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Messages - DustyMarie53!

#16
Thomas & Friends / Re: The Everything Thomas Topic
October 15, 2024, 05:28:20 PM
N Scale Gordon, Henrietta, and Emily and her coaches are all being released in November, just in limited quantities. This was revealed in the last Thomas tuesday. the 12 ton vans, Topham car, and Rebecca will be alongside them. If you want them make sure you have your preorders in soon. I am repeating this simply because it got burried. Hopefully this should be the last reminder. 

Also small correction, Bachmann Facebook rep has said Tallylyn will ship out by the end of the year, no exact date given though.
#17
Thomas & Friends / Re: The Everything Thomas Topic
October 15, 2024, 03:44:47 PM
December doesn't typically have a stream and I doubt this year will be any different. I'd expect to see Stanley painted, maybe Sir Handel if we're lucky. But anything else would be a surprise.

We have seen the tallylyn coaches already both on stream and at trainshows, although no shipping updates have been given. I'd assume they'll hit around January/Febuary with the Emily set, Tallylyn, the figure packs, Hannah, and the rest of the batch of the products dropping in November. Hopefully the restock of the red and blue coaches will hit alongside them, same tooling and all.

What I'm most curious right now is the status of open carriage blue. It is currently the oldest product announcement without any updates given on its status. If we were to get any surprise news next stream that's what I'd want to see the most.
#18
Quote from: N Scale Sudrian on October 13, 2024, 09:54:46 PMI think that in the case of Duke, even if he would lack cross-pollination appeal with the OO9 kitbashing crowd, he does at least double as Bertram to help justify the cost of his tooling... It may also be that in whatever far-flung future year a Duke announcement finally happens (likely further off now that Duncan's been kicked down the road), the Kato/PECO George Englands could be discontinued and harder to acquire compared to an upcoming Thomas equivalent.

I had the same thought but the only difference between say Victor is that Duke is bigger. Not too much bigger but big enough that only one repaint may still not be worth the production cost depending on how much diecast they want to use. It's entirely up to the Kato/PECO tooling being harder to acquire which may happen by the time these are announced, but that's impossible to predict. Those are also popular sellers. Better to assume they'll be at play for the foreseeable future than speculate on a what if. If they are discontinued though then we can speculate from there.
#19
Quote from: Mulfred100 on October 12, 2024, 04:24:49 AMWell if we are talking about recolours this is a little bit out there but I think these will be brilliant recolours to do

12 Ton Topham Circus van and 7 plank wagon.
I figure these two would be perfect recolours and would sell well. With the festive vans I feel like the season 8 ones would be too similar even though there's some nice variations. It's something Bandai have done and would appeal to older fans and still have that marketable quality to make younger fans want them and maybe seek out the episode they are from if they haven't seen it already. It's probably a silly idea but I thought I'd throw it out there. If we were to get any classic rolling stock (that's not a Troublesome Truck) I think these stand a good chance


A really solid suggestion! These are a visually unique piece of rolling stock that don't require a new tool. Bachmann probably don't have their reference material, however since these wouldn't require a new tool it may be easier to swing as a repaint opportunity. Plus it was in other toys as you said. Realized the same applies for the D fusit wagon as well so there's a precedent. It's possible Bachmann has since been sent pre season 8 ruler pics which would be great I think. That'd truly put everything on the table, but I do think it's too early to tell on that front.
#20
Thomas & Friends / Re: The Everything Thomas Topic
October 14, 2024, 04:36:40 PM
Oh I didn't even notice, the blue and red coach are just completely gone from trainworld. Wouldn't be too shocked if the upcoming TR red coaches replaced the other but it's weird the blue one isn't on their website right now. Neither are the new coaches up for preorder yet so maybe they'll sync those two's restock with those releases, that'd make sense.
#21
Thomas & Friends / Re: The Everything Thomas Topic
October 14, 2024, 11:36:46 AM
Think this is probably going to be the best place to put this.

Recently been monitoring the wishlist tab on trainworld and I've noticed Gordon and Henry in HO are consistently at the top. However, the third position consistently fluctuates between Edward and DCC Thomas which I find interesting.

The other top 10 in order are Donald, Duck, HO Toby, Tidmouth sheds, Douglas, and Peter Sam. Idk how these stacks up sales wise, but it is interesting to see how many people are interested in them specifically. I'm going to keep monitoring these to see how things fluctuate with the lead up for christmas.

I also find it really interesting DCC Thomas is as high as it is, they've said it's their top preorder during Thomas Tuesday streams before as well. It's not surprising I suppose, it is Thomas afterall, however it is interesting that it's so popular despite the lack of a product reveal yet.

