I applaud the effort behind AM, PRS, DPH and SHS products. Each manufacturer advanced S scale in leaps and bounds at the time their respective items were unveiled.
However, their primary target customer was (and probably still is) the hi-rail and/or RTR folks. I'm not catering "to the masses". My products are kits, not RTR and never will be RTR. My kits cater to the SCALE modeler/builder, not the hi-railer or RTR customer. There is NOTHING wrong with either customer preference; the fact is, I buy mostly RTR HO stuff because of the quality and time-saving aspects. I also buy HO kits (in case you don't see the connection, I have not modeled in S scale for many years). Anyone comparing my products to previously offered RTR items, regardless of the manufacturer, is comparing apples to oranges and clearly doesn't recognize the vast differences between my hand-cast products and mass-produced products. The advantages of using flexible rubber molds allow me to produce castings that cannot be produced by injection molding, which is the process used by all RTR suppliers. Case in point: the B&O M53 wagontop box underframe. It is physically impossible to produce that complicated, sliding underframe in 1 piece from an injection mold because of all the trapped Z-shapes and undercuts. The trade-off to getting such detail is a higher-priced kit (or a very expensive brass model that uses lost wax castings). I suggested producing the SR gon simply because (1) it's never been offered in S and (2) HO CAD files already exist. If you don't want it, fine, don't reserve it. If I reach the 50-kit minimum, it will be produced regardless of how many naysayers voice their objection. Trying to torpedo this or any other potential kit because it's not the car you want, or it's too "similar" to a previously offered item (made using at LEAST twenty five year old technology), or it won't be designed to readily accept hi-rail trucks and/or couplers are rooted from the same, old thought processes that continue to divide S into hi-rail and scale camps. If the car doesn't suit your interests, simply pass on by. No harm, no foul. However, getting in your 2 cents worth of negativity is not healthy for S scale's growth. If you sense frustration in my words, congratulations, you now understand my position as a manufacturer. Jim King Smoky Mountain Model Works, Inc. Ph. (828) 777-5619 <www.smokymountainmodelworks.com>
