Why is it that anytime you really WANT to buy something new in the MRR area that you either can’t find it or have to go on the Internet to get it? Sometimes you can’t even get it on the net either.
I guess I have a little pain and frustration right now because I really wanted to be running one of those new P2K Jeeps with the QSI sound this weekend at the local NY Transportation Museum.
I called one of the perfered Vendor’s mentioned here on one day. They had the Loco I wanted in stock that DAY. I called back the next day and my order was placed on Back Order. I called yesterday, (exactly a week after placing the order) and was told to call back today. Needless to say, I will call back, but I’m a little worried.
Locally, the LHS are really behind the times, or at least that’s the way they treat me. I ask good concise questions and get a half hearted attempt for an answer. I BUY from these shops and get the things I need from them. I try and support these folks.
I try some of the smaller shops, and they don’t stock the premium stuff that I would like to buy, or if they do it’s at the full retail price because someone special ordered it and then backed out.
Well, anyway, it’s too late for what I wanted to do this weekend. I’ll keep the order active anyway. I just don’t understand the Supply and Demand issues of this Hobby!
New product announcements and adverts in the journals are often placed months before the actual availability of the model. For some of the popular models, the entire production run may be sold before the model hits the market. This is a very frustrating aspect of the hobby as you are almost forced to pre-order any loco that you want before having a chance to see the quality.
Chris, welcome to the modern world of model railroading! While I don’t know the specific situation with the P2K Jeeps, nowadays, with limited runs, demand often exceeds production runs and it is not at all unusual to see an item completely sold out before it ever even hits the streets. I’ve even experienced local dealers and distributors being shorted on orders placed months in advance of issue since bigger orders got first perference. If demand looks to be large enough, the manufacturers may make a second run but weeks or months later. Best way to handle this situation is by letting your fingers do the walking and phone different large hobby shops around the country to locate your item. I’ve had to do this numerous times lately.
Because of the dramatically increasing prices of high-end locomotives, I see many of the smaller shops unwilling to lay out the cash necessary to stock many (or any) of these engines. If they do have examples, they need to get the maximum return on them or they are not worth having in the store.
As to the LHS’s unwillingness to answer your questions…look for a better shop!
This is how it seems to be now. One of my LHS regularly advertises items in their magazine adverts that I know they don’t have in stock, which is a real pain when you drive 60 miles or so to find this out! There are a few stores out there with a policy that they won’t list anything on their website or in adverts until they actually have it in stock, a great idea to my mind!
It may depend on what railroad you model. If you model an eastern road, you’ll want to check out hobby stores on the West coast via internet, and vise versa if you model a Western road. Eastern roads are not as popular out West, and Western roads are not as popular in the Eastern part of the country.
I think maybe you do understand it. There are ten thousand reasons why things are the way they are. The fact that someone’s kid had a tonsilectomy, and they didn’t place an order on Tuesday, but Wednesday, did cause your delivery to slip two months, etc., etc., ad infinitum. I do think a lot of LHS think/hope this “Internet Thing” is a fad or something that will pass, and are not willing to make the effort to understand and learn to compete.
We have become more instant gratification oriented, and many are willing to pay extra for faster delivery and/or service, but sometimes others are not willing to put forth more effort for greater rewards. Over time, the system will weed out the anomalities.
Life as we know it, will indeed continue.