Metromodels - Latest news

NEXT RELEASE - 1959 TUBE STOCK - PICCADILLY LINE & NORTHERN LINE (January 2012)

The next releases (due first quarter 2012) will 1959 stock trains in the classic LT unpainted aluminium livery.
Two four car sets are planned...

The first production train delivered to the Piccadilly Line in December 1959
Piccadilly Line 'Cockfosters' / 'Hounslow' destinations - car numbers 1012-2012-9013-1013

The first train cascaded from the Piccadilly Line to the Northern Line during December 1975
Northern Line - 'Edgware' / 'Morden' destinations - car numbers 1180-2180-9181-1181

For further details, & to be advised when these become available, click here

Whilst these are now in production, I regret that only very few of these superb models are (finally) being produced.
As with all my previous etched brass trains, these are being hand built in Sri Lanka. However, earlier this year, the etching facility we used was subject to serious flood damage. No replacement parts are available for the etching machine which is now obsolete & uneconomical for the company to replace.
It is with great regret that for the time being I have to withdraw this model from the range as we have been unable to source an alternative etching facility. In addition, the costs associated with producing this model have rocketed to the extent that a 3 car set will retail for in excess of £700 to make it profitable. I will have a few sets available for sale within the next few months, these were produced prior to the loss of the machine. If the price is not a deterrent then do please contact me to discuss!

This has been my most complicated & demanding project undertaken to date. Whilst the end result has been well worth waiting for, it is regrettable, that for the time being, this model will not be available on a permanent basis

NEXT EFE RELEASE - ISLE OF WIGHT DINOSAUR LIVERY 1938 STOCK (14th March 2011)

Due for release in July 2011 a 2 car set of the popular Dinosaur liveried 1938 stock.
Driving carriage 'A' end & driving carriage 'D' end
Reserve or order your set now

As confirmed in our July 2010 update below, the first batch of production versions of this superb model have been completed. The images below show some of the completed cars. All the cars have now been painted in the all over red London Transport livery.

We cannot release the models for sale just yet as we are waiting for our supplier to make up the various car decals. These include the authentic metallic gold decals for the car numbers & the 'London Transport' signage on the car side, the car destination blinds & the 'A' & 'D' end plates.

Once these are ready, they will be fitted to all the completed cars. These will then be finished in a clear protective lacquer & will be shipped over from Sri Lanka. This is now likely to be in early 2011.

Again, our apologies for the delay, we are going to get this model just right - this all takes time as we well know but the wait will be well worth it!

‘Abbey Road’, our ‘00’ scale London Underground model railway features in the September issue.
The article will include advice on building a London Underground model railway layout together with hints & tips as to how to re-create the Underground in model form!

At long last the first batch of production versions of this superb model have been completed.
Images will be posted here shortly. They are all hand built and are about to be spray primered & finish painted.

The first batch will be finished in the all over red London Transport livery complete with gold car numbering & destination decals.

To all of those waiting for news of the Standard Stock models.
This project has cost me much more & has taken much much longer than I ever anticipated.
But for the fact that it is a superb bespoke model & that I have been very encouraged by the level of interest in it, I would have abandoned the project. I can assure you that there are less stressful & much easier projects in life compared to this one!

The latest position is that we are now starting production. The first 12 sheets of etch (which will produce just 3 x 3 car sets) are being produced by our etching manufacturer this month. These sheets then have to be checked, the parts cut out, pressed & worked before the models can then be built & finished. I expect this process to take several months. Being a highly labour intensive hand built model the models are initially going to appear on a very limited basis & as a result will be offered first to wait listed customers first.

Due for release in November 2009 - a 2 car set of the ex LUL BR Network South East liveried 1938 stock.
EFE cat. no. 99934. Driving carriage 'A' end no. 80006 with 'Ryde Pier Head' destination, Driving carriage 'D' end no. 80106 with 'Shanklin' destination
Buy now or pay a 10% deposit for guaranteed November delivery.

We are pleased to confirm that this long awaited item is now available from our online shop
It is an easy to fit upgrade that allows complete replacement of the existing EFE poor quality bogies & non pin-point wheels.
It will make your EFE train run superbly just like other proprietory model rail trains by Hornby & Bachmann, etc.

The pack consists of a replacement Metromodels plastic injection moulded bogie
+ two quality pin point wheels + a full set of illustrated instructions.

We can also upgrade your existing EFE bogies.
Unclip them from your cars, send them to us & let us to do the work for you.
Contact us with your requirements for a no obligation quote.

