Joseph Haenn said: >Well, you can certainly tell from the responses which >people are the "I won't buy it unless it is American >Flyer" guys. I am glad that most individuals are >open-minded and see them for what they are: >inexpensive S gauge cars for fun, plays, and kids that >rival the "quality" of Flyonel for 40 percent of the cost.
Joe: If you mean me, please don't paint with such a wide brush. This is not a case of Flyer chauvinism. I had high hopes for these K-Line cars. I like K-Line's approach to the hobby and I think they make some great stuff. I had these cars in my hands and I was very disappointed in what I saw. Fancy paint jobs aside, these boxcars are not an S product. They are not even a 3/16ths. scale product. They are eight inch 027 cars with S-trucks, like the Lionel horsecar. In fact, the horsecar looks better. I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, but this isn't a gift, is it? It's a product that you have to spend money to acquire. Perhaps the appeal is that it's less money than other competing products. I found that it's twice as much as it should be. The exact carbodies are selling elsewhere in the same catalog for only ten dollars with 027 wheelsets. The 027 cars selling for $20 are of a greater variety and interest (Train 19) than these. What are we paying the other $10 for, the R&D needed to tool up S wheelsets? Where's the deduction for the 027 wheelsets they replace? We're paying maybe $12 a car for the trucks! This was simply an opportunity for K-Line to open a new market for the products generated with 50 year old, fully amortized tooling while taking advantage of a need in the S-market place for basic and inexpensive rolling stock. Unfortunately, this product does not fill any need. Industrial Rail 4 bay hoppers and cabooses for $21 were much more interesting and novel. How that company managed to tool up and produce at those prices is the mystery that needs solving. Apparently it can be done. Now that they have gone, this would be good tooling for K-Line to pick up. I will buy the 4 tank cars. I will take a pass on the ungainly boxes. It has nothing to do with Flyer. Chris Zizzo S-Trains list sponsor: http://www.americanflyertrains.com All the Flyer you desire...books and accessories too! To UNSUBSCRIBE from this list send a note to [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
