Mik, Its not Lionels fault, I'll give them credit for being smart enough to try a G Hogswarts, how long as that stupid series been going on? and NO ONE in large scale has offered a decent scale version while its been done in every other scale? So it will be a crappy toylike Lionel, dont blame them thats what they are doing now, I blame Bachmann primarily, they already HAVE one in HO, they would have been the logical choice to do a large scale version since they already have the licensing agreement, did they do it? Nope, so they lose, Lionel wins, and we get a cheapy battery toy instead, thats called marketing at Big B...
Have fun with your trains
I really HOPE that they reconsider, but since there are people will buy because of the "Harry Potter" name no matter how crappy the product, I doubt it......
The coaches have too small, and seriously truncated bodies perched a million miles in the air. Shades of 0-27! (We really need a puking emoticon)
The loco also sits too high and the proportions are so far off it barely qualifies as even a caricature. It's more like a scaled up z scale than anything I would call designed for G. The Hall class engines (the loco in the movies isn't a real Castle) are a very handsome loco. They have been done well in MANY scales, by comparison Lionel's offering is almost an insult.
Would somebody PLEASE send the people at Lionel large scale a CLUE? They don't seem to have one. For $140 people should have the right to expect something a bit better than what is found in a $25 New Brite set. The Lionel badge USED to stand for something. I guess it doesn't anymore...sad. (So much for for me ever getting hired to write a review in GR, lol)
Full details here:
http://www.lionel.com/Clubs/FindexLRRC.cfm
In the “top bar” point to “products” select “product finder”. In “product search box” insert “7-11080” , one train set appears in the “listings box.” Click on the Hogwarts name and new screen shows the full product listing.
I tried to put in a direct link but this is a page that shows the catalog without changing the URL.
Rechargeable battery optional, Remote control controls forward/backward, sound/bell, says nothing about speed control.
Tom Trigg
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