Lionel 4-8-0 Norfolk & Western Class M

LionelLegend posted:

Does anyone know or think Lionel will make a 4-8-0 Norfolk & Western Class M in the near future?

No, I seriously doubt it.

I would love to see Lionel make one of the 475 that is currently at Stratsburg Railroad in Pennsylvania and 433 which is in Abingdon, Virginia. It would also be cool to see Lionel make the lost engines of Roanoke M2 1118, 1134, and M2c 1151. I think Lionel should make these since they have never made any before but what do you all think?

So,,,,,,you didn't like the HIGHLY ACCURATE model that Sunset/3rd Rail produced within the last 2 years?

Oh I love the Sunset/3rd rail model but they are almost impossible to find for sale. I just want to be able to get a 4-8-0 Class M

I would buy it if Lionel or anyone else would produce it! I talked to Scott Mann (GGD) via email a while back and his response was that the demand is for the big NW  engines and he didn't think that the market would support the smaller NW engines. Maybe if enough people chime in and request the smaller engines, it might happen,

Sounds like a great candidate to follow the H10 in the current catalog - a Legacy steamer that operates on 036, has whistle smoke and a swinging bell, all for about $600. Anecdotally, it seems like many on the forum have clamored for a Legacy 475 for a long time.  Throw in a few NW road numbers and it could be a winner.  (Of course, this is coming from a guy who knows absolutely nothing about producing model steam engines....).   

Yea I really like Lionel’s smaller steam engines because they can operate on tighter curves and they’re cheaper

Since we're wishing for pipe dreams, how about a TW-55 class St. Louis, Iron Mountain, and Southern Mastodon?

1134 is lost no more...it's right here in Portsmouth Va (A Seaboard town, but Norfolk is just across the river)

It’s an amazing engine and I really want to see 1134 in person eventually

A second run of Sunset Mollies isn't necessarily out of the question.  Can you find 99 friends who want one too?  Then it can happen.

GG1 4877 posted:

A second run of Sunset Mollies isn't necessarily out of the question.  Can you find 99 friends who want one too?  Then it can happen.

Jonathan,

PLEASE!  The N&W NEVER referred to their 4-8-0s as "Mollies". That is is a misused hobbyist term.  

Hot Water posted:

GG1 4877 posted:

A second run of Sunset Mollies isn't necessarily out of the question.  Can you find 99 friends who want one too?  Then it can happen.

Jonathan,

PLEASE!  The N&W NEVER referred to their 4-8-0s as "Mollies". That is is a misused hobbyist term.  

Duly noted!!!!

disregarding the editorial comments, note that there is an interest in the Class M: Lionel, MTH and GGD, please take notice!

It’s nice that I’m not the only person who wants one of these

We want one or two depending on the cost. Not every N and W engine was large and the small are missing for the most part.

dickkyle posted:

disregarding the editorial comments, note that there is an interest in the Class M: Lionel, MTH and GGD, please take notice!

No editorial comment on my part.  3rd Rail / Sunset did the M class with two different tenders in N&W and one for Strasburg.  I did the graphics for them, limited as they were.  They sold out quickly.  100 in brass is a real number to get these to run again. 

Cost is always a concern and the challenge with small locomotives is that isn't a huge amount of savings over a large one.  I don't remember the original price for the first run M, but I suspect a second run would be in the $1,500 range.  This would of course be for an incredibly accurate and well running brass model. 

To do the tooling for one in die-cast, I suspect the sales would be closer to 750 units at least required to make it go.  Even then, it would still be north of $1k per unit.  Risky in today's O scale climate sadly.

cost is always a factor, but seeing the thousand of smaller engines N&W had on their roster over time and taking into consideration of the smaller engines currently offered by Lionel, GGD and MTH. IE; 10 Wheeler I don't see why the development time would be that burdensome. Final word to Lionel, MTH, and GGD, LISTEN TO YOUR CUSTOMERS!!!

dickkyle posted:

cost is always a factor, but seeing the thousand of smaller engines N&W had on their roster over time and taking into consideration of the smaller engines currently offered by Lionel, GGD and MTH. IE; 10 Wheeler I don't see why the development time would be that burdensome. Final word to Lionel, MTH, and GGD, LISTEN TO YOUR CUSTOMERS!!!

I sure don't know about Lionel or MTH, but Sunset3rd Rail/Golden Gate Depot sure as the devil listens to their customers! Thus, there have NOT been sufficient reservations/orders for very many "smaller" steam locomotive models. It took quite a while for the N&W 4-8-0 models to be brought to conclusion, after waiting quite some years for sufficient reservations/orders.

I mean no disrespect but once one is on the manufacturing side of the equation one has a totally different understanding of how items come or don't come to market in this scale.  It is literally eye opening.

Saying anything is easy in this industry is a gross understatement.  That is just the facts of this business.  In the nearly 10 years I've been consulting this business has dramatically changed. 

No judgement. There are many models I want that won't get made due to the market for them. 

I'm all for MTH or Lionel making these. I have one of the Third Rails, however I would love better sounds. I am also too rough on engines to keep buying brass. I have broken off a lot of detail parts taking it back and fourth to the museum.

Scott Smith

scott.smith posted:

I'm all for MTH or Lionel making these. I have one of the Third Rails, however I would love better sounds. I am also too rough on engines to keep buying brass. I have broken off a lot of detail parts taking it back and fourth to the museum.

I thus must assume that you have been using the original Sunset/3rd Rail packing/shipping box. In my opinion, NEVER use the original packing/shipping box for transporting your locomotive models. I go to Manard's  and purchase inexpensive 20" or 26" plastic tool boxes, and then line them with bubble-wrap & tissue paper. Of my 20 or so Sunset/3rd Rail models, I can't recall ever breaking off any detail parts.

Scott Smith

A rerun of the N&W "M" isn't even my third choice. However IF Lionel made a N&W M2, I'd buy it.

This may be a good candidate for their hybrid brass/die cast offering.

Before Lionel or MTH decide to begin marketing for such a locomotive, they would have to hear from hundreds of hobbyists, not a half-dozen on the OGR Forum.

Then, before production could begin, they would want pre-orders of more than 1,000 units. Only the manufacturer knows what the true number is, but it all comes down to amortization of the tooling costs and a sufficient margin for profit.

Brass runs can be substantially smaller, which is why you’ll see more specialized models produced for that market.

Trust me, I have my own wishlist of locomotives I would like to see produced, but if you regularly read the posts on this forum you’ll find uncounted dozens of similar “I want” suggestions. Occasionally, certain models, like the H10, find their way into production. But 99 percent do not.

GG1 4877   - it was $1340.00 including shipping.