Adding on currently out of stock but with preorder available for backorder is Emily's composite coach in G. Also out of stock but without back order are HO Gordon, HO Thomas, HO Red Composite, HO Red express composite, Red narrow gauge brakevan, HO Ventilated van, HO Spiteful, and G scale TT #1 are all currently out of stock. Makes sense these are all popular. Although interestingly the G scale Thomas as a single is just completely delisted. It's also out of stock on the Bachmann web store among others on this list, assume it's just a mistake on Trainworld's end but still thought it was worth bringing up here.
#22
Thomas & Friends / Re: Bachmann Duncan Thread
October 14, 2024, 11:02:42 AM
Adding on to my initial point Sir Handel shot up instantly once his preorders went live accordig to some friends at trainworld, both on an actual sales front and on the wishlist front, which predated the visual reveal. I will say I've only cataloged the actual positions on the wishlist side recently, so the sales is the more important point here. If Duncan didn't meet that same instant success that may have given them cold feet on top of the reasons already directly highlighted by Doug. It is speculative, and the specifics don't really matter because we already have at least one of the reasons outlined to us. But Doug did imply there was more he chose not to outline. So, I think trying to speculate to pinpoint what those other factors may have been is useful for future speculation. I do also think you're also right on the money. The lack of updates in the scale across the board and just how many undelivered products there are, is ultimately hurting the line in the long run. I hope they wait a while before announcing anything else for the scale, let the stuff already announced breathe and release. Then go from there with whoever and whatever rolling stock they want. They're making steady work through the pipeline as is. Slate wagons are done, the high side wagons are as well, all the TR stuff is now as well, all these things need to just ship. Sir Handel just needs to be painted and go into full production. If we can get the other 6 wagons finished before announcing anymore I think that'd ultimately be for the best.
#23
Thomas & Friends / Re: Bachmann Duncan Thread
October 14, 2024, 09:41:01 AM
Quote from: Chaz on October 14, 2024, 02:30:57 AMIt might be better in the long run for Bachmann to take their time with this one anyways so they can focus more on getting Sir Handel and all the previous narrow gauge stock done first.  Once more progress has made on these, and Bachmann has a more solid plan with Mattel in terms of the design and pricing, I can see them looking into Duncan again.  If not, then there's other characters out there for Bachmann to choose like Victor, Luke and/or Millie and saving Duncan for a much later time.

You already addressed why Diesel was different thanks to Paxton, but wanted to talk about this part. I think it's rather telling that we've had products on indefinite hold for around 4 years now in DCC Thomas and Percy. I've seen some people suggest that it was just because of the clogged-up pipeline, however if that were the case I don't think they would have cancelled it. They're clearly willing to wait it out, so I doubt even when Sir Handel is done that'll change things. They're probably just going to get the more likely to be hit narrow gauge engines you said out of the way first, before risking a gamble on Duncan. Which makes sense to me. Maybe then they can use the model refs as well if they stall long enoug.

I do think there's something interesting. Trainworld has a feature to search by rank in people's watchlists. Sir Handel's only been up for preorder for a little bit and is already in top 7 of Thomas preorders, within top 35 period on Trainworld's website. These don't equal sales inherently but do equal interest. Now, what product is at the bottom? The gunpowder wagons are the least watchlisted Thomas item. I don't know for sure where Duncan fell, but lack of interest on that front and actual preorder numbers may have been a factor for their ultimate decision. Afterall I only know one person who actually preordered him
#24
I wanted to build off of the points Mulfred made. It is of note Duncan's issue was specifically lack of general appeal to non-Thomas modelers, rather than the tooling being able to be reused. Doesn't mean tooling's being able to be reused isn't a bonus, but that's not the main reasoning with Duncan. With that in mind I think Luke and Millie are pretty safe bets. There are multiple examples of both engine types, Luke isn't just based on Peter Pan there are other similar wren engines. Same goes for Millie. With that said I'm not sure if there is an exact match for either of them in the real world, I think liberties were taken. However, since there are so many examples, general modelers may jump onto those two to kitbash into whichever example they desire. Therefore, Luke and Millie actually do have the wide appeal Duncan lacked. Even Duncan's chassis I know some modelers were looking forward to was already supplemented by the similar N scale Percy. 

Victor is where it gets tricky. He's pretty close to his basis. However, his basis is standard gauge. Meaning general appeal for him simply does not exist. However, he has two liveries which could mitigate the production costs. It's also possible he could have wide general appeal for simply making industrial trains. Think of the old American toolings Awdry used to use for his layout, Victor could meet a similar niche. Albiet, modeling as a hobby has changed a lot since Wilbert's time.

Unfortunately, I do think Duke and Mighty-Mac are out of the question. Even if the model rule was lifted, their production costs would likely run higher than even Duncan. Which, is really risky when both of their basises are already repped in the scale in a RTR format. You might be asking why I didn't mention Freddie, well, he's weirdly different. His basis does exist in kit form, but there is still not RTR example yet. It is entirely possible Freddie may be able to hit a niche that way, however he'd still probably be really pricey and might not be worth pursuing. Although for what it's worth, Mattel produced merch of him up until 2020.

