Awestruck (N part 66)…

I nonchalantly opened the box, scoffing at those who film box opening videos and first looks - I’ve opened so many models over the years I’ve become somewhat immune to their impact. Half way through I was struck by this things weight…

I slowed and as the model emerged I was completely overwhelmed with a feeling of childlike excitement. Here is a truly remarkable model - real presence and mass, not just its physical weight but the way it sits on the track - yet absolute fidelity, look at those etched grills and the fine handrails - the tooling of the trucks and the wonderful decoration…

I was in awe - here is an era defining model.

How would she run, I could barely contain my excitement… opening up the DC controller almost silent smooth operation, not overly bright headlights, the way she ran emphasising the mass and quality of the product, tracking the rails as if real. No discernible truck movement fore and aft as you change direction. No discernible noise really. Pure and simple and wonderful.

I’m late to the party; the Revolution 59 has been available for months and this example was sent to me by a friend who had bought it and had a similar experience. 

I say ‘era defining’ - Farish raised the game some time ago but whilst I love and continue to love their models, which capture with real competence the colours and character of the prototypes - this has opened my eyes to what is possible in N. Not just what a manufacturer can make ready to run, but what a modeller can achieve. This finish and detail is something for me to aspire to match in my own work.

I was so excited I even ran off to tell my partner, to show her a photo and video of it running… she looked at me a kindly and a little bemused… I shared it with Chris in Canada and he instantly could see where I was coming from…

“This is gorgeous. Yes, the grills but look at the depth of detail on those trucks. There’s so much surface texture here that it feels like it has mass”.

In the act of box opening we shouldn’t be filming the model, we should film ourselves. It is our reaction that matters most, and in this instance, both the quality and the potential have surprised and delighted me. 

I have a Revolution EWS 66 on order and I can hardly wait. Admittedly opening it is not going to be quite as exciting as this ‘first’ experience but the anticipation will fuel a lot of day dreaming in the meantime. Until next time, more soon…

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