Intermountain is Cancelling Reading F7's and more

[RDG_Rich]

Bryan,

I knew about the RS, and the NE from Lifelike. I actually have a Reading LL NE (Bev Bel maybe?) and one that I stripped that needs repainted. I just wish that more modern tooling (those new Athearn Conrail jobs are sweet) I guess I'm just being picky, or lazy. I do get a little jealous that other roads seem to get more love. I don't get tons and tons of modeling time, and since I have a LOT of work to do on a simple HCD layout, It's a time versus money thing. It would be much easier to spend 70 bucks on a model I could run tomorrow, rather than the 50 bucks I spend on a model that I have to paint, (and possibly repaint)

It can be done, and I feel that I am capable of doing it, but I guess getting back on topic, I don't think retracting previous announcements is good business. Heck...I'm still waitin on that ten wheeler and Russian Decapod from Bmann.... :

[bbussey]

Rich,

I don't think canceling a project due to insufficient reservations is a retraction.  It's not as if InterMountain is the first manufacturer that has done this.  Regarding the roads that always "get the love," there are only a handful that fall into that category.  BN, BNSF, ATSF, PRR, UP for starters.  Modelers of everything else are always scrambling at one point or another, and for some roads more than others.  There's been a lot of Reading done over the years for example, but not so much Atlanta & West Point.  It always seems that some other road is always being better represented, unless you model UP perhaps.

Someone will do a start-of-the-art Northeastern caboose someday.  The problem with cabooses is that they don't sell as well as other cars.  By default, they are purchased by modelers of the road they are decorated for, as opposed to a freight car that can travel off-road.  Atlas did the NE6 (I'm still stunned they tooled it) for its high-end model, and the C&O caboose for a better quality Trainman model than the decades old ATSF-style caboose.  Athearn has only the SP bay window I think; Bowser has all the PRR cabin cars but they put a ton of fantasy roads on them; MTL has the SP wood caboose and the new bay window, and the steel cupola in N, and the Northeastern in Z.  Kato has that shorty thing.  I think that leaves InterMountain as the only major without a caboose, but as noted up-thread they lean toward western prototypes.  One of the smaller manufacturers could do it, but it would be tough to get a timely return on caboose tooling,  Down the road, maybe.

My money would be on Atlas doing it, even with a number of cabooses already in the stable, as the car is from their region and - just as InterMountain leans slightly west - Atlas has a northeast leaning.

[chessie system fan]

I think that leaves InterMountain as the only major without a caboose, but as noted up-thread they lean toward western prototypes. 

You're forgetting the Centralia CA-4 cabs and the new SF cabs.

I'd love to see a new Northeastern cab, but just about every road made them slightly differently so that would be quite a few body's to tool up if it were done properly.

[Chulvis]

I think that leaves InterMountain as the only major without a caboose, but as noted up-thread they lean toward western prototypes. 

You're forgetting the Centralia CA-4 cabs and the new SF cabs.

I'd love to see a new Northeastern cab, but just about every road made them slightly differently so that would be quite a few body's to tool up if it were done properly.

Not 100% sure of this but I don't think Centralia Car Shops is an InterMountain product. I think it's a product they distribute as they do Red Caboose and others. I think Centralia Car Shops is a Des Plaines Hobbies product.

[C855B]

Not 100% sure of this but I don't think Centralia Car Shops is an InterMountain product. I think it's a product they distribute as they do Red Caboose and others. I think Centralia Car Shops is a Des Plaines Hobbies product.

I understood the same - Centralia/Des Plaines product, with IM their primary (maybe only?) distributor.

