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It might be a good idea to try fitting Alan Gibson plunger pickups. I’ve used them before several times in DJH kits and have never had an issue with them.

I would've sent it back to where you brought it from, without opening the locomotive.

😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱😱

overpriced,badly designed,i have old triang loco,s that are better runners,the beach boys once did a song ,no go showboat that was about a car,this sums up this loco,sorry you have had such problems...........................jpj

'Tis true what they say: "You should never meet your heroes. You'll only be disappointed." I prefer kitbuilding. At least any mistakes then are your own.

very interesting video, i bought 3 rapido locos last year, one was the hunslet which got sent back twice because it kept stalling even on straight and level track and the 2nd time it came back it had marks on the paintwork so i just ended up getting a refund the 2nd was lion which started of ok but then stopped working and send it back to rapido i got a new tender for it and presume it was the tender connection that was to blame, seems ok since, the pannier tank had glue marks all over it and a few chips on the paint work and the buffer beams fell of after being run a few times, i was that fed up of contacting rapido and sending locos backwards and forwards i decided to keep it, i must admit it runs much better but that doesnt excuse all the quality control issues, i was tempted by the new s160 loco but am very reluctant to pre order any more especially with the high price this model is going for, thanks for sharing. Tom

Hi matey, I saw nothing but bad reviews on this model. Its a real shame, my hunslet is really good, just took a lot of running in. Ive got the j70 and pannier, the pannier is actually brilliant. Ive also got the stirling single, which is very delicate and doesnt enjoy certain track setups. I really think these guys have the best intentions, and Ive had great customer service on a 5 year old model, but like any of the manufacturers these days, they all seem to have duds. Cheers Shaun

Thanks for the heads up Julian. I was actually thinking about getting one of these, but will not do so now. I agree about Accurascale being top notch. Defo a 'go to' company. All the best and thank you for your honest and detailed review.

My tram locomotive is going back to the shop for the second time.

Interesting video. Sorry to hear of your experiences. I haven't got anything from Rapido yet, but I have a Rapido E1 on pre-order from Kernow. The impression that I had was that Rapido was well thought-of as a manufacturer.

I think sams trains gave the loco a thumbs down as well

Don't bachmann do a 15xx?

Too many locos these days are too fiddly and complicated using gimmicks like silly DCC sounds and trying to fit too much in. They need to go back to reliability and value .bachmann Hornby etc have there problems but not like this effort.

Great video thanks

Hate to say this Julian but you were never going to have joy with those plunger pick-ups especially in the future. Reason is Rivarossi used them for many years on their later steamers (yes they're a fail, even if better implemented than Rapido) as the tiny springs are the electrical paths as well, and as time goes on the springs lose their tension especially with power running through them and not only gradually lose contact, but the power also causes the minute plunger housings to distort as well. Someone above did mention that the first year triang rovex princess had plungers, and of course the dublo 3 rail 8f and castle, however not only were these basically unique, they were also very robust (being massive) and heavily engineered. The prewar lionel bildamotor as used in some standard gauge locomotives e.g the 381 used a plunger to provide the contact between the roller pickup plate and the brush lead: these also are notoriously prone to fail, due to again power consumption weakening the springs. It's just plungers can work, in some situations as an idea, but the reality is they don't function well in practice. Triang did their plungers for budgetary concerns: they could run all plastic wheels with no expensive metal bits. Dublo did theirs as the diecast six wheel tenders didn't allow space for their normal 3 rail pick-up in the tender. Lionel did theirs as, inferred by the name, the bildamotor was intended to be taken apart and put together by the youthful owner as a learning experience, part of the hobby. Rivarossi did theirs because they are Italian and just wanted to see if they could improve pick-ups (fair enough as there wasn't a precedent) but Rivarossi learnt. Rapido? Absolutely no reason as it's all been tried before and didn't work. Did Rapido think theirs would be the best? Mighty ambitious thinking that what they would produce would be perfect...

