Price increase? I’ve seen a few. I think that the first issue I purchased was $.50. Every issue doesn’t bole me over, but every issue keeps me entertained for several days. Besides, years later I’ll be going back and looking at forgoten articles again. Great research meterial too. Keep up the good work, Gang.
$6.95 Cdn + 14.5% BC taxes in Dec 2003
$8.95 Cdn + 14.5% BC taxes in Jan 2004
I don’t like such a jump in cost, but I was hoping / expecting that the Febr 2004 etc would be typically less (perhaps $7.45 Cdn ???).
I’d prefer to subscribe to Model Railroader Magazine, however …
- I can not call TOLL FREE (?) to MRR from Canada to get a final cost or special offer.
- The current subscription offers don’t give me ENOUGH INCENTIVE – no more savings than the cost of one issue over the year (and that doesn’t cover the cost of the necessary USD money order, or the purchase points / discounts that I’d receive independantly from the store … basically, it costs me equal or less to purchase MRR at the store than a subscription would cost me. However,
- if MRR was available at a subscription savings rate, via a personal cheque from Canada in Cdn dollars (simply suggesting a Cdn mailing address /box number for Subscriptions only, and a North American toll free number), it would be convenient / convincing for me to send a cheque out for a FIVE (5) YEAR SUBSCRIPTION.
Happy New Year 2004, and Happy MRR reading… I thoroughly enjoy MRR mag.
I subscribe to computer magazines that cost $1.00 to $1.50 when subscribed to, but on any news stand cost around $8.00. Same for most other magazines also. MR is not the cheapest, but have you checked paper, ink, and other costs of doing business?
Expand your thinking a bit and tell me what has not had substantial increases lately. A never ending cycle. I haven’t heard that wages have gone up.
What about medical care?
I will stick with Model Railroader though. [:)]
I found a great way to buy my issues of Model Railroader, Railroad Model Craftsman, Railfan & Railroad and other railroad magazines at model railroad flea markets and at hobby shops for much less than what Carstens and Kalmbach Publishing want for their magazines. This past november i bought 6 issues of Model Railroader and Railfan & Railroad for a total of $3.27 at Central Tennessee Hobbies in Cookeville, Tennessee. All 6 magazines were in mint condition. i also bought 6 issues of Model Railroader, Railfan & Railroad, and Trains at the Wilmington Railroad Museum in Wilmington, North Carolina on December 8, 2003 for a total of $2.00, and all also in mint condition. I am sorry but i will not be buying issues of Model Railroader at the full price anymore as they usually do not have much of anything of interest anymore. It would be nice to see them do articles on prototype shortlines, smaller layouts and more coverage on lesser known smaller lines. i mean haven’t we all seen enough on UP, Pennsy, D&RGW, and other big railroads?
thanks Michael for the clarification,
Mr krump…While I don’t find MR the value it used to be, [ mainly due to content and editorial capability ], I think it’s only fair to report the TRUTH about Canadian subscription cost…which is not what you have stated.
First of all, the toll-free number 1-800-533-6644 on my subscription renewal card ALWAYS WORKS JUST FINE from Ontario, and I always get to speak with a friendly lady who courteously takes my renewal information. Every year.The card plainly states the number is good in both the USA & Canada…just observe the Central time zone hours.
Second of all…I provide a credit card number for billing, so I have no money order cost.
In fact, I get 1% of my subscription cost BACK as Canadian Tire money, due to having an affinity card.
Thirdly, the cost is definitely lower than buying across-the-counter. My renewal for one year was USD$47.50, plus the GMR I always add on, for USD$8.00,for a total of USD$55.50 NET, and that came to C$79.34 at the 1.43 exchange rate I was charged on Sept
Ohoh it’s East picking on West
Well I have you know I have a completely “free” discussion forum as part of my hobby site.
There isn’t an ad in sight, despite us also being in the business as a manufacturer www.easternmountainmodels.com
And by the middle of the year we’ll be using phpBB which will offer even more features. For now we use a Canadian host (Bravenet). So don’t give me the super-generosity bit, I know how the game works!
As to the Canadians whining about Canuck cheques to a Canuck address. Wellllllll why not, after all Kalmbach manages to collect the GST for the Feds, has a mail depot in Windsor etc. etc.
Besides I know that the Yanks are no happier to pay Can$ to a Can address than vice a versa.
Happy New Year to everyone.
Curious - What, in your opinion, has brought the quality down and what is brining it up? I know you can’t please all of the people all of the time but what would make it a better magazine?
I thought the Jan issue was worth the extra. As far as the ads go,I read the mag cover to cover including the ads. In fact I actually like looking through the ads. Compared to the rest of the MR mags out there its still the best. I’ve found that even though I’m not interested in a certain article there is usually something I can use in it, if not now somewhere down the pike. Why are so many people ragging on Koester? I’ve nver met the guy but I like his articles and respect what he’s done.
