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Post by david1 on Apr 1, 2024 2:45:47 GMT
Its not the importer its the American buyer who insists product be cheaper. The USA mfgs determined early on that they could not compete with overseas suppliers with their cheap prices and wages. All the money guys jumped on the band wagon when profits could be increased by building off shore.
Nobody is to blame except ourselves. We wanted cheaper prices and we got it!!!
Now that the importers and builders are off shore, now we complain.
Dave
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Post by Traindiesel! on Apr 1, 2024 7:49:52 GMT
Very interesting questions, Ron! And no, you don't have an illness. You are simply evolving how you enjoy the hobby. And that's fine because there is no wrong way to enjoy this fabulous hobby of model railroading. Anyone who complains about or criticizes how you want to have fun just wants to pee in your Cheerios!
In my lifetime I've played with all the scales from Z, N, HO, S and O gauge and I always came back to O. As I myself prefer to buy scale sized O gauge trains I'm not bothered by the imperfections as long as they are not egregious. I'm ok with a little overhang on O72 or larger curves. I don't mind the large couplers, in fact I prefer them. As a kid I liked how sturdy and tough they looked and loved to uncouple and recouple them over and over. Paint color variations don't bother me much unless it's completely catywompus. I love railfanning and you see faded and/or discolored colors caused by the elements all the time. As for weathering model trains I think a lot of what I see is fantastic work but I like my locomotives and rolling stock to look like they just exited the paint shop.
Speaking of paint, fantasy paint schemes don't bother me. Most of them I do not like but will acquire models that look like they might have operated on a real railroad. I've bought several of the MTH and Lionel custom runs the last few years, or a special edition offering like the OGF items and most of my post war trains are fantasy (But my Father and Grandfather bought all of the post war trains). I did like the Lionel Space Force engines that would pull my post war and modern military freight but I passed on them because of other more contemporary models I preferred to get. I'd say my only OCD now is to research if a railroad actually rostered a locomotive offering and if they had it in the offered colors. And most of the time I rely on the vast knowledge of the historians, advocates and railroad employees that peruse the forums.
If I was starting this hobby from scratch I really like the look of two rail O scale. But I don't mind three rail track and there is a lot more product available in three rail trains, plus I am biased because my whole collection is three rail.
My pet peeve is broken or non functioning product out of the box. I've had my share of casualties and may find a few more from engines that haven't seen the light of day yet. (I know, I know, I'm working on getting them out!). I also bristle at $100+ freight cars and $700+ diesels. Not that I can't buy them (although no longer in the quantities I have in the past), but because I don't see the value. Pricing seems to have doubled in some cases since the pandemic as importers cashed in and continue to cash in on the buying sprees from modelers locked down and stuck inside and getting more involved in the hobby again. And as we all know the pricing for most things never comes back to earth. Until recently I never had angst or complained about the prices of trains. But the jump in cost, to me, seems sudden and extra prolific. I don't blame the train shops, they need to make a living, but the bean counters at our favorite importers seem to be rubbing their hands together and sneering at us. Sort of like this:
Now I'll cover my bowl of Cheerios! 
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Post by frankmulligan on Apr 2, 2024 14:08:28 GMT
I like the look of scale, but for me model railroading is about imagination. Imaging living in a time when the steam trains I have were in use in real life. If I had a warehouse-sized building to build a layout, scale would work for me. I don't. I have a semi-scale area to build my semi-scale layout.
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