Is 'The Flying Scotsman' worth £620?

[Web-Junkie]

http://www.buildtheflyingscotsman.co.uk

Obviously one for the Train Hobbyist!

Just wondering how many people who have seen the Advert for building 'The Flying Scotsman' thought how expensive it is when they work out the price: 125 issues, 50p for 1st issue then £4.99 for the remaining 124 issues = £619.26, plus it's going to take you about 2½ years before you get all the bits, 125 weeks = roughly 31 months = 2½ years! The Subscription isn't much cheaper but you do get some freebies like a toolkit, files and a DVD!

Are these partworks actually worth it considering all the effort you have to do to build these models? Also, will the finished model look anything like the one advertised on TV as that's obviously been built by a professional model maker and has been modified to run on tracks using a motor. The model you build is not powered but it can be modified as explained in later issues so this will add to the cost!

So, is it worth it and who's going to be buying this?

[LSainsbury]

Ha! -I'm sure you could get a decent / better quality model for that price...

Saw part-works on display in Borders yesterday - thought to myself - here we go again!

[lostandconfused]

with the price of coal nowadays, you could probably get the real thing cheaper

[Cobbydaler]

Originally Posted by Web-Junkie

http://www.buildtheflyingscotsman.co.uk

Obviously one for the Train Hobbyist!

Just wondering how many people who have seen the Advert for building 'The Flying Scotsman' thought how expensive it is when they work out the price: 125 issues, 50p for 1st issue then £4.99 for the remaining 124 issues = £619.26, plus it's going to take you about 2½ years before you get all the bits, 125 weeks = roughly 31 months = 2½ years! The Subscription isn't much cheaper but you do get some freebies like a toolkit, files and a DVD!

Are these partworks actually worth it considering all the effort you have to do to build these models? Also, will the finished model look anything like the one advertised on TV as that's obviously been built by a professional model maker and has been modified to run on tracks using a motor. The model you build is not powered but it can be modified as explained in later issues so this will add to the cost!

So, is it worth it and who's going to be buying this?

The model is in association with DJH. Surprise, surprise you can no longer buy the 'O' gauge Flying Scotsman from their site. An 'O' gauge Gresley A3 4-6-2 is available however in several guises for 'only' £462.

Nice mark-up for the magazine publishers, as they probably negotiated a discount...

[lostandconfused]

£200 to produce 125 magazines does seem quite cheap to be fair.

If you were to buy any other sort of magazine your looking at around £5 each

[Web-Junkie]

Originally Posted by lostandconfused

£200 to produce 125 magazines does seem quite cheap to be fair.

If you were to buy any other sort of magazine your looking at around £5 each

Where do you get £200 from? The mag *IS* £5 (£4.99) after issue 1!!

But what do you get for your money magazine wise? Not seen the actual mag yet so not seen how many pages it has or if the content is interesting enough!

[lostandconfused]

£620 for the total subscription, minus the £400 odd for the actual train leaves around £200 for the magazine.

Your right the magazine could be rubbish, and as its not something that i would be intersted in, im probably not the best to judge.

but when you think you would pay £5 for another magazine and you dont get the free train, it doesnt seem too bad

[Web-Junkie]

Originally Posted by lostandconfused

£620 for the total subscription, minus the £400 odd for the actual train leaves around £200 for the magazine.

Your right the magazine could be rubbish, and as its not something that i would be intersted in, im probably not the best to judge.

but when you think you would pay £5 for another magazine and you dont get the free train, it doesnt seem too bad

Ah! I see now where you got £200 from, sorry!

There is the fact that once you buy it you're more or less committed to seeing it out to the end, unless you just buy issue 1 for 50p to see what it's like, the other £5 mags you mention can be 'pick and choose' so you don't HAVE to buy them!

Just looked at the other 'build' collections Hachette do:

Bismarck: 140 weekly issues, issue 1 @ 50p, rest £4.99 = £694.11
BMW M3 GTR: 95 weekly issues, issue 1 @ 50p, rest £5.99 = £563.56
Nitro Monster Truck: 87 weekly issues, issue 1 @ 99p, rest £5.99 = £516.13
Red Baron: 100 weekly issues, issue 1 @ 99p, rest £3.99 = £396

Looks to be a pretty expensive hobby collecting these If you add up all their build collections it comes to £2789.06

[cleshe]

Originally Posted by lostandconfused

£620 for the total subscription, minus the £400 odd for the actual train leaves around £200 for the magazine.

Your right the magazine could be rubbish, and as its not something that i would be intersted in, im probably not the best to judge.

but when you think you would pay £5 for another magazine and you dont get the free train, it doesnt seem too bad

I know nothing about the train, but I do know several people who tried building dolls houses this way. Only one suceeeded, and he spent weeks returning parts that didn't fit etc. He could have got a ready made or a kit far cheaper.
another friend built a radio controlled car that way.It worked, but again it was a dear option.
Best of luck.

[SMHarman]

Do they always make it to the end? Many magazines fold.
Also the £400 is retail, not wholesale.

[Web-Junkie]

Well I WON'T be buying this as I was just wondering what other people thought, and going by what cleshe stated regarding other peoples experiences with these 'collections' it's more hassle than it's worth, especially if the parts are badly made, broken or damaged when you get them!!

I can see lots of potential problems with this particular collection regards damaged parts if they don't send them through the post or delivered to the newsagent well protected, some parts look to be thin brass/tin plate or other 'bendable' metal and so easily bent/damaged!

Imagine going to the newsagent for the last issue and the parts are damaged and there's no more in stock

[LSainsbury]

Originally Posted by SMHarman

Do they always make it to the end? Many magazines fold.

[Delta Whiskey]

Most of these part-works start off as sale or return to the newsagent, so any unsold copies can be returned to the wholesaler for credit. After maybe half a dozen issues they become firm sale only, this is when they disappear from the shelves and the newsagent will only stock copies for customers who place a regular order for it.

[roymatt]

Hello there.....
Just thought I'd clarify a few things.
Yes, at over 600 quid, the kit is expensive, but the DJH kits don't come with wheels, which are extra at almost 100 quid for an A3 loco and tender. Also, the DJH kits don't come with motors or gearboxes either. So, the magazine is actually 'free' if you allow for the fact that the DJH kits are around 650 quid complete anyway, and they don't come with transfers for the lettering and lining either, which the mag kit does.
I've bought issue 1 just to see what it's like, and yes, the mag is pretty naff, being around 10 pages thick, half of which is the kit instructions!
I'm a bit concerned that the mag and kit is being aimed at the general public though.
A brass loco kit like this DEFINITELY isn't for the faint-hearted. They are VERY difficult to build properly, and even harder to paint, and even skilled and long-experienced modellers would advise 'newbies' to start with a little 0-4-0 tank loco or similar and NOT go jumping in with a highly complex A3.
An Airfix kit this aint!!!
In 2 years time I would imagine that the majority of the kits will be left unfinished as the builders have given up trying to "climb mount Everest when they've never even been up the local hill".
One thing in its favour though.... It's a good way of 'sneaking' a 600 quid loco into the house past the missus.....

[Web-Junkie]

I'd think the missus would eventually notice 125 mags stacked up on a shelf or in the corner or in the shed or wherever you stack them

I've always thought these 'kits' are too ambitious for most casual modellers, they 'look' fantastic when you see the advert on TV but then when you try to build them, as you say, it's not that straight forward!

I think VM used to subscribe to a partwork called 'Build a Cable Network', but that must have been to much like hard work and effort to understand and they stopped buying it after issue #1