[Nato]

  I'am sure glad I ordered my C & E I (Chicago and Eastern Illinois) FP-7 when I did. They actually manufactured this locomotive in the atractive blue and orange scheme. Yes this is a very obscure road,no one will ever do the passenger cars and the decals do not exist,but what the hey! A few roads on the canceled list do seem strange,Milwaukee Road UP scheme FP-7's they are a fairly popular road,Soo Line Red and White another well known scheme that you would think might sell well. Only a true passenger train fanzee like me would want the National of Mexico Units or the cancled 13 bedroom sleeper, but I have some old Trix F units painted and decalled in this scheme also a N DE M yellow caboose. Maybe it is a good thing they are not doing FP-9's (at least not yet) as I want some 1953 scheme CN ones to pull some Rapido cars,but with Rapido doing them in HO maybe there is hope fo Rapido N Scale ones. With so many F units out there on the market I do not think Atlas will ever do them again,rember their Roco F-9 A unit of the earl 1970's with it's ugly ovrersize front number boards.                                                      Nate Goodman (Nato). Salt Lake, Utah.

[Brakie]

Guys,Looking beyond the "poor economy" excuse(doesn't seem to slow down Athearn,Atlas or MT with their monthly announcements) its more down to earth good business..Why produce something that won't sell? Would you want to tie your production dollars up in items that didn't  recieve that much interest or use that money for a new product or road names that will sell? I know what my answer is and I never took a business course.

IM has a lot of future releases planned.

[TiVoPrince]

Choosing
a road is a mater of love, not a decsion based on a cold and rational examination of available products.  Many of us have re-examined our initial choice of roadname or era once we are deep into the hobby.  Certainly much better in the eBay epoch as we can more easily recycle our uninformed choices. 

Similarly, if we wanted to follow 'the herd' there would only be HOscale available and practically everything railroad related would have been made by now...

[AlkemScaleModels]

  I'am sure glad I ordered my C & E I (Chicago and Eastern Illinois) FP-7 when I did. T

The Atlas Magor caboose was also used by the CE&I. I have the artwork somewhere, and I believe I provided it to Paul a few years back.

[Erik W]

Choosing
a road is a mater of love, not a decsion based on a cold and rational examination of available products. 

I agree with this.  When selecting a road name, assuming you don't mind rolling stock/ locomotive painting and decaling, it's more important that you can find decals for your road of choice.  There's always ways to kit bash and scratchbuild what you need.  Some of the non-D&RGW roads that appeal to me, do so because they would require more modeling on my part but the finished product (layout) would be unusual and unique.

Erik

[Mark5]

Bryan,

I knew about the RS, and the NE from Lifelike. I actually have a Reading LL NE (Bev Bel maybe?) and one that I stripped that needs repainted. I just wish that more modern tooling (those new Athearn Conrail jobs are sweet) I guess I'm just being picky, or lazy. I do get a little jealous that other roads seem to get more love.

Perspective, tons of roads don't have any correct cabooses in N scale. N&W for one. Oh wait, the LL can be used for the 1964 merger inherited P&WV cabs, and the primitive ATSF cabs closely resemble a certain ex-Wabash class.

But nuttin for "real" N&W cabooses (the Atlas std International cab is close to the C31).

Point is most of us have similar challenges in the caboose arena (even NS still uses cabooses).

Mark

[Mark5]

Choosing
a road is a mater of love, not a decsion based on a cold and rational examination of available products. 

Nothing rational about modeling N&W! There was never any doubt about what railroad to model for me - it was interacting with the railroad that made me want to recreate it in miniature.

Mark

[Mark5]

Guys,Looking beyond the "poor economy" excuse(doesn't seem to slow down Athearn,Atlas or MT with their monthly announcements) its more down to earth good business..Why produce something that won't sell? Would you want to tie your production dollars up in items that didn't  recieve that much interest or use that money for a new product or road names that will sell? I know what my answer is and I never took a business course.

IM has a lot of future releases planned.

Bullshit meter rising! No duh no manufacturer would want to produce something that won't sell. So why announce stuff then cancel half of it? This is a MASS CANCELLATION. This is not "business as usual" for IM.

The "lack of interest" excuse is more likely a front to cover the real reason for this (whatever it is). Of course this is only a guess (all of our posts are!).

