I pity the fool....

[DeadheadGreg]

....who buys this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-HO-Diesel-Locomotive-Weathered-Paint-Theme_W0QQitemZ300242451188QQihZ020QQcategoryZ487QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Margaritaman]

Hey now, weathering with Crayola crayons can't be all that bad...

[wgnrr]

Just for the forum, I should buy this one...LOL

Actually, wouldn't mind buying it if it didn't have the old metal trucks. I have a friend who uses them for dummies (he likes the fact they are heavier) but I need the newer style ones...

Phil

[New Haven I-5]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-HO-Diesel-Locomotive-Weathered-Paint-Theme_W0QQitemZ300242451188QQihZ020QQcategoryZ487QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem     Made the link clickable for y'all. What is that piece of junk!? Rip off!

[Magnum019]

Have you ever seen War of the Worlds............I think thats what it may have looked like.....!!  lol

[CPRail modeler]

http://cgi.ebay.com/Vintage-HO-Diesel-Locomotive-Weathered-Paint-Theme_W0QQitemZ300242451188QQihZ020QQcategoryZ487QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem     Made the link clickable for y'all. What is that piece of junk!? Rip off!

Rip off indeed! I'd pay to have someone take that off my hands.

(And they didn't remove the bases from the figurines *shivers*...)

[steemtrayn]

Why pity someone who has money to throw away?

[Randall_Roberts]

Why are you all picking on some poor 8 year olds first attempt at painting? I like the figures glued on the front and rear of the train.  What do you want for $15?

[jeffrey-wimberly]

What do you want for $15?

P2K?

[loathar]

But it's "Vintage" and has a "Great look".

[Autobus Prime]

Come on guys.  Why do we allow making fun of someone else's work when the originator isn't on these forums, but when someome on these forums critisizes a fellow forumite, he is repremanded......?

As far as I am concerned, the seller of this item hasnt done anything wrong.  The unit is adveritsed correctly and  price correctly (nothing a good paint stripping cant handle).  The market will determine if the price it too high, not this forum.

In terms of the weathered paint job, I can find examples on these forums that are just as bad, but the moment anyone says anything, it causes an up-roar.  Heck, the seller might be a member of these forums...

David B 

dmb:

Well, when somebody posts here, it's more like a conversation. This is more like something you just saw in a random front lawn. Generally, people try to be more polite in the first case.

The choice of red and green might have something to do with it. It needs more holly.

Anyway, if we're going to pity the fool, shouldn't we be looking for something like this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Tyco-MISB-A-Team-Action-Train-Set-with-Play-Mat-SEALED_W0QQitemZ170239493218QQihZ007QQcategoryZ19140QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

(BiN $325? That's some jibba jabba.)

[MisterBeasley]

Y'know, if I saw that at a train show for $15, and I could try it out and verify that it actually did run well, I might buy it.  It looks like an old Athearn wide-body GP-9.  I might be able to use it, because I've already got a "vintage" one of these things without the classy paint job and those entertaining characters on the pilots.  Mine, however, doesn't run at all any more.  (Vintage in my case is early 1960s.)  So, I could do a fast shell swap and have a working engine.

If it's like my old engines, though, it sounds like a coffee grinder in action, so I'd probably pass after a run around the test track.  Or, maybe it's a rubber-band drive.  They made those, too.

[jktrains]

Well said David!  It would seem that there's a double standard in existence.  It also much easier to criticize or make fun of someone's work when you know that person won't see your comments and and doesn't have the ability to respond.

I'll go a step further and suggest that if some had posted pics of that some loco, in the same condition, in this forum he would no doubt get a number of blind "Attaboys" and "Looks good to me" comments.

It appears to be an older Athearn GP7.  A new paint job, some new handrails and it would probably be a loco that many of the forum members would desire.  At least the seller isn't starting it with a extremely high openning bid because it is 'vintage' and 'custom' weathered.

[Autobus Prime]

dmb:

Well, when somebody posts here, it's more like a conversation. This is more like something you just saw in a random front lawn. Generally, people try to be more polite in the first case.

The choice of red and green might have something to do with it. It needs more holly.

Anyway, if we're going to pity the fool, shouldn't we be looking for something like this:

I have to strongly dissagree.  If you wish to go along with that anaology, then I submit that there is someone standing on that front lawn holding the item.  

Someone in our hobby is selling that item and deserves the same respect as everyone else in these forums.

David B 

dmb:

Quite true even of the front lawn. Somebody really thought those 6 pink flamingos and reflecting ball were the epitome of good taste. This may well lead to a situation where you are sitting in the break room, joking about the awful lawn ornaments, and coworker Joe walks up and says "HEY! That's my mother's lawn!" Uncomfortable this is.

So while I do agree that it is not necessarily good manners to poke fun, even if the owner is not present, we are only human, and human nature is human nature. If we can't laugh at our own foibles, somebody else will anyway.

[Jake1210]

As goofy as I think that engine looks, I agree with David. Dont we all have things on our railroad that someone else might find dumb? Such as an engine with a bad paint or weathering job, a humorous scene of someone getting electrocuted while working at a powerplant (I saw that at the large Marklin display at the Amhearst Rwy. Society show--very funny!) even one of our own members has an X-Files scene under construction on their layout. I have even tossed around the idea of placing Bigfoot figurines around my layout once it gets going.

[Margaritaman]

Dont we all have things on our railroad that someone else might find dumb? Such as an engine with a bad paint or weathering job..

Probably.  So you're all invited to my place to make fun of me.  And if you're real mean I'll fire up the blender for you. 

 

[riogrande5761]

Different strokes for different folks.

[gmcrail]

I fail to see why someone would be a fool to buy that locomotive.  It's an old wide-body Athearn GP7 (they called it a GP9, but it's really a GP7 with dynamic brakes), and might run halfway decently.  A bit of a standard Athearn BB tuneup, and a new paint job (and lose the figures) and it could turn out to be a good locomotive.  The thing was obviously painted with a brush, and a fair attempt at weathering was made.

 

No, I wouldn't buy it, but not because of the paint job.  I already have one in SP Black Widow, and don't need another.  Besides, my locomotive roster is getting to the point where it will pass my freight car roster soon.  Don't even need steam.  

Bottom line: Cut the guy a bit of slack.  If you don't want it, don't bid on it. 

[tstage]

To each his own, fellas.  Let's get back to the forum and trains...