ON30 0-4-0 Porter

[donburlage]

Gentlemen,

I have product #25357 a Greenbriar & Big Run Lumber Co #3, 0-4-0 Porter. I am trying to find out what the original retail price was and if it is still being produced. I could not find it on your website, so I assume it is out of production. Can anyone help me?

Don

[railtwister]

Hi donburlage,

The Porters were last shown in the 2008 Bachmann catalog, with the 0-4-2 listing at $90, and the 0-4-0 listing at $80. These prices were up from the $75 and $85 of previous years, as shown in catalogs as far back as 2001, which is the earliest Bachmann catalog I have on hand. The street prices were usually from $40 to $50, depending on vendor.

I am also hoping they will be released with improved pickups and DCC Onboard, as was done with the Gas-Mechanical. Factory installed Mini Tsunami onboard DCC/Sound would be totally irresistable.

Regards,
Bill

[Mike_AA9ZY]

A Porter with sound? I'll buy 4 undecorated ones!

Wait, I must have dreamed that. I doubt seriously that Bachmann would put sound in the Porters.

[railtwister]

Gentlemen,

I have product #25357 a Greenbriar & Big Run Lumber Co #3, 0-4-0 Porter. I am trying to find out what the original retail price was and if it is still being produced. I could not find it on your website, so I assume it is out of production. Can anyone help me?

Don

Don,

It looks like an unlettered one just sold on Ebay the other day for $70 (see Ebay item #370393231229).

Regards,
Bill

[lvrr325]

When new they sold at a discount, after a few weeks you could buy one for $35-$45 without too much trouble, which had to be about cost and about half the retail price.  Now that they're OOP, the prices will go back up.

That's a pretty normal pattern for most new model railroading products - they sell great for a few weeks, then they can be had cheap until the supplies dry up; then the prices climb on sites like eBay until either they get crazy high or the product is reissued.   Some manufacturers have taken to making really short runs of products to try to combat the problem. 

[railtwister]

The newest issue of RMC has a Trainworld  ad that lists both the Porter 0-4-0 and 0-4-2 with a sale price of $39.95, but I don't know if they actually have any in stock. Frequently they advertise items they are sold out of, which seems like a real waste of advertising dollars to me. If you really are looking for a Porter, though, it ought to be worth a phone call to find out if any are in stock.

Bill