Once again, I completely agree that Ryan should be made, as Ryan is Daisy's main companion in the CGI series, and I have confidence that Bachmann will make him at some point. However, I still firmly believe that Stepney should be made first. For those who haven't seen the thread I made on Stepney and Ryan already, please check it out and leave a comment: https://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,35991.0.html  I, as well as other Bachmann Thomas fans, have stated multiple reasons as to why Stepney should be made before Ryan.

As for other new HO engines after Stepney, I would suggest only three others. Ryan (of course), BoCo, and Sidney. Reasons for Ryan and Sidney have been stated many times. As for BoCo, I'll explain why he would be a great addition at a much later date .

For now, I think that it would make the most sense to focus on the two engines with the most demand after Daisy, which are Stepney and Ryan. Really hoping that the licencor will let Bachmann announce Stepney in February 2020 for the 75th Anniversary!

I'm very excited for both engines, but I would say that I am slightly more excited about Daisy, as she's the first large, bogied diesel that is getting made for the Thomas line. I cannot wait to see how they will pull off the moving eye mechanism, and see if she will have "see-through" windows just like the engine from the classic model series.

However, there is another engine that I would be even more excited for if he gets announced in February 2020: https://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,35991.0.html  

How amazing that would be if it happens!

Very happy to see that many people are interested in seeing Stepney announced next! Really hoping that we don't just get a repaint such as the LBSC Thomas announced in February 2020 as the HO locomotive :/ Stepney and the Narrow Gauge Brake Van are the two new toolings that will make February 2020's new product announcement grand!

Come on, Bachmann! Let's make the 75th Anniversary strong by announcing Stepney in February 2020! We are rooting for you! .

Quote from: DucktheGWREngine08 on July 29, 2019, 08:12:09 PM
Team Ryan because MATTEL WILL NOT LET BACHMANN MAKE ANY CHARACTERS THAT ARE NOT IN THE CURRENT SEASEASONS.

Well, Bachmann did make the Spiteful Brake Van, but even if your argument is that Bachmann will not make classic engines with new toolings that have not appeared in the CGI series, this tells me that you did not read what I posted above carefully. Please do when you get the chance  .

Anyways, thank you to everyone who has already posted who they would prefer to see made first. For those who are on Team Ryan, I completely understand that Ryan is Daisy's main companion in the CGI series, but remember that he could be made at any point, whereas Stepney is something that would be very special for the 75th Anniversary.

Lastly, let's remember that in the fall of 2014, a Bachmann Thomas fan asked Doug Blaine if Oliver is being planned for 2015: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TBl1e0wWbRU
Mr. Blaine said that there were no plans for Oliver yet, but Oliver and Toad were still announced in 2015. Therefore, as long as Bachmann acts quickly with the licensor, I'm sure that announcing Stepney for February 2020 would be possible  .

Fred & Rickety would certainly be interesting products to introduce to the Bachmann line. While I am not desperate to see them in the range, I'm sure that they would do fairly well with sales, considering that they're troublesome trucks.

The Sodor China Clay Cars would be neat additions too, but I would prefer to see new china clay loads, as you stated  .

   

Stepney and Ryan are the two most popular engines that Bachmann Thomas fans want to see made after Daisy. Thus, I thought that it would be a good idea to make a new thread discussing these two engines, giving the Bachmann reps a very clear idea of why announcing one of the two for February 2020 would be a very smart idea, even if it seems unlikely at first glance.



Personally, I am on Team Stepney .

The number one reason why I believe that it would be best to announce Stepney in February 2020 (and before Ryan) is that 2020, Thomas' 75th Anniversary, might be the one reason that would allow Bachmann to make an engine who has not appeared in the CGI Series. The 75th Anniversary is a time to glorify golden figures of Thomas' past, and Stepney is no exception. He is such a charming and nostalgic engine who has constantly been a popular suggestion among fans. Additional reasons have been stated by many Bachmann Thomas fans, so I'll leave this link here: https://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,34526.75.html
The entire page is full of reasons as to why Stepney would be a great candidate.



Ryan, on the other hand, is much bigger, which means that he would be more expensive to make. He also includes more small parts than Stepney, so I think that announcing an engine who would cost more money to make, and is less popular next, does not make sense. Even so, Ryan and Daisy essentially go together. Hence, the profit that would be received from Daisy and Stepney as well as the UK should allow Ryan to get announced in a later year.

Moreover, I firmly believe that an HO Stepney should be even more of a priority than Narrow Gauge Sir Handel or even an N Scale James as far as new toolings are concerned for February 2020. Considering that Sir Handel has appeared in the CGI Series, he could get announced at any other point, just like Ryan. The same can be stated for the N Scale James. The only other new tooling that currently stands in front is the narrow gauge brake van due to the amount of discussion there has been on it, and that the narrow gauge carriages have finally been revealed too.

