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A question for you guys: How many of you actually build kits??? I'm referring to kits with more than 20 parts. Kit Definition: This very slippery. When I got back into the hobby 15 years ago, to me, an Athearn BB was a kit. Now I build kits that are few castings and a bunch of wood/wire or plastic kits with many parts that may take hours or days to assemble. Many people who consider BB's to be their definition of a kit are scared off when they buy Red Caboose or, god forbid, resin kits. I think that a hobby store that caters to these customers will have a hard time selling Westerfield resin kits. Mark, It appears to me that you are basing your opinion off of your LHS' opinion that kits are dissappearing. Perhaps for HIM, RTR is selling better and he will be stocking more of it. One man does not a trend make. RTR: The "new" trend in RTR is the higher quality. I think that Kaydee, Intermountain, Red Caboose, P2k etc. have detail now that wasn't available a few years ago in RTR with the exception of brass. In the old days, you had to build kits if you wanted the accuracy and detail (unless you were rich). Now you can buy it RTR. This is a good thing. If you want to concentrate on other aspects of the hobby, you can now buy great looking, accurate RTR cars. I see nothing wrong with this and I think the higher quality is why dealers are selling more RTR. What this means is that the kits are now left to those who enjoy building kits, those who can't afford RTR and those who want items (and there a lot of them) that are not available RTR. As to the availability of kits: The internet and mail order have changed the dynamics of the modelling business. We as modellers are partly responsible for this because we want a low price. This has caused a centrallzation of resources as far a retailers go. The LHS can't afford to carry items that may not sell as well to his customers. He can order it for you. I think most hobbyists looking for more obscure kits are forced to go the online/mail order route if the LHS doesn't stock the item. I agree with Orsonroy, there are more kits than ever before. I still stand by my earlier statement: Kits are not going anywhere. They may not be at your LHS in the numbers that you might like, but they are out there ...in vast quanities. My 2 cents Guy
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