Lionel will no longer include K-Line in their product line after the end of 2010. Apparently the K-Line items will become part of the Bachmann line.
Replacement Locomotives and Cars when Lionel stops offering K-Line.
Lionel has made a very narrow selection of cars and locomotives. What would you suggest?
Instead of the O Scale F-M TrainMaster and O Scale ALCo RS-3, there could be an unproduced ALCo 6-Axle Century Series Locomotive
There has not been an O Scale GP40-2 and GP40-2 with the Wide Canadian Safety Cabin.
They need to make the Thrall Car Covered Coil Cars from the 1970's and 1980's with the Two Rounded Coil Covers, that make it different from the O Scale Covered Coil Cars that K-Line and MTH offer.
The people at LIONEL have to finally make sure that they have 3-Rail Trucks with side-to-side moving couplers on all the O Scale and O Gauge Cars made.
They could offer Gondolas with Corrugated Sides that are as Modern as the SD40-2s.
They could offer the new gondolas that are contemporary to those EMD SD70MAC & SD70M-2, and GE Evolution Series Locomotives.
To replace the K-Line Intermodal offerings, Lionel has to make the never before offered in O Scale: TTAX Articulated 3-UNIT Flat Cars for trailers up to 53' Long with 53' Trailers and 53' Containers on Chassis.
Plus, if they offer different things each year, that makes previous production more collectable.
Andrew Falconer
Watch my videos on-line at https://www.youtube.com/user/AndrewNeilFalconer
The Wood-Sided Refrigerator Cars with complete details from K-Line will not be made. They have got to make the TrinCool Refrigerator cars, fully detailed, to match with the time period of the SD70ACe, SD70M-2, and GE Evolution Series Locomotives.
Andrew
Andrew,I recommended to them 2 years ago to start polling the industry to see what WE wanted. I have heard of alot of guys who want a Legacy C&O Yellowbelly, but yet we keep seeing UP, SF, PRR, etc in their offerings while completeling ignoring other RRs. I would love to run a Big Boy on my layout, but that isn't happening any time soon.With the advent of the internet they could easily put together a database backend with web front end that would allow people to send them a list of items they would like to see. Then Lionel could query that database to determine the most desired items to include in their catalogs. They could even add a field that says 'what is this item worth to you' so they would know how serious people are. For me a Legacy equiped Yellowbelly - sans the steam blowout and steaming whistle - would be worth me dropping $800 on it, as long as it powerful enough to pull 7+ scale aluminum streamlined passenger cars.
Keep in mind,
Murray Kline (K-Line) was forced into bankruptcy by a Lionel law suite victory. BUT, "K-line" owed money to there vendor, Sanda Kan, who got the assets including the tooling for "K-Line Trains". Lionel only Marketed the trains for Sanda Kan.
There is too much value in the K-Line tooling to have it go away. Will Sanda Kan or there new owner, Kadar Industrys, introduce the product line as there own?, include it with Bachmann ?, sell the tooling?, do they own the rights to the name "K-LIne"?
Don U. TCA 73-5735
We will have to wait to see what happens with Sanda Kan & Kadar Industries, as Bachmann is officially making NO statement as to what is going to happen with K-Line or any of its holdings.
In my opion there is legal red tape that is holding up any move forward, lawyers will benefit if anybody over this deal.
Lee F.
Lionroar,
I agree that PRR, UP and SF have dominated the models made, which hasn't much changed since AF had a strong preference for the NH. Considering PRR and SF no longer exists, this dominance hasn't much changed since the immediate postwar years when it was a matter of public familiarity, and then the Midwest Roads were given a short straw. Your idea of market research on the part of manufacturers even if it was a part of the card sent in for a warranty makes a lot of sense, even if they remained focused on the roads in the immediate postwar period, which were never considered.before, we would have better choices. Most of my equipment was based on modeling a single road, well, that makes it a short list.so I chose the road that had the most models available..the PRR. Would it have been my first choice? No. The Rock Island would have been my preference. How many others are there like me? I bet there are many, the "silent majority"..You brought up an excellent point. "Ask the customer "has been a marketing tool for several decades, where are toy train manufacturers?, seemingly stuck in 1950.
