The new catalog has been out for 1 day. Many forum members expressing deep disappointment it what is being offered as well as what is NOT being offered.
Yet, the powers to be remain silent. NOT good customer relations. And to think, things looked so promissing and up-beat just a few short months ago.
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Jim,as usual you are spot on. I do not understand their plan at all. If I ran my business in such a fashion,well,I would have never seen 34 years of operation.
Norm
Jim,
What do you want them to say? If members are disappointed in their offerings what purpose does it serve them to respond. It's not like they are going to issue a new catalog because we don't like this one. Going back and forth with customers will not improve the their customer relations. These are the items they are offering, debating with customers over their choices of cars and engines serves no purpose.
If you want them to offer different items then don't buy these, that's the only power that we a consumers have. However I sense for all of us complaining about what is being offered they are still going to sell a good deal of these items.
The only thing I want to hear from them about is the maxi stack cars, but if they were ready to talk about them they would have been in the catalog.
Bill
Norm...out of curiosity...what is your business...the one you've run for 34 years?
BTW...I like the RF&P boxcars. However, with the Trinity hoppers now going for around $110...yes, I know the street price will be 10% less...I can only imagine what the price of the fabled Maxi-Stacks will be when they finally arrive.
I wish Atlas O well...but...
Larry,
I tried to send you an email. I used the one from your profile. It was "undelivered" as to AOL. Drop me an email and I'll gladly respond about what I do.
Norm
By far, my favourite cars are the Atlas-O Master series! Any Master car with a Canadian connection will likely find its way onto my RR! "Any Steam Era Classic" definitely will!
But nothing for me this time around.
IMO, Atlas really needs to get past this long-standing crisis in the availability of their O gauge track products! Great track! But, at this point, I really regret getting into it! I am far more affected by the track scarcity than the lack of any specific rolling stock in the latest catalog.
The next 6 months will be interesting to see how many of the releases will get enough reservations to be made, I believe Atlas is cutting back their investment in the O gauge market, shorter runs and fewer models appears to be the market strategy for them. JMO
Jim,
What do you want them to say?
I, like many others want to them to say why the Gunderson Stacks are missing from this catalogue. They had plenty to say about these cars in the following topic:
https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/t...-from-atlas-o?page=1
If you want them to offer different items then don't buy these, that's the only power that we a consumers have.
We all know this, and as I have already stated: No Maxi Stacks = No Dollars spent.
The only thing I want to hear from them about is the maxi stack cars, but if they were ready to talk about them they would have been in the catalog.
That is what I want to hear about as well. Since the Maxi's were primmed to be a landslide and Atlas not issuing a single sentence about their status, kinda left us all in the dark. Are they obligated to offer an explaination. Not at all. Would it have been good customer relations if they had? YES. IMHO they could learn a lot from GGD - Sunset about how to treat their customers.
Bill
The next 6 months will be interesting to see how many of the releases will get enough reservations to be made, I believe Atlas is cutting back their investment in the O gauge market, shorter runs and fewer models appears to be the market strategy for them. JMO
You left out one ingredient: Shorter runs, fewer models and Higher Prices.
Granted, Atlas has their own way of doing things. It's only been about two months since ordering closed for the F-7s. They put a lot of effort into getting the details right on those. I appreciate what they did for the PRR model and I recall reading the Santa Fe fans were pleased as well.
It is summer time, people may be on vacation. How about giving them a break and maybe the benefit of the doubt?
First off let me say I'm a big fan of Atlas. I have Engines on order right now. But lately I've been thinking they should change their name to;
ATLAS-O-Y-BOTHER
russ
Granted, Atlas has their own way of doing things.
It is summer time, people may be on vacation. How about giving them a break and maybe the benefit of the doubt?
Summer time it is. People do indeed go on vacation. Businesses should not.
The next 6 months will be interesting to see how many of the releases will get enough reservations to be made, I believe Atlas is cutting back their investment in the O gauge market, shorter runs and fewer models appears to be the market strategy for them. JMO
You left out one ingredient: Shorter runs, fewer models and Higher Prices.
