Promised update: the motor went back to running slowly the following day. The score stands :(

3:30 Dutch Livery is the nickname for the Civil Engineers livery under BR because it looked like the NS livery no geographical relation sadly

Sam I had to take mine back 3 times and each one was a a terrible runner. I eventually had a refund from Dapol from where I purchased them. They have their own test layout ( I live close to Dapol ) They were the same on their layout. They even tried one out from their stock and that was the same! Agreed with you completely.

Thank you for the review Sam, Great video as always. Actually wanted a 73 for my layout and after seeing this think I will go for the Hornby one. Keep up the great work and stay safe. Jason

Sam has dapolitus because of the amount of dapol he's reviewed lately XD

I'm so glad you have reviewed this. I recently bought the Pullman version of Dapol's 73. A beautifully crafted thing it was. However it would not stay on the rails and the lights were all wrong. What a let down it was. Packed off back to Rails for a refund.

Hi Sam I had the same issues with poor running due to pick ups coated in oil and bent in the wrong direction on my class 73 Dutch livery. Having watched a KZfaq on this I fitted extra pick ups of brass strips (soldered) but still not over impressed with the performance, I fully agree with your comments on detail, quality and valve. Thanks for sharing this.

Great review Sam, and I agree with everything you’ve said here. I’ve had exactly the same performance problems with mine, and it’s very frustrating. You can improve things somewhat by bending the pickups so they press more firmly against the axles, but I’ve still had jittery running over express points, and loads of derailments. Another slightly odd thing about the design is that the bogies seem to pivot about a point roughly 5mm back from the centre. I don’t know if this is having any bearing on the derailments but it’s certainly unusual.

DDD = Derailing Dapol Diesel

Amazingly more are still in mainline service than are actually preserved! 25 are still in active mainline service, yet only 6 are technically preserved! The ones still on the mainline are in use with GBRf and Network Rail (both in very striking liveries!). They sound great when running on just the diesel engine (trust me from experience). Shame the model doesn't perform as well in real life. Great review Sam👍

Great Review Sam! I've watched your video a few times now and as an avid 73 fan I did end up going with one for Christmas. I also have a hornby 73 in the same livery as my new dapol one, and you are correct on the massive change in detail - I'm very impressed! Running Issues; I understand there is a newer batch with improvements but I went for the older type (same as yours) in a preferred livery. I've been lucky with limited problems, helped by the fact my layout has larger curves and electrofrog points, but I see the way the bogies tilt being a problem if my track doesn't stay flat. I plan to get mine sound fitted along with a capacitor/stay alive to help with any faulty track, its just a matter of derailments, of which I have had none as of yet. Hope you had a great Christmas! 🎅🎅

Thank you for showing one of the reasons why engine can derail with the wheel base, I never thought about that. Now I am going to test out some of the sensitive ones.

I have a Class 73 in NSE Livery dcc, but I am not experiencing the problems that you have, no derailing nothing and I´m running it on capet too

Dapol, more like derailpol. Seriously though I wish dapol products weren't so notorious for derailment EDIT - Just realized the colour scheme reminds me of chocolate and lemon topped ice cream and now I want one.

I have the more recent Hornby Railroad Class 73. Got it brand new for £63 on eBay. Superb runner. Quiet, heavy, strong, looks great and easy to maintain.

Hi Sam, enjoyed the video. I bought a Dapol class 121 from Hattons and it was a terrible runner, even after running in. The pick up was exactly the same as the class 73 you reviewed; two sets okay, one set dead and one very ropey. Fair play to Hattons who replaced it very quickly and the replacement runs a lot better. Looking to build up my diesel collections so I enjoy the reviews. Cheers.

Live stream request the Dapol class 73, with Dapol egg van's. What could go wrong?🤷‍♂️

Surely bad pick ups should be part of the quality vote. After all the quality of the pick ups and manufacturing design is terrible. I personally think you were over generous. The train is not worth consideration if it does not run properly. I would be so angry if I purchased it and it ran like that. Happens with pre-owned engines occasionally-but certainly should not happen with a new one. Great to see yet another review though. Thanks for making such an effort in these difficult times.

