"Trains that do more"?

I began my reintroduction to O with a K-Line set and even earlier as a kid I had an AF K4..I saw the original MTH PS1 K4 and knew I had to have it. At the time, they really pioneered some innovative features. I replaced the battery with a BCR and it still runs like a top. I respect and admire Lionel stuff and I don't think this is an either \or type of question as to which is better as that's highly subjective. Compared to the K-Line, MTH certainly did do more. I think each manufacturer pushes the other as they should although MTH seems to be veering into the collector niche while Lionel still makes something for everyone.  I still miss K-Line though and toward the end, they really made some very respectable stuff..the Golden State is still on the top of my list. And for me, Marx still out charms the rest..but to compare across the board is silly to me as each item has to be judged on their own. Variety is the spice of life. I don't think anyone would be happy if there was only one major manufacturer.

All I know is that trains, doesn't matter who makes them, "do more" to empty my wallet faster  than anything else!

Rusty

OK, I will put in that MTH trains still do more in the following way:

DCS is a 2 way communication system. No other Model train system does this.

It allows the following;

Engines tell the control system what functions they have, you don't need a module to plug into your base for programming.

Engine power on time

Engine Scale miles traveled

Signal strength feedback

Track Voltage @ the engine feedback

Engine Maintenance due notice

And last due no where near the least;

Engines can command the cars to do things as proven by the Silver Bullet train set.

No other control set can do any of these functions.

Thus "Trains that do more" is correct from my point of view.

The real question is:  Is the "more" worth doing?  Some people confuse "more" with "better." 

I think their slogan should have been "Train Lawyers that do more"

And now I will just duck into the bomb shelter. 

The answer to that question will always depend on who you ask and how much the "more" costs relative to the alternatives.  For some it will be worth it and some it won't and both will be "right".

Regards,

Eric S.

Saline, MI

Almost right....but "Modellzuege die mehr leisten"...sound much better

As for doing more...their new PS3 run either via DCS, DCC or conv...that's a first, on some models easy conversion from 3 rails to 2 rails operations and their Euro offering can be easily switched from knuckle couplers to Lenz type or Scale couplers.

Do that make them better..no...different...yes..and at the end what is the most important they all run on tracks and give us tremendous amount of fun.

http://www.youtube.com/lafondue

For me, a novice, more features are better.  The primary reasons I get into toy trains two years ago were the remote control and the Vision Line features.  Trains are now doing things that I only dreamed about when I was 8 years old (there was no such thing as a remote control anything when I was 8).  Basically I am an 8 year old trapped in a 40 year old's body. 

I am pretty sure TMCC came first and then MTH's DCS.  It seems that DCS did in fact allow trains to do more. The features Russell outlined are very impressive...

• Engines tell the control system what functions they have, you don't need a module to plug into your base for programming.

• Engine power on time

• Engine Scale miles traveled
• Signal strength feedback
• Track Voltage @ the engine feedback
• Engine Maintenance due notice
• And last due no where near the least; Engines can command the cars to do things as proven by the Silver Bullet train set.

The above features are pretty cool.  Legacy and DCS are both innovative, they each have strengths and weaknesses, and they both let us 8 year olds have a ton of fun!!!

One feature I noticed yesterday while going thru the latest copy of OST is that MTH has engines that come so they can be changed from 3-rail to 2-rail and with Hi-rail or scale wheels.  That alone has made them a big player in this market.  I don't know of any other manufacturer that offers that setup in the box.

The only other company that comes close is S Helper Service in S Scale.  They have HiRail wheels installed with scale wheels included in the box for all their diesels and freight cars. (The one exception is their 2-8-0, that one you have to specify.)

S Scale America does the same with their freight cars.

Rusty

Well, is blowing up a kind of "doing more";  ie, fried boards?

I would say that Dave Hikel did a very good job of justifying that slogan.

And he's absolutely right in noting that the true "golden age" of O gauge from the consumer perspective got its start in the 1990s.  Anyone who doesn't believe that has not been around long enough.  There are plenty of "trains that do more" out there today--enough to satisfy virtually any interest.  We O gaugers have never had it so good.

After reading the original poster's question, and then reading the responses to the end, it was so refreshing to read a literate, non-cynical evaluation of facts that provided an answer to that question, without inputting a lot of worthless, smart azzed comments that usually are of no value. Kudos.

Thank you Mr. Hikel for taking the time to do so. You are a valuable asset to this arena.

cngw said it perfectly!  Thank you to all that have participated in this discussion.  I really appreciate the historical perspective.  Dave Hikel's post was exceptionally informative. 

It appears I have gotten into this hobby at the right time!  Given the advances made by MTH, Lionel, and the rest in the last 20 years, I can't wait to see what is in store for us in the years to come!

Lets go back in time a bit to say 1993, some of you were not in the hobby then so say you were just getting interested in trains and wanted to build a layout. Internet sales were not a big deal then,and you decide to attend a Greenburg train show.  The York show was a bit exclusive and perhaps unknown to you. You want an engine, a well used 736 would go for around $350 in 1995 dollars. A good 2055 maybe $200.  PW style lamp posts,a premium price if you could find them not all battered. Culvert loader-unloader,good luck and big bucks. How about a 116 station? Buildings, mostly old Plasticville. Rolling stock new was MPC,or whatever was old left around. Market was controlled by old hoarders of products ,purchased at garage sales to turn a big profit on used stuff.

Lionel made some new stuff but nothing nostalgic like the old metal lamp posts, they could not be bothered recreating the old tooling, everything had to be plastic and cheap. Yea they made a few over priced premium engines that were really not that good. Lionel was run by a big conglomerate,really had no pulse measurement of the market demand or its customers. K-Line had some cute products and a market niche.

MW knew the market and built a company around his knowledge. Forward 9 years and walk into a 2002 train show. Nice RK steamers with smoke,and metal gears. $250 street price maybe. Scale prototypes also of engines nevr yet produced in O. A large variety of traditional rolling stock plus a lot of stuff Lionel never dreamed of producing. Old accessories such as lamp posts reproduced in original colors,$20 a pair. Want the big power house or hellgate bridge? A repo was made not cheap but exactly like the original and 1/3 the price of the hoarders banged up originals. New buildings and new fun accessories such as the gas station and firehouse. Building a nice layout was now more affordable and easier and the change happened in maybe 5-10 years. MTH was more traditional Lionel than Lionel itself was.

Lionel,K-Line then got things into gear and eventually competed. In between we had a lawsuit,the proto 1 fiasco and some other history including the demise of K-Line. We can argue with some justification over business ethics and poor quality control. Personally I think the high tech thing has been poorly executed and I have stayed with conventional control for reliability, economy and standardization. MTH sound fidelity quality, at least in my PS2 units is not even up to RS2.5 sound reproduction standards and needs improvement.. Conventional is the only compatible operating system for all makes of trains.

There is no argument,at least with me that MW and the MTH company has influenced and changed this hobby for the better. It would be a much different hobby today had MTH not entered into the arena.

Dale H