Even if announcing Stepney in February 2020 means that he would have to be delayed like Oliver, I'm sure fans would be willing to wait. It's much better to have such a sought-after engine who has not appeared in the CGI series get announced, but then delayed because of a special anniversary, than not get made at all.

Now, if the licencor is still against producing Stepney due to the fact that he has not appeared in the CGI series, even if it is the 75th Anniversary, I think that they are forgetting that most parents of young children who are only familiar with the current characters will generally only buy a Bachmann Thomas starter set, and few of the other main engines and rolling stock. The Bachmann Thomas HO line currently has over twenty engines, most of whom have had main roles in the CGI series. And the average parent would not buy all the engines, considering how expensive they are and that there are cheaper alternatives. It is only the serious Thomas fans who will buy all the engines. In fact, one of my friends who grew up watching the late model series on television (seasons 8, 9, 10, 11) did not know who Stepney was as a kid, but because he never lost interest in Thomas, he discovered the older episodes on YouTube that included Stepney and realized how much charm there is to the episodes that involved him. He didn't grow up with the original seasons, yet he still thought they were better. That's why he even wants to see Stepney get made before any newer character, including Ryan. As a result, at this point, it's not about if the engine is currently in the show. It's about the engine itself and how many people there are who would like to see it made. From this thinking, more profit will be received, which means that more exciting products can get made later on, not just for the Thomas line, but Bachmann Trains altogether. 

That's why I think that announcing Stepney for February 2020 would be a very smart move.

Lastly, here are some questions:
Are you on Team Stepney or Team Ryan? Why?
Do you agree that announcing one of the two for February 2020 is a wise move, even if it meant that the completion of the model would be delayed?

I'm extremely happy with how these came out! Two different toolings and the shade of blue for the blue carriage is perfect! Can't wait to get three of each once they are released! 

That's a good point. I could see Mattel doing a good job on CGI designs of BoCo and Duke, but I think that Stepney would not turn out well from the face to new details that would be added.

That's why Stepney is the one exception that should be made for the Bachmann line. The classic model series design has so much charm to it and the face is one of my favorites: https://ttte.fandom.com/wiki/Bowled_Out/Gallery?file=File%3ABowledOut4.png

While I see where everyone is coming from, I think that we should try to keep the forum in positive spirits after seeing that Daisy, Peter Sam, and Troublesome Truck #6 are getting made.

That doesn't mean that we can't still hope that Stepney will get announced in February

The narrow gauge mining wagons (that's what I like to call them  ) would certainly be welcome additions to the narrow gauge line, but I think that the narrow gauge brake vans are still the current priority among Thomas fans.

Another thing regarding narrow gauge that I find interesting is that Bachmann decided to use the term "carriage" instead of "coach" for the red and blue coaches. Hence, what if Bachmann uses the term "guard's van" instead of "brake van" for the narrow gauge brake vans? I know that this really isn't that big of deal, but it would certainly be interesting to see  .

Looking closely at comments and messages I have received through social media, I think that you guys are right that a road character would not sell as well as Stepney, or even BoCo for that matter. Some fans are interested, but it's not near the amount of fans who are interested in seeing Stepney.

Once more, I am hoping that the 75th Anniversary is a good reason to give Mattel on making Stepney, as they generally want Bachmann to produce characters from the CGI era. Thus, I think that announcing him in February 2020 would be a wise move even if he would have to be delayed like Oliver.

At the end of the day, I want Bachmann to make models that would not only make the majority of Thomas fans happy, but also give them the best profit .

As always, I enjoyed reading your thoughts very much, Chaz. There's no doubt that brake vans are the next thing that the Bachmann Thomas Narrow Gauge line needs. As for what they choose to base the brake vans on, I would personally prefer the original television series design from the model series, but Option #3 would be interesting to see too. The main thing that's important to me though is that the television series brake vans are shorter than the carriages.

Hard to say, but I do think that if Bachmann chooses to make a character from the pack, Jack would be the one they choose due to fact that he's the main member of the pack. Yet, I personally still think that Trevor or Bulgy would be the best choices as they are classic characters and their CGI renders look great.

I'd prefer a plain tanker than one with the CGI logo too.

As for the face, perhaps they could use a 3D printed one as a reference: https://www.shapeways.com/shops/the-faces-of-trouble

It was indeed stated that the model series troublesome tankers had NG faces. I personally do not mind which one they choose as long as it is square.

Quote from: Trainboy 48 on July 14, 2019, 11:28:51 PM
Well now that we got what we asked for next year here's my expects for 2021:

HO Scale
Ryan, Stanley or Sidney
Explosives Van

Narrow Gauge
Sir Handel
Green Narrow Gauge Coaches (The only rolling stocks I think of for narrow gauge)

Resin Buildings
Ffarquhar
The Watermill

Where's Stepney?