That goes with out saying today!
I was a big fan of Atlas products. I liked the look, feel and operation of the Atlas products. Consistent bad experience with Atlas products has changed my mind though. The track issues and especially the Atlas switches and Atlas "lighted" switch controllers are a real problem; and there is no excuse for the Atlas responses (or lack of responses). I have a lot of Atlas product, and if I had to do it all over, I would go elsewhere.
Peter,
You are right about the F-7's. The question is,when will they be delivered? I opted for the 3rd Rail products because of reliability,dialog,delivery and will continue to do so.
By the way,how about the zinc pest problem? No statement from Atlas on this. I probably have over a dozen cars that are in the time period of this problem.
I'm saying this being an Atlas fan:track,engines and lots of rolling stock.
Norm
The guys at Atlas are very good about answering customers questions on their Facebook page. Social media is really made for that kind of interaction. More so than here.
Anyway, here's what Atlas said when I asked about the Maxi-Stacks:
"We do not have a test shot yet, so we do not have a delivery date. As mentioned in the introduction, the Maxi IV will be officially announced in the coming months. We did not want to put a date into the catalog without knowing exactly when."
I was hoping to get some more info too, but I guess we'll just have to be patient.
Gentlemen,
I have not seen the new Catalogue yet, however IMO the Atlas O Master Series Box Cars are top shelf rolling stock, love the detailing, and coloring. Got to admit I had one of my Atlas Trains take a nose dive off the 3rd level of my Christmas layout and had to talk to someone at Atlas for replacement parts. IMO they have great customer service and knowledgeable people. They even shipped the replacement parts I needed at no cost, and it only took 2 days for the parts to arrive at my home. There is one thing I would like Atlas O to change engineering wise on their Industrial Track, IMO the tiny join pins need to be re-engineered, they are a pain, the rest of the Atlas O Industrial Rail Track works very very well, and transitions with FasTrack as smooth as glass.
Times are tough for all the businesses in our hobby, I hope Atlas keeps doing what they need to survive in today market place, the Catalogues I am not worried about.
PCRR/Dave
...
Anyway, here's what Atlas said when I asked about the Maxi-Stacks:
"We do not have a test shot yet, so we do not have a delivery date. As mentioned in the introduction, the Maxi IV will be officially announced in the coming months. We did not want to put a date into the catalog without knowing exactly when."
I was hoping to get some more info too, but I guess we'll just have to be patient.
Although I'm not a huge fan of Facebook and social media in general, the fact that it's out there with such visibility tends to put companies on the spot if they don't respond. I give them kudos for responding, but the response is typical party-line nonsense.
Not cataloging something because they don't have an "exact" delivery date??? When has that stopped any importer before? Let's get real for a second... NO IMPORTER is getting exact delivery dates from China nowadays. We've seen some improvements recently, but then there's also been times when some importers don't seem to know what's shipping until the container arrives Stateside and they unload it. 
It's a bit more concerning that Atlas-O doesn't yet have a production sample. As I mentioned in the other thread yesterday -- excerpting some info we received here from an Atlas-O rep back on April 24th that indicated they hoped to have a production sample, photos and a better handle on costs "in a few weeks" if all went smoothly. I guess things haven't gone smoothly. 
No mystery... just disappointment since it was such a cool product preview that generated LOTS of excitement, and folks are awaiting pricing as well as more details on the container paint schemes. I think we have a handle on the car paint schemes (at least three of them) if the preview flyer was accurate.
David
You left out one ingredient: Shorter runs, fewer models and Higher Prices.
That goes with out saying today!
I know some folks will poo-poo what I'm gonna say here, because they'll claim everybody is always complaining about prices when new catalogs are published. But they can poo-poo it all they want.
The reality is an increasing number of model train hobbyists are finally realizing they already own more than enough trains than their great-grandchildren will ever need -- and that's making the giant leap of faith that their great-grandchildren will even be interested in this stuff. 
