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In my years of growing up (now 35) with the Athearn line,I was very fascinated with everything Irv Athearn had to offer. Everything was in a kit form,which I had liked. I was always on the look-out for something new,that Athearn would put out. I particularly liked assembling the diesel locomotives and putting on the metal handrails,then going back to the hobby shop and buying extensive quantities of diesel parts from Details West and Details Associates. It "WAS" a great hobby to be in,.....................until now at present day and time.When Irv Athearn passed on,I was afraid that Athearn would go out of business. Many past years of having the Walthers catalog,showed that about 40% of what was supposed to be made was not even being produced...mostly parts and some locomotives and freight cars,that were seen in the catalog as being blue colored -"unknown if production will resume". Now...Athearn is a waste of my time. I have lived in many places across this U.S. of A,and have made alot of friends and knew of great places to get great model railroad equipment, WHEN it was in kit form. Now we as a society have gotten quite lazy,among not having the time and patience to build kits. Now everything (except structures),is already built. it makes me sick to see model railroad equipment that is suppose to be "prototypical ",yet I find that some,if not all of the new stuff is'"way out of scale". Look at the heavy-duty flat cars with the loads on them,they're as big as the boxcars!!!,and this is suppose to "fit in" on the layouts?!!! Not mine it won't. And now Athearn is making semi trucks and freight cars with loads.Yes the stuff is nice to look at,but where the hell is the "modeling" part of these products for the hobby,and a "rare breed veteran" as myself to build? Athearn may think that they are on to something great,though in my book,its ruining the hobby in general.What is it,$10-15.00 dollars for a semi truck,when I can build on myself with "everything" on it,that Athearn doesn't put on it,and if i wanted to sell one of my trucks,it would be in a price brackett of $100.00. Yes that is a hefty price tag,but what you get is a semi that has MORE detail on it than what Athearn can't put on it,like a company,chains,antennas,a person in the driver seat,small operating bulbs for the lights,doors that open,a detailed engine that is also painted,and the air lines on the back of the truck. This IS a model. Yes it is a shame that Horizon does not have a catalog,and that Walthers doesn't have the line in their catalog,but look at the other businesses that are hurting as well. The detail parts people who make the extras to put on the locomotives,the people who make the spare parts to sell,to replace parts that get broke,not to mention the hobby shops that take the brunt of loosing great and frequent customers that come to buy kits. I am one of many people who like to build kits,but what is the use when you have so much garbage on the market that is useless and unattractive to some modelers. The locomotives now with detail parts on them and the plastic handrails.I'm sorry,but this stuff is garbage. You can have your DCC and what not in the locomotive,...........but is it worth it? Is a model railroad club going to change their layout to fit people who have DCC trains? At the "Trainfest" here in Milwaukee, Wisconsin,Athearn is always there. I stopped and looked at their products,and the guy there asked me what I thought of the "new" line. I flat out told him that is was[censored]. He was surprised by that statement,and I told him to bring back the kits,and put "nothing"extra on the locomotives,except the basics-horn,lenses,and the metal handrails. I also told him to go back to the company and make model train equipment the way Irv Athearn wanted and produced them. I'm sure that Horizon is loosing alot of money,but who would want to buy something from them,when you cant even see what it looks like first,and to see if you actually want it,and to make sure that the number on that freight car is not the same as what you may have already.i'm sure that there are a few people who I may have peeved a bit,but if you ARE a modeler of trains,then what are YOU doing buying something that is already put together. These are the reasons why I have stopped with model railroading. There is not a *** thing that is "catching my eyes" to purchase. The keyword is "MODELER", and this is what we all should be. If you "don't have the time" to build a kit,then how can you be called a model railroader? The heading may say that Athearn is missing the opportunity,but what they are really missing is what us modelers really want,and they are not even listening to us.If they are I certainly have not seen it. ........think about it.[sigh]
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