Has anyone seen or heard of any new products made by Menard's?
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Last email from Menard's was for the containers.
It's the off season for trains no??
I suspect a new offering(s) in the upcoming fall months.
Rick O,
Depends, we never had a off season when we had our store. We were busy (12) months out of the year.
Jim had the gift.😁
Saving my Menards rebates for the fall release, I’m hoping for new diesels.
Jim had a great web site with new sales every month. Fun times.
@jim sutter posted:Rick O,
Depends, we never had a off season when we had our store. We were busy (12) months out of the year.
Your "bread and butter" wasn't home improvement though. 😉
I had friends that use to say "what's in your wallet". Nothing when Jimmy gets done with it.
Franktrain, you are right, fun times. The thirty years my wife and I were in business were great.
I really like the new Susquehanna hopper. I bought a 2nd one. Hope they make a black one with yellow graphics to compliment the yellow hoppers. The Pennsy ore cars are very nice.
@jim sutter posted:Rick O,
Depends, we never had a off season when we had our store. We were busy (12) months out of the year.
Jim, I’m surprised you keep missing the point. Menards doesn’t make its money selling train stuff. It is a major home improvement company. I think you need to find a Menards, walk in and look around. You’d get the point then.
Well you won't see an official announcement here. @cabinet Bob seemed to imply that they are no longer interested in announcing here due to the negativity their products get from some folks who don't understand they are not competing for the high end market. Can't say I blame them. While I always think criticism is good when presented respectfully and within the parameters (price point, target audience,etc) of the item being discussed.
"We" are not Menard's target market for trains.
This is not a knock against them. The people see buying their stuff are not hard-core hobbyists, but average consumers, who also happen to shop at Menards occasionally.
They're shopping for toys. Most of "us" are well beyond this.
A major positive side effect is that these people don't complain anywhere near as much because they're not hard-core and stuck on train-specific details, and they don't have the same overwhelming need for superior perceived 'quality' that "we" do.
Would you want the headaches "we" bring if you were in their shoes?
Mike
@jim sutter posted:I had friends that use to say "what's in your wallet". Nothing when Jimmy gets done with it.
Franktrain, you are right, fun times. The thirty years my wife and I were in business were great.
My LHS owner says, “IOM” (it’s only money). His regulars take it as a joke.
Steve
I am Menard's target audience. While this is my hobby, it is only a hobby. I cannot justify $100 for new rolling stock, $1500 for new engines or $800 for a new golf driver. I believe there are plenty other forum members like I that are die-hard O gauge hobbyists that cannot afford or justify the prices of new equipment from the major companies.
It's a shame if that's why Mark has stopped posting new Menard's product. Some folks are never happy. It amazes me that some people still expect Vision Line detail for $20.00. For me, the Menard's product has put some fun back into the hobby. I enjoy the collectability without breaking the bank. It's even helped re-spark my interest in my MPC collection, which to me is very similar but doesn't tend to get the criticism the Menard's line unfairly gets. While I do mostly run my scale trains, I certainly enjoy running my Menard's (and again MPC) for the FUN of it!!
Rob
@Mellow Hudson Mike posted:"We" are not Menard's target market for trains.
This is not a knock against them. The people see buying their stuff are not hard-core hobbyists, but average consumers, who also happen to shop at Menards occasionally.
They're shopping for toys. Most of "us" are well beyond this.
A major positive side effect is that these people don't complain anywhere near as much because they're not hard-core and stuck on train-specific details, and they don't have the same overwhelming need for superior perceived 'quality' that "we" do.
Would you want the headaches "we" bring if you were in their shoes?
Mike
"You" may not be Menard's target market but I am and as a member of this forum don't appreciate you speaking for me. And based on the response from members of this forum when Menard's does release a new product, so our many other members of this forum their target market. All of us are hobbyists who enjoy O-gauge trains, each in our own way, and us such need to be respectful of each other and those that bring us the products that allow us to enjoy our trains at our own level and in our own way. Just as I would never think of commenting on a high-end Lionel or GDD item since I am not their target market, I would hope those of "you" who are not Menard's target market would refrain from commenting on their products or on those of us that purchase them.
You know Coach, I’m with you. I’ve got plenty of high end stuff, a lot of middle of the road stuff, and Menards stuff. I love their cars, excellent selection, priced right, I can tinker with them as they are easily adjusted, but most of all, I can weather them, light or heavy, and I can paint graffiti on, and make them look the way I want. I run a couple of trains with completely weathered cars and I think it adds to the realism. I’ve had guests comment on those weathered trains and how they like them. I don’t hear anything about the pristine trains. Easy Peasy….I love Menards stuff for its playability.
