Model Railways

I currently stock both Hornby and Bachmann trains in my railway models section, Accurascale coming soon. If there are any models you would like to see here, why not let us know.

Hornby Trains have a long and turbulent history, dating back to 1901 when founder Frank Hornby got a patent for his Meccano toys. The first clockwork train  was released in 1920. Electric trains soon followed with varying success and initially with low voltage. A reliable 20V AC system was developed in the 1930’s. Hornby and Meccano were bought by competitor Tri-Ang in 1964 who then disbanded in 1971. Dunbee-Combex-Marx bought Tri-Ang Hornby and the standard of modelling improved to appeal to adult collectors. In 1980, Hornby went into receivership, became Hornby Hobbies and in 1981 was saved by a management buyout. The company went public in 1986.

Bachmann Industries was founded in 1833 but didn’t go into the train market until 1966. Bachmann is now the largest volume seller of trains in the world. However back in 1981, when interests in trains were dwindling, the company was sold to their manufacturer Kader. Since 1992, all of the models have been built in China