I like how the orange sets off the yellow on this livery. Quite unique! I just got myself the new tooling Bachmann 4-4-0, "Jupiter" made in 2016, and I think it would be worth a review. You could see how it stacks up against the jupiter you currently have.

Great video Sam! Interesting about the poor performance though- one of my friends has had several and they are all pretty smooth, good runners.

In the late 80's and early-mid 90's this livery was very common. Many other diesels such as classes 47 and 37 all carried this livery at some point in their lifetime

You need a to make a minus running score for this loco!

Quite glad you posted a video today Sam, just to mention my findings on the O Gauge SR 8 Plank Wagon which arrived today, mine is secondhand but it too has rather stiff couplings, which personally won't bother me as mine will be sandwiched between two 5 plank wagons though I might look into replacement couplings, the wheels also seem loose between the bearings but free running. Also have a Dapol 73 in N Gauge in revised NSE livery, it too derailed a bit (though my other Dapol diesels are fine), though think the issue is not liking too tight a corner, will have to work rework the curves on my layout or just redo the whole thing, needs to be simplified anyway! Need to make a 4TC for mine to pull round at some point. Great video as always Sam ~James

Looks very nice! And I love the livery!

4:29 Oh Dear! You had 2 attempts to get it right! That was a class 22 that you reviewed before 🤦‍♂️

I was scared when I saw derailing, diesel and dapol in the same sentence Also will you send it back and get a refund, repair it or are you going to use it for experiments e.g. trains under water

Just a thought, clean the wheels and axles. I watched a video from Rapido Trains Inc. Dan Darnell first cleaned the wheels of a new loco to remove any oil or grime on the wheels from the manufacturing plant. Sam, loving your videos, good job. Thanks for what you do. I don't model European or British, I am from Canada. Cheers!

Hi Sam, The "Dutch" livery was introduced to BR in the mid 90's for the CME (Civil Mechanical Engineers) for use on ballast trains. The 73/0 (6 of them) were built at Eastleigh works. The rest (73/1) were built at EE in Newton-le-Willows. The badge on the cab indicates that they were shedded at Stewarts Lane Depot, hence the image of Battersea Power Station. Spent quite a few hours working on these locos.

12:40 Famous Last Words #2

Oh dear, a good amount of detail but let down by the poor performance.

Hi sam had my fingers crossed for you , I got the beautiful network southeast livery one had exactly the same problems done my head in sent it back 😱👍

hi sam. i was going to buy a dapol 73, but will keep the hornby one. great video as usual

H A T T O N S D R I V E T H R U .

I bought two when they were first released both had same problem jerky running and stalling on insulin frog points so got rid of them. Last year I was tempted to buy again as they were at bargain price so enquired with Hattons if they had any complaints about them? answer no so thought it must because I had early models and I bought same as yours Dutch. It was exactly the same jerky and stalling, so it was returned to Hattons. I have Dapol Westerns, four class 68 and two of there latest class 29 and all run beautifully. Bill.

That looks a really model. There used to be the odd one of these seen In my area, suffolk. There’s still a number of in regular use from GBRF I think and I’m nearly certain I’ve actually seen one in your livery on the metals some time ago. Hope you’re keeping safe and well mate. Great video as always

The details on this model look spot on! :)

Hey Sam great vid. I recommend putting a weight on the front bogey. My Backman Gordon did that and I put a weight on the front bogey and it hasn’t done that since

Hi Sam, this is 3 years after your review. I managed to purchase a BR Class 73 from Kernow for only £85, this runs ok, no derailing, all wheel contacts are perfect. When the motor is cold, it does go slow, but it ran normal after warming up for about 1 minute. Either I am lucky or they have fixed most problems.

Yes. I've been waiting for this after the livestream! I decided to paint one of my model railway sheep pink partly inspired by bullman. It's really funny😂😂

Hi My sound class 73 is great I was so pleased when I got it and it runs well even outside this engine got me back into diesels also sound I have now converted a few onf my diesels and steam stock well happy with the engine guess it dont work for everybody.

such a shame that it keeps derailing. the details really nice. Could you review a hornby class 66 at some point please. I defiinitely would recommend getting one because they are such amazing runners. Keep up the great work sam.

That is a wicked Class 73. Love the absolutely grand, striking and industrial colour scheme. There is one in Barry Tourist Railway in South Wales, not far from Cardiff. It also has a Sentinel Steam Shunter named Susan.