There's also of course Smudger and Proteus. I'm less sure on Smudger simply because they may be saving a green Rheneas recolor for Dolgoch and may not want to double dip, but I'm not counting him out just yet. Proteus, however, is a sure-fire easy model and likely to be a hit. And the new Tallylyn prove Bachmann are willing to attach a head lamp to an existing narrow-gauge tooling. I really can't see much reason to not make him, he's also been in an official Thomas podcast story as of 2021, only issue is he isn't in CGI but I think Bachmann could be able to make it for same reason they have with stuff like the circus vans. They don't require a new tool.

I am also admittedly concerned about the line's future though, however I think we have two more safe choices before we have to worry about that. All we can really do now is make Bachmann aware how much we want these characters and hope for the best.
#25
Quote from: JLK2707 on October 12, 2024, 11:17:55 PMTrue, unless it is the same matter as Duncan who could not be made due to just how inaccurate he looks in CGI.

Again, unrelated. Duncan not being like his basis was huger hit for specifically the narrow gauge line because it is aimed at 14+ modellers. Not having Duncan be like his basis risks that wide appeal for the older demographic. The HO line gears younger and isn't as high quality with less diecast. It wouldn't run into the same issues
#26
That's actually a thought I had myself. The preorders for Duncan were live, and I do wonder how that may have ultimately played into the decision. Similarly I noticed on rewatch they used a lot of the same wording with to cost estimates in regard to Harvey and Diesel 10. So I wonder if maybe they had the factories look into it like Duncan and then ultimately decided it wasn't worth pursuing, except unlike Duncan it wasn't previously announced. If that is true I wonder how potentially putting out preorders could sway the decision, but that runs the same risk of disappointment like Duncan did. It's a tricky situation I imagine.
#27
Don't disagree with that, but as they have gone on record they are trying to appeal to everyone. Not just the fans. This includes families, kids, general modelers, and a big worry is that more expensive toolings are a risk because they will distance those crowds. But I will admit, since model trains are batch based business anyway. They could simply do just one batch to test the waters, most model train products are like that. Albiet that may be a hard sell for anyone really really intricate to justify the manufacturing costs. I think at the present moment the best way to send a message that more expensive toolings will do well is to buy Rebecca. She is the most expensive HO engine so far. If she doesn't do well, it's unlikely we'll get more like her. She has tons of separately fitted parts as well. Doug Blaine has already said before she is a test for tender engines, but she could easily also be a test for more intricate engines with separately fitted details. Like let's say, an engine with a crane or a claw.

With that said. Bachmann has already actually done exactly what you are proposing. They had a diesel locomotive they let people place reservations on. It ultimately didn't pan out; it's mentioned elsewhere on the forum but the exact specifics escape me at the moment. I can provide a link to it if anyone is interested but you should be able to search for it yourself. That could be at least another way to get the likes of Hiro, D10, etc. into the running. Only thing is that might be complicated to do with Thomas cause of licensing, I don't know how you would get permission for that. But it's definitely a potential avenue worth pursuing
#28
Heljan just unveiled a new run of class 42 warships. You may be asking what this has to do with this topic. Well, this warship model just so happens to have holes on the middle of the roof to attach stuff if you desire. I do believe this is technically prototypical, but the obvious other purpose is evident to me this will make Diesel 10 customs way easier. I do think also this does sort of hurt Diesel 10's chances, maybe not fully because Heljan models are also pretty pricey but do think it's a good thing to be aware of for future speculation reasons.
#29
Quote from: JLK2707 on October 11, 2024, 05:29:55 AMI strongly feel that Edward would be a simple modification of James since all that needs to be done is removing the belpair firebox, removing the extra splasher, and taking off one of the middle wheels and adding an extra driving wheel, along with adding extra boiler bands. James's tender would also require some mods added to it as well. This would make an excellent addition to Large Scale.

There isn't really anything simple about this modification. Firstly, Edward and James are different sizes in CGI so it'd be inaccurate. Secondly you can't simply modify the tooling like that. Most of those stuff is molded in, realistically it would require a new mold for all of it. Even the chassis would require a new mechanism cause of the different wheel configuration, and an entire new bogie set. It's just not a realistic approach to expect.
#30
In regard to G scale Edward, I do think he falls into the same territory as Duncan, Harvey, and Diesel 10. Something they know select fans will buy but lack the wide appeal. He'd be a pretty costly new tool and I'm unsure if they'd want to make him with that in mind. With that said Edward is a main so it could be different for him. I just don't personally see him happening anymore. I think his ship has unfortunately sailed. However, like those 3 I imagine they could change their mind someday. Already made my case for Rosie, but I imagine Mavis may also be a good candidate assuming she can reuse parts from Toby or Thomas. They aren't Edward, but they at least are fan favorite characters that can breathe life into the G scale lineup in the time being and could test the waters to see if launching Edward later would be viable. Depending on how well he does in N scale once that gets announced may also boost up their confidence.