9th Edition - They’re here
The non-sound equipped 620/720s arrived in Port Botany on Tuesday, 20th December and we expect them to clear customs on Wednesday, 28th December. They will be available for distribution shortly thereafter. We did receive some units by air a week earlier and these were used to test our distribution system and as a consequence a small number of the 620/720s turned up under Christmas trees or in Christmas stockings around the country. (Thanks Santa for helping out but I am not sure that we will be able to use you the rest of the year. Something to do with public liability insurance as well as IR reform and no AWA or something like that.
The factory has advised that they expect the sound equipped units to be dispatched in three weeks.
Distribution: We will commence distribution as soon as we are able to take delivery of the models. Those who wish to pick their models up should contact us sometime after 30th December. Mailing out of the models is expected to take two to three weeks and will be done in alphabetical order commencing with those who have informed us of their preferred colour scheme and have paid the standard $10- for Receipted Delivery and Insurance to anywhere in Australia. Receipted Delivery means that in most areas the models will have to be picked up and signed for at the local post office.
IF YOU HAVE NOT TOLD US WHAT COLOUR SCHEME YOU WANT OR HAVE NOT ARRANGED POSTAGE, YOU WILL HAVE TO GO TO THE END OF THE QUEUE.
The 50% of orders where no colour scheme has been indicated or where postage has not been arranged will be dealt with last so if you are in this category please contact us so that we can get your model away to you. Any balances owing will need to be settled before models can be forwarded.
There will also be un-numbered sets available in each colour scheme and all schemes, both with and without sound, are available with weathering. Although it will still be a few more weeks before the sound equipped units arrive I would like to thank everyone at this stage for their patience in this our first project. Delivery may be approximately six months later than was originally anticipated but I will leave it for everyone to judge for themselves whether the wait was worth it.
This Edition
This edition’s main purpose was to announce the arrival of 620/720s. We have just returned from China and have a lot of news on both our current and future projects, we may even throw in the odd travel story like our visit to the National Railway Museum in Beijing, but most of it will have to wait until later issues. However, a brief update on our current projects follows:
THE AD60: We brought back with us from China two more engineering samples of the AD60 which incorporate the new chassis which allows for the fitting of two speakers as asked for by QSI. As was expected the factory has advised that this redesign will delay the project three weeks and production will therefore be interrupted by Chinese New Year. The factory has not told us this yet but I do not think that we will see the AD60 before April 2006.
THE 38 Class: The second set of amended design drawings for the 38 has been received, checked and returned to the factory for tooling to commence. In the next couple of editions we will be developing and sharing our thoughts about numbers and colour schemes.
THE VR R Class: The first set of design drawings for the R class has been received and is being checked at the time this edition is being prepared. The initial comment of those charged with this checking process on first sight of the drawings was “magnificent”. Apart from what seems to be the usual problems with couplers which will have to be sorted out, the drawings indicate that this will truly be a fine model of the prototype. Next issue will contain some examples of the drawings including 3D images. In the next couple of editions we will get some discussions going on numbers, paint schemes and other variations. We also have some ideas about name boards and the like that we will canvas in order to generate some feedback.
THE D Wagon: No further developments at this stage.
We here at Eureka Models will go to almost any length to ensure our models are accurate representations of the prototype so recently when the factory asked for more details on out-of-the-way areas of a 38 under-frame and we could not locate any relevant photos in our files there was only one thing to do. The above photo is one of several hundred that produced enough detail photos to satisfy even the most fastidious rivet counter.
Regular readers of this newsletter will know that one of the on-going debates we have been having with the factory has been over the fitting of tyres to the driving wheels of our steam engines and the material from which those tyres are to be made. Well, the accompanying photograph recently turned up in our emails and I have a terrible feeling that some-one at the factory may have misread the scale on the drawings. I hope that this won’t unduly delay the project.
Feedback
We are getting plenty of feedback and comments mostly by email which we appreciate very much. I try to answer all emails as quickly as possible but inevitable some replies are delayed. My apologies for this but there are only so many hours in each day so hang on and you will get an answer.
Seasons Greetings
The staff here at Eureka Models (all one and a half of us) would like to pass on to all our friends, supporters and fellow modellers the compliments of the season and our best wishes for a Merry Christmas and safe and prosperous 2006.
Email Addresses
If you receive a paper copy of this issue but would prefer to receive an email copy or just read it on the web site please email Ron at: eureka.m@bigpond.net.au so that we can put you on our email notification system. You'll get the latest Eureka Times faster and we can use the money saved on printing and paper to produce more models!
Postage and delivery
We have finalized postage and delivery arrangements with Australia Post which will allow us to offer postage, receipted delivery and insurance anywhere in Australia for a flat $10- Pick-up facilities will be available.