A while back I ordered some Cal-Scale and Accurail parts for some projects I am working on from my LHS to get through Walther’s. They all come back as Back Ordered!
I go on Bowser’s website and the Cal-Scale parts I want are in stock, I go on Accurail’s website and the parts I want are in stock. Remember I ordered one of these parts over a year ago and the other about 6 months ago.
I sent an E-mail to Walther’s and they answer that they cannot get the parts from the suppliers.[banghead]
I want to support my LHS but Walther’s makes that impossible what can we as consumers do to rectify this situation?
I prefer to support my LHS as well, but before I order anything, I always check the Walthers site first to see if it’s actually in stock. If not, I’ll order direct from the manufacturer.
You end up having to pay the extra shipping, but at least you get the stuff.
I wanted a second operating switch stand to match another I have from RIX. I looked on Walthers, and they were sold out, with no estimated arrival date. I checked the RIX site, and they had taken the trouble to note that the mold for that model had cracked, and it would be some time before they were available again.
Walthers did all they could, and I must give high marks to RIX for keeping us informed.
As for the switch stand, well, it’s just like they say: When they made it, they broke the mold.
Rick, NOTHING really. Supply and demand are becoming less part of the equation and it is looking more like we get whatever we get from whatever suppliers who will supply whatever they feel like.
You can try to get from the search function on Walther’s to see if someone who Walther’s sold to might still have the parts you want.
It seem the Chinese manufactures will kill off the hobby, not because of lack of interest.
IFF’EN, and thats a big IFF’EN, IFF’EN I had the ways and means, I 'd start producing MRR stuff here in the USA and then people could complain instead about my “high prices” instead of “lack of supply”.
I generally order from who actually has the product (or claims to). I recently walked away from ordering something at one of two hobby shops within an hour or so from me because he was going to order it (from the manufacturer), and the process was going to take some time (his ordering cycle, how quickly the manufacturer fills the orders, shipping time, etc) and involve some risk that it could drag out. He was even priced lower than ordering online, but I didn’t want to run the risk of the delay extending into a back ordered situation that took months. I didn’t need it the next day, but I needed it in a week or two to complete something.
There was a time when I would not have worried about the possibility of the ordering process dragging into months, but that is not where I see conditions today.
The owner of the other hobby shop near Hooterville and I talked when I was there a few weeks ago, and he has had issues with several suppliers, including Walthers. Between poor availability, long lead times, and often no outlook and minimum ordering requirements/commitments with some suppliers, he was not a happy camper.
One guess, based on the trends we have seen in recent years, is while manufacturers have moved increasingly to announcing a product, accepting pre-orders, then delivering down the road assuming the numbers justify production, I could easily see Walthers moving much more toward “just in time” inventory with those products that are not on a pre-order basis.
No just got some Accurail Doors and Cal-Scale parts in last week and another order went in today, but due to the Holiday will not get till next week.
And to another poster, Accurail is made in the USA, so there is no reason not to have the parts other than laziness and cheapness of Walthers to order them.
It reminds me of the days in the 70’s when the shop I worked at would send in an order to Walthers of 34 legal size pages, we would get 2 pages back of stock. But back then we could get stuff from other suppliers like Cleveland Hobbies etc., but between Walthers and Horizon most of those wholesalers are out of business.
For years I ordered from Walthers through a local hobby shop. I always checked availability on the Walthers site before ordering though.
Joan placed her order on the same day every week so I knew when to order and when I could expect to receive my parts, loco, track, decoders etc. One real bonus was I didn’t have to pay shipping. Unfortunately the shop is gone now, Joan retired when she reached 70 and couldn’t sell the business.
I have another shop that will order anything I need from Walthers as long as it is in stock. Again, no shipping and a predictable schedule. I rarely order from Walthers directly as I feel their shipping rates are way too high.
If an item is not in stock on the Walthers website, I order from the manufacturer or an alternate supplier directly, by-passing the LHS. Not the best policy perhaps, but practical and time saving in most cases.
You can demand a “falaygeler” all you want, but if they ain’t makin’ none, Oh Well. There is no supply, thus no demand with no supply.
If they ain’t making it no more, and intend to make no more, then there is NO supply/demand issue!
When supply is GONE, OH WELL you missed the boat …
IF he really wants the parts, he will have to diligently search whomever Walthers may have sent it to that may still have it in stock.
