensing agreement. We have different policies for returning branded, licenced and non branded/licensed, so it doesn't get returned to non authorised outlets and sold through non officially approved channels?
So Hornby's new pricing system suggests the packaging is worth 90 pounds. They get more laughable every week.
..or they have a pallet somewhere with scuffed packaging, unfortunately the message never reached the blokes packaging the orders.
great vid Sam, there is a real harry potter train in the world its the jacobite, in fort william /scotland
Hi sam I hope you're ok
I do like the train set but i feel for the price there should be more in the box
Hi Sam, have you ordered the new Hornby/SVR purple Elizabeth II no 70, or do you not want to remortgage your house?
Shockingly bad value for money. Clearly for kids of wealthy parents. This is no way to get a new generation into model trains. What a shame.
I actually don't buy any hornby products anymore due to their treatment of model shops the public and its incredible price rises and falling quality.
Is it possible to buy the engine and coaches separately?
I don’t need a loop of Hornby track and power pack that’s just gonna sit in a drawer while the train is on my layout
I think the old controller confirms the comment below that this is a retailer return from before Christmas.
I'm in shipping and a lot of the time companys will declare a intire case will be declared damaged instead of individual packages within a case saves time for there staff
To be honest Sam you should know better than give Hornby anything at all. Even at that price it's a rip off !!
Hi Sam, What's going on? , Who tell the truth, they think we are blind?!! , Not bad set ,, All the best Brian 😃