News - January 2012

[diecast models] - [information] - [links] - [news] - [plastic models] - [resin models] - [trams] - [xtra]

	*January 2012 - News*
Previous month's News	To find a specific month's News, click here	Next month's News

Following the news report on 2nd January, 312Model has now released the resin model of Kowloon Motor Bus MCW Metrobus M83 (B0038B) and new photographs have just been added.

Whilst I am always very grateful to receive photographs of models and topical 'real' bus photographs, it is not always possible for me to publish every single one, as I am sure you will appreciate.

30th January 2012

New pages have now been added for several 1/64th scale Beijing models., namely:

Skoda 706 RO articulated single-deck bus (release date unknown)
Skoda 706 RO single-deck bus released in December 2011
Beijing Jinghua BK670 articulated bus released in December 2011
Beijing Huaya BD562 articulated single-deck trolleybus released in December 2011

Information on all these models is rather limited, so any further details would be most welcome.

29th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Bobby Liu

My special thanks to Bobby Liu for sending me the above photograph of MTR's first Alexander Dennis Enviro400. A larger image has been added to a new page in the

section.

Photographs courtesy and copyright of
Network Shuttle

Three new Beijing 1/64 scale diecast buses have recently been released and further details will be added shortly.

28th January 2012

Photographs of the Kowloon Motor Bus 'hot dogs' carrying special advertising, as mentioned in yesterday's news, have now been added to the

section.

26th January 2012

Photographs courtesy and copyright of
80M Bus Model Shop

Released in Hong Kong on 22nd January are these two Kowloon Motor Bus Wrights Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TLs. Both feature AVBWU14 on route 281A to Kwong Yuen and each is limited to 1,000 pieces. Produced by Drumwell, product code DW10509 is in standard livery whilst product code DW10509A has additional '2010' decals. New pages and additional photographs will be added shortly.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Anthony Shiu

JRTeam has placed advertising on four of KMB' last remaining non-air conditioned buses, to mark their imminent withdrawal from service. Each carries a different theme:-

Volvo Olympian S3V18 (GK9323) 'Victoria Harbour'
Dennis Dragon S3N350 (GA1570) 'Hot Dog'
Dennis Dragon S3N360 (GA6394) 'Retro'
Dennis Dragon S3N363 (GA5311) 'Farewell'

Further photographs will be added shortly.

Some further photographs of the various 'Year of the Dragon' real buses have been added to the

section.

Three resin models are expected to be released between now and early March.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Network Shuttle

Pictured above is KMB Dennis Lance fleet no. AN12 (FR667) from Bus Factory (10502) on route 110 to Jordan Road Ferry. This is believed to be limited to less than 200 pieces.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Network Shuttle

The second is another KMB vehicle, this time a Dennis Falcon coach, fleet no. AF16 (DJ107). To be produced by Model 1, it is believed their may be two versions, both on route 203E, one with a destination of Fu Shan and the other with a destination of Jordan Road Ferry. Product codes are 10303 and 10304 with quantities limited to 300 pieces.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Network Shuttle

And finally, a P&T model specially commissioned by Network Shuttle, is KMB Metrobus M81 (EH4891) on route 99 to Nai Chung (21002). This will be limited to 88 pieces.

25th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Tramric Product & Design

Set for release tomorrow in Hong Kong are the three 1/87th scale trams from Tramric Product & Design. The above photographs shows all three in a special display case.

I am off to Budapest tomorrow for a few days followed by a visit to London, so there will be no updates during this time. Please continue to e-mail me with your news and photographs, ready for my return on 25th.

19th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Kowloon Motor Bus

'KMB Today' confirms that the company is to issue a model of 'vintage' liveried Scania K230UB ASB13. It is believed two versions will be released, each limited to 900 pieces.

18th January 2012

I have received further information on the new iPhone 4/4S case mentioned below. It retails for HK$128 and is available from BUSME. Overseas buyers can order by e-mail and pay using PayPal. Further details can be found in the Souvenir/Novelty page of the the

section.

The 'Hong Kong Bus Review 2011', from OverGround Publishing, has been published today in Hong Kong. I hope to be able to provide a review in due course.

