I posted “The Direction of the Hobby” a while back. I expressed concern over the RTR vs Kit question. During that time, I emailed Athearn, MDC, Walthers and Intermountain. Both MDC and Athearn came back to me and stated that they were not going to stop producing kits. Walthers and Intermountain did not respond. Yes, this was before the Horizon deal! I have always found both Athearn and MDC to be good at corrisponding. If your really concerned, ask them about this!
This alleged bad news from Athearn is exactly opposite to the official press release from Horizon Hobbies. Horizon claims that Athearn will remain in Compton, California under the previous management and that no changes in the Athearn product line will be made. News to the contrary seems to be generated by hobby shop owners in an attempt to panic people into buying all of their Athearn products. You can read Horizon Hobbies’ news release at Tony’s Train Exchange (http://www.ttx-dcc.com)
$60 Canadian is worth roughly 38 dollars us.
There is a run on Athearn products on now. I just finished buying 40’ box cars for my grain section. I have been very lucky to date.
Now, I had a heart talk with my LHS< and it is said that those after March the 1st who fail to participate in Horizions’s distribution system will not carry these products.
The second fact is this, there will always be a “Blue Box” style kits and possibly others in the near future. Why??
Hobby Shops collect orders and requests. Distributions send them to the Manufacter. The Manufacter waits until there are enough orders to do a production run. Once the item shows up in the stores it’s gone. No manufacter wants to make the full line 24/7 because of money reasons anymore.
Train Shows will probably be the last bastions in the near future as people seek products that are out of stock, back ordered etc etc. The first people into the gate will have the product period.
Later this year when things calm down it is my fervant prayer that everyone can find what they are looking for without the scares, rumors etc.
Dougal, visiting 4 hobby shops an hour away looking for something out of stock is a tragety. It would have made life a little easier to call ahead and ask specifically for the product.
I myself have faced the road name problem. For many years I have done without because the item is out of production by time I found out. No more.
I choose to buy the specific engine, research the decals, paint and railroad’s need for this engine and get it out of the hobby shop regardless of the roadname or color. Then the big strip job followed by a bath then a dry usually yielded a surface ready to be lettered and decaled in the road name I desire.
I encourage you to keep in the hobby, I remeber the times other maufacters such as “VARNEY” and “Train Minature” went out of business followed by the similar hysteria from those who
Actually, we were going grocery shopping, and our area is rich with hobby shops anyway. As I was saying before, I won a powered and dummy engine from Ebay, and the guy who was selling it seemed to be nice. I’ll let you know when I got the engine. When I developed my roster, I had no idea Athearn would get sold so the mainstay of my fleet was to be SD40-2s and SD50s, even earlier we wanted Tunnelmotors and not a single hobby shop sold them. I fact, I checked the Internet, and I could not find a single one.
I maybe going out to buy more Athearn but only if it’s at fair market price. If Athearn goes, there’s still Roundhouse, Atlas and a few others.
RELAX!!![:D]
From another forum group I subscribe to, a level headed hobbyshop owner relayed the following info: He has spent a great deal of time talking to Horizon and has found that Horizon is NOT going to be running Athearn, only distributing. Athearn will still have a free hand to build what they want to build, and to develop new products. (I doubt they will be dropping SD40-2’s, especially after upgrading the drives.) Looking at past Horizon purchases (RC models) prices for items produced have stayed the same, and in some cases decreased after Horizon took over.
Things might be a little bumpy at 1st, but a year from now, I doubt any of this will matter.
Thanks for the info!
After reading Highirons editorial I will say he makes some excellent points that should be heeded by all. As for kbsfme’s comments he is right about the relax part, however it’s that word he uses, the infamous “D” word, no I don’t mean [D)] I’m talking about the distributor. Just another level in the food chain that eats up our money [oX)]
WHY DOES FLEX-TRAK COST $4.85 at the LHS? And don’t tell me it’s the LHS’s making money hand over fist.[:(!]
Now you are scaring me! [:0] I can remember nickle silver flex track at .99 cents !
<insert "old geezer"emotiocon with long white beard here!>
This is pretty much what the guy in my LHS told me last time I was in there - whether it’s true or not I don’t know. Have to hope that Athearn do continue with the blue box kits, as they’re a superb way of encouraging new modellers - they look good, run well, don’t cost megabucks, and only need a little careful work in fitting and painting handrails to complete. Luckily, I’m only short of two or three more Athearn locos to complete the lash-ups I have - need a powered SD40-2, probably in BN livery, and something to run with an SP U33C - maybe an SD40T-2 if I can find one!
The other thing I was told by my LHS is that the dummy locos are to be discontinued. if so, this is a great shame - they were very handy for people operating cab units (F7s, C-Liners, etc) as they could be used to allow the loco to reverse when operating on an end-to-end layout. I’ve tried using two powered locos but they tend to become detached over the uncoupling magnets!
