I think the point is made.

They would be missing out on a huge opportunity by discontinuing it right as they enter the UK and Japanese markets...

I wouldn't count on a big tender engine like Rebecca being made anytime soon. We'd sooner get Hiro if that option was on the table.

I would say do Stepney first. Stepneys classic design is more market-able and memorable. A CGI design risks alienating the older audience (aka the people with actual money in their wallets) who are the main people who would even care about a character like Stepney. Ryan meanwhile, is a safe gamble that could be produced any time, any year in the new future and would have roughly the same outcome and reception, and only one design to pick from. Stepney is a ticking clock, depending if Mattel decides to bring him back or not.

The CGI redesigns would make them lose their appeal, in my opinion. I'd rather the remaining classics stay classics, at this point.

It should be worth noting as well, that the image Bachmann used for the tanker is...



...The first image for tanker troublesome trucks on the Thomas wiki. In hindsight of this, Bachmann is probably not even aware this is a tanker from Big World: Big Adventures.

The fact that the Hornby Stepney sells for a lot of money on eBay, even in recent months, should be enough of an incentive for Bachmann to consider making him. I mean, they do like money, right?

The face is more than likely going to be based off the BWBA/CGI tanker faces. I'd be very surprised if they went with the Season 4 tanker faces.

Honestly, I hope Daisy has a NEM slot. It'd be a nice modern touch to include into the Thomas range, and it'd help make future additions/engines more compatible with different kinds of HO and OO equipment. To add, thinner hook/loop couplers have a nicer appearance than the chunky hook/loop couplers.

This might be the most bizarre and unexpected news I've woken up to yet. Nonetheless, wow! Daisy is finally coming to the Bachmann range. I don't think I've been this excited for a Bachmann product since Skarloey. Daisy is one of the few characters to benefit and improve in her CGI form over her model form, so this is a model I'm gonna be waiting at the front of the line to get, for sure!

As for Peter Sam, I was iffy on Rusty, but I was excited for Rheneas and Skarloey for sure, so I'll gladly be adding Peter Sam to the collection.

Overall, it's like Christmas in July! I welcome it.

Quote from: Chaz on June 28, 2019, 10:16:20 PM
Have you sent a follow-up email asking if they received the letter from you?  It's possible that the email automatically got sent in their spam folder by mistake.  Especially when the attached document is over 40 pages long.

The main email was answered by Customer Service and was supposedly sent to the production team, but I never heard any sort of follow up beyond that. Either way, I still had fun writing it up and making all the mock-up products.

A few months ago, I wrote a detailed list of suggestions for Bachmann Trains to make in 2020. Sadly, I never received a follow-up email to the letter. I put lot of research into this letter, and figure it'd be fair to share it with people on social media. I even designed and suggested new product ideas, and various designs and details of said product ideas was included in the document. You can read the letter here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1MVCBnSqbOlkVK1spfOzsEymHQeKNQKYe/view

If you shop from Hattons (best dealer online from the UK that can cheaply ship to the US), you'll find Mainline stuff both under the Bachmann UK and Mainline categories. For example, this is the Mainline tooling salt wagon in the Bachmann UK range, which is the same tooling used for the Thomas range: https://www.hattons.co.uk/442673/bachmann_branchline_33_175_po02_10_ton_covered_salt_wagon_35_in_stubbs_red_livery_pre_owned__imperfect_box/stockdetail.aspx

The only difference the new flat beds have is they have a log load instead of a paint drum load, and say "Sodor Log Company" on the sides.

As for the M wagon, Bachmann and many other companies just look at reference photos and make what is provided in them. Considering Trackmaster also made the M wagon, it's likely the M wagon was in the reference photos they got from HiT Entertainment. Most of the toy companies making Thomas products have no idea what actually appears regularly and what doesn't in the Thomas episodes.

The flat-bed is being re-released with a log load in the near future. I don't see the M wagon being re-released anytime soon unless demand for it explodes.

Alternately, the cattle wagon, M wagon, salt van etc. are all toolings you can find eBay under the Mainline brand, which Bachmann UK bought out many years ago, and thus used in their Thomas line up.

Absolutely unexpected, but spells good fortune for the condition of the brand!

Now, one thing I wonder though, is that the resin buildings were discontinued because they didn't sell well. In the US, detailed resin buildings generally aren't as popular of a seller than say plastic buildings. In the UK however, both Bachmann UK and Hornby have their own lines of resin buildings. I wonder if Bachmann could test the waters of a limited run of the Thomas resin buildings in the UK, and see if they have a second chance. I think with a whole new market, it's worth a shot, and by starting with a limited run, would make risk minimal.