Last week in answer to another thread I said I usually see old MRs for $1-$2, but this past weekend at a show I saw them for well under a $1.
Not that the used magazine market was real robust. But now with MR, Trains, Classic Trains out or soon to be out on DVD has the used market just died? everywhere?
The show was the Great Scale Train Show in Timonium, MD. But what about other parts of the country?
Personally, I am seriously considering going with the DVD to save space.
Enjoy
Paul
I too was thinking that may happen.
I ordered the CD/DVD set of MR as well, also to save space and get some of those older craftsman issues.
Paul,
I went to the MER Regional Convention last weekend. There as a “pile” of old model railroad magazines that were selling for well under a $1 per issue.[2c]
Most of the shows I go to up here in Ontario Canada the going rate is usually 50 cents a copy and I’ve even seen them for free. I believe that 10 years from now most magazines will become or have a digital option and be emailed to you if your a subscriber. Look at all the newspapers that have become digital, it will be the wave of the future.
I expected the DVDs to further undermine the used magazine market, just as high quality plastic/die cast locomotives have brought down the price of used brass. Only the very high end brass which can’t be easily duplicated in plastic/die cast is holding its own.
The only magazine I have seen holding its resale value are the older issues (pre-1990) of Narrow Gauge & Short Line Gazette.
The MR DVD is on my short list of $100+ model railroading items, awaiting funding.
Fred W
I used to buy any old issues I found that I didn’t already have. No more, I plan on getting the DVD set, and those issues I have that are in worthwhile condition I will have to see if I can donate them somewhere. Certain ones, such as the CTC-16, CTC-16E, and C/MRI issues have been read so many times that the covers are missing and pages falling out - worthwhile only for trash.
–Randy
FWIW: I recently threw away about Nine copy paper sized boxes of MR magazines…Man did it feel good!!! The magazines definitely put a strain on the old station wagons’ shocks on the way to recycling. [:)]
I realized that the space that they took up wasn’t worth the occasional read (most haven’t been looked at in more than a decade). I did save the Gazettes and a few mainline modlers…I do enjoy paper magazines, I’m just not going to hold onto them anymore.
I figure I now have room to move in the train room…
Guy
I am giving my MR’s to the grade school library. Several of the boys there just love reading and seeing the Model Trains in the magazine and this is a good use of the magazines. I used to purchase the MR for ads, but that has long ago been surpassed by the internet. The magazines don’t last long in the library service but two of the boys have layouts available to them at their grand dad’s home and this is a real treat for those kids.
CZ
AS magazines look to capitalize on the “electronic age”, they are coming out with CDs and DVDs of magazines, which combined with HIGH DEF TV’s and computer screens is easy to read "larger than life’ {or not}
There may even be a whole new medium yet to come.
Remember old records? they all went to available tapes and CDs and then to Ipods and MP3 players! So some of us fools have bought the same “albums” or songs many times over to keep up with the times!!! {kinda sounds silly doesn’t it?}. SO it’s another way to generate income for the magazine’s publisher. Now Time Life Music has infomercials on all subjects of consolidated music genres.
It also IS a big space saver to have it compacted in one place.
So, who wants old magazines to lie around {especially ones that have taken on a musty smell} when a brandy-new DVD is available?
Just a sign of the times!
{think of all those people who bought a model T Ford when he charged $800 for one and then 2 or 3 years later was able to sell them to “everyone” for just $400!!! they must have [banghead]}
[8-|]
Old MR and RMC magazines sell at swap meets around here for about $5 for a full year, if they sell at all. Prototype Modeler, Mainline, and NG&SLG bring more. Model Railroading and Railmodel Journal are hard to move.
Sell use magazines??? Are we that desperate or money hungry?
Give 'em away to a noob so that they can learn the hobby.
Is the market crashing? Was there ever a market for OLD magazines at high prices? As has been mentioned, at our local shows some guys have a hard time getting rid of full years’ worth for a few bucks. The older the magazine doesn’t mean it might be worth more, technology and more recent building methods often make old items out of date.
I’ve disposed of most of my earlier MR and RMC, going back to around 1970. I just no longer referred to them, and they were taking up space that could be better used for other things. I did go though each one before I got rid of it, and cut out articles that might be of interest. I was quite surprised that there weren’t actually that many that I did want to keep. The magazines went to the recycling bin, as I had no desire to haul around heavy boxes to our local shows.
The idea of having MR and others on a DVD may seem to be a great idea, but as I said above, most of the old material is of little use these days. Probably the prototype photos and plans would be the most useful in theory, but not at $200.00 for me.
The times they are achangin fast.Anyone can be an author or photographer today. I think it is wonderful !
I have to agree with what some others have said. There was never a market for used Magazines.
At any train show I’ve been at in my 36 years of life, MRs and the like always sold under a dollar an issue.
Why would anyone pay more for a used magazine?
In general I’d agree with you. But I did pay $6 for a used magazine once. Why? Because I’m crazy? No, it was a copy of a magazine called RailsNortheast and that particular issue happened to have photos and car number ranges for just about every class of caboose Conrail had. Since I happen to have a particular interest in that topic, I considered the $6 well spent.
At one time there was a high (back in the 70s) $10-15.00 demand for any MR that had John Allen’s G&D in it after John’s demise but,that faded out within a few months-IIRC.I know it didn’t last long.Now these mags bring 50 cents at most shows.
I love old MR magizines especially my 1946 issue which featured John Allens first cover story.
Peter Smith, Memphis
I got a copy of “Model Craftsman” in a box at a train show, with John Allen’s engine house on the cover (his first published article.) That magazine is now RMC.
At the recent monthly dinner meet I got a few more copies of RMC, particularly because they have John Allen featured. One is Jan. 1972, one year before his death. A railfan trip on the G&D. Paid about 50 cents each (donations) to the local railroad related library and archive.
With the advent of complete archives on DVD, the demand for paper copies will wane. Collections will go up for sale, and the market will be pretty well limited to people who only want certain issues/years, or are filling gaps in their collections.
After all, computers are really good at storing and indexing data. So why not use that ability?
You almost can’t give them away for free when you want to, but my LHS is still trying to charge $3/ issue for old ones…[:S]
What used magazine market? I just tossed about 20 years worth of MR and RMC into the recycling bin as I could not even give them away. And I did not want to move them when we go to Port Alberni in few months. We have the National Geographic DVD set and I believe that is the way to go for any magazine one wishes to keep.