Review: Accurascale Class 66 DCC Sound incl. 66507 Freightliner Powerhaul and 66167 DB Liveries
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 ก.ค. 2024
- While a fine model in terms of detail, Hattons original Class 66 was anything but a ready to run model and was one of my most disappointing experiences out of box I've had on this channel. This prompted hundreds of customer returns and a whole subculture of DIY activity to attempt to restore these models to a level of usability. I had still seen enough in the model to be very interested when Accurascale announced they had taken over the design, and were going to engage in a re-run. Was this wishful thinking on my part or were Accurascale able to turn this model into what it should have been first time out. It's time to take a closer look.
00:00 - Introduction
01:00 - Unboxing
09:18 - Close-up Views
13:36 - Running Session
15:58 - Summary
17:40 - Scoring
22:30 - Recommendation
Link to full running session: • Accurascale Class 66 6...
Link to my original Hattons Class 66 review: • The Hattons Class 66, ... - บันเทิง
Fully agree with your review.
I have 6 of them with sound and yes they run beautifully out of the box and the livery application across each one is deep & expertly applied and the detail is something else.
Only downsides so far is the sound vibration thru the body but mainly on the plastic exhaust on the removal roof panel as I think it is slightly loose causing the buzzing sound, the other one is the cab end handrails haven't been glued on properly by the factory which is evident on all 6 loco's of mine and on nearly every Class 66 I've seen on social media thus that needs to be nipped in the bud by Accurascale.
Refine it a bit more in regards to cab ends handrail fitment and get rid of the sound vibration/buzzing thru the roof panel then Accurascale will have a license to print money on these models and I will continually buy them as they get released.
9.5/10 for me.
Thanks for sharing. I'm definitely seeing greater consistency in the feedback which is a good sign. With some relatively minor tweaks as you say these are as close to perfection as you'll find in 00 gauge.
Hi Eugene
I have the Prostate Uk livery and straight out of the box it ran perfectly. Even on my less than perfect track there were no issues . I had the sound version and I am very impressed with the quality .
Also the body is very easy to take off to fit crew and the new air dam .
I didn’t buy a Hattons version due to the issues and glad Accurascale rectified those .
Cheers Kev
Thanks for sharing Kev and I'm glad you've had a positive experience similar to my own. It's great to see this model achieve it's potential.
Thanks for this review. Your reviews are one of the best on TH-cam. I was put off the Hattons model by all the negative points but loved the detailing. This Accurascale model does look to have finally made this to be a 5 star model with performance to match. Let's hope that there will be no motor issues.
Thanks for that. It's so far so good.
Superb models. Your review makes them very tempting
Then you know what to do, buy one! You know you want one, wont be disappointed.
Thanks for that. Good looking models that run well and are drama free. Tempting for sure.
Nice model from Accurascale and the quality is better than the Hattons model was. So well done to them for improving on the tooling they bought from Hattons for the Class 66. I am very much looking forward to getting some of the Accurascale Class 60 models in 2025 as well after cancelling my pre-order of the Cavalex Models examples. I am so glad that Accurascale are doing a Class 60 as I was let down by the Class 56 by Cavalex Models back in January and I even got muted on their section on RMWeb because I called out the quality issues because my model had a jammed gear tower. I won't buy anymore of their models if that is how I am going to be treated on RMWeb and I have a right to call out a bad model and I can handle the backlash too. The silver lining for me is that I have learned my lessons as I now do O Gauge and I have a couple of Class 60's and they are fantastic models. I have a micro O Gauge layout that is Hermes Road that I started this month when I became 44 earlier in the month. As for OO Gauge, Accurascale has always respected me as their customer and I will always support them as a loyal customer. 2025 is going to be another great year for model trains and will likely be when I make a new OO Gauge modern era layout too, so I will like bag a couple of these Class 66's as well once I have relocated to the US.
Would love to see a class 56 Cavelex review from you one day Eugene! Havent as yet seen a bad thing to say about them! Like to see what you think.