OTHERWISE, there ain’t NOTHIN’ he can do about it.*
And warehousing inventory costs money $$$ Lots of it…so manufacturers DON’T want to pay that anymore and have product sitttin’ around makin’ no money waiting for someone to order it up. SO they did away with THAT.
{*- strange incorrect English used to sarcastically illustrate point}
Galaxy, I agree with you, it seems like old fashioned supply and demand is not working any more. Used to be there was a supply on the shelves and you could buy it. But you can’t buy what isn’t stocked and won’t be for some time. Just in time may be a nice manufacturing concept, but it stinks as a retail one. If you want to sell product, you have to have inventory. Otherwise people will go somewhere else or in our case, find another hobby and then the demand goes away, becoming a self justifying cycle.
It’s a lot like the old deferred maintenance means more breakdowns means poor service means fewer customers means less money for maintenance that about killed US railroading in the 60s.
The Walthers site and inventory system are pretty sophisticated. I go to their retail outlet and use their computers which link into the same on-line system you used. I asked for six of a particular item and when Chris came back to the desk he said I had cleaned them out of a particular item. After he did the paperwork to sell them to me, I checked the system and yes it showed them to be out of stock. Just by selling those 6 to me he altered the message in the system.
Of course if something is in the mail it isn’t actually there and they would show it as out of stock.
Rich hit this one right on the head - both of those manufacturers would be happy to sell directly to your local hobby shop. My local hobby shop is VERY small, but he deals direct with both of those companies.
Walthers seems to be moving away from being a distributor, and more toward just importing/marketing their own products. If they put a low priority on stuff like small parts from other companies that will sell direct to shops or customers, they likely figure customers will get those things direct and they can keep their money invested in the next load from China that says “Walthers” on the boxes.
I keep saying this, and this situation is just more proof - distributors are a dieing bread in this hobby because of the discounting. And the only shops that will survive are the ones that get big enough to buy direct. Walthers knows this and is likely working quietly to get of the “distributor” business.
Do you want the TRUTH???
The REAL Answer?
I hope I will not get sent to a Gulag for this, but here it is;
Some Resellers have ‘Stock Reserves’ for Method of ordering.
This is how this example worked…
One major one, has stock dedicated for Mail/Phone odering…
And another inventory ‘set’ for Internet ordering.
I had ordered items (said) in stock, at one time & the Hobby Shop was considered a Retail orderer…
The Direct Stock (Retail Avenue) was Zero count, but the Internet Stock was Plentifull & Close Out paced…
I was out of luck…
The ‘Shop’ Explained it to me, & to our both Regret! -we somewhat understood that bias, but could not truely accept it, as a best business practice.
All we were left with, was an understanding that Business’ have an outline, & a practice in place, & if they do not serve the demand, Oh Well…
Sorry to say, I never did make good on my order, but due to that experience, (Savings), I survived an unexpected hardship…
This is what I experienced, & I hope not to upset any of my favorite retailers.
However, As a Business; if you want my coin, freekin’ sell it to me, no matter what ‘status’ it may be classified as… PLEASE!!!
We are On Demand, & if you do not fulfill that demand, we are elsewhere…
Although those companies would be happy to sell directly to the local shops, the willingness of the local shops to deal directly may be a different story.
There are three hobby shops around here. The closest is a Hobby Town. They seem to only want to deal with their distributor. If the distributor doesn’t have it, then you’re out of luck.
The other two shops are more train dedicated, but are 30+ miles away. The folks running one shop are very nice, but they have their list of providers. I’m sure that if I asked them to special order something they would make the attempt. But if my request is out of the ordinary, I doubt very much if I’d have any hope of success.
The third shop is run by an individual who is a little more accommodating. I asked him to order some bulk packages of plastic shapes that are not normally found on the store racks. He was more than willing. So he contacted the manufacturer and then had to go through whatever the process was to establish an account with them, and then (I suppose) prove that he was an actual brick and mortar establishment rather than some nefarious individual passing himself off as a shop to get whatever discounts hobby shops get. Now, I was ordering $400 worth of plastic, so I can see where it might have been worth his while to go through the process.
I don’t know enough about Walthers to say that this is true or not. But, it would surprise me if it were true. Being a distributor has to be profitable for Walthers and without all of these manufacturers, Walthers puts itself at risk in the sense that it makes it harder for hobbyists to succeed.