Hi Sam. Awesome video as always. You bring happiness and joy to me during these difficult times. I was wondering. Could you maybe do a re review of the hornby P2 pls. Thx-cal :)

Before watching this video, I was planning on buying one in Network South East livery, but this video saved me £120! Thanks Sam, you saved me ! :)

The loco is in the BR Civil Engineers colour scheme, it was nicknamed 'Dutch' by one of the magazines at the time due to it's similarity to the Dutch Railways scheme. I should also point out that is still a good quantity of them in service in various guises...

When you compare the bogie wheels between the Dapol Class 73 and the Hornby Railroad Class 73, it reminds me of what you did with the Adams Radial Tank against the L&YR Class 5 where the driven wheels stay on the track nicely with the Class 5 where as the Radial Tank has its problem when the driven wheels don't stay on track really well.

Nice video as always! Will you try upgrading the Dapol 73 because it does look gorgeous and definitely needs better performance!

Hi Sam, sorry you have had this experience as well, I did with mine. The one thing that helps the pick up is the use of Peco Powerlube on the axles, you will need to apply some more a few weeks later. In mine the motor failed during running in, the second class 73 works better but can never be described as 'good' As for the real class 73 I worked on these and they were lovely locos and still in use on the mainline today. Being electro diesels you could never really fail, the third rail gave the best performance but the small diesel engine could get you out of all kinds of trouble. Never had any issues of fires or exceeding the limiting point either. Cheers, Mike

I see quite a few class 73s in GBRf running RHTTs and Network rail test trains in my local area.

love the br dutch livery want to get a class 37 in the livery great vid sam : )

Great video! I have the exact same model (right down to the same livery) and I have had no end of trouble with the axle contacts, so it is not a one of problem. This batch of class 73's also has an issue when you DCC chip the model. On DCC the lights shine in the wrong direction from the direction of travel. This can only be fixed by desoldering then reversing the motor wires. It is such a shame that the model is let down by these problems since it looks so impressive.

Sam’s Trains, I found out that the pick ups touching the axles from bogies is usually on rolling stock where one side of the wheels is isolated and the other side isn’t which powers the lights but it does not work well on a powered locomotive. I do agree with you that side wiper pick ups are better. Seems that Dapol took much ideas from Bachmann USA range for the pick ups on the axles of the bogies because of the HO steam locomotives have the pick ups on the tender wheel axles.

I've had the same derailment problem with Dapols Pendolino. It's only used on display in sidings on our layout

great video I have a review of one on my channel and as for the running these class 73s tend to take quite a while to warm up before smooth running that is the case with mine anyways . good review as always !

i very nearly bought this loco especially as i live near stew arts rd battersea power station the t m d that that train ran out of like you i have a br blue lima \ hornby 73 runs great glade i refrained the dapol curse strikes again but great review as ever sam

hi sam! awesome review! About 2 years ago, i bought a brand new dapol class 73 in the modern GBRf livery from Hatton's for £84 but unfortunately, it was faulty, so I sent it back. A few days later i was disappointed to unpack the loco and it still was not running very well so I just got a refund. lol XD

It's nice to see that this diesel locomotive has some good pulling force without a use of a traction tire! :)

3:05: good packaging! 6:22: it does look great! 18:23: 400 engines!?! 19:18: problem identified! 21:30: did not know that. 23:56: problem solved! 25:57: nice, minutely-explained scoring! 28:14: cool catalogue! Great shots, most enjoyable video overall!

Thank you for this video i was seriously considering buying one of the dapol class 73s but now I am definitely not. Can you recommend similar loco of a similar price?

Had a similar situation with my new Dapol Class 122. Intermittent power from the wheels. The pick-up seems to be through the axle bearings, which of course need lubrication- and possibly a source of electrical insulation. I eventually custom fitted wipers and the pickup was much better. Go back to wipers Dapol!

Great review Sam! may I you review a Bachmann Thomas and friends Diesel or Percy. I'd love to see that

Good review saved me buying one. No wonder they are going a lot cheaper now

I like watching your videos and reviews. Your very generous with you scores as if I spend my hard earn money on something then need to strip it down to get worry correctly it gets 0 points.