@Mellow Hudson Mike posted:"We" are not Menard's target market for trains.
This is not a knock against them. The people see buying their stuff are not hard-core hobbyists, but average consumers, who also happen to shop at Menards occasionally.
They're shopping for toys. Most of "us" are well beyond this.
A major positive side effect is that these people don't complain anywhere near as much because they're not hard-core and stuck on train-specific details, and they don't have the same overwhelming need for superior perceived 'quality' that "we" do.
Would you want the headaches "we" bring if you were in their shoes?
Mike
Dear Mike,
I'm not exactly sure who you are referring to when you use the word "We".
I for one am not a causal shopper at Menards who happens to pick up a train item or two while there. Quite the opposite.
Menards is to be "commended" rather than being "vilified" for putting out respectable very modestly priced items. If you are happy paying $60 - $120 for a simple box car from one of the major model train manufacturers please be my guest and enjoy it. I on the other hand am not a buyer of such overpriced and overrated items.
Instead I'll purchase a $20 Menards car and if needed adjust the truck to operate properly. So what if it needs an adjustment. I've seen plenty of defects in the major supplier's products which cost four times as much.
Menards also is very innovative when it comes to new offerings. You have to admit they've had some very interesting offerings which increase the play value significantly while also offering products which would fit on most "Scale" layouts very nicely.
The majors keep offering up the same cup of tea only warmed over with a new graphic or color scheme. Nothing exciting whatsoever. How many different ways can they offer the same train station or a home and expect folks to buy it? Simply boring.
Thus please don't generalize that the majority of folks on this site as being hard core hobbyist's who would not be interested in a Menards product. You may find that indeed there are many who simply understand and respect the value of the dollar and will make selective purchases of Menards offerings when it suits their fancy.
The minute 'we' think 'we' are not playing with toys, 'we' are the ones fooling ourselves.
Hats off to Menards for the contribution 'they' make to the hobby.
There's nothing wrong with Menards trains. At least there affordable.
I am probably not Menard's target audience. I don't live within a few states of any of their stores (but at times I wish I did). Most of their buildings are too modern for me (though I love that Piggly Wiggly). That being said, I own about 15 of their cars (and several die-cast trucks), and wish I'd bought more of some when they were still available. I respect them and their offerings. They don't take themselves too seriously. I love that Jack finds his way into most of their products. They make products that are fun. It's a real shame that it seems that they've been chased off the forums by those not interested in their products in the first place.
As I’m just getting back into the hobby this year, this forum actually introduced me to Menards. I am signed up for the emails but I do wish they still made posts on this forum regarding new product releases as well as low inventory posts too. I also noticed the other day that a forum member was having an issue with an older Menards building. Menards actually chimed in on the post with helpful advice. Now that’s some amazing customer service IMO.
@Allegheny posted:... please don't generalize that the majority of folks on this site as being hard core hobbyist's who would not be interested in a Menards product. You may find that indeed there are many who simply understand and respect the value of the dollar and will make selective purchases of Menards offerings when it suits their fancy.
I'm with you. Agreed wholeheartedly.
I love their stuff.
Mike
I think saying "we" are well beyond what Menards offers is to be kind, a bit off.
Sure, offering Menard's stuff in the 3 rail scale area here would be kind of ridiculous, but this particular topic especially, "3 rail traditional toy trains" , is exactly what Menards is and it is prob the most active topic area on here. It may not be vintage and may be more akin to MPC than post war, but it certainly is traditional toy trains.
They offer some nice buildings for a decent price (well, except for the fact that collectors have decided this is the next pot of gold or something; the prices on buildings at shows and such has me shaking my head. Saw one building I never got the chance to buy, guy had it priced at 400 when it sold for 90 or so; so it seems best to get it on its original offering price if you can). The cars are obviously not scale, but if you are running post war or simply don't care if you run scale with non scale, they look like a lot of fun for the price.
I also doubt that their 'primary market' is people walking into their stores and seeing them. One reason? Large swaths of pretty heavily populated areas don't have a Menards, from where I live in NJ the nearest store is in Ohio. Not to mention Menards advertises in hobby magazines, including MR for their HO scale buildings. I suspect most of their traffic is online sales. Otherwise they wouldn't bother advertising.
Quality? I would be a lot more angry buying a 100 buck box car or a 1200 dollar engine with problems then a 20 or 30 buck menard's car or whatnot.
