Does anyone have the new Lionel Polar Express 10th anniversary Legacy berkshire yet?

When I get mine I will do a video of the black 1225. 

 

Not my video.  Just found it this morning.  Really like the additional audio.

The video really shows off the new features of this latest edition of the scale PE 1225. Thanks for posting.

We have all the Berk's in stock with same day shipping!

       
       


Charlie, do you guys have anymore of the combo and the toy cars??

Thanks
Matt

Charlie, do you guys have anymore of the combo and the toy cars??

Thanks
Matt

 

We will know next week when the combo's come in. There is no Toy car in this group

       
       


The scale toy car was from a previous run and the number for that is 6-25587.

 Andy, what's the # of the populated coach with children figures inside? Assuming it's not the coach car that's in this years catalogs "6-81945" I ordered 2 of these but if the populated couch is cool I will try and find these at some point to go with my set. 

That engine sounds really good!

I don't know how you feel, but to me, those cars are just screaming for snow on the roofs!!!

Were any new cars released with this engine or were they all the same as what was previously available over the last few years ?

They are the same as were previously produced except the observation and coach are now also available in Gold. Also there is a PE Coal Hopper 6-81699.

 

Emile

 

 

Yes they do and they look very nice!

Received a troubling e-mail from Charles Ro today that the 10th Anniversary Polar Express Berkshires were "short shipped" and that they were waiting to hear from Lionel as to delivery of the rest of their order.  Anybody else waiting on their purchase???

-Pete

I have one in that I am waiting for also. Do you have a black or gold one on order? when I spoke to them last week they told me there might be another order coming in on Tuesday meaning tomorrow. I was hoping mine will come in tomorrow and get it in time for Thanksgiving :-( anyone knows more please keep us updated

Matt, I ordered a black one.  I just hope this doesn't turn into a situation where we have to be patient till after the holidays......

-Pete

Mine arrived last Wednesday in perfect condition.

       

       

Pete, I hope that's not the case. I'm also hoping that it is not because they didn't get our orders in on time and that will never get ours. I'm going to give them a call tomorrow sometime since it will be Tuesday maybe something would have come in by then. 

       

       


Yours was part of the first shipment that came in last Tuesday as they said they only got a partial shipment when I spoke to them over the phone last tuesday. 

I just spoke to Charles Ro a little bit ago, and was given the deflating news, that only part of their order was shipped.  I never received an email.  Thus those that are further down the list, such as myself may or may not receive the PE Berkshire, depending upon what Lionel says.  I called another dealer who still had available inventory, and put one on hold with them. I explained the situation with C. Ro, and they were more than willing to accommodate me till I can get a definitive answer on whether or not, we will receive the PE Berkshire. 

 

We were hoping to receive ours before Thanksgiving, so that we could put it around the Christmas Tree, as the final piece of our decorating.  (We put our tree up, the day after/ Black Friday). 

 

If anyone hears anything, please post it here. 

       

       


James did they happen to mention about a possible shipment coming tomorrow? Also, did they actually say that we may not get it at all?? That other dealer that you found inventory at did they have more than just one left?

 

Thanks!!

-Matt

Matthew,

 

Nothing was mentioned about a truck coming tomorrow. Their words were, we do not know if we will receive more PE Berks. Yes, they are BTO and you paid your deposit, but at this point we are waiting on a reply from Lionel.  I asked, what happens if they don't get anymore, and the response was, we will refund your deposit. Regarding the other dealer, it is his last one. 

James, I don't have a deposit in with them. They never asked for one. I will be very disappointed if we don't get ours  

 

Not a whole lot you can do now.  If it were me, I would be p****d if I had my order in by the preorder deadline and I ended up not getting one.  Especially if they had my deposit.  I would probably switch hobby shops.  Now, if I placed the order after the deadline, I would be a little more understanding.  I currently have 1 item like that on my current outstanding preorders (non vision PFE reefers).  All other items were preordered before the deadline.  I have also never heard anyone say anything bad about charles ro...other than his website needing to be updated.  Hopefully they will be able to get it fixed for you.

