If lionel or MTH or maybe even menards offered locomotive kits.Would you get one?

The Lionel 700K (as I recall) was a screw-together kit. Something along that line would work for solder-challenged people like myself. But when you add drilling, tapping, filing, filling, sanding, etc. it starts to get outside the capabilities of the R-T-R crowd (and me, though that's slowly changing). Painting and applying decals isn't a big issue except in complicated paint schemes.

I've assembled several Intermountain Kits and a couple of Athearn/All Nation kits in my earlier days back in the hobby. The Intermountain kits were actually the easiest for me as all of the parts ("thousands of them") were actually just a carry-over from the model car days of my sordid youth. Drilling small holes was a challenge (until I got micro drills and a pin vise). Paint was rattle can until I got a good airbrush, compressor and spray booth.

In the end, a more detailed result requires tools, additional skills, additional parts and additional time. I think kit forms of certain items could be viable, but to date the only ones I've seen that are up to the mass produced models were the Intermountain car kits and the Red Caboose GP9's (Intermountain made those too).

Yes ... for sure.

I enjoy doing it. R/C vehicles, etc

No interest.  There are too many other hands-on things I'd rather do on my layout that I can't find time for.  No upside to assembling a loco - who would be responsible for issues with electronics?  IIRC, the cost of assembling an item in China was about the same or possibly even cheaper than packaging it as a kit, which is why we have so many pre-built buildings.

I might be interested in aftermarket diesel and passenger car shells that I could put on top of an existing chassis (Or something like the old Red Caboose shells for their early Geeps), but otherwise not.

MTH’s 70 foot streamlined dining car bothers me. Real dining cars had smaller windows for the cooking area and small service doors where the crews could load up supplies.

No

yes!

Dale

Yes depending on what the kits would sell for.

And depending what engines are offered.

No, at 76 my eye hand coordination ain’t what it used to be.

Steam locomotives would be a definite "no" ,at least until I acquired the necessary skills to put one together.  On the other hand if a diesel was offered as a kit sort of like the old Athearn blue boxes,  then a yes would be in order.

NO

I guess I'd like to qualify my answer: yes, IF the kits were priced less than the finished loco. That way any value you added on your own would be reflected as a reduction to the kit price compared to a finished, ready-to-run engine.

Dale

Certainly interesting and supported opinions..many "yes" positions with caveats...IF l could get my desired prototypes for my desired road, assembled, repairable, affordable, and off the shelf, maybe with certain "bells and whistles" as modular options, and "deletes" why bother, if l don't want the challenge?  But with fewer interested today, that choice is not expected, nor in kit form.  Uh, if parts for imports are unattainable, how is 3rd Rail providing service?  Like antique car guys... keeping parts cars (models)?