Future of ON30

[Hamish K]

Dear Bach Man

The new catalogue shows no brand new items for ON30, not really a surprise as the toy fair/catalogue announcements are, for ON30, generally confined to train sets and new liveries on existing items. Those ON30 items shown in the catalogue as "new", which means since the last catalogue whether or not previously announced elsewhere, are the previously announced revised Porters, two train sets both using the 2-6-0, and a couple of re-liveries i.e. the 2-6-0 in D&RGW green and black livery  (before any-one asks this appears to be the existing 2-6-0 with a new livery and not upgraded in any way) and a black unlettered flat car. This means that Bachmann have not announced any brand new ON30 item since the NMRA convention in 2009.

As well as the lack of brand new Bachmann items a worrying sign for the future of ON30 is that some retailers seem to be pulling out of ON30. On the other hand a positive note is the introduction by Bachmann of new train sets - train sets attract new modellers to the scale/gauge combination, and I was concerned by the lack of any new train sets last year.

So I ask, does Bachmann remain committed to expanding the ON30 line? If so, when can we expect announcements of brand new items? (I am not asking what they might be.)

Awaiting your answer

Hamish

[mabloodhound]

I don't think they would have put the work and effort into the 'new' DCC and sound Porters if they were not planning to keep On30 going.   I still hope, beyond hope, that we might see an H....... someday.

[ebtnut]

Without going into a long commentary on the future of the hobby in general, I think most of the issue has been the state of the economy over the past 2 or 3 years.  R&D and product development take time and money, and if folks aren't  buying trains, then the $$$ may not be there, or the development time gets stretched out.  One would like to hope that there may be some really new stuff announced either at the NMRA convention or maybe the narrow gauge convention later this year. 

[the Bach-man]

Dear All,
We are absolutely committed to On30, and there will be announcements at NMRA this summer.
Have fun!
the Bach-man

[Royce Wilson]

Hoooooray!!!!!!!!

Royce

[Tomcat]

That´s something to look forward to....

Praise the Lord!
Cheers, Tom

[lvrr325]

Retailers are likely pulling out because they can't compete with The Favorite Spot and other sellers that dump these pieces on eBay with no reserve.   Those auctions show in most cases what an actual market price should be for these products; people are unwilling to pay full retail, in some cases they're even unwilling to pay 50% of retail - I picked up some Stock Cars to resell and have sold a whopping 2 of them, I may end up parting them out for other projects instead.  It's not worth my selling them much cheaper than I've been trying to now. 

[NarrowMinded]

I Buy from the Favorite Spot because my LHS doesn't carry a large selection of on30 and as you mentioned the prices are low from them, if I have to order something and wait, I might as well cut out the middleman and save some dollars

I would also say the favorite spot has likely been a large  factor in Bachmann keeping up the ON30 line, I say this because on30 is a line mostly enjoyed by RR hobbyist, I would guess not many people buy them for their kids. I know theres the Hawthorne Village factor as well, but you wont see many geared loco's running around Xmas villages.

NM

[ChrisS]

I'd buy from a lhs, but mine is a chain store. Carries woodland scenics and paints. What equipment they do carry is so far off a realistic price, I wont pay those prices. I don't mind a little higher, but 3 times
An Internet price? not from my wallet

[Tomcat]

Do some of you folks recall how the prices were falling when the On30 BLI Goose was out?
First: 299 Bucks, at the end the price was down to 49$ without, 79$ with sound...
Ok-could be that this RGS model did not find a wide-spread range of interested modellers...

I have found that the Favorite Spot is cheap and reliable, while it´s hard to find another dealer who carries the whole spectrum of Bachmann´s On30 models... By heart, I can only tell good things about the Favorite Spot. But it´s correct that this brings even a bigger chance that some day we must drive a long way until we may find a well-stocked LHS. That´s the truth.

Cheers, Tom

[Anubis]

You should try here in Australia, where NO-ONE carries Bachmann or On30 stuff! 

My LHS (as you call them) went broke in 2004, and there went the convenience of just nipping down, and paying slightly higher than internet prices, but having a good selection of the stock readily available. (Especially scratch-building parts like styrene sheets, profiles, and adhesives, etc.)

Since then, nothing, Nil. Zip. 

The only online stores that are any good to deal with are USA based, and then one has to pay exorbitant premiums for mail delivery charges, and having to wait up to six weeks for an order from US is not unheard of. 

Even the possibility of returning a faulty Bachmann locomotive for repair is simply out of the question........

As I may have mentioned before, I really envy you modellers who are lucky enough to live Stateside, with all the next-day-delivery and free-delivery options that you have. Not to mention the super-cheap deals that you get from competition among your hundreds of hobby shops.

Maybe I should move to California. Or New York. Or somewhere in between....

[ChrisS]

I dont recommend california.

[railtwister]

Do some of you folks recall how the prices were falling when the On30 BLI Goose was out?
First: 299 Bucks, at the end the price was down to 49$ without, 79$ with sound...
Ok-could be that this RGS model did not find a wide-spread range of interested modellers...

I have found that the Favorite Spot is cheap and reliable, while it´s hard to find another dealer who carries the whole spectrum of Bachmann´s On30 models... By heart, I can only tell good things about the Favorite Spot. But it´s correct that this brings even a bigger chance that some day we must drive a long way until we may find a well-stocked LHS. That´s the truth.

Cheers, Tom

The same thing happened to the BLI C-16. The last two I bought was $49.99 with the sound. True, they have the Blueline sound and not the QSI boards found in the first release, but $49 is still a hell of a buy just the same. The Blueline units require the purchase of a separate decoder for DCC operation which adds $25 to the price. and the Blueline board makes the loco a PITA to program. I like the QSI Sound board in my first units much better, especially after I added the QSI upgrade chips.

Also, speaking of prices, has anyone checked out the current ones from Micro Mark? They used to rival the prices at The Favorite Spot, especially if you let MM choose the roadname, but no more! Their prices have gone way up! Some are even higher than the LHS. I know Bachmann has always played games with their prices (and dealer costs), and their prices always go up around the first of the year. This year, considering the current state of the economy, they are really pushing the envelope. Lets hope they don't kill the Golden Goose.

Regards,
Bill

[NarrowMinded]

I Do recommend California Just stay away from major cities like Los Angeles San Francisco and Sacramento.

I drove to a hobby shop picked up some track and enjoyed the rest of the day in 77 degree weather with clear sky's

NM

Sorry just rubbing it in... Had too.

[BIG BEAR]

Hey All,

   I feel the economy in a slump for 3 years, the rapidly rising prices of this line of product, and the lack of new introductions to the line, have all been factors in the decline of sales. The last real push was when the 4-4-0 (both versions) and the 2-6-6-2 came out right after the 2-8-0 & Rail-truck. since that time (about 2 years ago) not much has been happening. We all know keeping things fresh and up to date is key to staying in the eye of public consumer.
   I also see declines in the christmas village producers as they have extreme price increases and even walmart, shopko and some Sears stores no longer carry these items. This could hurt village type train sales
    I think the decision makers are stuck trying to figure out if they are going to put DCC in all locos or none or how to avoid confusion by consumers if they darest do both, OH Yes that sound decision also HMMM. maybe they should offer all locos with all 3 versions-what a sales nightmare that would be.   
    I am sure Bachmann is doing their best to figure it all out ( I am glad it's not my nightmare) and the most we can do is patiently wait for the chips to falll where they may.

Enjoy,
  Barry