So the reason this month's stream was such a big deal was not so much the upcoming product reveals, which were just the unpainted sample of Sir Haydn and the Narrow Gauge High-Side Wagons packaged, but the big deal of this stream was that Doug Blaine is retiring. He will be missed. It was great having him do the reveals. Now, he's officially passing the torch to Matt Stern, who will be doing upcoming product reveals from now on.

The HO Scale figures are also not far off. Apparently, one of the Railway Personnel figures was modeled after Doug Blaine.

So the March Trainworld stream will be on Monday the 17th, which happens to be St. Patrick's Day. It's supposed to be a good one. We may get good looks at many unseen product samples. I'm hoping for unpainted samples of N Scale Diesel/Paxton and Express Coaches.

Quote from: Yard Master on March 11, 2025, 09:37:43 AMHi all,

We appreciate the suggestions. We were uncertain as to how to handle this topic, but as it's come up many times now, I feel I need to address one piece of speculation:

Bachmann does not have a CGI "mandate" from Mattel. We are not required or forced to make exclusively CGI character and items, as can be seen from items like the 80th Anniversary set, the China Clay Wagons, the Museum Coaches, S.C. Ruffey, etc.

It's been our choice to focus primarily on characters that have appeared in the CGI series, particularly the engines. We do this in order to have a strong relationship with Mattel and to help promote their brand, by making sure to highlight engines that are most recognizable to children watching the newer seasons of the show. While all of our models do need to be approved by Mattel, they've never outright forced us to only create CGI products.

We'd love to do every character across all eras of the franchise someday- we just can't say when or if all of them will be feasible. But never say never!

After being discussed for like, several years, it was finally time for one of the admins to debunk the CGI mandate.

Turns out the CGI mandate isn't real, and was nothing more than a myth. Bachmann isn't forced to stick with characters that only appeared in the CGI series. They just CHOOSE to stick with engines that appeared in the CGI series in order to have a strong relationship with Mattel, and highlight engines that would be most recognizable to the younger fans. While it is true that all products do need to be approved by Mattel, they never forced Bachmann to ONLY make CGI series characters.

So this means that characters like Stepney, BoCo, or Duke are still worth discussing. Although they've never officially appeared in the CGI series, that doesn't mean they'll never be made. Though they do have fan-made CGI renders as seen in fan-made productions. Splatter and Dodge are still possible, especially since their tooling actually exists.

Now that the CGI mandate has been debunked, we can stop talking about that, and still suggest characters, even if they didn't appear in full CGI.

Looks like the March Trainworld stream isn't happening this week. Either it's on a different day like last month, or it's not until next week.

It's still anyone's guess what the big reveal could be. Unpainted sample of HO Scale Bulgy, Narrow Gauge Gunpowder Wagon, N Scale Diesel/Paxton or Express Coaches. We may see HO Scale Stanley and Salty packaged, though it might be too soon for that.

It's too bad Shapeways went under.

The March Trainworld stream should have some exciting reveal. Really hoping for a new unpainted sample of something previously announced. Hope Bachmann's Facebook could tease something soon.

I'm hoping the March Trainworld stream will give updates on some upcoming products, including those that haven't had samples shown yet. We may actually see new product samples in the March stream, and if we do, it might be one of the following: HO Scale Bulgy, Narrow Gauge Gunpowder Wagon, N Scale Express Coaches, or Diesel/Paxton sample. It may not be that much longer before we see Stanley and Salty in the package, along with the Narrow Gauge High-Side Wagons packaged. We may not see Sir Handel, Gondolas, or the DCC Sound Thomas and Percy packaged until summer is here.

Turns out there was a Thomas Monday stream. It wasn't even announced on Bachmann's Facebook.

To sum it up, Doug Blaine went over the new catalog announcements. Unfortunately, he did not give updates on previously announced upcoming products that still don't have samples shown, like the Narrow Gauge Gunpowder Wagons or the N Scale Express Coaches, Diesel, or Paxton. He did have the samples of the Narrow Gauge Gondolas, but not the HO Scale Open Carriage. The 80th Anniversary set will only be made once, as it will be a limited edition, and there's still hope that Thomas can have a Railway Series face, but no guarantee.

As they always say, we enjoy reading your posts, Chaz!

