LOL Even now that they have announced something in N scale, Athearn is still getting bashed! I suspect that when they arrive the same flies will find something else to complain about: Not the right style, not the paint color, not exactly what I wanted...... If I was Athearn [or any other MMR Co who gets bashed] I would be sorely tempted to say 'Too bad so sad, you want something? Go make it yourself"!
With respect to the Soo Line boxcar release... the road numbers to be issued are 17985, 18067 and 18132. That would put them into the series 17900 to 18138. According to the Official Railway Equipment Register for April 1981, these cars carried even numbers only. It may also be the case that these were the seven-post boxcars that were modeled by Fox Valley, but would not be a match to the Athearn body style. I'll try to look into this.
OK... so which train set does Kato have overstock more of, the Broadway Limited or the CoLA? Guess that means its time for the sixth run of the Zephyr.....
I've been one of those bashers from time to time... but... I have to give Athearn a pass on the bashing because they are slowly getting production of N scale back on track. I would like for them to create brand new models of items I would buy... but... other than the Big Boy and Challenger... there are few items they've made over the past 8 years that I would buy. In fact... other than the Big Boy and Challenger... the only other items I've bought are vehicles (trucks and buses). I really don't count the old Roundhouse/MDC models of rolling stock or the oldie Consolidation or Mogul locomotives part of Athearn's line. They haven't released those items much over the past few years either. It would probably be better for us as a 'modeling scale' to be supportive and suggestive rather than combative. They don't 'owe us' anything... they can store all their tooling and wait us out if they feel like it. It does bother me that both Athearn and Walthers have been reluctant to release more N scale products. Just as many of us 'Katophiles' have been asking for North Coast Limited and eastern railroad passenger consists for years.
Folks- We are not doing ourselves any good by the constant back and forth sniping at each other or a manufacturer. As to the manufacturer, if it makes economic sense for it do something, it will be done. As to us- we are shooting ourselves in our collective feet by the constant back and forth with each other and venting on manufacturers. Please think at least a moment about this.
Backhsop, According to the Kato rep I spoke with about 2 years ago at WGH in Portland, Or. Kato has warehouses FULL of CoLA passenger sets. He said that until Kato can get rid of some of their overstock, that Kato will more than likely NOT produce another RR specific passenger set. I found this out when I asked the rep about IF Kato was thinking of doing a North Coast Limited in the near future. He also told me that more than likely not as NP and MILW modelers tend to be in the same category of being "too picky" when it comes to color matching, prototype specifics, and so on. Sorry this is not an Athearn subject. But just repsonding to an earlier question. Ryan
50-50 I agree when people starting getting personal in their remarks towards each other its not good. Been gulity of that myself...mostly on the defensive end. BUT...cussin and discussin manufactures is a good thing. Lots of guys buy items and give a good critiques on these forums. If its bad and people dont rush out and buy the stuff...maybe the manufacturer will take notice. Same holds true if the thing seems good...people will go out and buy it and the manufacture is happy. Most of the manufactures read the forums...they need to pay attention... ;-)
Agree, completely. Consumers drive the marketplace. Not vice versa. Times are much different from forty years ago, when they could sell just about anything. The modern shopper is very savvy, being both dollar and quality conscious. A manufacturer who cannot comprehend this ends up with a warehouse full of unsold goods. Listening to the end user is smart. Plowing ahead and ignoring, (then blaming us for their own short sight), is an expensive mistake. An effort to keep us informed, (as much as is humanly possible), keeps us happy and interested. Conversely, silence is not golden.
Yes, we must pack our N-scalers in crates carefully like we would fine china. Will the hate ever stop? For that matter, Atlas hasn't brought out that new run of Shays, and where are my RTR 3-truck shays with sound and details installed and priced under $80 each? I think ALL the manufacturers must hate us. Woe! Yup. Have you really LOOKED at their HO offerings. They're mostly additional runs of previously released models.
Part of what we all need to remember is the difference down the years. I personally started in N long before the vast majority of what is available was thought possible. There were a few manufacturers offering items of varying quality; we now have a fairly wide range of models available, mostly of a quality exceeding what as available only 20 years ago. There has also been a large growth of smaller manufacturers, such as BLMA, Bluford Shops and TrainWorx, offering us an excellent level of wider prototypes. Is there room for improvement? Yes. Do the manufacturing/transportation glitches cause heartburn? Yes. The point, in the end, is that the growth in N is a result of people supporting the good models (as has been noted) and pointing out shortfalls by the manufacturers. The discussion in this thread has become increasingly acrimonious, with folks forgetting that all opinions, good and bad, are valid to someone. We may never get everything we want, but if the manufacturers aren't told what we want and what they should do better, we definately never will. Hopefully, this site can be some small part of that feedback.
Brian K, I actually remember how this thread started out. Thanks for the info. I will make good use of those box cars !!! BTW, is that a Sea Service ribbon I see ??? I got mine for a 4 1/2 year sentence on USS Kitty Hawk. How does the Army get it ??? Just wondering, ya' know ??? Thanks !!!
I remember too. I'm glad some of you guys get what you want. I'm not complaining about the product, just the length of time between runs.The ethanol tank cars that they make are top shelf in my book and when they are released will disappear faster than houdini.
Nobody said anything bad about MT yet. Micro Trains box cars ride to high and are mostly foobs for "collectors" who don't know better. There. That about covers it for this round of manufacturer hating.
No need to wonder... That is actually the Army Service Ribbon, which is very similiar to the Sea Service Ribbon in color, just different pattern. I didn't know this, but the Army actually has more "boats" than the Navy. Not sure where the transition to "ship" classification happens (probably length or tonnage), but thought that was rather interesting. My old unit in Okinawa had two LCM's as part of our equipment authorization. Those were pretty cool. Back on topic, I heard from a reliable source that the Ethanol cars may take a little longer because the molds are being held by the old factory and Athearn is having a hard time negotiating the release. Can't verify, but that is just another possible reason for the long delay on those cars. Brian