NEXT EFE RELEASE - ISLE OF WIGHT NSE 1938 STOCK (17th April - updated 19th July 2009)

The next release will be a 2 car set of the ex LUL BR Network South East liveried 1938 stock.
EFE cat. no. 99934. Driving carriage 'A' end no. 80006, Driving carriage 'D' end no. 80106
These will be released late autumn. The last IOW sets sold out very quickly, register below now to ensure you do not miss out in purchasing one of hese popular models.
Register your interest here, we will advise you when the IOW 1938 sets are released at no obligation.

In order to concentrate on other projects including production of the 1927 Standard Stock, we have ceased production of both the Central Line & Waterloo & City 1992 stock & the Northern Line 1995 stock models. Once existing stocks are sold then it is unlikely that these models will be produced again. These models are now being sold as 4 car sets. Existing customers wishing to purchase individual cars to make up their set should contact us for further information.

We have limited stocks of the superb Bachmann
Underground Ernie range of working models. These will operate on normal '00' or 'HO' track using the standard 12v DC power supply.
We stock the now hard to find 'Ernie 1' Inspection Vehicle (UE206) & various other models such as 'Jubilee, 'Circle' & 'Hammersmith & City'.

UE206 - Underground Ernie Inspection Trolley

UE206 shown part dismantled - motor bogie & LED headlamp switch assembly

UE206 - Underground Ernie Inspection Trolley
shown part dismantled 24.5 wheel-base motor bogie & LED headlamp switch assembly

These models are ideal for children over 3 years old or for adults who wish to utilise the superb 24.5mm wheelbase motor bogie for other projects! Graham Hubbard (Bachmann MD) recently stated, 'Ernie 1 provides a really cost effective item of motive power for 016.5 narrow gauge modellers....'
See our online shop for more details & to purchase.

A superb scale card kit of the surface station building & a number of other newly released card kits will be available via our online shop within the next 2 weeks. For further images see the 'How to go about modelling the Underground section'

Abbey Road & Metromodels are featured in DVD Xtra no. 5 the latest release in the Peco 'Xtra' series of model railway DVDs.

Includes details & tips on how to go about modelling the London Underground system, covering track-work, rolling stock, back-scenes, line-side features, buildings & much more besides.

On sale at £10 from selected Peco stockists, the Peco stand at this weekends Warley National Model Railway Exhibition or available online from Peco at http://www.peco-uk.com/

Abbey Road is featured in a superb 8 page illustrated article on pages 68-75 of the 2009 BRM Annual now on sale at larger WH Smith stores in the UK.

We no longer stock the above items but they are available from our good friends at East Kent Model Shop.
89 High Street, Whitstable, Kent
Contact Ian or Noel on 01277 770777 / fax 01277 272787.

EFE have just released details of their next London Underground tube train set. This will be a twin set (E99932) consisting of two Driving motor cars. Driving car 'A' cat. no. 80005 & 'D' end no. 80105 with destinations 'Ryde Pier Head' at one end & 'Shanklin' at the other. Autumn release.
Please contact us to register your interest and we will advise you when it is available at no obligation.

'ABBEY ROAD' TO FEATURE IN THE CHRISTMAS 2008 'RAILWAY MODELLER' MAGAZINE CHRISTMAS DVD (14th August 2008)

We recently completed a days video shoot of the layout with professional videographer Brian Gardener of Renvision. Brian has produced the superb DVDs that have been included with past Christmas editions of Peco's 'Railway Modeller' magazine. The results are superb, watch out for the DVD closer to Christmas!

We recently enjoyed a photo shoot undertaken by professional photographer Ray Lightfoot from British Railway Modelling magazine.

Our model railway layout 'Abbey Road' will be featured in the magazine later this year. Once details of the publication date are know they will be posted here.

A train of Metromodels 1995 tube stock leaves the tunnel mouth
© Ray Lightfoot/BRM

STANDARD TUBE STOCK LATEST NEWS (6th February 2008)

We are getting close now. We are pleased to confirm that the 4th (& hopefully the last) std stock prototype is about to be etched. This will be made from 0.35mm thick brass sheet instead of the 0.45mm sheet that the previous prototypes were manufactured from. We found this brass sheet too heavy + we lost some of the finer etched body detail in the etching process.

The sheets should be ready in about 2 wks time. My team will then cut out, press & solder/assemble the parts to make up a 3 car set.

Once completed, they will fully inspect it and check it out for technical assembly issues. The 3 cars will then be sent to me with their comments for final inspection. Subject to it all being OK, I will give the OK for production and we will start producing them by the late spring/early summer. I repeat that I hope that this will be the final prototype! It is frustrating having to do so many prototypes (4 of them so far!!) but I want to get the model right.

