Future suggestions/predictions thread

[DustyMarie53!]

While Minimum gauge would be cool Bachmann seems iffy on adding more scales/or sublines to the line. They have enough trouble balancing the 4 they have. Granted, the Arlesdale guys are inherently more limited. So maybe?

[Awesometrain77]

Z scale minimum gauge could be cool
It took them 4 years to release 3 engines for narrow gauge .

Also mike and Rex could share the same chassis   with changes in the back wheels for each  . Not only that but they could all share the same tenders . 

 

Anyway not to get ahead of myself but I feel maybe a pink cattle van could happen for this years NMRA I have previously suggested circus and farm cattle vans

Here is an update predictions for HO
Circus cattle van
Pink cattle van
Farmer mccoll cattle van
Farmer trotter cattle van
Troublesome truck #7 van with shocked face
And maybe Trevor


 

[TrainFan97]

I may be late to the party, but it was nice that Doug finally acknowledged Harvey and Diesel 10, confirming that those engines are possible for the HO Scale range, but their attachments would make them much more expensive to produce, which is the one thing holding Bachmann back from making them. Harvey would have an operational crane arm, and the cogwheel on the side of it can raise and lower the hook. Diesel 10, on the other hand, would need an operational claw, which isn't as simple as Harvey's crane. Although the claw wouldn't be connected to a motor, there's a lot of movement it can do, and would need to be fully poseable to be as accurate as possible.

So, it seems like Harvey is more possible than Diesel 10 for the time being, since his crane isn't as complicated as Diesel 10's claw, and he's a small tank engine, while the other is a large diesel. We can hope Bachmann makes Harvey and Diesel 10 someday. Harvey, a self-propelled rail crane, would be expensive, but not as expensive as Diesel 10.

[thomasj219]

You're right they do continually miss the Mark. And trust me it's not as complicated as you think. At least it won't be very soon.

The reason that the lines are getting Discontinued is because Mattel thought they could ride the name of Thomas well slowly decreasing the quality. It finally caught up to them. There really is nothing more to it than that.

Even the revamped wood was bad.

[TrainFan97]

Although we won't see Harvey or Diesel 10 for this year's NMRA, we can still keep the requests going, now that they were acknowledged, and confirmed to be possible for HO Scale, with the only concern being the cost. The next newly-tooled engine for HO Scale is anyone's guess, with the top choices being Whiff and Nia, but other ideas I personally would like to see include Norman, Den and Dart. Winston would be a good idea because of the figures, particularly Sir Topham Hatt. As for Hiro, we'll just have to wait and see how well Rebecca sells.

Not sure if N Scale Henry or Edward will be announced this NMRA, considering there's no update on N Scale Diesel or Paxton yet, but should be announced for sure in the 2025 catalog. Other welcome additions to N Scale would be Mavis, Duck and Oliver. Stanley is an upcoming model for HO Scale, but if he were to be made for N Scale too someday, he can recycle Thomas' chassis for that, just like he is for HO Scale. Mavis would also recycle Thomas' chassis, just like Toby did. Another great suggestion for N Scale would be Bill and Ben, but we haven't got Edward yet.

[Awesometrain77]

Bill and Ben def should happen before Donald and Douglas .
Roise is another character we need in N scale

Bill Ben Rosie Duck Oliver and specner are some of my pics . To happen after Edward and Henry.

Mavis has not appeared much in show I get why people want her due to being an Awdry character. But idk if she is best option to make  her popularity was due to being one of the first characters to be in CGI and all that promo art she was in the 2000s .
 

[Armada Starscream]

It was said on Bachmann's New Model Monday stream the other week that if the fans have any suggestions for future models, they can email them to Bachmann directly.

I've sent an email last week, and in said email I expressed a want for an HO Scale Harvey and/or Diesel 10 from the fans.

They said on the stream that the more requests there are for a model, the more likely they are to produce it. So, if anyone else would like to add Harvey and/or Diesel 10 to their collection, then I'd highly recommend sending them an email.

Maybe we can also mention that Bachmann UK have the model basis for Arthur, Murdoch, and Class 40 in OO/HO scale and Derek in N Scale. Given that they released Beau due to them having his basis available, maybe they could consider working with Bachmann UK to bring out those characters, including Derek upscaled to HO/OO. Given that they have the model basis,' they at least have a STARTING POINT to make these characters, and they could then modify and adjust them to better resemble the TV Series characters. They are quite popular characters, and given that Hornby Murdoch go for insane amounts of money on eBay when they do show up there, I think it would be a good idea for Bachmann to try and cash in on that factor by releasing their own Murdoch.

In addition, we could suggest using the 'Arry and Bert models to make Splatter and Dodge, especially if there is a market for Diesel 10. Throughout their appearances in Thomas and the Magic Railroad, they are always seen having identical faces to one another. All Bachmann would have to do is design one face that is usable by both characters, and then recolor the already existing 'Arry/Bert models to make Splatter and Dodge. It seems like it would be an easy and cheap to make these characters, and could be especially good if Bachmann needs to release some new characters quickly and easily. Especially if Diesel 10 is being requested.

