I wonder if the new MTH Company will ever issue a catalog or just go the special run and un-cataloged route.
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I doubt they will. Costly and not the most agile way to support the market.
That said, I hope that someone at MTH puts all of the announced “un-cataloged” products into a virtual catalog or easily browsed/searched page on their web site.
I was going to ask them about this at York next week.
Wayne,
You're right on target.
@Bob Shaw posted:As you all are aware, there have been a dizzying number of new products released this year. Way too many for anyone to remember. It would help sales tremendously, if MTH would bundle all the special releases into one catalogue that can be accessed online.
For more detail following Bob's post of 9/2/21 see:
2021 MTH catalogue please! | Bob Shaw
Mike
I don’t think they will do a catalog. The model of doing specific runs for dealers permits flexibility production-wise, limits risk, and allows them to tailor product for different regions of the country where certain lines are likely to be more popular.
That being said the spray of daily emails is a lot and would benefit from being organized on a website. I am sure that this is on the to do list as they ramp up the new firm/
I predict they'll change the current email blast method if and when they perceive that a on-line or even off-line catalog would yield more profits. 
I don't have any idea what the future holds, and I'm not sure the MTH folks do either. Remember a year plus ago they were closing their doors? Mike Wolf riding off into retirement. Plans changed.
Now they have been doing mostly small runs for specific dealers advertised by email and on their website mostly. Not suitable for cataloguing per se, since the products are built to order only and in small volumes, one guesses. Just have to wait and see how it all plays out.
The parts operation seems more in for the long haul as they are investing significant resources in that spinoff. But sales of new products seems a less clear story, although perhaps that's because they haven't discussed their plans publicly as they have for the parts operation. Que sera, sera to quote Doris Day and Alfred Hitchcock.
MTH needs some order to their announcements, instead of a slew of emails. Mark
@WaynePa posted:I wonder if the new MTH Company will ever issue a catalog or just go the special run and un-cataloged route.
Ed....since this is a topic about MTH, you should have posted it on the MTH General topic forum. I moved it. PLEASE make sure that you post to the most logical (based on the main subject) forum.
So, by burying it hear the responses get limited. If you moved every post that mentioned MTH I could understand. But you seem to be vey selective.
What about the post on the three rai site about MTH rolling stock painted in PRR.
That belongs hear too.
I guess once again you are going to suspend my account because I disagreed with you.
@WaynePa posted:So, by burying it hear the responses get limited. If you moved every post that mentioned MTH I could understand. But you seem to be vey selective.
What about the post on the three rai site about MTH rolling stock painted in PRR.
That belongs hear too.
I guess once again you are going to suspend my account because I disagreed with you.
You're advocating moving any post that in any is connected to or even mentions MTH? What about a post that mentions MTH and Lionel? Maybe we could cut those down the middle and post it in both places? 
Gosh, I better not mention Weaver, they don't have a forum to move it to! 
@gunrunnerjohn posted:You're advocating moving any post that in any is connected to or even mentions MTH? What about a post that mentions MTH and Lionel? Maybe we could cut those down the middle and post it in both places?
It’d be easier if they made a forum just for bellyaching,….then they could let it all out,…😭😭😭😭…..
Pat
@Landsteiner posted:Now they have been doing mostly small runs for specific dealers advertised by email and on their website mostly. Not suitable for cataloguing per se, since the products are built to order only and in small volumes, one guesses.
Not to mention that the lead times for planning production of these small runs by MTH for dealers seems very short, unlike advanced production planning done by Lionel (6 months+, one would suppose, probably in most cases far more than that, particularly for new products requiring new molds or additional engineering for added features), which provides the lead time necessary for preparing and publishing catalogs.
It seems all the "custom" runs are is a new paint job on an existing locomotive. It sounds like they have a ton of one model lined up and just keep making a small run of custom paint for a specific RR. Not exactly inspiring going forward.
MTH should make new Genesis Amtrak 50th Anniversary premier engines....would really sell well. I guess Lionel has the RK versions now which are way too short.
@rdj92807 posted:MTH should make new Genesis Amtrak 50th Anniversary premier engines....would really sell well. I guess Lionel has the RK versions now which are way too short.
Atlas O bought the Premier Genesis tooling. Scroll down for the tooling list.
Rusty
It took Sears 16 years to close down since bankruptcy in 2005. MTH may spend a few years shipping product that may or may not have a support network in the future.
@RixTrack posted:It took Sears 16 years to close down since bankruptcy in 2005. MTH may spend a few years shipping product that may or may not have a support network in the future.
This can be said of any of the modern electronic trains. Plus, they seem to be producing a lot of new product with existing tooling, not liquidating old stock.
And, fwiw, Sears went into bankruptcy around 2018. The merger with Kmart was in 2005. By 2010 or so, it’s debts exceeded its market capitalization and the firm was no longer profitable. It had fallen into a financial spiral that left it unable to modernize its stores and establish a viable web retailer - Walmart is a good example of the opposite situation.
