So, I waited to post this after Lionel dropped their new catalog. I was hopeful that they would exercise some common sense and perhaps flesh out their semi scale offerings to fill the vacuum left by the absence of the Railking line. However, after perusing the new catalog, it doesn’t seem like Lionel has any interest in the semi scale (Railking size) trains.
This represents a MAJOR problem for folks like me. I just recently got back into the hobby. I am limited on space, so running full scale sized trains is just not really an option. The Railking line was absolutely perfectly sized for the “average Joe” who puts a layout in a spare bedroom or garage. But, it doesn’t look like MTH is interested in using their Railking steamer tooling either.
Does anyone on the forum have a good enough relationship with a large dealer to talk to them about doing special runs of Railking steamers? Or are there any dealers on the forum who could chime in about the logistics of getting that done? Would it be possible to create a poll to see how much interest there is in even doing it?
I think it’s a crying shame that such a large segment of the hobby is being left out in the cold. There has to be a way to fill that gaping hole in the current offerings from Lionel and MTH. What are everyone’s thoughts?
