This made my day, week, month and year. If your interested in others buy it
and they may expand their offerings to other zephyrs!!
Brian Durham
--- In CBQ@yahoogroups.com, jameskoretsky@... wrote:
>
> Brian and Charlie,
>
> There's a very big gap here though. In N Scale, for $250 you get a nominal 10
> car passenger train, with a couple of two or four car addon sets for $50/$100
> per set to make up the prototypical length train. This is truly affordable.
>
> My concern is that in HO Scale the cost is going to be at least twice that,
> with the every increasing costs, the price could be tripple or more in the
> cost. That's $750 for a plastic set, which is reasonable on price at $75 per
> car, the issue is, most people don't have that much to spend at one time.
>
> Walthers has the right idea, release a car per month and folks can pick them
> up as they are released, but an entire trainset, would be too much for a lot
> of people to do at one time.
>
> I would have loved a Rapido Canadian (two actually as when I'm modeling I
> need to mix and match cars) but I couldn't afford to buy one set at one go,
> let alone two sets.
>
> I would have preferred that Rapido (and Kato should they decide that they're
> going to do HO Scale Passenger Train Sets) released the Locomotives as the
> first item in a "box set" that can hold the entire train. From there, they
> released 1 or 2 cars per month that come in plain packaging and can be
> removed from the plain packaging, and placed in the box set that the
> locomotives came in. This makes it much more affordable for the customer to
> purchase.
>
> If I could get them to do a train, I'd like to vote for a DZ or TCZ, with
> separate number / name boards so that the cars can be used for other things
> post this service.
>
> James
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Brian Ehni" <behni@...>
> To: CBQ@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wednesday, August 8, 2012 11:54:07 AM
> Subject: Re: [CBQ] Silver Streak Zephyr
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> FWIW, I think either the 3rd set of the TCZ, or the second set of the DZ
> would have wider appeal.
>
>
>
>
> Thanks!
> --Â
>
> Brian P. Ehni
>
>
> From: Charlie Vlk < cvlk@... >
> Reply-To: < CBQ@yahoogroups.com >
> Date: Wednesday, August 8, 2012 10:44 AM
> To: < CBQ@yahoogroups.com >
> Subject: RE: [CBQ] Silver Streak Zephyr
>
>
>
>
> Â
>
>
>
>
>
> Brian-
>
> No, the marketplace (consumers) have decided that Kato USA HO products
> donâ??t sell.  They have done similar  items in HO that sell well in N
> and observed from the sales figures that their market is not in HO. They
> continue to make HO items but sales are a fraction of what they are in N on a
> item to item basis.
>
> Not every company should be in every market.  Kato, for example, IMHO,
> should not be in the freight car market because they do not have a production
> profile / mentality to support numerous releases of many roadnames with a
> range of roadnumbers.  Their production model is an item release once
> every few years with perhaps 2 roadnumbers for 6 roadnames.  It is their
> â??wayâ?? and their company.  If they had more frequent production they
> would have gotten around to your pre-72 ATSF SD45sâ?¦..it wasnâ??t because
> the Kato USA researchers/staff were unaware of the attractiveness of that
> (and the other 100 that those units could be painted) scheme.
>
> It would be interesting if they decided to tool up the Silver Streak Zephyr
> as a set (like Fox Valley did with the Hiawatha) and see what the market
> response would be.  I fear that more people would find reasons not to buy
> it then would step up to the plate to support it.
>
> Charlie Vlk
>
> Â
>
>
>
> From: CBQ@yahoogroups.com [ mailto:CBQ@yahoogroups.com ] On Behalf Of Brian
> Ehni
> Sent: Tuesday, August 07, 2012 9:27 AM
> To: CBQ@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: Re: [CBQ] Silver Streak Zephyr
>
> Â
>
> Â
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> So, based on the HO scale product mix Kato produced and sold, they've decided
> that HO doesn't sell. There's a self-fulfilling issue for you.
>
>
> Â
>
>
> I believe Kato has been ill-served by some of their own choices. For example,
> why no pre-72 ATSF SD45s?Â
>
>
>
> Â
>
>
>
> Thanks!
> --Â
>
> Brian P. Ehni
>
>
> Â
>
>
> From: Charlie Vlk < cvlk@... >
> Reply-To: < CBQ@yahoogroups.com >
> Date: Tuesday, August 7, 2012 9:03 AM
> To: < CBQ@yahoogroups.com >
> Subject: RE: [CBQ] Silver Streak Zephyr
>
>
> Â
>
>
>
> Â
>
>
>
> Brian-
>
> Having worked for Kato and seen the situation from all sides during my Model
> Railroad career (manufacturer, wholesale distributor, retail shop, and
> consumer) I can tell you it isnâ??t a lack of caring that drives their
> product mix.
>
> Katoâ??s HO sales in North America have been a small fraction of what they
> sell in N for the last twenty yearsâ?¦..especially after the â??Kaizanedâ??
> RS2 and SD40-2 mechanism redesign  disasters.  I would say that even
> Model Power outsells Kato, at least at the shops I am familiar with.  The
> market response to the HO SD80MAC, Business Car, Bilevel Commuter Coaches,
> F40PH, and SD40/SD38 has not encouraged them to step up their HO
> production.  N Scalers have voted with their money and won the race.
>
> Charlie Vlk
>
> Â
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Kato apparently no longer cares about HO, judging by their recent releases.
>
>
>
> Â
>
>
>
> Brian P. Ehni
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> [image/png:image001.png]
>
>
> [image/png:4D0434DB-A711-4684-B12A-F705E6E1477C.png]
>
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