Anyway, I don't really see Hiro getting announced just yet, but I can definitely see Whiff being the next newly-tooled engine for HO Scale, and he would be complimented with a Waste Wagon with a trash bag load. A China Clay Wagon in green would be nice to see, but I can also see them announcing the CGI Fuel Tanker, Chocolate Syrup and Toffee Tankers for HO Scale. Gordon's Special Coaches would also be welcome, since they're a rolling stock repaint that appeared in the model series. The next newly-tooled rolling stock for HO Scale has to be the Works Unit Coach, which can come in green, orange and blue liveries. Just wanted to get that out there.

With all the Blue Mountain Quarry rolling stock we're getting, the next Narrow Gauge engine has to be Luke. Once Sir Handel gets out there this summer, it would be the time to announce Luke, since he is the perfect engine to pull all this BMQ rolling stock. While tan and gray box van and brake van repaints are easy to make from existing toolings, the next newly-tooled Narrow Gauge rolling stock after the Gunpowder Wagons should be the 4-Plank Wagons, and they would be good with or without loads, but if they could have loads, they can have coal or stone.

N Scale Edward is a shoe-in and must-have for the NMRA Announcements this July, then the original Steam Team can finally be complete in N Scale. After Edward, the next N Scale engine announcement for 2026 has to be Duck. After Duck, I would then like to see Oliver finally produced in N Scale to compliment the existing Toad model, along with Donald and Douglas. Daisy would be a great choice for N Scale too. Mavis is also brought up a lot, since she would recycle Thomas' chassis. Spencer is still a good suggestion for N Scale because he would recycle Gordon's chassis, like Henry. As for the next N Scale rolling stock, the logoless green Coal Wagon w/ Load, as well as the blue Mining Wagon are great choices, but the next newly-tooled N Scale rolling stock has to be the BR 20-Ton Brake Van. They went with the Graham Farish LMS Brake Van to cut down on tooling costs, but the BR Brake Van can come in different liveries, including light gray and dark gray, and the same tooling would be used for the Spiteful Brake Van. I would also like to see the Red Coaches in N Scale, as they're a modified tooling of Annie and Clarabel, and can be easily made.

Once N Scale Edward finally is on the cards, the next N Scale engine to vouch for would be Duck.

I can definitely see Whiff being the next new tooling for HO Scale, and he will most likely get announced this NMRA once Stanley is out there. To go with Whiff, they'll also need to make a Waste Wagon with a new trash bag load, which would be the perfect rolling stock for him. As for another rolling stock piece, a Red Open Carriage would look good for Christmas, and it would use an existing tooling. Another idea I haven't mentioned is a Brown 12-Ton Van; another logoless van which would look accurate to the show. They still haven't brought the Chocolate Syrup and Toffee Tankers to HO Scale, and it's about time they do, or even a CGI Fuel Tanker.

Once Bachmann gets Sir Handel out there later on, they can announce Luke to be the next Narrow Gauge engine this NMRA. They still need to make tan and gray brake vans and box vans, which can easily be made from existing toolings. Maybe after Luke, Bachmann can finally uncancel Duncan.

It shouldn't be too much longer before we finally see samples of N Scale Diesel and Paxton, as well as the N Scale Express Coaches. Now that Gordon and Emily are out there, they can focus fully on the two diesels. Once they're far enough along, Bachmann can then make steady progress on Henry. Because this is still the 80th Anniversary, Edward for sure has to be announced this NMRA. We need him to complete the original Steam Team in N Scale. There's lots of needed rolling stock for N Scale, like Red Coaches, Coal Wagon w/ Load, BR Brake Van, Gray 12-Ton Van, and the Milk Tanker.

Quote from: JLK2707 on January 26, 2025, 03:17:57 AMHopefully there will be more in February.

Not until July.

I'll have to preorder that 80th Anniversary set as soon as it goes live. Same for the special vans, and I won't cancel them. I ended up having to cancel my preorders on the N Scale Emily set and Narrow Gauge Slate Wagon repaints just a week before they arrived in stock because I needed to save money after all I spent on Christmas. Saved a good $300 right there, but I should get those items eventually. The 80th Anniversary set is definitely the best set to have celebrated a milestone for the series. I still haven't gotten the Deluxe set with the ore loads. Instead of a Gold Thomas, we're getting a set full of exclusives, including a RWS-styled Thomas.