If you have not already registered your interest in this superb model. Then do so now so you do not have to wait too long for your models one they are released.

Due to popular demand, we are pleased to announce the launch of our Japanese made HO/00 scale motor bogie department. We are now able to supply both the range of Tenshodo 'SPUD' (self propelled under car drive) motor bogies & also the superb 26mm wheelbase Endo traction motor bogie. This is not available elsewhere within the UK! Go to our 'product range' section for full details.

We are pleased to announce the launch of our new '00' scale pre-packed accessories range. These include both London Underground & Network Rail/British Rail scenic detailing items.

(figures not included - these are available separately from our accessories range)

The third set of prototype cars has now arrived.
We have decided to make the bogies in etched brass to provide greater detail & we are now making some minor alterations to the bogie design/detail and preparing a body press.

Our latest prototypes of the Standard Stock Driving Motor, Trailer & Control Trailer cars in white primer paint finish
(production models will be fully painted, glazed & fitted with transfers)

As indicated below, we aim to have this 3 car set released in time for Christmas 2007

We have just received the first samples of our new & updated section switch cabinets + the new seating/roundel platform furniture. Each is hand built in etched brass These are highly detailed scale models of these unique classic period style London Underground features. They will be sold as finished painted items complete with the relevant signage such as 'danger 630 volts DC'. Station name decals of your choice will be available to enable you to fit your own station name to the seating/roundel units.

'Hammersmith' style seating roundel unit (approx. height 25mm, width 25mm, depth 13mm)

platform_seat_wooden_round.jpg (35655 bytes)

'White City' style seating roundel unit (approx. height 25mm, width 28mm, depth 12mm)

modern_plastic_sectioncabinet.jpg (221377 bytes)

Current day, plastic section switch cabinet (approx. height 21mm, width 6mm, depth 5mm)

wooden_sectioncabinet.jpg (195265 bytes)

Classic older style wooden section switch cabinet (approx. height 21mm, width 6mm, depth 5mm)

Our third set of prototype cars (1 each of DM, Trailer & Control Trailer cars) are close to being completed. We have now to set up the body & car end press tool which will take a few months more. I expect to be able to release the models by the year end.

As regards livery, we will eventually do all the various liveries that the stock ran in during it's long life on both LU & then on the IOW with BR & as NSE.

Price wise, details are not yet finalised as additional tooling is yet to be made as mentioned above. The models will be RTR initially will be sold as 3 car limited edition boxed sets (of the DM, Trailer & Control Trailer cars) complete with a limited edition certificate.

Our third & final prototype cars (1 each of DM, Trailer & Control Trailer cars) will be with us during May 2007. We hope that these will be the last prototypes to be produced and that full production will commence this summer. We have changed the bogie design and will now be making these as etched brass units to allow us to add even greater detail!

We have recently completed the second prototype of each of the 3 cars - Driving Motor, Trailer & Control Trailer. We are working on technical & cosmetic modifications to these and plan to have a 3rd prototype produced before Christmas. The plastic bogie tooling is also being modified.
Full production is scheduled from 2nd quarter 2007

After many months of design & tooling work, the first samples of these detailed plastic bogies have arrived for testing & approval.

Two bogies are being produced, the large traction motor bogie & the smaller trailing bogie. The plastic side-frames are a separate part which is fitted to the main bogie. We will not be using the plastic shoe beam shown in the left hand image. We plan to make this in etched brass to capture the fine detail of this part. This will also then be fitted to the powered bogies.

We are currently making some changes to the DM car drawings and hope to produce a second prototype DM car early in 2007.

We have just received the first sample of the revised version of this stock.

This 4 car train is fitted with our standard chassis and it looks superb! We have some minor issues to correct in respect of the fitting of the cab window glazing inserts. Once this is sorted out, the models will be available once again via our online store. This should be by early 2007.
Please contact us if you would like to be added to our waiting list for this model at no obligation.

The latest release from EFE is now in stock!

1962 Stock Central Line train in aluminium livery

'London Underground' car side logo.
4 carriage boxed set in a special presentation sleeve.
DM car destination 'Epping' operating the Epping - Ongar shuttle service.

Following numerous requests, we are pleased to devote a new online shop section to London Underground & London Transport related books. The range will increase over time. We aim to offer books that are of use to model railway & bus modellers containing a wealth of detail & images relating to the London transport scene.

The first of the long awaited Street Level '00' scale building kits, & platform tiling sheets, are now listed & available via our online shop. In addition, a further range of card London Underground card train kits will be listed & available online from the end of April.

