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The new circus train is pretty cool.  I'm still seeing quite a bit of "Golden Memories."  And although I don't personally care for speculation, (there's more than enough of that here, along with crazy rumors) I suspect we'll be seeing some keen new product from WBB in the not too distant future.  Pretty sure that Bachmann will not stand pat.

 

Pete

Since Williams by Bachmann's parent company owns most of the K-Line tooling just maybe they are going to reintroduce some of the great K-Line scale stuff such as the 21 inch passenger cars. Need more of the Great Northern sky blue passenger cars, only 3 were produced. I saw in this catalog some of K-Line's freight rolling stock.

Originally Posted by Bill T:

Since Williams by Bachmann's parent company owns most of the K-Line tooling just maybe they are going to reintroduce some of the great K-Line scale stuff such as the 21 inch passenger cars. Need more of the Great Northern sky blue passenger cars, only 3 were produced. I saw in this catalog some of K-Line's freight rolling stock.

Might be unlikely. Prices for aluminum are escalating to the point, as I heard from a WBB rep, that "Just like K-Line" cars would make even WBB's inflated MSRP's* look tame in comparison.

 

One of the larger dealers I spoke with at the last York supposedly have had on-and-off talks with the Chinese about producing a line of aluminum cars--every time they talk, the price gets higher and higher. This while buying a set of Lionel Superliners--the only ones I've seen since they were cataloged.

 

*it's been said that substantially discounted street prices are the norm though.

 

---PCJ

Originally Posted by MIKATT1:

..... no EZ street switches ........

The absence of E-Z Streetswitches is very disappointing especially as I am at the point on my under-construction streetcar layout that I will need them soon or will have to use something else.  I was told by a Williams rep at York last October that they would be out in April.  I guess I should have asked “what year?”.

 

Bill

Originally Posted by Bill T:

Since Williams by Bachmann's parent company owns most of the K-Line tooling just maybe they are going to reintroduce some of the great K-Line scale stuff such as the 21 inch passenger cars. Need more of the Great Northern sky blue passenger cars, only 3 were produced. I saw in this catalog some of K-Line's freight rolling stock.


I do not think that we will see passenger cars from the K-Line 21" tooling any time soon. I talked with WBB reps at a show on Saturday and they said that the 21" cars are just too expensive to make now. They said that the COST to them to make those cars as K-Line did them is now up to nearly $200 per car!  So the retail on the cars would approach $300! In order to complete my 21" GN Big Sky Blue set, I purchased some K-Line 21" cars in other roadnames for a repaint (diner, business car observation, baggage, etc.). The GN BSB paint scheme seems to be a fairly simple repaint.

I know O gauge is not a big priority in the scheme of things to Bachmann, but, no additional liveries in the GP30's, and no more expansion of EZ Streets range, disappointed. Also, I would have thought the new sound system would have been made available as a retrofit. I'm surprised too, that the SD 90's are getting the sound system first. I guess they are popular.

Originally Posted by WftTrains:

The absence of E-Z Streetswitches is very disappointing...

Indeed, indeed!  I really was hoping to see these introduced.  The lack of switches leaves a gaping hole in the E-Z Streets line that should not have been all that difficult (or expensive) to fill.

 

I'm also VERY surprised that there were no new roadnames announced for the GP30s.  Not a good thing!

I'd like to see them do the ten-wheeler in an undecorated, most modern type.  ( I have no hope of ever seeing a fairly accurate version of that engine in Milwaukee Road livery)   Does anyone know if TMCC can be installed in that little tender?   If not, how about Proto 3?

 

Paul Fischer

While we are on the subject of Williams, see GP-30 Dummies on WBB Williams portion under ask the Bachmann forum , I heard no more unpowered diesels or dummy engines as they are too expensive to produce anymore.

 

Personally I feel that Williams is trying to get out of the O gauge market, give them three years and see!

