Last Fall at the OKC train show I talked with a Athearn spokesman. When I asked a about the lack of n scale items. His response was well we have the two steamers coming out in 2012. I pointed out to him how could the n scale community support athearn endevors if they do not porduce anything. Most everything on their website shows sold out. I have heard about the manufacturing problems but lets face it they produce HO items. So on a Slow day I contacted their marketing guy and ask point blank what was athearns intention where N scale is concerned. Here is their response. I hope this is not against the rules if it is please feel free for the administrator to delete it. I found it quite intriguing though and wanted people to know maybe their is light at the end of the tunnel. Thanks Larry Larry, Thank-you for your inquiry. Please note the following information. Athearn Anticipates Delays On Some Products Posted Mon, 2012-01-16 11:37 On January 14, the Athearn division of Horizon Hobby announced that delivery of some new products may be delayed by the unexpected shutdown of one of its contract manufacturers in China. Athearn's announcement came after international financial agencies reported that Creative Masters Limited (CML) had filed for bankruptcy. Earlier reports said CML had not reported a profit since 2009. CML is headquartered in Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong, with manufacturing facilities in Donngguan, PRC. As one of the oldest brands in the model railroad industry, Athearn has close ties with most major railroad model manufacturers. Unfortunately, from time to time a supplier may be unable meet their obligations, and despite their best efforts be required to discontinue business. We are saddened by the recent loss of one of our close manufacturing partners, and their several hundred workers that have now received their pay but lost their jobs. We believe our remaining manufacturing partners, our relationships with them, and our combined capacity will certainly allow us to meet all future market requirements. However, during the short term we do expect some product delivery dates to slip, so please stay tuned to our Face Book site while we do our best to keep everyone up to date on this very fluid situation. We do expect to deliver our Genesis DDA40X, Genesis Bay-Window Caboose, our next run of SD70ACe/SD70M-2s, and several other products in the first half of 2012, in addition to making some VERY exciting new product announcements in the coming weeks ahead. And from our Facebook page on May 15th: "Blast the horn! We're celebrating a BIG event in our manufacturing transition. The tooling from our supplier who closed in January has been moved to the factory that produces many of our Genesis models. Over the next few weeks, we'll be evaluating the tooling and taking the steps necessary to begin production. Although reacquiring our tooling is a major step, we still have a-lot to accomplish before we begin projecting ETAs. We truly appreciate your support and patience. We look forward to sharing more about our progress in the near future." Please note that as a result of the situation outlined above there will be a delay of currently unknown duration in the production of our N-scale products that you inquired about. Note too that we just recently announced that we will be making a new run of the N-scale UP Challenger's and Big Boy locomotives. Lastly Please note hat we do not have any plans to discontinue our N-scale product line. We appreciate your patience in this matter. Sincerely, Athearn Trains
Very interesting to read. I can remember when MDC/Roundhouse made alot of their stuff in Nevada because of Calif's PITR regs. I'll bet they wish the factory was still there.. At least the only major problem they had was shipping stuff over Donner in the winter.
I'm not that keen on their SD70/75Ms and Is but if they brought out their SD70ACe in N I'd be all over it.
Don't think FEF's are in the works since Kato's filling that hole. BUT, an N-scale Veranda or Baby Turbine would be GREAT...or BOTH!!! However, that communique is exactly opposite what the Athearn rep told me at the WGH SLC show last year. His comment was "It costs the same to tool up for N-scale as it does for HO...but, we make more money off the HO items. We have no plans for new N-scale motive power, but we'll be re-running the Big Boys and Challengers in a year and a half." Since then, the N-scale Big Boys and Challengers have been announced way ahead of his information, so...hopefully he (Mike) is also wrong about "new" Athearn N-scale motive power. Cheers! Bob Gilmore
(SIGH) Athearn is could make all sorts of awesome stuff in N Scale, but a few diesels and UP steamers and some freight cars are nothing compared to all their cool HO stuff. Maybe they will offer something new for diesel fans in N Scale, cause it sure is lame seeing all the HO SD's, F's, and GE's then you go to the N product page and you get only 5 diffent engines. Hopefully Athern will see NS heritage units and get a ACe made.
They would gladly make all those F's SD's and others if the N scale community was willing to pay HO prices for them. The HO products retail typically 60 to 100% higher than similar N. More profit for similar efforts and similar production costs. HO Genesis F Unit - $169.99 ----- IM F Unit - $89.99 similar details relative to scale. HO GP9 $189.99 ----- Atlas GP $129.99 Genesis with much more detail and variations.
I would like to see Athearn make their SD40-2 and MP15 AC in N Scale they are really beautiful units.
Well... Ummmm... I'd like to see more products from Athearn. I'm just not sure if we would be willing to pay the price point Athearn might throw at us. Skipgear made a very good point when he compared the relative costs of HO and N scale products. The Challenger and Big Boy are very special units and are priced at a very high price point for N scale... probably on par with HO. Imagine the shock we might have if Athearn announces an they will produce the S1 through S4 Alco switchers... at a price point near $200.00 a piece. I'm all for new stuff... but... it's got to be affordable and good quality. I don't know if it will be possible for Athearn to justify selling N scale products at a much lower price point than their comparable HO counterparts.
That could be a big issue. If you recall when the Ford C tractors came out back in 05-06 I think they were 7.95, when the mack trucks were announce last year they were 19.95. So I think price may play an important detail of the popularity of an item. Last face the cold facts. If you have a really really cool vehiicle that cost 20.00 dollars most guys will buy one maybe two for their layout. But if you have a reasonably price vehicle for say 12.50 people will have multiple buys and will kitbash them for other purposes. Maybe the Walmart system comes into play??? If you sell 100 vehicles at 20.00 or sell 200 vehicles at 10.00. It has been my belief that it is more like 3 to 1 because people will generate a need to for low cost vehicles and what they do with them. Just Thinking Out Loud. Thanks Larry
Careful now, that's long term thinking there! We all know taking as much as you can as quick as you can is the only kind of thinking management wants to hear.
Well that was nice of them to give you a copy and paste reply from their facebook page with one line added to keep n-scalers hanging... still. They left N-scale hanging long before those issues started with the factories in China.
Yes. Economy, manufacturing problems, whatever, had less impact on N scale or any scale than dooms dayers want you to think. People seem to forget that Athearn makes HO scale models. They dabbled in N for a bit, and bought some old N tooling, but only because it was included with the HO stuff they wanted. N is not for everybody. And that's ok. Pepsi Co. didn't announce any N scale models this month, but you can't really blame them. They don't make N scale models either. My only wish for Athearn is that they offer their N product line to someone who is interested in producing N scale. They do have some nice products in their stable that deserve a run now and then. I don't expect them to do so, those models will sit dormant on the shelf at Athearn for a long time. In the mean time, there's excellent opportunity for somebody else (BLMA? Intermountain? Exact Rail? Atlas? are you listening?) to pump out their own ethanol tankers and stuff.