The Cav 56s do have their odd downside. Very easily fixed, but out of the box I've had issues. Both of mine had problems with the bogie geartowers where the retaining clip was loose causing loss of drive to the entire bogie. One also had the bogie sideframes not seated correctly, a design feature to make converting to P4 easy. This caused the axles in that bogie to twist, which alongside the unclipped bogie mount meant the model arrived totally dead in the water. One quick chat with Cav and 5 minutes stripping the model down and tightening everything up and it was perfect, but out of the box on arrival it was dead. Even so, I would argue the Cav 56 is the second best model on the market, only just behind the SLW class 25...that thing is a work of art.
@@Simon-DavisAh have 🎉heard that they are the bees knees Simon, ok fair enough, yes i did hear something about the bogies. Luckily for me not hsd ant issues wth my Colas 55049, time will tell. Never had a problem with my two Colas Hornby 56's and have run them since new in 2015 Think Hornby products were better in those days!
For me the Cavalex Class 56 is model of the year, zero issues and the sound out of the box is something else.
@@sapphirejunction8993Yes agreed Steve, very impressed, have preordered 56105 from Rails, I'm not missing out again!
@@sapphirejunction8993 The sound on the 56 is easily the best out there. Nothing has yet come close. Model of the year? Very probably, I agree. I do think the SLW class 25 is a better model, but the Cav class 56 wins by being a better buying experience and having better instructions provided.
Another great review and another hit by A/Scale; makes sense for A/Scale to do some re-runs not only this 66 but other classes / locos.
Great review of an outstanding model 👏 😊
Many thanks!
A great review of an outstanding model, I have 13 of the Hattons 66's. Well done Accurascale for rectifying the axle box, underbody detail and lighting issues. Got 1 of these but as it's now sold out I'll wait patiently for run 2
Thanks for that - I suspect you won't have too long to wait.
Very nice indeed
I had vibration issues on two of the new 66s. This was not the DCC access lid, as the vibration continued with that taken off. I found it was more the fixing of the speaker to the PCB. This was fixed by removing the clips and using two pieces of black tack to hold the speaker down gently (not hard pressed down). The sound is also improved greatly by increasing the bass CV 196 and treble CV 197 settings (which allows slightly lower volume).
Blue tack is far better for vibrations and securing the speaker in properly as black tack can get messy
Exactly what I did, have sound vibration issues on 4 66's I purchased and removed the plastic speaker clips and used black tack instead to hold down the speaker but slightly raised off the PCB and on 1 66 it has improved the sound, haven't done the other 3 yet.
I also added black tack to the end of the decoder chip between the PCB and the decoder and this has also removed some vibration.
I use my Cavalex Class 56's as a sound benchmark but the Accurascale 66's fall short of that when it comes to sound.
Another variation of the vibration theme. Thanks for sharing. I'll check out those CV settings.
I like your choice of the Green Freightliner and the red Deutsch Bahn. These would be the two I would have bought, if I was prepared to part with the cash! Thanks for uploading.
Excellent taste in models!
Fully agree excellent model
Thanks for that.
Your hard work doesn't go unnoticed in compiling these reviews Eugene and we thank you. If you do decide to part ex what would it be, Hattons or Bachmann 66's?
Thanks for that. I returned my original Hattons 66 as I didn't fancy a project at the time. My Bachmann Freightliner will probably be heading for the door. It has given very good problem free service but is second tier to the Accurascale.
👍👍@@EuviRail
I have got three of them. I think they are the best loco on the market at the moment. They sound fab. Put a heavy train on them and use F7 (Lock Hold ) and rev them up taking F7 on and off to give it a slow start with all the revs and no model sounds as good as them. I have had no problems with any of them and I would score them 10/10
that's the way to drive them, love that 'drive lock / hold function
Hi Eugene, good review I agree with your assessment of the Accurascale 66s love my four wish I could have bought more haven’t had the problem with vibration of the roof on mine compared to the Hattons one it’s chalk and cheese cheers Al
Thanks Al
Great review as always, one thing to note the green freightliner is not the powerhaul version of the livery but the original freightliner green yellow livery. the Powerhaul version has a grey sweeping line under each cab.
Thanks for that.
