Video: On test – Hornby Mallard Record Breaker train set

Hornby's Mallard Record Breaker train set arrived for review this week. Upon unboxing for its inaugural run on Tony Wright's 'Little Bytham' – our often-used test track for consistency – we examined the contents of the set.

Carrying an RRP of £249.99, with many retailers offering the set below £200 – the set includes an oval of track, 'Mallard', three Gresley coaches in Carmine and cream, and accessories, including a track mat. Carrying British Railways lined blue, the set purports to be representative of the 1950s.

The locomotive represents 60022 'Mallard', using what appears to be a hybrid selection of tooling – connecting rods and wheels appear fine, but remaining valve gear, bodyshell and tender tooling are of the manufacturer's previous generation.

The rolling stock is of the previous generation, too. With less detail and fewer parts upon assembly, these models have better affordability. 

Placing the locomotive and three coaches in-tow on the track, the set had covered no more than five laps before the motor spun freely, independent of the gears. The locomotive wouldn't move, and this, without a significant load in tow – a contrast to the manufacturer's recently-released A4 with die-cast bodyshell which we deemed an excellent model.

Watch the video below:

Game over, for now. Though not necessarily representative of other models manufactured in this batch, presently, we've left the set with Tony Wright for further examination and will report back on our repair.

Related: Five things we love about Hornby's 'Dublo' A4

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