Don't know about you but to me it seems to be rather quiet regarding new, first run, locomotive releases. Isn't Bachmann about due for a new steamer? KATO says they are working on one, but who actually knows. Athearn, FVM, Atlas, I guess these are not into steaamers, so B'mann, go for it. Cral
Could be a good thing. My credit card and wallet have had some serious damage the last few months and need recover time.
I hear you. Boy, do I hear you! So after the club decided to go DCC I figured most of my locomotives were analog and not easily converted so I'll just keep them as is. Well it seems that was far from the truth. When I tallied up those that are DCC PNP and DCC ready I had a sizeable stable. So I have been spending some cash on decoders.
One might suspect that the NMRA National Train Show, in Portland OR later this month, will be a source of new product announcements.
Announcements seem to be about normal............now if we could just get the manufacturers to stop announcing and start actually producing. I'm waiting for locos from FVM (2), Intermountain (2), Atlas (3), and Athearn (1).....all on preorder.
Still waiting for FVM to announce the regular cab GP60's. But quiet is good for awhile. Between converting the fleet to DCC and metal wheels, I've been spending quite a bit.
I count 5 diesels and 1 steamer that are being released in their first runs. And Atlas hasn't even gotten their first run of the S2 all out the door yet. That doesn't seam like a shortage to me. Jason
Me either just not much coming out Pre Ordered for the next six months to a year. I don't like that. By the time they come out you've forgotten that you place the order and have a financial surprise with no vendor warning.
I recently purchased one of the Atlas ALCO S-2 locomotives with dcc and sound installed. The dcc with sound versions were out of stock at the online dealer within a day or two of when I ordered mine. New announcement, no, however they are available. I would love for Bachmann to introduce a 2-8-0 with dcc and sound based primarily on the Spectrum 2-8-0 which came out before dc/dcc became standard for them in n-scale steam. IMHO bigger is not better. Many modelers have smaller layouts that do not accommodate the 2-8-8-4 or similar larger locomotives.
Bachmann needs to announce the PRR K4 already. They tend to clone most of their steam from HO but not this one?
A K4 would be nice. There are still a lot of old AHM, Atlas, Lima, Model Power, Riva Rossi, etc. heavyweight passenger cars out there. A lot of them painted and lettered for PRR. I often see them in garage sales and flea markets for as low as $2.00 each. Although made back in the early days of N scale they are not bad detail wise and could make a nice consist for a pre-war passenger train. As for the argument that it is a one RR engine I think that argument is no longer viable given the success of other 'one RR locomotives' such as the B&O EM-1. Hopefully Bachmann will do it.
MT and Wheels of Time both are doing horse cars, MT's being a 70' Espee car which was quite common on a lot of roads, while the Wheels car is 80' and rather rare. And lets not forget, MT is working to bring out a single window coach as well... I just hope that they can get the ejection problem with the car wanting to stick in the molds properly repaired so the models can finally be brought to market.
The "one RR argument" has always been bunk when applied to very well known prototypes. Big Boys have sold for as long as anyone's been making them; so have Dreyfuss Hudsons, GS4s, and N&W Js. Evidently, the same holds true for MILW As and FEF-3s... and all of the above are single-road locomotives. Some with single-digit production numbers. The notion that a K4s wouldn't sell because it's a fairly road-specific engine is doubly ridiculous because second-hand Minitrix engines and Precision Scale brass engines sell just fine, often for quite a bit more than original retail, even though both tend to require a significant amount of work before they'll even run. Heck, let someone release a K4s kit. Cut down on the labor cost, get 'em to market quicker, win-win! I'm already used to having to put them back together; I'd love for someone to save me the step of taking them apart first!
Well... I feel there have been a few new announcements over the past couple of months... the Arnold U28C and SW-1. But... I guess we are expecting more than that. I agree that one of our current problems is that models announced 2 to 4 years ago are still not delivered. Some models from Kato have vanished... notably... the NW-2. Perhaps due to the Bachmann NW-2??? No new announcements of Alco S4, GE 44T or 70T from Bachmann; and, no new steam engines announcement from anyone since the FEF by Kato. Have the BLI models become the latest 'vaporware' victims??? Are their Baldwin Centipedes going to show up as Moths???
I think BLI was the original case of vaporware. Some people are still waiting for the M1s which were announced something like 7 years ago.