Well,
I’d never rag on Tony Koester, matter of fact his column is one of the first things I read. I met him once, he’s a very nice guy!
Now when it comes to “ragging” how about Malcom Furlow? In our circle of Canadian Operating Groups we generally referred to him as “The King of Schmalz”.
Well judging by his latest efforts that is still an apt title. What is a bit galling is his LS caricature being used as a (typical??)sample of Large Scale. Yep, sure guys!
To the guys who don’t subscribe and don’t buy the magazine, but instead read it in the library: What a great idea! If everyone did that there wouldn’t be ANY model magazines. And by the way, who do you think pays for this website and set up these forums?
As to the number of ads: Sure, there are a lot. But you know what? I enjoy reading them, which is way different than the other magazines I read where I hardly glance at the advertisements.
Someone else said that we have an expensive hobby, and that can certainly be true. But again, the hobby shop owners I know don’t seem to be getting rich. And I also have the impression that the people who work for MR, RMC, and the other model magazines could make a lot more money doing a similar job in Time, or Newsweek, or any of the other glossy expensive magazines you see in your local book store. And while you’re at it, next time you’re in a book store check out the prices of some of the other magazines. They’re not cheap.
Don, [;)]
Tell you what, I’m worse than that. [}:)][}:)] I actually look at the mag at our discount store, decide if it’s worthwhile for my wife to bring it home from the library for me to read.
And as for the website and forums… they are paid for out of general revenue at Kalmbach Publishing (I would think), any way you look at it it’s very good advertising for the Kalmbach mags and all those ads by Google in the sidebar bring in revenue to off set expenses, as do all those fine things listed under “Shopping” in the nav bar.
BTW some of us still subscribe to model railway mags; we have just become much more selective as to which print products we spend money on. How one rationalizes that is a matter of priorities.
I subscribe to a mag out of Switzerland which offers a very nice mix of proto and model. Being as I model Swiss proto that’s more important to me. I believe on this continent we call that getting the most bang for the buck, eh!?
HJ : Yes, you sure do know how the game works…you know how to get a free advertising plug for your business and website, on someone else’s forum , that does not have a provision for buy-sell posts.
I guess the Game works really well on a holiday.
BTW, stop pretending our Canadian currency has any significance whatsoever in international transactions of any amount whatsoever…it hasn’t…and to pretend it has, is just more whining.
Welcome to 2004,
Mike.
Mike,
Yes Sir, I know how the game works, if you have a problem with that you can always send me an email.
As for the currency, going by your comment I would guess that you have never been in the business of exporting and importing. I guess when you talk to your friendly hobbyshop owner and he complains about those conditions he is just one more of the “whiners”, eh!?
Your guess is not very good. Actually, I recently retired after 37 years with a Canadian manufacturer of mining equipment, the last 25 years as manager. ( You know, there are ALWAYS people around who know things, including some on this forum.)
Anyway, our sales reached a modest USD$30 million by 1999…with, 85% of these sales to export markets, on six continents, and every nickel of our export sales was in $USD.
Our labor & overhead costs were naturally in CDN$. About 50% of our material costs were offshore, mainly in Yen. The other 50% material costs were split fairly evenly between USA and Canadian.
About half the major Canadian suppliers required payment in US Dollars by 1999.
A trend hard to ignore.
BTW, our selling prices were, and are, driven 100% by the competition, not by any other issues.How to make a buck on those sales, regardless of outside factors, was why they employed people like me.
It was, and is, extremely difficult to juggle ever-changing exchange factors in any business…but to pretend the Canadian dollar is anything at all doesn’t help. Perhaps it’s not whining…perhaps it’s just naive. The US dollar, the Euro, and the Yen are the current valuation currencies for goods & services…the Remnibi will soon be a factor.
On the world stage, the Canadian dollar will never be anything but an annoyance, and an excuse for the banks to rip us off for a point or two every time we have to effect a currency change.
BUT…I hope you have success in business in 2004, and beyond.
I wish you were busier today, in fact.[;)]
Mike[:D]
Oh yes…my ‘local retailers’ of all products, n
(Start of rant)
Hells Bells! What a lot of whining. It only went up for one issue, then back to normal. If you want to avoid such pricing blips, subscribe!. Oh, but I forgot: according to so many of the posts there’s only about ten pages of articles and the rest is ads. Or repeats of layouts you’ve seen before etc. etc. If MR is so bad, go read some of the others around and stop filling the forums with ridiculaous gripes. You know most of you are exagerrating. Sure there are a lot of ads, buts ALL magazines have a lot of ads. That’s part of the price of admission. Or would you rather pay $10-15 per issue?
Just be grateful that there’s a great mag like MR available to the hobby.
(End of Rant)
Keep it up, all you folks at MR. You do a great job. I’m not a fan of some of the cosmetic changes recently, and moving things around, but at least all the content I love is there, so I’ll get used to the changes.
Ron Ventura