I totally agree with all your individual ratings Eugene, outstanding? Absolutely! Your reviews are a joy to view, As always fair and honest. I haven't encountered any vibrations as yet with 66415 Tangoed Freightliner and the EWS 66001 exclusive, fingers crossed. As for the overall sound very happy, it sounds right, i know as i see and hear them almost every day, i found the Hattons sound too bass for my liking. Admit im a rivet counter when it comes to liveries and logos as I'm not happy with 66415's! The overall orange is far too pale, and the irony is the excellence box art is exactly the right tone that it should be. Accurascale didnt research it properly as they went off Hattons 66623 Tango livery which was also too pale. As always enjoyed and i feel a couple more should be ordered, only dont tell the wife!
Thanks for sharing. I suspected there may be some issues with specific liveries and it looks like they needed to doublecheck on the colour. Some weathering perhaps? My lips are sealed.
Haha cheers Eugene hmm might give it a go.
Funny you should say that Nick about 66415.
I've been pondering whether the orange livery colour is too light and the more I look at it I think you are correct,. it is the same pale orange as the Hattons 66623.
@@sapphirejunction8993Exactly Steve, the laugh is the correct colouring is for all to see, on the box! Hattons and Hornby weren't to blame for 66623 that was the second proposed loco in same lighter orange as 66413 but Freightliner then decide to brighten the orange by which time H and H had made a start on the production, so none or little research was done, they Accurascale just went off the lighter tone of Hattons 66623. Funnily enough soon after, Bachmann popped up with 66418 exactly the right livery. Just Google 66415 and you will see a vast difference!
@@RedShedNick Yes was just looking at 66415 on Flickr and yes the Accurascale orange is too light, lightning strikes twice with this model from Hattons to Accurascale lol.
Bought the same sound fitted green "Fred" and so far it's very good. I never had the Hattons version so have nothing to compare it to. Also thought the sound volume was quite low and don't know why they fit couplings to both ends at the factory as I would have thought most would only want to pull. Bought both driver packs so will fit one of those and change the buffer beam.
I also have a Bachmann Red DB 66 fitted with a Hornby TTS (pcb is 21 pin) and uprated speaker and stay alive, but there is no comparison - lights are much brighter, no markers, cannot control rear lights, both cabs on together and bogie mounted NEM pockets, so no rear air deflector available. Maybe it needs a rewire then fit a 21 pin TXS decoder.
Superb models and a great review Eugene, thank you. Let's just hope that those failing motors of their previous classes that caused so much hassle and anxiety are now a thing of the past. Hopefully these will prove to run robustly for many years to come and rescue Accurascale from its poor motor reliability reputation. Regards Julian
Reputation? A handful of motors which accurascale introduced a lifetime warranty to reassure from and no reports since does not a ‘reputation’ mean.
@@mccarronfamily You're either in denial and deluding yourself, misinformed to the nth degree or totally disingenuous. Did you vote for Brexit by any chance?
@@theeventhorizon-valebridge9512Au contraire dear boy. I’m actually entirely completely informed which is why i can state with total accuracy.
Thanks Julian. During my testing I didn't see the current variations I saw on some previous models which were negative indicators. Current draw tracked speed consistently (no spiking, no erratic changes) on both models and they got some intensive treatment over a relatively short time period. For these two models at least I can say I didn't see anything that would concern me.
@mccarronfamily being one of the owners of Accurascale - Steve McCarron (just to give clarity to those who didn't know). There are a fair few people who have had motor issues and shared them (and a fair few that were put on RMWeb and removed at Accurascale's request by their friendly moderator). They will blame anyone and everyone else to deny the issues - it's clear the lifetime warranty wasn't just a step introduced to be nice, but something they introduced when the reports became widespread and could no longer be hidden. The reputation exists whether they accept it or not!
Great video. They spend so much on detail I just wish a driver was put in. Would not cost much. I hate taking Locos apart.
Thanks Peter. Agree with you.
The body clips off very easily and safely. The trouble with a driver is no matter what end you put them in it will be wrong for some people
@@mccarronfamily very true.
So, chimney then eh? you'll be calling an exhaust port a funnel next....! ( I've got that bloody Dick Van Dyke song in my head now, chim, chim-e-ney chim chim-e-ney...)
Oh ha ha ha Wonder what the dome is?