These are now in stock. We are finalising the listings and online shop data for inclusion on the website. We aim to have the kits available online from the middle of April. Those of you who have e-mailed us for details will be advised when the web updates have been made. Thank you for your patience!

Thanks to all of you for the many e-mails and enquiries regarding when our new range of building kits will be available. The supply of these has been delayed. We are currently listing the range and will put the details on the website as soon as we have the listing completed. If you want to be advised (at no obligation) when they are available, then please e-mail us.
sales@metromodels.net

This is a pre-production, prototype model to provide an indication of the exceptional level of detail and the superb finish quality achieved. We are using this prototype to make adjustments to the drawings to enable us to rectify incorrect features (and accuracy compared to the original) and to also ensure that the component parts, (including the prototype plastic bogies - which are shortly to be delivered), fit together correctly!

The drawings will now be amended and a further test car produced prior to us commencing production.

Our prototype Driving Motor car body & chassis have now been fully assembled and are on their way to us.

Look back here during week ending 11th February 2006, when we will be posting a selection of images of this superb new model. Once all the required modifications have been made, then we will announce a release date for the production version.

Orders from customers who have placed advance orders will be met first.

If you have not already contacted us to reserve your model, then please do so at no obligation!

The first etched brass sample of the Driving Motor car has been produced. This will shortly be assembled and finish painted and will be used for testing & modification purposes prior to us commencing full production.
We hope to be able to publish images of this prototype car here prior to the end of this month.

Now available via our online shop at just £19.95 each ....
Superb, professionally made DVDs featuring drivers eye views of the Piccadilly Line, Central Line, East London Line, District Line, Northern Line, Jubilee Line & Metropolitan Line.

Our tube train models & our London Underground model railway layout 'Abbey Road' were featured in an episode of ITV's award winning TV series 'The Tube'. Some 'stills' from the programme are below.

More new items for 2006! We may soon be stocking selected titles from the range of Capital Transport London Underground rolling stock books. We are also investigating stocking the excellent range of Video 125 London Underground 'Drivers Eye View' DVD's.

We will shortly be stocking a superb range of cardboard self assembly London Underground related model kits. The range includes London Underground station buildings, signal cabins, tube train cars, platform canopies, platform buildings, prototypical wall tiling, etc.

A selection of assembled & fully completed Streetlevel kits - Elstree South station building, London tram & granite setts with tram track

The kits will be listed and available via our online shop by the end of January 2006.

We will be stocking the now discontinued range of Corgi of 'Feltham' trams. As a result of a number of requests, these will be sold fully motorised and ready to run on your 00 or HO scale track.

London Transport - route 21 to Holborn
London Metropolitan Tramways -
London United Tramways -
Leeds City -
Sunderland Corporation -

The trams will be listed and available via our online shop from the end of January 2006.

We have been busy making some final alterations to the superb drawings for this model. As a result, production of the first assembled etched sample train has been delayed until first quarter 2006. The tooling that will enable us to commence production of the injection moulded plastic bogies is almost completed. Samples of the fully detailed plastic bogies will also be available early in 2006 and details will be posted here.

If you would like to receive further details of when this exciting new model will be available to order, then contact us at no obligation whatsoever.

Freestanding, double sided & suitable for use on platforms. These are hand assembled and finish painted etched brass. Only £2.99 a pair - now in stock!

This superb new EFE DMS bus is due to be released in February 2006. This is the first release of a 1:24th scale bus by EFE built to the same scale as the excellent Sunstar Routemaster buses. It features working destination blinds, opening engine door, fully detailed inside & out.
To reserve yours, and be one of the first to own this great model, contact us now.

We will be appearing on television in the third series of the 3 times RTS award winning series 'The Tube' to be screened on London ITV and the Sky Travel channel during December 2005 and into 2006.

We can be seen in the episode entitled 'The Train Set' which is due to be screened on Thursday 29th December 2005 at 7.30pm.

Driving Motor car - 1926/7 Standard Stock (image courtesy Brian Hardy collection)

Our next release, a ready to run finished boxed model of this classic London Underground stock. We are currently working on 3 different car types and plan to have these ready for release later this year.

The model will be feature an etched brass body, roof and chassis with injection moulded plastic bogies. The full detail of the unique clerestory roof detail of this classic stock will also be captured in etched brass . As with our existing range, the bogies will be fitted with 'Romford' fine scale wheels. Cars will be available individually as complete, ready to run, hand finished models.

If you would like to be advised, at no obligation, when these models become available, please let us know.

Now in stock - the latest version of the EFE 1938 tube stock models...the 1938 Piccadilly Line Tube Stock in red livery with grey roof and cream window surrounds fitted with 'Uxbridge' destinations.