I am truly wondering if there is anyone besides myself that still enjoys this hobby or is everyone a half-step away from rioting, protests, and revolt? I admit that I have had my fair share of rants so I have worked at finding the things that make me happy and frankly ignoring or moving away from those that do not. I decided to post this since it sure seems like there is a lot of pent up hate or frustrations at best over our hobby in many aspects. Lately it takes me a look at 6 to 7 posts to find a positive over a negative. So what gives? Not enough ozone anymore, prescriptions run out, or just general hate of one's existence?
I absolutely agree with you Jeff. People can say "they're happy" and then turn around and start complaining and grumbling about this, that and everything.
The last two-decades have brought unprecedented changes, options, and variety into a segment of the train hobby that is STILL a smaller market than either N scale or HO scale. Even with all the variety available in those scales, the Railroad Model Craftsman magazine always has articles how to kitbash or correct one model into another.
Meanwhile, in the 3-rail arena, people would rather grumble, complain and expect by entitlement for the manufacturers to meet their every whim and want. In a recent thread, someone was complaining about headlight location, making the point it would be "no trouble" for Lionel to change their dies. Really? Why not do like the HO guys do, and alter the model yourself?!
Reality check folks: the train companies are also businesses. While part of their plan is to please as many people as possible, they also have to balance costs versus return. And they have all said it.
It's not just Notch 6. There are magazine articles, interviews, the TCA presentations, etc. I often wonder if anyone bothers to listen or read them? All the train companies (even the HO ones) say R&D is expensive, tooling is expensive, paint masks are expensive, that it takes several sell-out runs of a new product to just BREAK EVEN... not make profit... just to recover the investment costs. They have ALL said it, yet folks here chose to argue and not believe it.
"Why are there so few O scale decals?" Answer from Microscale, "They don't sell."
Question to Mike Wolf at a show, overheard by me: "Why do you ignore this particular road name?" Mike's answer: "It doesn't sell."
Yes folks, there's a reality to being IN the train business. Would you go to work tomorrow if your employer cut your salary in half? Probably not. Yet some people expect (and demand) the train companies to make products that will lose money.
I've sometimes made the comment, if you aren't happy then start YOUR own train company. And seriously, there's a whole freight load of folks here who really need to do this and find out just how expensive and difficult it is to be in this business. And you'll need your OWN money, because I doubt any bank (looking at this market, the dominance of the Lionel name, and how many other companies have tried and failed) is going to loan you any money.
THEN, if I guy like me, is REALLY content and doesn't complain, I have "scale envy" and am "smug." Of which I am neither.
I am really content with what I have. If you gave me a Vision Line Big Boy, I'd ask if I could instead trade it for some RMT products. If you offered me a free DCS and Legacy system, I'd be flattered, and then ask if I could trade it for something I'd really like instead.
If one of the forum sponsors offered me a FREE gift certificate for SCALE ONLY rolling stock, I'd have to decline the offer, unless I could redeem it for traditionally sized or 027 products. If they were willing to do that, IT WOULD MAKE ME HAPPY.
I still look forward to the Ready To Run catalogs, only later looking at the others. I still think the K-Line S-2, now the RMT S-4 is the BEST diesel ever made - just because it looks so good on a smaller layout.
Fan driven smoke units are incredible, and are also inevitably problematic and unreliable - so I stick with the puffer units, with the Lionel premium fluid - which is a real improvement.
I'm happy with silhouettes in my 027 passenger cars... they look fine. In the recent thread about the best passenger cars, I wanted to vote for the PULLMAN 3-pack Lionel has offered for some years now. What a great idea. I'm certain I would have been the lone voice with that opinion.
So really, it's not a question of what will be made tomorrow. It's a question of what is made today. Are you happy with it or not? If not, you still have the option of teaching the other train companies a lesson by starting your own.
Or even more easily, going to HO scale, where the scale fidelity and product variety are financially justifiable to be made, and are already available.
The third option, is to continue complaining here. Or even better yet, grow your hair long, put on some bell-bottom jeans, make some signs that say "make this now" and then march outside your favorite train company offices... that'll change everything!!!
It's why many forums have a 'popcorn' emoticon - it's like theater. 
When people ask me about my family, I usually say something along the lines of: "I have a lovely wife, three wonderful kids.... and one OTHER kid...". But I love all my kids. Sometimes, I just need to gripe about them when they do something so inconceivably stupid that I question human evolution at its core. 