Nice review, this seems like a great rendering of the class 66, both in looks and performance. Just out of curiosity, did you have the problem with the roof vibration with your DB model too?
It was actually the DB model had the problem. Removing and re-seating the roof fixed it. The Freightliner was fine in general but briefly showed distortion on 1-2 occasions. It sounded like more an overdrive issue.
I have the DRS Livery Accurascale 66, and I don't have the sound distortion issue, that being said my roof section is very tight so maybe that is helping with the resonance issue.
66507 was the same for me.
My 66763 was very jerky on the running in for the first 30 or 40 seconds and after a minute or two sorted itself out I have no idea what was going on with it no issues with it now after fully running in on dcc
Have seen that with some other locos in the past prior to some running time. A bit concerning until it clears.
@@EuviRail could be a small issue with the motor components need to run fully and losen up to run smoothly I noticed that too with the dapol locos too but they usually run grand afterwards
@@EuviRail as they only get a tiny amount of testing in the factory
Many thanks for the review but can I just put this out there. Are the EWS ones the wrong colour?. Are they too red and the gold stripe is yellow!. Also I have the Freightliner orange version. Is this too pale because mine is very, very pale?.
Yes and Yes sadly! Sorry to jump in Eugene but i have both examples. The first G and W livery applied was to 66413 and it was in the lighter shade of Orange. The second 66623 went into a deeper shade of Orange and there on. Hornby and Hattons had already produced 66623 when Freightliner decided to amend the colour Orange by which time it was too late for them to change the livery so Accurascale didnt research this properly and obviously went off the Hattons example in the far lighter shade. The thing is the fantastic box art is the perfect tone of deeper orange, so when you remove the lid, it just stands out like a soar thumb. And agreed the EWS livery is too light and the Gold is more like a yellow.
Thanks for flagging. A shame for any fans of those liveries.
FYI for me the second section of video is mono sound, made me wonder if my AirPods were broken as no sound from the left one.
Thanks for flagging that. Check back at the source file, I can see it. I used a different mic than usual with my camera that defaulted to mono so this one is down to operator error (i.e. me). Apologies to all AirPod and headphone users.
@@EuviRail no worries, it is good content so that is what matters.
whats the point in all the stuff in little plastic bags. Could they just not drop them into one or not at all, Seems a bit wasteful.
I suspect they've had issues with customers not reading the docs, running into issues and then contacting support. It's an overkill for sure but they probably feel it's justified.
Do you think the Hattons 66 contributed to the stores closure?
No but the Lima Hornby railways class 66 did.
Not directly but the burnt relationships Hattons had with both Bachmann and Hornby most certainly did.
Hattons buying an American hobbystore and being lumbered with their huge debts probably had a larger effect.
@@Simon-Davisyes and decided to go down the route of pre owned, a bad move that was, a fact! Items were not checked properly if not at all! Always remember they had a Rail road yellow 97 and they were asking - 159.99!! And that didn't include sound!
Eugene any chance you could do a review of the GBRf Railroad plus 73109 Battle of Britain with the TTX sound? Quite remarkable at 100.00, a better speaker used im sure!
I would disagree with you on the soundfile the free Esu class 66 soundfile is much better and far better than the accurascale file
Have you painted yours with a yard brush and put it in adverts yet for 2 billion euro??
@@franburke rule one its dcc ready put any sound file in it if you want and the esu one is quite good for the free one sounds just as good and can't complain about the file
@@franburke who are you talking about Fran me or Eugene no i only done a tiny bit of track dirt on the bogies and some soot and rust on the exhaust and put on the Severn valley nameplates with some Pva
Just a shame it won’t work or control any of the functions ? Which sound file too as accurascale have two versions?
@@mccarronfamily well Hm7000 won't do Jack crap either for light functions all you need is the headlights and turn off the taillights and it's all good
This is the quality you get when model trains are made by model train fans.they know exactly what's wanted by the customer .they are not in competition with hornby as hornby are not in the same league.
Hornby are just reusing the old lima tooling for the 66s only difference is a new motor and a dcc 8pin socket
@@irishsixtysixfanGbrf66739 The new releases of the Hornby 66s use a 21pin socket now