17th January 2012

New pages have tonight been added to the Trams section for the three forthcoming 1/87th scale trams from Tramric Product & Design. Each features tram 120, the only traditional post-war type tramcar still operating in Hong Kong. 'Hongkong Tramways' is printed in English and Chinese along with the lettering 'Established in 1904'. The packaging includes an old tram route as well as an old photograph of a classic tramcar passing through Central. The product is aimed for both the collector and souvenir market.

16th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
BUSME

To mark KMB's withdrawal this year of its non-aircon (hot dog) buses, BUSME and T.680 Creation have teamed up to produce a new iPhone 4/4S case with the message 'Goodbye hotdog bus'!

15th January 2012

Creative Master Northcord Ltd has today issued the following statement:-

'Due to the unexpected closure of the manufacturing business of our majority partner, Creative Master Limited, the production schedule of CMNL is being affected seriously. Although CMNL was trading profitably at the time, the failure of CML has impacted upon CMNL's ability to use production facilities.

In the meantime CMNL will be actively seeking out other alternative manufacturers . CMNL is independently owned and hopefully the matter will be resolved in the near future. CMNL will release more information in due course, as soon as anything further is known.'

13th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Dennis Law

My thanks to Dennis Law for advising that Kong Kong Tramways has recently built a dedicated post-war styled tram for Ocean Park's forthcoming tourist attraction 'Old Hong Kong'. Numbered 201, it was constructed on a motorless truck based on the initial two-class design of the post-war trams, with only one straight staircase at the front of the nearside. It is expected that 'Old Hong Kong' will be opened to the public in early March 2012.

It has been reported that Creative Master Ltd, the manufacturing side of Creative Master Northcord Ltd, has been declared bankrupt. The report goes on to say that Creative Master Northcord Limited (CMNL) is still trading profitably, but the loss of the majority partner and manufacturing facility will cause even more delays to the production schedule.

12th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Grant Ng Kwok Kuen

The final 'Year of the Dragon' liveried bus was spotted today and thanks to Grant Ng Kwok Kuen, I am able to publish the above photograph, a larger image of which has been added to the

section of the site.

A photograph of former Citybus Plaxton Pointer bodied Dennis Dart, no. 1434, now operating in the UK has also been added to the

section of the site, thanks to Chris Stone.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Network Shuttle

Featured on the Network Shuttle website is this resin KMB 12-metre non air-con Duple Metsec bodied Dennis Dragon. It features fleet no. 3N115 (DJ8496) on route 101 to Kennedy Town. It is believed to be limited to about 45 pieces and comes with no limited edition certificate. It appears to be a P&T model but commissioned by Concorde Hobby Shop. Any further information would be most welcome.

9th January 2012

Photographs courtesy and copyright of
80M Bus Model Shop

Confirmation has now been received that both the Citybus and New World First Bus 'Year of the Dragon' models will be released in Hong Kong tomorrow. The Citybus model (80812/CM074) features Enviro500 no. 8138 on route 102 to Shau Kei Wan whilst the New World First Bus model (80813/20034) features Enviro500 no. 5538 on route 680 to Admiralty. Each is limited to 1,088 pieces. New pages and further photographs will be added later today.

8th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
John Ng

My thanks to John Ng for responding to my request for photographs of the Hong Kong University Centenary tram. Thanks also to Eric Lee of Tramric for providing further details of the model and to Philip Chan for supplying a further selection of photographs of the real tram - a new page for this and the 'I Love Hong Kong' tram commissioned by Tramric Design have now been added to the Trams section.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Alex Cheng

Pictured earlier today in Year of the Dragon livery is Citybus Enviro500 no. 8138, courtesy of Alex Cheng. It is believed that the New World First Bus and Citybus 'Year of the Dragon' models are to be released on Monday 9th January. New pages have just been added to the

section of the site for both the Citybus and New World First Bus 'Year of the Dragon' buses.

All the photographs of the two KMB 'Year of the Dragon' models have now been uploaded.

7th January 2012

Photographs courtesy and copyright of
80M Bus Model Shop

As reported earlier this week, the two Kowloon Motor Bus 'Year of the Dragon' liveried models are set for release in Hong Kong tomorrow. The Wrights Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL, AVBWU16, is on route 680 to Lee On and is limited to 2,000 pieces. Produced by Drumwell, it has a product code of DW10510 and not DW10509 as previously reported. Enviro500, ATE236, is on route 2A to Mei Foo and again is limited to 2,000 pieces. It is a Cars Workshop product with a product code of 39415.

