MTH already sold out on Halloween ES44AC

Thanks for the update.  Pre-ordered 2.  1 for me and another OGR member.  Looking forward to delivery.

Thanks David!

Just placed my order.

Thanks Vince!

I just finished my third attempt to order one and can't get past the submit order button...I give up

I am really ticked, I just found out about this set and they are telling me they are sold out. I ordered the 611 well before the order dead line. I got a call from Legacy it was sold out.

What in gods name is going on!!!

tomorrow I will be on the phone to MTH.

The 611 was hot because it was just put back on the road in great working order you would think there would be some excitement about that and order a few more.

Same thing applies to the MTH Halloween 4400 diesels. They sell out in two days!! what the hey  

!!!

What did they do? Make 10 sets??

JoeG

It would have also been nice if they would have issued the set a few months ago, including back orders,  so it could be enjoyed this year.

Either they made a very small number of these, or a lot of people are in the closet about ordering the seasonal fantasy items.

I prefer to think positively and give MTH lots of kudos for even producing a run of these cool Halloween sets "on spec" at a time when many folks are clamoring that BTO is the definitive savior of the industry.

Don't be lulled into believing you won't be able to find one of these Halloween sets (at least not yet), just because some of the larger forum sponsors are already "sold out".  There may be dozens of smaller train shops (i.e., the hidden jewels so to speak) that may have ordered a couple of these from MTH.  That's how we tracked down product during all those years before BTO officially hit the scene.  But it just might require resorting to that ages-old tool called the telephone! 

David

On the MTH Facebook they mention that they plan on doing another run.

Sunrise

I hope that is the case.  I want one, but can't fit one in this year's train budget.

Andy

dobermann You have to check the I agree to terms box before you submit your order. This may/maynot be your issue. Feel free to call us at 718 436-7072

Trainlover, Ill double check with MTH but just as a guess I would say they probably made 100 engines.

I only have around 10 unsold so If your still on the fence make sure you jump on it. 

Wow, I would be really surprised if they made that many and the and were sold out already

Correction just spoke to MTH and he said around 70 to 75 pieces were made. 

Those MTH product videos just keep getting more annoying all the time. Video playing, side scrolling on bottom, music playing, T-storms and somebody yapping about the specs when all I want is to hear the dang locomotive soundfile! 

What a goof!  MTH made such a BIG DEAL over it.  Why not catalog it and take pre-orders like they do for other typical items (many of which are re-runs of the same old stuff). 

Don't think I'd drop $350 for an engine I could only run a couple weeks a year. In any case, it seems it would pretty easy to pull a shell off a less expensive engine, spray paint the shell orange and add some decals printed on your color printer, and make your own Halloween engine. Or just use an older Milwaukee Road engine and add decals!

I would guess that 90% of us have no ability or interest in doing that though.  And really, how do you re-create the nice graphics like the ones on this loco?  I understand about the limited seasonal use, but many, many of have Halloween rolling stock & areas of our layouts decorated for Halloween.... its not so far-fetched that there would be significant interest in this loco...   much greater than the 75 pieces MTH is said to have made.

Breezinup-

You would be surprised at how many folks are really into Halloween. Especially with all of the Dept 56, and Lemax pieces that have been issues over the past 12-15 years. When we set ours up it is typically up from mid August until Halloween, and then we start the change to Christmas. In the past, We have had 3-4 different Halloween trains running on this setup. I would attach the youtube to this reply but am not sure how to do that. If interested it can be found by searching Joe Gozzo on Youtube.

Therefore, this Engine set is a welcome item for us and hope MTH makes enough for the real demand that is out there.

JoeG

If only they would have replaced the engineer and fireman figures with Dracula and Frankenstein.......

RickO,

Now that would have been cool! I will have to look for something that size and change them out.

JoeG

I'm not a huge fan of Halloween trains.  However; MTH really made some people angry on this one.  I was at the train shop today and people were fired up!

A treat for some. A trick for others.

Fired up!

Well, you're right. Night running with those charging lights would be cool, especially with some lighted cars in tow like the flashing lighted pumpkin car.

If people get totally fired up over this, I'd hate to see how they act when actually important real life issues confront them.  

I wonder how difficult it would be to get the figures and remove them so they could be replaced?

JoeG

Before any of you give on getting this set, I suggest you call MTH and ask them which of their dealers purchased this set. Also, ask them if they have another shipment coming. A lot of times MTH will only receive a partial order of item with more to come.

Angry? Why? I can't think of a reason anyone should be angry. If you like the item (I don't) and preordered one, you should have received it. If you didn't preorder, you basically just took the gamble that there would be some "left over." These days that's probably not a gamble you want to take.

Allan, disappointment is probably the better word that describes how folks feel about this.  It's not my cup of tea either, but I understand how folks who would have wanted one feel. 

I got the impression this was one of MTH's "uncatalog'd" surprise announcements, so there was no pre-order period.  Exactly what brought this product to life is not clear... a dealer posted it may have been "extra quantities" to fill out a minimum production run of ES44's.  Whatever the real story, I give credit to MTH for bringing something fun and fanciful to market without going through the normal BTO process.  Surprise product delivers always generate excitement in a hobby that is often plagued by excessive product delays.

Meanwhile, Jim Sutter's recommendation is a good one... and the MTH Facebook page mentions an additional run being planned (albeit probably for delivery after this Halloween).  MTH has a good record of doing this when demand warrants it (i.e., GE EVO Hybrid ES44, Norfolk Southern OCS, Ives Standard Gauge passenger sets, among others).

David

Agree.  I don't like it.  I just made the observation that it really fired people up.  

Many might not have even heard about the release before it was sold out.  I was lucky enough to get one in time, but had I been busy that day or on vacation or something, it would have been sold out by the time I heard about it.  I believe it was less than 24 hours between the time I heard about it and when it was sold out.

So it's like a pre-order on steroids.  Better start checking your train media sources on the hour, every hour and when you do hear about a release, you can't even sleep on it.  Have to make the decision immediately.  This is what is rubbing people the wrong way.  I wonder if MTH just completely underestimated the demand or did it on purpose to create some interest.  I just cannot imagine making a 75 unit run of anything.  How could that even be worth their time for a relatively inexpensive engine.  But they must have known that it was going to be a great seller.  They had to know it was the best O-gauge Halloween-themed engine ever produced.

This is Toy Trains. You have to have fun at some extent, considering Hobbies are suppose to be fun. I like the engine and the sounds but I have no Halloween cars because I am more of a Christmas train guy.

It's very likely this was simply the quantity needed to meet a minimum production run of ES44's (albeit in other liveries).  Lionel reportedly did something similar when they announced 250 units of their 115th Anniversary Berkshire locomotive.  Granted, 250 is larger than 75.  But the 250 number reportedly came to be as the result of 50 P/E Berks needed to correct an order snafu from last year.  So if the manufacturer required a minimum run of 300, importers sometimes come up with creative ways to meet that minimum.  

David

Sorry to Frighten you! We sold out as of yesterday  

It's a shame the late actor Vincent Price is no longer with us.  His distinctive voice would have been a NATURAL for this MTH video.  It's been over 20 years since Vincent departed the scene, but I can still hear his distinctive vocal quality and imagine how he would sound in this video.  

David

David,

Excellent Idea!! I wonder if it would be cost prohibited to put recordings from him on the loco, or at least one of his laughs. But then again, their is always Protocast.

JoeG

Legacy Station may still be taking orders but the price has increased.