Having said that... I can only imagine that we're gonna see an increasing number of products that are catalog'd but potentially never see the light of day, especially if importers are counting on healthy pre-order sales before committing items to production. Lionel has a bit more leeway in this department -- only because they still have an extensive dealer network where some of the larger dealers take some risk and order "extra" quantities of BTO stuff just because they feel more comfortable that the Lionel brand will eventually sell.
Honestly, I don't think Atlas-O carries that same kind of weight. Business is tough today, and dealers don't really want to get caught holding excess inventory any more than the importers do -- especially expensive stuff. So dealers may be inclined to ONLY order Atlas-O quantities that are backed by actual customer pre-orders.
Low or no consumer orders translates to low or no dealer orders... which translates to catalog'd products being cancelled. So yeah... Atlas-O can push the pricing envelope on some of this stuff all they want. But I really think we're starting to see pre-order fall-off due to folks feeling they're being priced out of the market. They're just content with their existing roster... or they'll feel the need to sell existing items to fund the purchase of newer offerings.
The last time I checked, the folks who buy the "expensive stuff" are NOT an increasing demographic. Or stated differently... if one person once bought 10 high-priced items in the past and now cuts his purchasing down to 2 of those items, how many folks are pouring into this hobby so that we'll now have FIVE people purchasing two items to cover the same 10 items that one person purchased in the past? 
Not a thriving business model by any stretch of the imagination. So importers don't have complete carte blanche to just increase prices willy nilly. They also need to keep their product offerings RELEVANT and delivered reasonably on time. The more relevant the products, the more "forgiving" consumers may be when it comes to parting with their hard-earned $$$ and/or waiting for delivery. 
David
As for Facebook... I'm guessing less that 1/2 of the forum members are on Facebook.
I'm also guessing that less than half of Atlas O's customers on the Forum.
Rusty
Atlas, nor any company should have to come onto a site and "Explain themselves" simply because some people don't like what's in a catalog.
We as a whole, in the O- Gauge hobby sure our full of ourselves.
I'm waiting to hear if the "new" U23B components will be backward compatible to the last production run. I have one that I have not been able to find parts for it in well over a year.
The new catalog has been out for 1 day. Many forum members expressing deep disappointment it what is being offered as well as what is NOT being offered.
Yet, the powers to be remain silent. NOT good customer relations. And to think, things looked so promissing and up-beat just a few short months ago.
Can you say Ultra Expensive, Menards, Bachmann, MTH and finally Lionel 10 times in one breath ???
Joe
Atlas, nor any company should have to come onto a site and "Explain themselves" simply because some people don't like what's in a catalog.
We as a whole, in the O- Gauge hobby sure our full of ourselves.
They don't need to explain or answer to anything, but they sure better listen to their current customers and potential customers or they won't be selling much at all.
Re-running the same old molds with new numbers and paint schemes will only last so long. How bout getting the new stuff that they have announced delivered? 3rd Rail/Golden Gate Depot announces, takes orders, produces, and DELIVERS. There is absolutely no excuse from Atlas except for a half *ssed effort. If that's the best you can do, drop the "O" from the name and stick with HO.
Atlas, nor any company should have to come onto a site and "Explain themselves" simply because some people don't like what's in a catalog.
We as a whole, in the O- Gauge hobby sure our full of ourselves.
They don't need to explain or answer to anything, but they sure better listen to their current customers and potential customers or they won't be selling much at all.
Re-running the same old molds with new numbers and paint schemes will only last so long. How bout getting the new stuff that they have announced delivered? 3rd Rail/Golden Gate Depot announces, takes orders, produces, and DELIVERS. There is absolutely no excuse from Atlas except for a half *ssed effort. If that's the best you can do, drop the "O" from the name and stick with HO.
Third Rail is also not producing a full lineup of HO and N trains, track and structures along with an O Scale line. OK, there's also Sunset HO brass, but both are a rather select product line based solely on reservation.
And imagine all the wailing, gnashing of keyboards and "what will happen to the Atlas O tooling" if Atlas were to exit O.