Oh wait, everythings cool, I hope all manufacturers behave this way going forward. ;D

Mark

[CBQ Fan]

While I am disappointed to see cancellations of anything I am not surprised by it.  Most of the roads are geographically smaller than the western roads so it would seem they would have a smaller following.  It does not mean they will never happen.  At least they are open to many of the smaller roads, but at the end of the day they still need to sell enough to make money.  The Milwaukee Road in UP colors does surprise me more than anything.  And while it may seem biased I was surprised not to see a CB&Q FT in the mix with the GN and NP.  I may have to reserve the NP, too many GN F units running around my layout already.

[sirenwerks]

That practice is a thing of the past gentlemen.  Manufacturers can't afford to lay out that type of investment without having some promise of getting it back, and the hobby shops even more so.  The margins are too short, manufacturing and warehouse/inventory costs too high, etcetera.  That's the way it will stay moving forward, and it may get to the point where the quantity manufactured matches exactly the amount reserved.  Currently, a small cushion is built in for those who are late getting reservations in or just missed the boat initially.  But it's a safer bet to manufacture exactly was was reserved and re-run the product in the future if the demand warrants it.

The last sentence I will agree with, perfect business sense. The rest I respectfully disagree with, in fact, take as insult, as flagrant excuse for poor marketing. Contrary to popular belief, marketing includes product development. Make a product the consumer wants - body style, paint schemes, detail level, etc. - and it serves to sell itself.

The primary method for doing so is consumer research and feedback PRIOR to product choice, which I propose is blatantly absent from many manufacturers' business plan. Instead, they rely on small cliques to verify their decisions or simply try to ram a product down the throat of modelers. Walthers structure line is a great case in point, rather than provide more and larger N scale industries as many clamor for, we get shacks and one car industries that disappear into our scenery.

When I mentioned an old boys network in another thread, I was referring to what some manufacturers utilize as 'market research', they ask those closest to them. What can you expect from such a query? Exactly what you want to hear, as you're querying like minds or those who wish to remain entrusted to you. In Walthers case, I imagine the employees sitting around, most of them HO modelers, and deciding the future N scale offerings as an oh-we-forgot-the-last-item-on-the-agenda two second decision as they walk out the meeting room door, laughing. N scalers be damned.

'REAL marketing research is expensive' would be the normal rebuttal to using it, making it out of the reach of smaller manufacturers. Yet, if designed well and using some creativity to garner input, it's not all that expensive in the internet age. With the number of forums, MRR clubs, historical societies, etc. with online presence, it's not too difficult to cast as narrow, in the case of a road specific product, or as broad, in the case of a popular loco, a band of input as one needs. And let's not forget consumer access at shows, broad hobby shows, MRR-specific shows, swap meets, road-specific meets, etc. There's also the NMRA membership and LHS partnership that could be developed. Inexpensive online survey services such as Survey Monkey and in-person feedback are low cost. I know. I have performed such query development and push marketing solicitation. Not for MRR manufacturers, but for nonprofits, which are very cost-conscious, as in $0 project budget cost-conscious. Is this approach exact science like the big marketing firms produce? No, but a better alternative to wishful thinking product choice.

You want my money? Make the products I want. Don't make something I don't want, have it fall on its face, and then blame the N scale market for not supporting manufacturers. Being a for-profit business owner requires personal risk. That's the nature of the business. This leaves the producer with a decision, make the products THEY want and hope for/find a market to buy it, or make the products more people want. Given the poor means with which manufacturers announce future products - including limited reach of announcements (ads in mags have very limited reach these days, especially poorly designed ones) and lack of information to the consumer (such as poor quality photos) - and the uncertainty of some manufacturers - due to newness of a company or just plain lousy service in the past by some - taking a JIT approach to product release is a dangerous plan of action, IMO. Consumers dislike uncertainty just as much as manufacturers, perhaps more so, and there are more of us.

And there's one lesson all businesses should learn - the customer's always right. An unhappy customer, even one who has never purchased from you but has considered it or had dealings with you but has been dismissed, is a very poor choice of enemies to make, as they are more likely to speak openly and ill of your company and product, much more likely than a happy customer is to recommend you. So by saying my way of thinking, and the way of others as they have supported my statement (not to mention the countless others who feel similarly but choose not to voice their opinion), is wrong, is a sour note to toot.