Looks like another top quality 00 gauge product from Dapol, derailing diesel reminds me of another manufacturer (cough!) Heljan. Great review mate.

@Sam'sTrains sorry to see you had a issue with the class 73. I have the BR blue it runs ok the only thing is with mine is the couplings hang down and catch the track, the livery you have is dutch livery yellow and grey. Hope that helps you

Keep up the good content sam!

24:39 Back at it again with your locomotives trying to act like Sonic the Hedgehog lol! xD

Enjoy your new locomotive Sam. Another amazing video. It's a shame that the locos performance isn't up to standard and because it keeps derailing. Take care.

You remember me that I have to see your review of the Dapol B4, I have to see if I keep it on my list of engines to buy or not.

I had problems with an N gauge Dapol Class 153 persistently derailing, but worse than that it kept blowing lighting diodes which meant the thing wouldn't run at all. It went back to DCC three times and they fixed it but kept blaming my track. Like you, I've managed to get other locos running on the track without these problems. The result is that I haven't run the 153 since it came back the last time, and I haven't bought any Dapol locomotives since. I suspect that the bogies are far too sloppy, but what to do about it is another matter.

With 400 locos as you say you have, surely they deserve a better track than running on the carpet!

Dont worry sam My dapol N gauge class 22 had a problem where the werm wouldn't line up with bogie gearboxes so it didn't run and left it for 9 months and then beautiful running now and been good ever since...

Nice loco as you say but what is it about Dapol diesel locos just disappointing like the 121 was thinking on getting one of these eventually but I think I’d rather go for the Hornby one having seen this! What type of Hornby southern coaches was the green 73 pulling? Thanks for sharing

I've had similar dodgy and intermittent stop/start 'running' from Hornby's re-tooled Terrier which has now been relegated to the scrap line. I checked the pickups etc., which all appeared ok, and then read something about electric motors and 'stiction', so I suspect that's the problem. Sadly my 700 has started to play up in a similar manner. As far as derailing goes Kernow's Bulleid diesel also has problems with points according to a couple of reviews. I wonder if they use the same factory...

The Japanese N gauge seem to all use PU's thru the axle pins on deskills & electrics and run well.

Towards the end of British Rail, Sectorisation came in, you had different logos on freight locomotives for petroleum, metals, coal, distribution, automotive, construction & General. Then there were engineering locos, these were painted grey & then some were painted in "Dutch" half grey (same shade) & yellow. Various locos that were painted in "Dutch" livery were some class 26,31,33,37,47,50,56,73 & even a class 35 ! Also in the same "Dutch" livery were ballast wagons, seacows & sealions plus other spoil wagons & even some brake vans. I was surprised to hear you got this cheap, when i was collecting locos i had a good collection of civil engineering stock & it was usually more expensive. The 73 was unique in it's power option except the onboard diesel engine was very small and ONLY supplied enough power to produce 600hp whereas the third rail pick up supplies 1500 hp. The same 600hp English Electric engine was used in the driven car of a Thumper demu. The electrical issue was known as a flash over & it was as you said, when the loco passed from one electrified section to another but the issue arose if there were more electric trains running in one section to the other, the power would serge through the class 73 to power the demand of said electric trains. For many years the class was used as motive power for the Gatwick Express, mark 2f coaches were modified & also the formation was driven from either end, one end being the class 73 & the other end was driven by a motor luggage van (mlv) this was made by converting a class 414 (2hap) into a class 489. All were repaired & in recent years some have been re-engined with two 750hp diesels, the same engines found under each car of a Voyager demu. Class 73s are still seen in their original setup on the southern region, often used on RHTT & other engineering duties, some are stabled at Tonbridge new yard. The Hornby class 73 was originally the Lima class 73, Hornby acquired Lima many years ago & have re-released lesser versions of the Lima tooled models, usually with cheap running gear & less details. I had a Lima 73 in BR intercity executive livery, it was powered by a Lima pancake motor but it was heavy & it ran rather well.

I've had quite a few of these - I think the bogie design flaw criticism totally stands up - however, I have found a fix for the motor. Normal running in seems not to really bed these models in, and they go back to running like crap the next day. The best way around this was that I "ran mine in" at full speed, with a load of coaches for an hour in each direction. At first the motor *really* sounded like it didn't like this, but in the end, it smoothed out and completely sorted all the problems - and my 73s (3 of) now all run really well (save for the derailments) - hope this helps.