Rusty
There are many items listed in the catalog I would like to add, same for MTH and Lionel's offerings. But, what I have in "O" is more then what I had decades ago, and enjoyed running. But when I go to the grocery store and don't buy a steak because of the high prices, how can I justify paying over 75.00 for one car? and now over 100.00? From what I see in way of prices, my buying days of new products offered, built-to-order, or pre-orders are done. My resources are now devoted to scenery, and upgrading same. Secondary is looking at the Forums sales items and E-Bay auctions for items at a fraction what they are. Please don't compare what prices were 50 years ago compared to wages, I know how many hours I had to work to buy a Lionel. But back then as a paperboy, I could buy a car or accessory on my Paperboy pay and tips, todays paperboy couldn't. I'm seeing a next door neigbor paperboy kid struggling to buy a new bike for what an Atlas 110.00 car is selling for.
I think higher prices are to be expected, especially from a company like Atlas, who I doubt sells anywhere near the number of products that Lionel and MTH sell. The hobby is getting smaller and less people are buying new items due to the influx of used items. I see it like this...this hobby has something for everyone...inexpensive less detailed cars (Menards), scaled detailed cars (MTH, Atlas) and everything in between from Lionel. You can buy new things that fit your budget given the choices you have.
That said if you've chosen to model scale, detailed cars then you are going to pay top dollar. If it's true that tooling for a new model can cost over $100k, where do you think they get that money...by selling cars they already have. Maybe the increased prices will make the anticipated maxi stack cars happen.
Bottom line is that you have choices. Clearly Atlas thinks their offering and prices will still attract customers. That's their choice and business model. If they are wrong then they will no longer be in business...it's as simple as that.
To think that they owe you an explanation as to why they have chosen to offer what they did and as to why the maxi stack cars have been omitted, seems a little crazy to me. Would you demand that Sony explain why they don't offer a certain model of tv any longer, or why a certain color paint is no longer offered on you favorite model car or truck.
If you don't like what is offered or it's too pricey, then move on. Maybe the next catalog will have something you like, maybe it won't...it's called life, and you can't make everyone happy all of the time.
As some of you know, I have been, and continue to be, a big fan of Atlas O since I got into O Gauge trains in 2002. Having come from HO - I had a lot of experience with Atlas in HO.
As we sit here today, the CZ cars scheduled for this Fall are sold out. The 55 Ton Hoppers and the 17.6K Gallon Tank Cars on on the water. I know the 55 Ton Hoppers are sold out and we took pre-orders for a lot of them - they will be here soon.
Atlas is working on the F's and they received an incredible number of orders for them. I, for one, ordered several pallets. I know that they are working hard on finalizing the remaining production for 2015. We have coil cars, covered hoppers including my Monon's, the steel rebuilt box cars, and the Trainman U-23B and RS-3s yet to go.
I have recently received an update regarding the track, and I expect to start seeing the 3 Rail Turnouts in late October. We have received a large shipment - several actually - of 2 Rail track and turnouts recently.
Regarding price, unfortunately, prices have gone up. I can't imagine how tough it is to get this stuff made in the small quantities the hobby orders compared to other opportunities for some of these manufacturing firms. That said, if you're paying list price for your trains, you need to consider getting a quote from another dealer.
My preference, and I don't get a vote, is for Atlas O to focus on shipping what's already been announced and ordered - I can wait for announcements for products we won't see until mid-late 2016.
Atlas, nor any company should have to come onto a site and "Explain themselves" simply because some people don't like what's in a catalog.
We as a whole, in the O- Gauge hobby sure our full of ourselves.
That's putting it mildly but I'll drink to that.
I think Atlas O has added (and continues to add) tremendously to the O scale hobby. It would be a real loss if they dropped O scale. As if losing Weaver wasn't bad enough, it would be even worse if we also lost Atlas O.
The 4-pack of Santa Fe rebuilt boxcars on Mr. Muffin's website are $240.00. $60.00 a car. Isn't that about what the other manufacturer's street price is for detailed, scale boxcars?