Also the prices have gone up by a whole lot for Williams since the Bachmann buyout, example the True Blast 2 horn unit is now $59.95 or $60, used to be only $40.00 a couple of years ago.

 

Lee Fritz

Last edited by phillyreading

Like Bill T stated it is possible they want to clear there warehouse. I noticed there a certian non powerd diesels and they only offer the two car add on for the Super Chief. 

Hopefully they will bring back the scale GG1 with True Blast Plus. I will defenetly get a Reading Heritage SD90 and a Pennsy 10 wheeler. I have a string of Lionel woodside eeefers that should look good behind it with a bobber caboose.

Originally Posted by phillyreading:

While we are on the subject of Williams, see GP-30 Dummies on WBB Williams portion under ask the Bachmann forum , I heard no more unpowered diesels or dummy engines as they are too expensive to produce anymore.

 

Personally I feel that Williams is trying to get out of the O gauge market, give them three years and see!

Also the prices have gone up by a whole lot for Williams since the Bachmann buyout, example the True Blast 2 horn unit is now $59.95 or $60, used to be only $40.00 a couple of years ago.

 

Lee Fritz

There are dummies listed all over the catalog:  F-units, PA's, FA's, Geeps too.  They already said the GP30's would see another release, just not now.  They've only been released a little while.

Originally Posted by tsched:
Originally Posted by phillyreading:

While we are on the subject of Williams, see GP-30 Dummies on WBB Williams portion under ask the Bachmann forum , I heard no more unpowered diesels or dummy engines as they are too expensive to produce anymore.

 

Personally I feel that Williams is trying to get out of the O gauge market, give them three years and see!

Also the prices have gone up by a whole lot for Williams since the Bachmann buyout, example the True Blast 2 horn unit is now $59.95 or $60, used to be only $40.00 a couple of years ago.

 

Lee Fritz

There are dummies listed all over the catalog:  F-units, PA's, FA's, Geeps too.  They already said the GP30's would see another release, just not now.  They've only been released a little while.

All the dummies listed in the 2013 WBB catalog are previous existing stock.  I believe Bachmann means there won't be any more dummies for hood units.

 

Rusty

Originally Posted by fisch330:

I'd like to see them do the ten-wheeler in an undecorated, most modern type.  ( I have no hope of ever seeing a fairly accurate version of that engine in Milwaukee Road livery)   Does anyone know if TMCC can be installed in that little tender?   If not, how about Proto 3?

 

Paul Fischer

The tender has plenty of room for an Electric railroad Cruise Commander and railsounds commander.

WBB never really took off as anticipated. Seems they are lost in the shuffle.

They basically have the same old boring stuff with a few new compressed K-line box cars now.

The traditional market is flooded and has peaked out a long time ago.

If they wanted to change direction, there is a market just in providing dummy units.

Since MTH has discontinued non-powered units and Lionel is very high priced, they could be “the” supplier filling the void.

The models would have to be true O with the details found on the

GP-30 and competitors diesels.

There are several other areas that they could tap into as well if someone there was in tune to the needs and requests of the 3r community.

I would drop 75% of the product line and concentrate on what people actually want in today’s’ world.

If there was still room in the traditional market, you would see Atlas O’s Industrial Rail thriving which is no longer the case either.

They were the best detailed traditional cars for the money.

With RMT providing what remains, I think WBB is barking up the wrong tree, but that’s just my two cents.

I'm still expecting good things from Bachmann in O scale and I'm not very concerned by the apparent lack of items in the catalog. Bachmann has been known to announce new items without being tied to the unveiling of a new catalog and I'd expect the company to continue to follow that practice. Since both models are in the company's HO and N scale lines, I remain confident Bachmann will be the manufacturer of the long awaited O scale GE 44 ton and 70 ton units.

 

Bob 

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OGR Publishing, Inc., 1310 Eastside Centre Ct, Ste 6, Mountain Home, AR 72653
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