My Thoughts on the Recent Bachmann Rebecca Reveal - I'm Actually Impressed?
Just recently, Bachmann Trains revealed their Rebecca model for the HO scale Thomas & Friends line. This model has caused a lot of discussion among many fans online back and forth ever since it was announced at NMRA back in 2022. One of the biggest things many fans and/or modelers were upset about was how Rebecca was chosen to receive a model over other characters which had more of a demand at the time.
I myself have also been very skeptical about this model ever since it's announcement, and even more so after I saw that it had an RRP of $299. As I'm well aware what that kind of money will buy you these days in the model railroading hobby, a price like that seemed like quite a lot for such a basic model. Still, we have seen some new details and improvements with Rebecca compared to other characters that we've gotten over the years. If I had to guess, I feel like Bachmann made an effort to try and get the model to reflect that $299 RRP.
While I am impressed with the overall look of Rebecca's model, my biggest complaint has to be the front buffer beam. I don't know why this simple detail was done so poorly, as it sits right at the front of the model and sticks out like a sore thumb. Had this been revised and made to look more accurate, I personally feel this model would be almost perfect. Still, I am grateful that the face was at least done to a high standard, as that alone can make or break a model of any character.
My honest opinion on Rebecca is that while I am impressed with the model and the amount of detail it has to offer, there's no getting around the fact that the RRP is just ridiculous, especially considering you can buy a OO scale Merchant Navy for $273, which includes a better mechanism and DCC. Furthermore, there's many other ready to run HO scale models on the market right now that also have more to offer for less. At the end of the day, Rebecca's model doesn't match up to the cost, which I think could have an effect on modelers who would potentially buy this character.
I'm curious to hear others thoughts on Rebecca's recent reveal and what you think of the model. Is this something that you plan to add to your HO scale railroad, or will you be leaving this one on the shelf? I've certainly made it known how I feel about the model, and I'd be very much interested to talk more down in the comments. I'm sure this topic is far from over.
In case anyone may have missed it and wants to see Rebecca's official reveal, I will leave a link to Trainworld's Thomas Tuesday stream below.
Thomas Tuesday Stream: https://www.youtube.com/live/UwQZZ-pN...
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