As for Troublesome Truck #7, no doubt they're just going to put a face on the Gray 12-Ton Van and call it a day.

In the February Trainworld stream, Doug Blaine will go over all the new announcements, and previously announced products, including those that haven't had samples yet. I'm just waiting for N Scale Diesel, Paxton, and the Express Coaches to finally have samples shown. I know Doug is going to show off the samples of the HO Scale Open Carriage and Narrow Gauge Gondolas. I hope that in a few months, we'll see Stanley and Salty in their packages. May not be until summer when Sir Handel and the DCC Sound-Fitted Thomas and Percy get shown in their packages. Stay tuned for the NMRA announcements this July.

Oh, we were wrong. The brake van in the set is NOT the one for Bradford. It's the same body as the Spiteful Brake Van, but on a shorter chassis. Right now, only N Scale has the right tooling for Bradford.

Anyway, here's my updated list for the NMRA, which won't be until July. By then, more products should be getting out there, with even more samples shown of other previously announced products.

HO Scale:
Whiff
Waste Wagon
Open Carriage - Red (great for Christmas)
12-Ton Van - Brown
Chocolate Syrup Tanker
Toffee Tanker

Narrow Gauge:
Luke
Brake Van - Tan
Box Van - Tan
Brake Van - Gray
Box Van - Gray

N Scale:
Edward
Coal Wagon w/ Load
Red Coach
Red Brake Coach
12-Ton Van - Gray
BR Brake Van

Large Scale:
Origin James

It would be nice if HO Scale could get red coaches with white roofs. That would make them look like they did in the classic series. N Scale should also get its first Christmas set in the Thomas range.

I had a feeling HO Scale wasn't going to get a new tooling. Especially since they're prioritizing getting Stanley out there and fixing Salty, while making little progress on Sidney and Mainland Diesel. But if they do announce a new tooling this NMRA, it would most likely be Whiff or Samson. Considering the 80th Anniversary set is getting the LMS 20-Ton Brake Van, that's the tooling for Bradford right there, so I can definitely see them announcing Samson as the next new tooling for HO Scale. If we do get Whiff, they would need to announce a Waste Wagon with a new trash load.

The NMRA should for sure announce Luke for Narrow Gauge, and I had a feeling he wasn't going to be in the catalog since they still need to get Sir Handel out there. Thankfully, the gondolas now have painted samples, which means they're not far off, either. All that's left are the Gunpowder Wagons, and those should be in progress. It may be another year or two before Duncan gets reconsidered. For rolling stock, Narrow Gauge still needs a tan brake van and box van, which both would use an existing tooling and can be easily done.

I did guess right that N Scale would get LBSC Thomas and Origin James. It's about time we got non-troublesome variants of the open wagon, and they were the red one, and Sodor Scrap. I'm hoping we can still get the logoless green Coal Wagon w/ Load. It better be the logoless one... I had a feeling Edward wasn't going to be announced just yet because Bachmann is still catching up on Diesel, Paxton and Henry. They only recently managed to get Gordon and Emily out there. Now that it's been another year, progress has to have been done on Diesel and Paxton. I'm still hoping that the NMRA would for sure announce Edward, then we can finally have all eight members of the original Steam Team in N Scale. As for other rolling stock, I'd still like to see the BR Brake Van and Gray 12-Ton Van. Red Coaches are also very much possible.

The 2025 catalog announcements are now here.

HO Scale is getting an 80th Anniversary set, two special vans to mark the occasion, a CGI Milk Tanker, and Troublesome Truck #7, which is a 12-Ton Van. The China Clay wagon now has a logo. N Scale is getting LBSC Thomas and Origin James, as well as the Sodor Scrap and Red Open Wagons. Edward still wasn't announced yet, but they're still catching up on Diesel, Paxton and Henry. Edward should for sure get announced in the NMRA. Lastly, one announcement for Large Scale was LBSC Thomas.

The HO Scale Open Carriage and Narrow Gauge Gondolas actually have images with painted samples shown, so they're not far off from going into shipment. This isn't a Thomas announcement, but Sir Haydn was announced for Narrow Gauge, along with Ffestiniog Railway wagons. I saw that coming once we saw how accurate Sir Handel's tooling was. Speaking of Sir Handel, his official image IS in the catalog.