Matthew:

 

What I can say about Charles Ro is they are a very reputable dealer and in all of the years I have dealt with them, I have never been disappointed. Not once. I ordered my Gold Edition Berkshire the day the catalog was issued in late 2013 (they said it was their first order received for this engine and the price was not posted until the next catalog-I had "trust" they would treat me right with the price when it was known, and they did), so I am not surprised I was one of the first to receive it.

 

Have faith in Charles Ro, they will take care of you.

Accurate information is becoming a rare commodity these days, and who says what is key.  We just went thru the CZ debacle, where Lionel personnel couldn't even confirm whether the observation car had a dome or not until folks here took delivery of the 4-pack and provided pictures.

And now this?  Lionel's #1 dealer gets a partial order on P/E Berks, and Lionel can't confirm whether the balance of Charlie Ro's order is even gonna ship???  REALLY???  Are you serious???

Let's hope for now that this information is just too premature to comment on any further until we get the confirmed facts.  And let's hope for the best.  For the record, yes.. I have a confirmed pre-order with Charlie from way back when and haven't received mine yet either.  Will definitely be watching this space closely.

David

       
PTC, it's not Charlie Ro I'm worried about.  I've been ordering from Charlie since the 1970's and he's the absolute best.  It's Lionel's executive management that's often as interchangable as checker pieces that gives me cause to question things.

David

I talked to Charles Ro yesterday and he is trying to get an answer from someone at Lionel regarding the shortage of scale black PE Berks. I placed my order well before the deadline, as apparently others did as well, yet we did not get ours.  

 

I understood the PE Berk to be a "built to order" item.  

 

I then called another Lionel dealer and his impression was there's no more left.

 

I am hoping Charles will have an answer from Lionel soon. He said he'd let me know.

 

 

 

We have extra NKP and PM ready to ship today if needed. Charlie

Yes... and that's why this scenario is so confusing.  And with Lionel's top dealer no less.  So we're not just talking about coming up short by one or two units here.  Probably more like a truckload of pallets!

 

I suppose it begs the question as to whether ANYBODY at Lionel stateside really knows what's being shipped into NC and when anymore.     And then of course, who makes the decisions to parcel product out to the dealer/distributor network?  If their #1 dealer is short-shipped, then somebody's gotta know it won't go unnoticed for too long.  

 

If Lionel produced every unit that was ordered, then...  Units are either on a truck en route to Charlie's, or they're sitting in NC (unlikely), or there's a partial shipment still enroute to NC. This ain't rocket science.  

 

Worst case scenario is another production run would need to be scheduled to fulfill the remaining BTO orders.  Otherwise this is a huge black eye for Lionel's BTO program, and BTO means nothing.  (I always said it was mostly marketing hype.)  You guys and gals who ordered Big Boys better hope that roll-out goes a bit smoother.

 

Never a dull moment around here.  That's for sure.

 

David

 

 

I agree.....noone is blaming Charles Ro for the shortage. He, in good faith placed the order and relied on Lionel's Built to Order marketing ploy.   Lionel should come out with an explanation and soon as to the reason for its delay and what it plans to do to rectify the situation. I normally never cancel an order when placed even if I find it cheaper, however in this case, not getting a warm and fuzzy feeling as to the explanation given, i felt the best course of action to receive a Berk prior to the Holidays, was to cancel my Ro order and find it elsewhere.  I emailed Ro to apologize and to explain my decision which they accepted.  That went a long way with me. I have since repurchased the Berk and UPS is delivering it today.  I just hope, like everyone else, that Lionel rectifies this nonsense prior to its deployment of the Big Boy visionline locos-

just my 2cents.

 

-Pete 

Pete:

 

Very prudent decision. You will love this engine.