Nothing is more fairly distributed than common sense: no one thinks he needs more of it than he already has.
WW,I model B&O, C&O, and WM. I have one CSX AC6000 only because once I saw it I knew it had to grace my rails... oh I also have a GN GP9 only because I was born in Tacoma, WA and just love the color scheme. I also have my first engine my parents bought me for my 16th birthday a Northern Pacific U38 I think. Also have a few Postwar engines...I like a lot of the items Lionel has come out with lately, but won't buy them because I have become very selective as to what I buy. I have the B&O FAs on preorder and they will be the last till Lionel makes the C&O Yellowbelly with Legacy. If I ever build the ceiling layout I may pick up the C&O Berk from the Empire Builder set...
DMUinCT Keep in mind, Murray Kline (K-Line) was forced into bankruptcy by a Lionel law suite victory. BUT, "K-line" owed money to there vendor, Sanda Kan, who got the assets including the tooling for "K-Line Trains". Lionel only Marketed the trains for Sanda Kan. There is too much value in the K-Line tooling to have it go away. Will Sanda Kan or there new owner, Kadar Industrys, introduce the product line as there own?, include it with Bachmann ?, sell the tooling?, do they own the rights to the name "K-LIne"?
I think you have hit on something. Rumor has it Bachmann and Williams.
God bless TCA 05-58541 Benefactor Member of the NRA, Member of the American Legion, Retired Boss Hog of Roseyville , KC&D Qualified
Time will tell but it may just come down to the tooling and dies will be used by the Williams brand of Bachmann and that will be it. there may be no more K-Line trains by name but they will be there under the Williams name as in product.
Life's hard, even harder if your stupid John Wayne
http://rtssite.shutterfly.com/
Really liked the aluminum Sky Blue Great Northern passenger cars by K-Lionel but the bean counters at Lionel priced em into the statosphere. Maybe Bachmann will bring them back at a reasonable price.
Bill T.
Seayakbill Really liked the aluminum Sky Blue Great Northern passenger cars by K-Lionel but the bean counters at Lionel priced em into the statosphere. Maybe Bachmann will bring them back at a reasonable price.
Wouldn't hold my breath on it Bachmann increased the price of Williams almost immediately. So bet if they do K-Line it will be as high as lionel or higher.
Williams dealer discounts must be significantly more generous than Lionel's, check out the Williams pricing from Just Trains.
F-3 AA = $245
F-3 ABA = $339
GG-1 = $179
GG-1 Girls passenger set = $335
Shark AA = $219
Whats Lionel pricing for comparable products ?
My son and I have had this same discussion. We both like K-Line and one of my favorite engines is my Pennsy A5 Switcher. I also heard the rumor that Bachman/Williams are going to market them. We will see.
John
My response was meant to mean the price Lionel has on K-line at present. I don't see Bachmann lowering it now if the retailer does and bachmann gives them enought margin maybe that was what I was trying to come across with .
as for prices for Williams I can get even less than you state. At 2 different retailers I know.
Seayakbill Williams dealer discounts must be significantly more generous than Lionel's, check out the Williams pricing from Just Trains. F-3 AA = $245 F-3 ABA = $339 GG-1 = $179 GG-1 Girls passenger set = $335 Shark AA = $219 Whats Lionel pricing for comparable products ?
Trainz.com has even lower prices for some of these Williams items:
F-3 AA - $181.99
F-3 ABA - $241.99
Semi-scale GG-1 - $178.99
Scale GG-1 - $263.99
GG-1 girls pass. set - $358.99
Sharknose AA - $224.99
SP PA-1 ABA - $179.99
B&O GP9 - $117.99
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