Just found you on you tube and loving your explanations and advice. I'm 74 in Rangiora, and starting to build my first railway layout for the grandsons (and me !) Keep up the fantastic videos.

Locomotives cost as much as a Car payment, Ultilities or rent. They should not be so bad, for that price.

Rapido Should have stuck with the wiper contact, it's only a 130 year tried and true method for powering model locomotives.

Had purchased myself one of these and sent to the US. Wobbly runner and fouled detail, glue marks etc. Hardly ran it, and would have cost over $150USD to send back for warranty. Cut my losses and sold it off at a great discount. Not impressed by Rapido, aside from my Stirling Single which runs beautifully.

I enjoy your channel but how disappointing you used the F word which i feel was totally inappropriate and i feel unable to continue despite your warning.Very sad you went down to that level.

I live in Canada and I have bought one Rapido engine. I will not buy another.

You were doing well til you said about accurascale, theyve had their fair share of problems too. Thankfully both companies with newer releases seem to be doing better

I sent 2 duds back then gave up and had a refund

Hello Julian, sorry to hear about your experience with this model,I wonder, are manufacturers over-complicating things to an unnecessary degree these days?, when you think about it, the thing that made the old Tri-ang and Hornby-Dublo locos successful was simplicity, I wonder how many of the super-detailed being made today will still be going strong in 60 years time,who knows?, anyway I hope you have more luck with the Hunslet, just going to like and sub, take care, all the best from, Scotland, Stephen.

Hi Julian, I have this model from Rapido with more or less the same problems, it just will not depend an incline smoothly. I sent mine back and they replaced the chassis as claimed in the accompanying letter. Unfortunately this didn’t really fix the issues completely. It still won’t depend an incline smoothly and still wobbles side to side, I don’t mind the slight wobble and now don’t run it up or down the incline. I decided to keep it because it looks great but it sits on my layout mostly as an ornament. I have a few quite old Hornby models which I converted to dcc which run perfectly. This for me throws into question whether the motors are really up to the job..? One thing for sure, I won’t be in a hurry to buy anything from Rapido in the near future. If ever again. But, and a big but, they are not the only maker that charge far too much money for what I term as junk. Another honest UA-camr does give honest opinion and reviews new models. Sams Trains. Always worth a view to get an idea about the models he has also spent good money on which turn out to be expensive junk. Love your Chanel and attention to detail Julian. Good luck with your loco. I’m hoping they will replace it for you with a perfectly good model.

Mine kept failing because of the fucked up esu lok sound 5 decoder

I use play-sand at about $4 per 50lb bag from our local Lowes.

Good to see an honest opinion, rather than trying to skirt round issues by concentrating on the good points. The key thing for an model railway locomotive or rolling stock is does it run on something other than the manufacturer's test track. Just seems to be too much emphasis by manufacturers these days on silly little added extras that only serve to bump up the price.

And that's why I cancelled my E1 orders

Wow! That thing's a lemon. I hope you get a refund.

It maybe that you voided the warranty by taking it apart etc. However they are required to provide a product that is of merchantable quality and fit for purpose which they have not. Your cheque should be in the post!

Do you have a swear jar in your house 😂 of so looks like you will have a good holiday from that video 😂

Hi Julian. I've always wanted to be fluent in French (LOL)! No, really. I fully understand your frustration. Rapido should just hold their hands up.

Haha. Believe me when I say that I''m truly sorry to hear of your issues with your 15XX and Rapido Trains UK. For someone who seems so collect and perhaps a tad reserved, it is a bit amusing to see you so enraged. Go Julian go and let off that steam!! Seriously though, thank for sharing and the warning to others. I was looking forward to getting a forthcoming model from Rapido Trains UK but after seeing yours and other people's issues, then I'm not prepared to even put down a pre-order deposit until I've actually seen a good review of the model I want. If that means I don't get one in the main run then so be it. I'll either wait for a re-run or wait for something to appear on the second hand market. £200+ for the rubbish that you've shared with us, is simply not on for the average modeller. I hope Rapido take note and change their ways, otherwise, I do not rate their future prosperity.