MTH was not liquidated because it was largely insolvent and was drowning in debt. The owner wanted to retire and no one wanted to buy the firm whole, so they split it up. Will it work long term? The jury is still out but the pandemic seems to have reinvigorated the hobby generally and the local dealers with whom I do business state business has been brisk/. So fingers crossed.
At this point, we have over 120 custom runs in process with MTH. For every model being made, there are several dealers doing a few custom pieces each. Plus, for every one offered, MTH also does 4-6 road names for their own release. In my calculation, about half the volume is custom runs.
If you go to MTH's website, under product locator, you can select a catalog, and if you select FJ 2021 All Scales from the dropdown list, a listing of all of the announced products comes up. So far, there are 114 RailKing; 98 Premier; and 2 One Gauge products.
If you again go to the product locator and search for "muffins" you see all of my custom runs. This includes all of the projects that have been announced.
Search for Public Delivery Track, Berwyn or Stockyard to see theirs, for example.
Well, I'm not preordering ANYTHING since the Sante FE ABA RK set due in July still hasn't shipped.... My local HS shows OCT now, but the MTH website still shows July. I'm not sure anyone is keeping the website updated these days....
This topic has been beat up for months. I’d be shocked if they made paper catalogs. They’re very expensive to print and time consuming to create. Maybe digital. I may not fall in line with the majority, but I prefer the current model over a catalog. Gives something to look forward to a few times a week. For what MTH is now making (new paint jobs on existing tooling) I think it’s great. I have definitely purchased more than I would have through a catalog because something new is announced I must have.
From what I was told from a very reliable source, a 200 page catalog can cost as much as $250,000 and this figure was from about 15-20 years ago to produce and make so many thousands of copies aka printing costs. Putting a catalog online makes more sense to a company in terms of dollars spent and dollars earned.
Will someone still be producing the DCS Control system? I never got into that system, but I was considering it just before Mike Wolfes announcement. Are they only going to be available on the secondary market now?
@Sean's Train Depot posted:Will someone still be producing the DCS Control system? I never got into that system, but I was considering it just before Mike Wolfes announcement. Are they only going to be available on the secondary market now?
As far as I know the TIU/WiFi combo 50-1039 is still being produced and due out next year now but only works with the App or tethered remote. If you want to use a remote you'll have to search for the previous units which are no longer in production.
Yep, I scurried around and bought a few of the previous TIU/Remotes as I'm not all that enamored of running trains with my phone.
@gunrunnerjohn posted:Yep, I scurried around and bought a few of the previous TIU/Remotes as I'm not all that enamored of running trains with my phone.
Me either. I guess one more thing to add to my York hunt list.
Thanks!
I don't have enough engines to warrant worrying about needing extra TIUs or remotes. If my remote STB then I'll use the app or sell the engines. If I was more heavily invested I probably would have acquired a spare though so I know the concern.
I probably have at least 30-35 DCS engines, so I didn't really want to orphan all of those without proper controls. 
For now at least it appears MTH is only doing special runs from dealer preorders, no catalog, no stocking, no leftovers, just receive and ship out.
My take away from Rich and Andy:
No catalogs, production of approximately 600 items/year, split between dealer specials, and regular production; all items produced will be rostered on web site, and announced through subscription email, or, accessing the MTH website itself.
Well, their new HQ no longer includes a large warehouse, so in-and-out product makes sense...plus there won't be anywhere near as much cash tied up in the form of stuff sitting around waiting to be sold to dealers.
---PCJ
Apparently this question was answered last night. No catalogs.
some dealers still have new remotes in stock from the last run. better get a couple sanjam before they are gone. I may get one more myself.
@Lionelzwl2012 posted:some dealers still have new remotes in stock from the last run. better get a couple sanjam before they are gone. I may get one more myself.
Yeah I went to the old MTH website, but realized the find local dealer link is dead now so can't see who might have one in stock. Hopefully I'll find one at York.
Trainworld in stock, $199. MTH 50-1038 DCS Remote Control - Handheld Unit
I don't think you'll find a new one any cheaper.
John is correct. Saw these last night. I thought this last batch had been all snatched up. Leave it to trainworld to come through. As john said the price is not bad either for a new one.
I saw several other vendors with them at higher prices as well.
@gunrunnerjohn posted:I saw several other vendors with them at higher prices as well.
Thanks for the link, gunrunner. I just ordered one as a backup.
@Lionelzwl2012 posted:John is correct. Saw these last night. I thought this last batch had been all snatched up. Leave it to trainworld to come through. As john said the price is not bad either for a new one.
There is a lot of them out there. My LHS order two dozen in anticipation that there would be run on them and they would be good sellers. He still had 20 in stock the last month when I was there.
@Sean's Train Depot posted:Me either. I guess one more thing to add to my York hunt list.
Thanks!
You should try it on a tablet - much better than a phone....
Ironically I saw a box of DCS thumb wheels at the MTH Parts booth.
