Peco Code 55 Availability...

[ljudice]

Anyone else having trouble getting Peco code 55 orders (for flextrack) fulfilled???

[oakcreekco]

How many pieces are you looking for?  I "overbought" a little for my layout and have some stashed away.

[ljudice]

Thanks for the offer! I've got some stashed too - from before I switched to Atlas - and then back!!!

I'm actually looking into asking BLW to send me concrete now, since I can use it on at least 2/3 of the railroad - probably about 90 pieces in all... 

Lou

[oakcreekco]

No problem Lou.

[GaryHinshaw]

Lou - I see from the Trading Post that you're switching prototypes.  Are you going Euro?

[ljudice]

Gary, yep for the layout I'm building now - I couldn't resist, since everything to properly model the OBB/Austrian railways is available or coming soon. There is also a window of opportunity to pick up fleets of Roco stuff very inexpensively before they are absorbed into Fleischmann and the prices are tripled. Also, it has become a lot easier to get stuff cheaply from Europe via Ebay now that everyone takes Paypal.

Although there are a lot of issues involved in doing this (what to do with catenary, language barriers, the stupid couplers), there are also advantages - shorter prototypical trains, high intensity, mountain railroading.

It doesn't mean I'm planning to have arugula salads for lunch every day though, and I definitely will continue collecting interesting US stuff..

In eight years (when the kids are out of school) it's likely we're outta New Jersey (taxes), so it will be time to build something completely different again....

Lou

[GaryHinshaw]

See, now I'd have chosen European food and American trains, but that's just me.    (To me, European freight trains look like G scale models.)

But don't let my ribbing stop you.  I hope you'll post progress shots, and steer clear of that WS roadbed this time around!

Best,
Gary

[ljudice]

Gary, I've got a mountain of cork sitting here and a glass of bordeaux...

Lou

[Walkercolt]

Straight story from a Trans-Atlantic phone call to Peco by the boss and TV star. Peco simply can't keep up with the demand for their products. They make 20,000 turnouts and have orders arrive for 30,000, so they "allocate". "Prichard Patent Products Co." is a very small operation, and they offer many things. They have no place to "grow" where they are, and moving isn't a viable option for them, a very common thing in England. They're in an old, rather run-down section of small shops, but it's affordable. I gathered that thier equiptment might not survive a move(been there, trying to move 1946 era photo-lab equiptment to the "new bigger, nicer location".) So Peco "doles" things out to various US vendors. Life isn't fair. I wonder if Atlas or Micro-Trains could survive a move. It's never nearly as easy as it looks at first.

[GaryHinshaw]

I've got a mountain of cork sitting here and a glass of bordeaux...

Now you're talkin'!  Of course I hope you mean a mountain of cork roadbed, not bottle corks...

[ljudice]

Walkercolt: That makes sense... It's still first rate stuff though. Atlas is a first rate company too, and their track is a marvel, but my fumblefingered glueing and soldering skills made it too much of a headache.

Gary: Both!!! 

[Ryan87]

I wonder if Atlas or Micro-Trains could survive a move.

Considering they both have, I'd say yes... However I would think their situation is different the Peco's...