If it's not broke why fix it... those plunger pickups when kit building there's a choice plunger pickups which I don't like or the wiper pickups ... I don't understand why they move to this system when the wiper pickups work just fine. Romford plunger pickups weren't great either.

Hi Julian, I feel for you. I'm in total agreement with you in the urge to want this model. It is a fantastic looking locomotive. But you don't just want to look at it. You want to see it run. If you wanted a static model, I'm sure there would be someone who makes it for far less of your hard earned monies. Unfortunately, or perhaps now, fortunately, I don't run DCC, I have a lot of old locos, and I'm trying to build kit ones, which means that the chassis is a return path for the voltage, or is that current?, I'm useless at electrics!, plus an expense to convert them all. A great concept which I wish was thought about many, many years ago. Perhaps, as I've mentioned before, plunger pickups have the disadvantage of having to remove the wheels to adjust them correctly, a very sore point in your case. It really is a great shame about this, and it will make me think long and hard about getting one. In a few years time if Rapido doesn't fix this issue, there will be loads for peanuts on a well-known auction site, perhaps that will be the only positive outcome!! I just hope that someone from Rapido watches your exceptional channel, fixes the issues, and has the decency to send you a fully fitted and working locomotive with maybe some form of additional compensation. Good luck, Lawrence

Agh, mate that's a shame as, it's a beautiful looking thing - but you can't ignore issues like this... I hope you get something sorted mate 😢 Though, Rapido may refuse as you've taken it apart ...

Ouch ! I've bought two of them... As far as it goes, both runs correctly, shall I consider myself as lucky ? Anyway, such quality problems are unacceptable. Your unit should not had left the factory anytime... Well, if mines goes awry, at least, I know where the problem would be ! As you said, in model trains, good designs are not convoluted. Thanks for your video.

And my 65 year old Tri-ang locomotives just keep on rolling problem free. This is the problem with the hobby these days. Over-engineered yet poorly designed mechanisms. Yes the detail levels on current models are impressive, but I am more than happy to have less detail and simpler motors that are easy to service and much more reliable.

Nice honestly Julian, it’s a shame Rapido gave this project to a designer when the wheel was invented once before. Thank god they haven’t released an N gauge version that I’m aware of. What’s wrong with tried and tested wipers .? Keep up the good and very neat work

It's about time someone said what they actually thought of a model you pay so much money for these things you expect it to be perfect I'm with you you put that so well thank you

Well done. Triang had plunger pick-ups in the late 50s

Well said mate 👍

What sometimes looks amazing on a computer screen isn't always the same in the real world, especially if the designer never had to assemble it themselves. Sams Trains gave this five stars for the mechanism ...........but then he never had to dismantle it.

nothing wrong with having a rant, good for you for telling it as it is, but surely they would know you have to disect the whole thing to install the plungers and if they know that, then it cant affect your warranty, if it does then smash it into little bits with a big hammer with a note saying...now you fix the bloody thing

Every company occasionally produces a Turkey, in Rapido's case it's the 15XX. Every other model I've had from them is excellent so I'm not prepared to throw them under the bus for one turd. I'm not excusing it but I tend to judge the whole range over one black mark.

Your quite right to vent your frustration, You`ve been through the mill with this one, if they don`t refunde you I`d do a Credit card chargeback if you can, It`s not fit for purpose.

Blimey … it’s not like you to swear Julian … I’ve got one, but I’m scared to run it … I’ll give it a go … but … in the end I’ll keep it as a static model. I’m sorry to hear of your frustrations, it is a beautiful looking locomotive.

Dontcare how frustrated you are with the loco, I dont expect to hear such profanities on a model railway channel. Unsubscribed.

Nice rant, I completely feel your frustration Julian. Rapido should really have created a better design. Funny hearing you swear too hehe😊 Rgds from Holland, Joachim