Hi Sam I brought the br blue class 73 in March and had the same fault with running I found after 2 hours of running it became smooth I do have a video of it running on my garden railway . Also mine had a gray type paint on the wheels and it was only when that had warn off it was ok. I also brought 2 by mistake and the second one was sparking when I tried it to see if it was one loco fault or range fault and I think after seeing yours I believe it's a range fault. Have a look at my livery in one of my video's

Such a shame Dapol always seem to miss out on something each time. I have a few of their Class 68s in 00 gauge, and they are superb. Perhaps that's a loco you could look into for the future, unless of course I just lucked out with mine not having any problems!

When I watched the first few derailments, I thought it was another Class 121 Bubblecar situation where the bogie catches the rest of the underframe. I had to file down the edges on my Hattons Exclusive NSE version before it could make a full circuit around the loft layout without any derailments. I really can't understand Dapol at the moment. Why can they not seem to get bogie sets right?

Some new Dapol diesels (N Gauge 50/68) don't need running in as they are 'run in' from the factory so maybe something similar with the instructions here

I think Dapol designed the chassis with flat layouts in mind. Yes you get layouts that are perfectly flat; but as well as real life, hills are not avoidable... The old country layout for my Hatter Valley Railway concept had a hill which inclined and swung round a curve that sits on the summit of the hill. If that engine ran on the old layout then I’d imagine it would roll down the hill!

You seriously need to try the Class 68 in DRS compass livery from Dapol. The problems with running with this model and the bubblecar are not problems on the 68. It also uses conventional pickups with one difference. There are 2 contacts per wheel. They have also put lots of thought into the detail around the bogies so they work very well. Mine runs fine on 1st radius! The only slight thing is the couplings can just brush on point work but they work fine when actually being coupled to things.

Great diesel engine Sam!!

This is a nice loco in British Rail Civil Engineers colours. It is in grey (this isn't necessarily green) and yellow, which was nicknamed 'Dutch' and Class 73s would be used on engineering duties and some workings with nuclear flasks to Dungeness.

WOW I’m very surprised I bought a network southeast liver class 73 from dapol at gauge master unlike yours Sam mine has worked a treat no jolting or needing a service but it sometimes does derail on my points but despite that mine runs better than any train I own!

i think if you see a cheap dapol at a railway place sam buy it for the amusement factor as i'm loving the 5 year old moving the power swish on and off thoughout

Hi Sam it’s me from the post! I love your videos :)

3:04 Nice mention right there! xD

Here's something you can try to see if it can be improved and also test the product. Buy some of Bachmann's conductive lubricant to see if that will improve the pickups. I heard it greatly improves 3 Rail O Scale model passenger cars electric conductivity to the point the interior lights no longer flicker. So give that lubricant a try.

Hi Sam, have you ever thought about adding a 009 section to your layout? I'm starting to add one on mine

Hey sam what the first thing you'll do after Quarantine

I have three Dapol diesels - two Class 73/1s in BR Blue, and a Midline-liveried Class 121 - and I can categorically state that they do not derail.

Beautiful loco Sam, however I am glad my Hornby Class 87 runs a bit different with normal pick-ups on each wheel ! Also the fact that one bogie does not rotate on one side is very bad which I think also contributes to the jerky running problem. Enough to put me off buying one .......... Bachmann once tried to impress with some stupid very deviant suspension of the bogies of their Class 47 and my 47404 was tilting like a motorbike at speed in a curve. It has been fixed however and it is now upright on the track albeit still with the same suspension. The livery of the 73 is like the Dutch NS Plan U 3-unit DMU on my cover which (of course !) is nice and good :-)

Great video

I like the interesting color combination with the Dutch yellow and dark gray along with the orange stripe on top. The dark gray on the side kinda looks like a Military dark green color or it's probably half green and half gray. Who knows?

Interesting model - wonder why they are being sold off so 'cheap'. Another great review Sam 😎😎😎

Awesome video

When the box your train came in looks as much like the train as the train itself 😂

Hi Sam. Stay safe, mate. All the best, Harry