Or like new school Broadway Limited and... <drum roll> MTH!! They practiced making toy trains in O gauge and made a lot of money doing it. But they saved their top-shelf design for their H.O. They even put an extra rubber-tired axle in the box, for those who want it!
I think if they sold an H.O. loco with pressed-on wheels and captive axles, no one would buy it. Their H.O. locos earn rave reviews from a demanding audience. But do you think they would come back home to where they started and spend a little money to retool their Premier steam chassis along those lines? Nope.
Too many uninformed buyers in 3RO, and too easy to keep milking that cash cow. I understand the nature of die-cast is mass production. All the more reason to get it right in the first place! 30:1 or bust!!