I thought this was bad news a couple days ago, but upon further reflection, there may be a silver lining in this cloud.
If it is true that Horizon only sells to honest-to-goodness, retail-storefront hobby shops, then the guys working out of their garage or basement with a lap top and a phone line will not be getting Athearn products anymore. The people who have been buying deeply-discounted Athearn from the garage types, or at the swap meets, will have to start getting their Athearn products from a real hobby shop.
Of course, the hobby stores have to charge more than the web dealers and mail-order places charge, since running a legitimate retail hobby shop costs way more than setting up a clandestine wholesale buying club for your buddies in your basement. Some people will whine about that, but they will have to grow up.
Bottom line: if you want a hobby shop to be there for you when you need them, and to bring new blood into the hobby, then you should be willing to pay a retail price that allows your hobby shop to stay in business. Buying an expensive loco from an online discounter, and then going to the hobby shop for the couplers, is trying to have your cake and eat it, too. Keeping Athearn products in bona fide retail hobby stores may help the hobby stores survive, which is in every railroad modeler’s best interests, whether he has the foresight to see that or not.
Crewdog,
I appreciate your post about legitimate prices. The man in the basement buying for buddies is no different than say a model railroad club seeking parts or locos etc or a customer looking thru ebay and calling hobbyshops for the item. The internet is a tool of communications and as such, we communicate faster.
Couplers, tools, paints and small items costing a couple dollars add up over the course of the year. I see my budget in the hobby a full 1/3 of it goes for these items. The rest in trains, structures, and scenery. And some of it for books magazines etc.
Frankly I believe a “Good” store will be glad to sell couplers to you. Heck I buy a 20 pack of Kaydee ($19- us) several times a year for my fleet. IF I did not need to buy couplers then that money would be spent on cars, paint etc. The point is, any business is good for the LHS.
As a customer, I have seen cases where I hear and see 'Grumbling" because I bought a 1.50 part for a badly needed engine that has been rotting on the bench for 2 years for want of that part. I pay for the part and say “Thank you!” and not come back becasue of poor treatment.
Good Stores will treat each and every customer as “Somebody” to be welcomed and helped where ever possible by answering questions or digging thru for that one detail part for an hour. Those are the ones that will survive.
I remember having 5 to 8 hobby shops back home in the Mid Atlantic area and several trips a month we would hit em all. Model Railroader back then was the major source of new products information. And Trainshows such as Greenburg’s was a “Forum” for makers of trains to announce and show off the new products. Things moved slower then.
Today you can search the world in a hour or less for specifically the part you want. “Scary”
It has been my experience that hobby shops will discount some items such as engines and pricey cars by a small percentage to give a customer more incentive to buy.
I hope you are right. [|)]
You may be on to something. I recently tried to purchase some Athearn kits from a hobby shop that in the past always had plenty of Athearn in stock. They were unable to fill my order. I couldn’t get any of the kits I wanted, but it seems that they had plenty of
R-T-R available. Could be just a coincidence. Only time will tell.
Jim
A friend of mine tells me this is because Athearn has been more careful about how many units it produces so that there are fewer gluts to benefit the deep discounters.
Well if it does turn out to be true, it will be interesting to see how Terry Thompson will spin it because he publicly stated he thought the buyout was good for the hobby! (And gee, I don’t have a clue why!)
I come from New Zealand
In 1997-98 I bought it GP60 Athearn about nzd 70 was cheap but there no some part of detail thing e.g slowplow etc it is hard to get from USA to New Zealand
From now price went go up so expenise !!! cost around NZD 100-200 !!
sound like rip off price
I was at my LHS this week. He had about 50 Athearn units in stock including about 10 SD40-2’s.
Most are priced around $70 Canadian which is I think about $50 US.
Gordon
I would have to say that it IS your LHS. Both of my LHS sell code 83 flex for $3.00 EA.
It sounds like they are marking it up ABOVE even the Walthers list price. Walthers
list it for $3.75. Sounds like a case of highway robbery. Dave
PS I assume you are refering to Atlas Flex??.
Heres the Canadian Issue:
If the Canadian dollar is valued at $.76 US the $3.00 US translates into $3.95 Canadian. Add shipping and handling and duties it adds up, real quick. If one buys direct from Walthers then we are looking at $4.93 Canadian again before shipping and handling and then the $5.00 customs charge. Then we’re still talking an additional 15% GST (sales tax). I just feel the price for something as simple as flex track is too much. Especially as I see it advertized in bulk for $1.19 US, which translates into $1.57 Cdn. And yes I realize economics of being able to sell cheaper in bulk but I still feel somewhere in the food chain someone is taking more than there fair share and are not willing to cut the smaller LHS’s better deals. If I’m wrong then break the costs down. And far as the LHS’s I deal with in my area. They treat me very well ! And cut me deals when they can.