New pages have tonight been added for both the above models, however a lack of time has prevented me uploading all the photographs received.

6th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Grant Ng Kwok Kuen

Photographed today in a cold and wet Hong Kong is New World First Bus Enviro500 (fleet no. 5538) in 'Year of the Dragon' livery. My thanks to regular contributor Grant Ng Kwok Kuen for sending me a selection of photos, more of which will be added as soon as time allows.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Tramric Product & Design

Set for release shortly are these three 1:87 scale diecast trams from Tramric Product & Design. At a glance they appear to use the WJB casting. All feature tram number 120. Further details will be provided when known.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Tramric Product & Design

On the subject of trams, Tramric Product & Design have produced a tram stop coaster, as pictured above.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Tramric Product & Design

And more tram news!!!!!! ........ pictured above is Tramric's 1/76 scale tram decorated to its own design.

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Tramric Product & Design

and finally, the official photograph of the Hong Kong University model tram, as detailed yesterday.

Longer than normal working hours as a result of the high winds here in the south of England has restricted tonight's update to a bare minimum. I hope to be able to add new pages as soon as time allows.

5th January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of
Hong Kong University

My thanks to David Lo for advising me of the existence of a 1/76 scale model tram, believed to be using the 80M casting, carrying a special livery celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Hong Kong University. It is believed to be a specially commissioned model limited to just 500 pieces and is not on general release. Pictured above is the actual tram. Photographs of the model would be most welcome.

Yesterday's update was rather brief and rushed, after I had worked a 14 hour day as a result of the bad weather here in the south, and hence the error over the 'Tiger' and 'Dragon'. Thanks to all of you who pointed out my mistake.

The Wrights Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL, AVBWU16, carrying the 'Year of the Dragon' livery is in service and is operating on route 680, as depicted in the model. A product number of ~~DW10509~~ DW10510 (corrected 6th January 2012) has been allocated to this model whilst the similarly decorated Enviro500, ATE236, which is believed to be an 80M model, has been allocated a product code of 39415. Both are set for release on 7th January.

4th January 2012

A second Kowloon Motor Bus vehicle is to be decorated in 'Year of the Dragon' (corrected from Tiger - 4th Jan) livery and this will be Wrights Gemini 2 bodied Volvo B9TL, AVBWU16 (PJ5187). A model of this vehicle, on route 680 to Lee On, is shortly to be released and this is being produced by Drumwell and limited to 2,000 pieces. My thanks to Tin Shun Leung for providing this information.

3rd January 2012

Photograph courtesy and copyright of 312Model

The latest resin model to be announced by 312Model is this twin-axle Kowloon Motor Bus MCW Metrobus. M83 is on route 51 to Kam Tin (B0038B). It is expected to be released prior to the Chinese New Year and is limited to 360 pieces.

2nd January 2012

Happy New Year!

Photograph courtesy and copyright of Yiu Mingo

Photographed earlier today is KMB AVBWS1 on a special Bus Fan World event.

Purely for interest I detail below a summary of models released over the past three years:-

Operator	2009	2010	2011	Manufacturer	2009	2010	2011

China Motor Bus	3	0	1	52 Bus	1	3	0
Citybus	3	1	3	80M Bus Model Shop	8	7	14
Kowloon Motor Bus	15	26	37	Best Choose	3	0	1
Long Win	2	2	1	Buses Model	2	1	1
MTR	0	2	2	Cars Workshop	6	14	21
New World First Bus	5	1	2	Creative Master	5	7	1
Chinese operators	2	9	0	Drumwell	9	6	4
Japanese operators	3	1	0	Venus Collectibles	1	5	5
Others	2	1	1
	35	43	47		35	43	47

...... and a few more statistics, this time in relation to the site itself:-

	2002	2003	2004	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009	2010	2011

News page	123,754	157.577	165,942	206,227	279,312	219,301	238,176	297,979	320,878	349,959
Home page	135,391	151,806	164,188	178,593	199,821	181,702	190,528	229,732	238,280	249,725

1st January 2012

	*January 2012 - News*
Previous month's News	To find a specific month's News, click here	Next month's News

[diecast models] - [information] - [links] - [news] - [plastic models] - [resin models] - [trams] - [xtra]

This page last updated Monday, 30th January 2012