--- In [email protected], "ctxmf74" <ctxm@...> wrote:
>
>
>
> --- In [email protected], Peter Vanvliet <groups@> wrote:
> > "M.T.H. Electric Trains has announced the remaining Norfolk Southern
> > Heritage Series diesel locomotives that will make up the entire NS
> > Heritage Series roster announced in the 2012 Volume 2 catalog last
> > April. As originally detailed in April, M.T.H. will be promoting three
> > series of locomotives based on the Norfolk Southern Heritage Series of
> > real-life SD70ACe and ES44 diesel locomotives.
>
> The fact that they are promoting these vanity schemes makes me think they
> don't understand the scale model railroad market as well as they do the toy
> train /collector market.
> Scale modelers want to model the typical, not the unique. If NS has a 100
> diesels in plain black for every 1 loco in heritage scheme the modern NS
> scale modeler is not gonna run out and buy a heritage loco. and the beauty of
> model railroading is we can pick our own year to model so an SP guy can model
> 1995 and pretend UP never existed so they are never gonna buy a heritage
> scheme. So although they will sell some they should not make any decisions on
> the viability of S scale modeling sales potential from the results.
> ....DaveBranum
>
You make it sound like MTH and Lionel are ONLY going to offer the "vanity"
schemes.
The NS Heritage is the buzz right now and will be for a while. Even the UP
Heritage units still create buzz when they appear.
I think MTH understands the scale market, all you have to do is look at the HO
line. A pretty wide selection of steam and diesel locomotives, plus passenger
cars that are railroad specific. If MTH follows the HO pattern, who know, we
may even see a scale lenght, accurate Empire State Express or Super Chief in S.
About the only thing I would say is tepid in MTH HO is the selection of freight
cars. By aquiring SHS, they're off to a good start with freight cars in S.
Also, MTH met resistance early on in HO when only DCS was going to be offered.
After meeting that resistance, MTH worked on making the changes necessary to be
DCC compatible. There is even the occasional straght DC version of some
locomotives.
As for Lionel, I'll grant the scale market is uncharted waters for them. Over
the decades, Lionel never could make a go of it in HO.
Other than scale proportioned equipment in O, they make NO attempt for fixed
pilots, Kadee compatibility or scale wheels. They've at least made a start by
offering scale wheels and Kadee mounting pads on some of the new scale-oriented
Flyer. Even the Challenger included Kadee mounting pads... Who knows, we may
even see scale-wheeled steam out of them yet.
I'm willing to give Lionel the chance to adapt their thinking for the scale
market. But S Scale is still a minority of a minority.
There is one other thing to remember, both Lionel and MTH have the pockets to
market S to the masses AND get it into the retailers, much more so than AM, the
former SHS and SSA ever could hope.
Rich G(ajnak)
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