I am sorry that Mark doesn't feel it is worth putting announcements on here, I looked forward to the guessing game when they had new items and when I actually have room to be buying new stuff for the layout that is going very slowly and I have room I would buy some of their buildings and cars.
I fortunately live in 20 miles or so of several Menards, and have been a consistent customer of Menards even before they started with trains.
I would generally go to Menards instead of big name competitors that were closer as I found the lumber selection and quality to be better.
I have several buildings/accessories, and probably 15 or 16 cars. Most have been fine out of the box, most of the others only need a tweak or two. I’ve only returned one for refund, and promptly went to another Menards to replace it. All were on the layout operating within a couple days. Contrast that with a camera vision caboose from another manufacturer I got for a gift over 2 years ago. Did not work out of the box, was returned for repair to the manufacturer. Still waiting.
Happy Menards customer!
The hobby needs affordable trains like Menards! Very happy with my Menards purchases!! JohnA
@jim sutter posted:Rick O,
Depends, we never had a off season when we had our store. We were busy (12) months out of the year.
Jim could sell ice to Eskimos.
After my last experience with a Menard's order for tank cars, I'll pass on future offerings. I have enough trains to last me forever, which is becoming a shorter period of time by the day.
Menards has been great for the hobby. I miss Mark from Menards posts on this forum. Hopefully he makes a return. I’ll join the chorus of those who are Menards’ target audience.
@bigkid posted:I am sorry that Mark doesn't feel it is worth putting announcements on here, I looked forward to the guessing game when they had new items and when I actually have room to be buying new stuff for the layout that is going very slowly and I have room I would buy some of their buildings and cars.
The issue, so to speak, was a long time in the making.
1. For any new announcement the same handful of people would jump into the thread to loudly let everyone know how stupid the product is, or those of us who liked a product were obviously not "true hobbyists." These same negative Nelly's were those who wouldn't be purchasing Menard's items anyway.
2. I think this is a big one: Back at the height of the beta test locomotives, a couple forum members began questioning Mark's honesty/veracity when he would answer questions. While those threads would eventually be rightfully shut down, it had to be tiresome for Mark to have his integrity called into question by that same group mentioned in point 1 above.
My personal feelings: I never understand the need of some in the hobby to 'rain on the parade' of others in the hobby; whether it's making fun of true prototype rivet counters, or ridiculing those who lean to the classic definition of toy train.
I like everything. While my layout is pretty much styled after post war type layouts, I also operate some Premier and Vision Line equipment, along side all the fun and silly locos and cars. I buy scale and non scale alike.
I love seeing the exquisite and finely detailed layouts of members who have skills much greater than I. They are wonderful, and I say so when they share.
I love seeing the Post War layouts that have all the traditional noisy and oversized accessories running. They are wonderful, and I also say so when they share
To me, if you have track, two rail or three rail, and you run trains, scale or not, you're part of the family.
David, I can't like your post enough times.
I too loved Mark's guessing games. I only have a few Menard's offerings but that's only because I have reached the limits of my available space, have more buildings and kits than I could ever use, even if I continually rotate scenery, and don't think I can squeeze any more rolling stock.
@EscapeRocks posted:My personal feelings: I never understand the need of some in the hobby to 'rain on the parade' of others in the hobby; whether it's making fun of true prototype rivet counters, or ridiculing those who lean to the classic definition of toy train.
To me, if you have track, two rail or three rail, and you run trains, scale or not, you're part of the family.
David,
Exceedingly well said.
Raining on parades is a basic characteristic of on-line chat. We've all done it at one time or another. Unfortunately I'm as guilty as everyone else.
But because it's so easy to do, and we can conveniently hide behind the web afterward, we have an obligation to think twice before hitting 'Enter', especially among fellow enthusiasts.
We're in this hobby for ourselves, but also the good of all.
Mike
Menards advertises here on the forum and in the magazine. They are fully entrenched and a major player in this hobby. I get excited when I see their postings here and in my e-mail box. Unlike Lionel or MTH, they even have a spokesperson here, Mark from Menards, that occasionally posts. That makes them stand out IMHO.
I am heavily invested in their buildings, flats, signs and die cast trucks. Great stuff.
This may sound silly, but if their cars had individual boxes like Lionel and MTH, we might perceive them better. I don't buy train cars without their original boxes from any of the manufacturers. Menards doesn't have branded boxes. Perhaps they should.