Charles Ro is usually very understanding with these circumstances. After talking with him yesterday, and after talking to another dealer who said this was it for the Berks, I thought about it overnight and decided to order a PE Berk today from that 2nd dealer that still had one in stock, but I will honor my order with Charles should he obtain more models from Lionel. I didn't want to be in the position I was in with the Milw. Rd. S-3's, which went like hotcakes.

 

Paul, I would think that Ro is very understanding about this as they are unable to give you a definitive answer as to when their back order will be satisfied. You are fortunate to find another dealer that still has one.

Brian,

I have to admit I hit the panic button after reading this thread and talking to the two dealers. To me, there's no doubt we're in a niche hobby.

I am confused, are we talking about the Polar Express Gold or the Polar Express Black or both?  I have received the Gold edition but not the Black one from Charles Ro.

I just spoke with a worker at Charles Ro , they are still awaiting a response from Lionel on the status of the black Polar Express locomotives.

//RANT ON

 

This story is still developing... and until we hear a firm correspondence from Lionel management as to why Charles Ro was short-shipped on the Black P/E Berk (and perhaps other dealers may have been shorted as well), Lionel is gonna have a difficult time getting ANYBODY to buy into their BTO program.  Something is definitely not right in Lionelville, and their executive management needs to address this situation quickly and fairly.  Otherwise, BTO products -- and the ordering process surrounding them -- are gonna be a complete joke.

 

The unproductive energy that folks will now expend calling other dealers for "extra" stock is gonna be unreal.   Some may get lucky like Paul did and grab the last one from a dealer's remaining stock.  Many will likely be disappointed though.   

 

I guess I'm pretty much at a point in this hobby where I could care less one way or the other if anything gets built anymore.  And I truly mean that.  I'm switching gears to layout-building mode very soon, and that's where my energy is gonna be focused.  But I get the fact that not everybody is at that place.  So for their sake, I do hope Lionel steps up here and does the right thing.

 

I guess what's most amazing though is how easy Lionel is making it lately for us to draw the conclusion that NOBODY there really has a clue what's going on.  For all anybody knows, a shipment of these gems could arrive tomorrow.  Or what's been shipped already represents the entire production run, and that's it.  No more comin' down the pike.  When their #1 dealer can't get a straight answer, I'm not sure what to say. 

 

I hope somebody there is working on a damage-control plan, 'cause right now Lionel is gonna have zero credibility going forward among serious toy train enthusiasts.  ZERO.  First the CZ debacle where they couldn't even confirm whether the observation was built with a dome or not , and now this bungling of BTO orders for a very high-profile item.  I can't even imagine what's in store next for the Big Boy???  Do folks stateside communicate with their overseas contractors anymore???  Or worse yet, do they even know HOW to???  

 

I realize these are just toys... and most of us will keep that healthy perspective.  But just the same, why are we so constantly reminded that some folks don't have a clue what they're doing at work?  Can it be THAT difficult to perform one's job with even an ounce of competence?     Or have we reached a new low with overseas manufacturing contractors, where there's just ZERO credibility that they're gonna make what they've signed up to make... in the proper quantities and with reasonably good reliability -- especially for products marketed as high-end.

 

I guess our corner of the world is just too small a blip on the radar screens of Asian manufacturers these days... and they just don't care.

 

//RANT OFF

The problem is two-fold:  the Black model was grossly short-shipped to a major dealer (and perhaps others), and there's no definitive answer if more are on the way.  If I were a betting man, I'd bet we won't see any additional black models until 2015... and that's IF Lionel steps up to the plate and runs an additional production run to fulfill outstanding orders... assuming they can even get an additional production run scheduled.   

 

On a positive note for those who ordered gold coaches, they're now in stock at Charlie Ro's place.  So get 'em while you can!!! 

 

David

Dave,

Like I said above we're in a niche hobby, translation = it's a very small industry compared to other consumer products. I believe if it wasn't for us Baby Boomers, aka. train nuts, continuing to go back and buy this stuff there would probably be no O-gauge hobby, except for guys who continue to operate the old pre and postwar items. Sometimes I think they may have more fun with the older items as compared to the new fangled stuff.