When are American manufacturers going to wise up and see the market in On30? Atlas, the all-time US track manufacturer, has no plans to make On30 track… Micro-Engineering makes On30 track…BUT NO TURNOUTS. What good is track without turnouts? Peco…OBVIOUSLY not American. Use HO track and turnouts? It simply doesn’t look right. Hand-lay? If you’re into it, sure…but what if you aren’t?
The On30 market is here to stay for the scale modeler. Manufacturers are missing out on a good chance to make money.
If the market were there they would be produced. Micro-engineering has been talking about them since 2000 at the Narrow Gauge convention in St. Louis. They handed out templates in Detroit, probably to gauge the market.
The market in narrow gauge is very limited. Old Pullman has them cataloged:
I didn;t know you got out of On30 Harold, always used to see you on the Conspiracy. Still, it would be nice to have some US style track. Let’s face it, HO track just doesn’t cut it.
I think On30 has peaked as a commercial venture. Broadway LImited had a fire sale on it’s remaining C-16’s. Bachmann is doing the same on it’s Climax and Shay locomotives at Micro-Mark. Bachmann is even telling the On3 modelers that the new outside frame 2-8-0 is regaugable to 3 foot, they all but denied it before. Bachmann is not going to retool the Mogul for DCC. All signs that the On30 boom is waning.
It reminds me of the Sn3 surge of the mid-1980’s. Everyone and everything was Sn3. Now it only has one overpriced and short sighted major supplier.
Now I am happily building OO scale 1870’s standard gauge. It is nice to be the only one doing it. I no longer get “hate” e-mails from the “Conspiracy” about not being a true believer in the sanctity ot the “critter” in On30.
There is some guys working in “O” here in the vallay,O scale locos running on HO track,this kinda catches my eye at the yearly railroad show,Have you checked this out at all[?][:)]What they do is remove about every other tie on flex and switches looks ok!Is this what you guys are talking about???