The 4-pack of Santa Fe rebuilt boxcars on Mr. Muffin's website are $240.00. $60.00 a car. Isn't that about what the other manufacturer's street price is for detailed, scale boxcars?
Well, now that Weaver is gone, there is only MTH for well detailed Premier Line boxcars, priced at under $50, last I checked.
I have recently received an update regarding the track, and I expect to start seeing the 3 Rail Turnouts in late October. We have received a large shipment - several actually - of 2 Rail track and turnouts recently.
I truly hope they finally get the 3 rail turnouts back on the shelves for those planning to build soon. I have used Atlas track on my last layout and have been very well pleased with it. I also appreciate the update on the turnout ETA....something Atlas could not confirm in their page long message from 6 months ago. Forgive me if I decide not to believe that ETA.
How many, like me, have already given up on Atlas as a reliable supplier of 3 rail turnouts? How many have had to make do with another product because construction just couldn't wait? Who else has felt forgotten because bling gets priority while essentials are pushed to the back burner? Don't get me started on price!
All this won't dissuade me from buying Atlas when possible..it only confirms that customer loyalty is for suckers.
Bruce
I think the "bling" is very important to Atlas, along with all the manufacturer's, importers, and pretty much everyone involved with a for profit business. Atlas lost their track manufacturer. They now have a new one, and have advertised that they've improved the turnouts. I'm just guessing, but I think Atlas would love to have traded turnouts for "bling" a year ago if they could. Some people probably switched track systems in the last couple of years because couldn't produce track. They lost some "bling" because of that, and probably really would have liked to have gotten it.
I'm not defending Atlas, it just appears we're losing sight on what really is happening with what we want to happen.
Shame about Atlas and O scale, but they're doing pretty good in HO. As for me, my HO Atlas reservations include:
Atlas "Gold" (DCC/Sound) Undecorated ALCo S-2 - Reserved a pair. (This in addition the pair I already have.)
Atlas "Gold" (DCC/Sound Undecorated ALCo RS-1 - Reserved a pair.
Atlas "Gold" (DCC/Sound) Undecorated EMD GP7 Non-Dynamic - Reserved a pair.
In addition to the above, I already have four Atlas Classic engines and one "Yellow Box" engine on the shelf and waiting their turn, and a recently purchased Atlas "Gold" Undecorated ALCo HH660 in the process of being readied for paint/decals/weathering.
Just shipped today is an Atlas "Silver" (DCC ready) ALCo HH660 in Tennessee Central livery to be relettered/detailed to become Kansas City Terminal #50.
Yup, thanks to me, their HO side seems to be doing quite well, thank you! 
Well, I can honestly say that Atlas is doing a much better job of running their train company than I am doing running mine so I cant really pick apart their tactics. They make nice stuff and in the last few years lost their manufacturing plant and theyve done a fair job getting things back in line. The prices of trains are going through the roof from all manufacturers and if things just get too expensive people will stop buying them. So if youre not selling enough you need to raise the price and when you raise the price, people buy less because its too expensive. I dont want to see them go into the downward sprial of price. Everything they make is getting more and more expensive especially HO and N scale and I hate to say it but they are more money than the Kato stuff made in Japan and none of it runs nearly as well. I know for me, if I cant justify the price I wont pay it no matter how much I like something and I am not a cheap guy, I buy tons of nice and expensive stuff. I would say for Atlas being in such an increasingly "niche" market it is in their best interest to listen to their customer base
I do not want the Post-war items. I would like models of real cars and locomotives that operated between 1970-1999. Atlas is planning on making these models. So I will have to buy them or not request anything else.
It would be great for Atlas to make a Master series ACF Center Flow 4600 CU FT 3-bay covered hopper for N, HO, and O. Considering that the 4600 CU FT version was very common.
Andrew
Maybe it's just me but after having their O Scale offerings product line temporarily shut down and held hostage by an uncooperative supplier in China, I would say that their catalog offering is pretty full. And there are any number of business scenarios that could have shut them down a lot longer. Or is getting an entire injection molding and electronics assembly operation up and running a simple turn key operation? Sure isn't the case in my industry.
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