Mike
I also really miss Menards’ posts and products being featured on the forum. I actually spend less time on the forum now that they don’t post new products. It was something to look forward to when a new product was being announced in the upcoming week.
i really enjoy the innovative buildings. In my opinion, the buildings are superior to some of the big manufacturers’ cookie cutter buildings from old tooling for a fraction of the price. In fact, Menards inspired me to build a city on my layout.
I wish that Menards could have it’s own section of the forum in the directory like MTH and Lionel where those of us who are interested could read the posts about Menards’ products and those who have no interest in purchasing them can just ignore the posts rather than to bash the new products for not being as precise as the higher dollar items made by the other manufacturers.
@Mark the Menards Train Guy - Please consider coming back. A lot of us miss you!
@EscapeRocks posted:The issue, so to speak, was a long time in the making.
1. For any new announcement the same handful of people would jump into the thread to loudly let everyone know how stupid the product is, or those of us who liked a product were obviously not "true hobbyists." These same negative Nelly's were those who wouldn't be purchasing Menard's items anyway.
2. I think this is a big one: Back at the height of the beta test locomotives, a couple forum members began questioning Mark's honesty/veracity when he would answer questions. While those threads would eventually be rightfully shut down, it had to be tiresome for Mark to have his integrity called into question by that same group mentioned in point 1 above.
My personal feelings: I never understand the need of some in the hobby to 'rain on the parade' of others in the hobby; whether it's making fun of true prototype rivet counters, or ridiculing those who lean to the classic definition of toy train.
I love seeing the exquisite and finely detailed layouts of members who have skills much greater than I. They are wonderful, and I say so when they share.
To me, if you have track, two rail or three rail, and you run trains, scale or not, you're part of the family.
Maybe I'm mistaken but I read those threads differently.
Imo, the folks that are most interested in Menards offerings are the biggest critics.
Many of the complaints are because folks forget, sometimes " you get what you pay for".
(That's not to say Menards offerings are bad, just that one needs to put things in perspective.)
It was amazing to see how many complained when they bought a "BETA TEST" test: locomotive for under $200
The biggest compliment of this locomotive came from a "scale modeler" who noticed its actually a good representation of a locomotive that no one offers in O Guage an Fl9 I believe. Rather than an F3 as advertised.
How many complained when they had no local menards to get the extra discount on a $19 freight car?? Or their order was missing the "free" die cast vehicle? Or that the budget " mystery box " of stuff had things that needed tlc?
It's obvious from this thread that there is still a lack of realization that Menards is really a big box home improvement center, not a train manufacturer, or hobby shop.
There is no warranty repair or parts, nor will there ever be. The only option is a return and refund.
The train sales is merely a throwback to when the small local hardware store sold Lionel years ago.
As I've said before, Menards probably sees more profit from honey roasted peanuts, they're not a grocery store either.
All that said, I really love my Menards Santa Fe diesels and so does my 6 year old grandson who only wants to play with that one these days.
Complaints? My Beta 3.0 version failed immediately and Menards replaced it with a version 3.5 for me. The replacement was perfect. I also have some of their rolling stock which is not bad, but definitely a bargain.
I don't have a Menards anywhere near my area so I gave away the rebates to the first taker on the Sales forum here.
My biggest problem is getting on their mailing list. It says I am signed up, but I never get their emails. I check with Jim here on the forum for the latest.
Thanks Jim
John
@Menards I agree 100% with @Action Jaxon and others concerning your returning to this forum with new product release posts. It was a lot of fun trying to figure out what Menards was going to release next. Besides it drew quite a bit of interest.
Please don't be dissuaded by those who have negative view points about your products - because they are simply zealots of whatever product line they support. And no matter how well made it maybe made they will always find something to complain about. If you lurk around this forum you'll see for yourself how true it is. It's simply just who some of these folks are.
However, many of us see you filling in the gap left behind by K-Line as they too had great innovative products at a reasonable cost. They had a huge following and were definitely taking a cut of the toy train market. This is what the zealot's really fear the most, that Menards will eventually match or even out pace the former K-Line brand.
Keep up the good work and hope to see you soon on this forum with another great product release posting!
As Kazar stated
"My biggest problem is getting on their mailing list. It says I am signed up, but I never get their emails. I check with Jim here on the forum for the latest. Thanks Jim"
Also my issue.
@bptBill posted:As Kazar stated
"My biggest problem is getting on their mailing list. It says I am signed up, but I never get their emails. I check with Jim here on the forum for the latest. Thanks Jim"
Also my issue.
When I signed up, my email program kept putting their emails in my spam folder. I had to flag them as not being spam several times and manually put them on an "OK" list to allow them through.
Andy