[Kemptown Branch]

Bill and Ben def should happen before Donald and Douglas .

Hypothetically, if the N Scale range does expand that far, I'd say it might be easier for Bachmann to do Donald and Douglas before Bill and Ben. Assuming we get Edward, Henry, and Duck before they start doing other secondary characters, Donald and Douglas would be able to share a chassis with Duck. Also, it might be hard to get Bill and Ben to run well in such a small scale. Although they aren't much smaller than Percy, their wheelbases are quite a bit shorter, so they might be more prone to stalling over dirty track and points.

[N Scale Sudrian]

I think Bill and Ben are possible, but I would also rather have Donald and Douglas join the line before them, ha ha... I think their primary appeal points from a development perspective are adding color variety to the lineup with some much-needed yellow, and being an efficient on the budget with being small, tank engine twins. That said I feel like those niches would also be filled by making both colors of Rosie, who would also fit into the same developmental niche as Paxton and Diesel. (Wherein Bachmann has already modeled her 'CGI' form in another scale, which could make developing her in a new scale easier...) I believe she could easily be the first to migrate to N Scale after Henry and Edward make the jump, if only to provide said color variety, given how many blue and green locos would be dominating the palette of available locos at that point. Adding a second red loco and a violet loco wouldn't go amiss, in my opinion.

The other front-runners in my mind are Duck or Mavis, since both seem to be the most popular small engines being requested. Mavis would be my personal pick with her being one of my favorites of all time, but I think Duck and Rosie would be good additions as well. That said, whichever small loco makes its way in first, I think the best act to follow it up with would be Spencer. Popular character with associated rolling stock, can't really go wrong there. After Spencer would be a good opportunity to bring in one of the two 'small loco front-runners' that didn't make the cut for being first, ha ha. So say, if Rosie comes after Edward, then Spencer would come after her, then Duck after him. Then perhaps at that point Bachmann can just continue to migrate small and large projects in this alternating pattern.

As an unrelated aside, I think once the original 'Steam Team' has migrated to N Scale, it would be nice for Bachmann to experiment with adding locos to the N Scale line that haven't been seen in HO Scale yet to help diversify the line-up. Especially if they would be too big or costly to justify developing for HO first... Given N Scale's popularity in Japan, I think Hiro and perhaps Kenji would be apt choices to run this experiment with.

[Chaz]

I think at this point it's really a matter of who comes out after Henry and Edward in N scale.  Once those two come out, I would definitely be curious to see what direction the range will be going from there.

In terms of personal preference, as my previous posts have stated, I would prefer Duck to be the next engine after Henry and Edward. Duck has always had a major following and history with both the original books and television series.  The fact that Duck has appeared consistently at least once a season after his return in season 17 really speaks high volume of the characters popularity for both the older and younger audiences.  He's even going to be in the reboot too, for whatever that's worth.

Frankly, after Henry, Edward and Duck I truth be told don't have a preference on who else they introduce after that. I do agree that Donald and Douglas make a lot more sense than Bill and Ben, but I feel like both pairs of twins are a long way off from happening anyway.  If they wanted to introduce more non-Awdry characters like Rosie or Spencer instead or a character exclusive to N scale first like Hiro or Sidney, I would be perfectly fine with that.

[JLK2707]

I just hope we see the TAR tanker wagon comes back in HO scale and that it comes in N scale soon!!

[JacobSK]

I echo comments that Henry and Edward NEED to be next in N. That will complete the original Steam Team. Following those two, I *personally* don't mind Duck (who'd go great with Toad and SCRuffey) or Mavis, in reality, we may more than likely see Rebecca. I personally don't want that to happen at all, but I feel like that would be the case, considering she was pushed to be a major character. After Henry and Edward, I'd also be okay if they held off on any new engines and concentrated on rolling stock for a while, too.

[Awesometrain77]

Well Henry happened and the Tar tanker .

[TrainFan97]

Now that we're getting HO Scale Sidney and N Scale Henry, we can hope the 2025 catalog will at least have N Scale Edward to complete the original Steam Team in N Scale. The N Scale Brake Van we're getting is the LMS one, when many people wanted the BR one.

I personally hope Narrow Gauge at least gets brown and gray brake vans and box vans, which would be easy because their tooling already exists.

If HO scale was to get Norman, that would complete the trio of characters from Day of the Diesels. Unlike Paxton and Sidney, Norman requires a new tooling. By the 2025 catalog, the sales for Rebecca would be in, and if they're good, we may see Hiro getting announced.

[Cheeky_ULP]

I'm not familiar with the N scale range much; is the N scale Gordon closer to his CGI render or his HO tooling? It makes me wonder what direction they will go for Henry.