I went to a hobby shop tonight that specializes more in selling O gauge and G scale equipment but they had a small HO section as well. Many steam engines rested behind the glass but I noticed that none of these were high end yet why are they presented as such and why the high price tag? I counted several Bachmanns, Tycos, most were Model Power though. There were no locos by Athearn or Broadway limited. No diesels by Atlas either. $120 for a Model Power engine? That seems steep. Even $85 for a Bachmann 4-4-0 seems ridiculously high.
First off, I don't want to offend anyone that buys these brands. I do understand that not every person out there can afford the higher end stuff, and I don't want to knock the enjoyment that you may get out of these or the starter sets. We all have our likes and dislikes.
However, my post is more directed at the HO purists who insist that you must run an engine on 2 rail track and that anything else is toy like. I don't mean to come off as antagonistic, I just wish to know your thoughts if you hold to this idea. Do you consider a model power, tyco, or bachmann steam engine to be a 'model' whereas a die cast lionel hudson would be a 'toy'? If so, do you feel this way only because of the third rail or is there another reason?
I have noticed the same thing with scenery. O gauge buildings get knocked because of the plasticville stigma, but at the hobby shop tonight, every single structure for HO, whether pre-made, or kit, had an equally toy like appearance. I actually went there tonight to look for some scenery ideas for my layout, but came back empty handed.
And a lot of stores out there only stock this stuff for HO. There selections are rather limited, infact, without the internet, I doubt many of us would even know that high end engines or accessories even existed for trains. HO seems like one of the most inaccessible scales to the beginner.
For those of you who had the option (financial resources and space) would you advise a beginner to buy one die cast lionel engine or an HO starter set put out by Bachmann? Which do you consider closer to modeling? For me, the answer is simple, the third rail is easy to ignore when you have heavy duty rolling stock and a die cast engine coming down the track. I guess beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.
Again, please don't take this post the wrong way. Even I myself am tempted once in a while to buy the Bachmann 4-4-0 or the John Bull set, they do look beautiful, but for that amount of money, I would want them to at least run for a good long time. From a number of reports on these pieces, I have heard to expect just the opposite. I don't know if this is true, but even the owners of the stores often tell me to steer clear of them.