Broadway Limited Imports to enter HO scale brass market

[Anonymous]

$1700? Ok, what's that in £...This thing will probably be £1000 landed, with all taxes etc paid (we pay 17.5% tax on pretty much all purchases). To put that in perspective, you could buy a usable, functioning car for the same money. I am amazed by how much some people seem to have to spend on the hobby, and on a single item. I would consider one of their plastic locos a substantial investment for a HO loco (hence why I've not bought any yet - waiting for an E5), that thing is way off the end of the price scale. A live steam, R/C equipped large scale loco can be had for slightly less!

[dknelson]

Why brass? Well it is relatively inexpensive and plentiful, it is easy to solder, it is easy to form and fold and bend, it casts and "coins" well. There were USA made brass kits before there was Japanese brass.
Dave Nelson

[Anonymous]

The loco's are almost the price of what Car-Max was going to give my mom for her '99 mini-van. I will never pay more than $200 for a locomotive. Just my [2c]

[rrinker]

Well, I'm not much into brass either, due to the prices. But I'm not going to bash BLI over this. Their price is right in line for modern factory-painted brass. If the actual model really looks like that sample, they've outdone Overland when it comes to details. And have you checked Overland's prices lately? That fact that there is only $150 difference between painted and unpainted is pretty remarkable, just see what a custom painter will charge to do all those details. Plus you get the sound and DCC. A Soundtraxx sound and motor decoder, plus speakers, will set you back about $150 - Which makes the $219 BLI PRR M1 an absolute STEAL (closeout price at Standard - all gone now I think).
At any rate, unless some brass falls into my lap at a plastic-type price, I won't ever have any. But it sure is nice to look at.

--Randy

[Darth Santa Fe]

QUOTE: Originally posted by dknelson

Why brass? Well it is relatively inexpensive and plentiful, it is easy to solder, it is easy to form and fold and bend, it casts and "coins" well.

If brass is inexpensive and plentiful, then why does a brass train cost so much?

[Anonymous]

I think I may responsible for some of the "price shock" ranting I see here because of my earlier post. My point was not that their brass price is out of line, it is not. I was making the point that BLI has done something new and unique with their inexpensive, high quality sound eqipped locos in HO and that their move into brass seems to run counter to that business model. Certainly I think if you look at high end brass today, $1700.00 is in line with current prices.

My intent was not to bash BLI, I think they have done some great things for our hobby and have pushed the bar up on quality and value for dollar spent in HO plastic models. I hope they are able to sell thses models and they continue to prosper as a company.

BTW: With few exceptions, brass has always been limited runs.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Darth Santa Fe

QUOTE: Originally posted by dknelson

Why brass? Well it is relatively inexpensive and plentiful, it is easy to solder, it is easy to form and fold and bend, it casts and "coins" well.

If brass is inexpensive and plentiful, then why does a brass train cost so much?

1. Because it is only relatively inexpensive - relatively with regard to many other metals, not with regard to plastic.
2. Because brass models are hand-crafted.

Frank

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by psngrtrn

For starters, there are more collectors of GN Brass than there are actual modelrs, secondly, if you read the release, BLI is producing an S2 that has never been modeled before in either brass or plastic and BY THE WAY, THE OWNER OF BLI ISN'T RESPONSIBLE TO NOR ANSWERS TO THE CONSUMER, HE IS RESPONSIBLE TO THE COMPANY AND ITS INVESTORS
Ch

Any owner who ignores the customers is going to have some very unhappy investors pretty quickly. If the customers don't buy the company's products, then the company loses money.

Personally, I think that BLI is going for another market niche. They are already in HO and N (via a new brand that is probably owned by the same people) plastic with sound. The brass is an entirely different market segment. BTW, I own about three BLI models, a light and a heavy mikado, and an SW7. So far no problems, but all I can do right now is run them back and forth on a six-foot test track. At least, they are better mechanically than my Bachmann Spectrum Decapod that came with the drivers on two axles out-of-quarter. I need to send it back and begin the process of the "Bachmann Shuffle." Or, maybe, I ought to just buy a NWSL quartering tool and re-quarter all five axles.

[Pruitt]

QUOTE: Originally posted by WetumkaFats

If you like to tinker with mechanical devices, sooner or later you'll disassemble a steamer to tackle some little flaw in its running qualities. If that leads you into the rods and drivers (long odds it will), a quartering jig is a must. It's surprisingly easy to twist one driver slightly out of quarter, and you'll have the devil's own time trying to find and correct the problem.

Even if you do send the Decapod back for repair, the jig is a good investment. If the idea of tackling a quartering problem doesn't send you scurrying under the bed in fear - and if you're considering it, obviously the idea doesn't frighten you - sooner or later you'll try it. There's nothing worse than digging into a cranky (get it? crank-y? As in eccentric crank, crank pin...[:o)] sorry.) loco mechanism and having to stop for a few days or a week until the quartering jig arrives. I bought my jig years ago, and though I use it very rarely, every time I do it pasy for itself all over again.

[Virginian]

Don't just get the NWSL Quarterer, you need the little puller/press too, and you may want to make sure the wheelsets will actually fit in the quarterer before you leap. The Athearn Genesis Pacific and Mikado do NOT fit it by the way. Oh, and then there's the issue that some steamers do not have the wheels set at exactly 90 degrees, and you need to match what you have, or re-do them all.
If you mess with steamers, you may as well bite the bullet and get these puppies, because sooner or later you will need them. And when you do have them, and are a little familiar with their use, you can turn a downright dees-***-ter into a triumph in a very short time. That in itself is well worth the price.
That's the first Bachmann Spectrum I have heard of with a quarter problem, although they almost invented it back in the '70s and '80s. I would call them and see if they will just send you however many new sets of drivers you need; they are very good about that. I needed a bell and a whistle for a heavy mtn. (broken out of the box, and I sent them a REAL LETTER and included a copy of my receipt and the serial number, and they sent me a whole new complete cast boiler assembly, with the bell and whistle already on it.

[Berk-fan284]

If BLI wants to enter the brass market I say good for them!! I have a number of old (ancient) brass locos that don't hold a candle to their HO plastic steamers( N&W CLASS A, PRR M1A MTN). Besides if you want a REAL SHOCK check out the prices for an HO steam anything in Canada ( 675.00$ Can after taxes at the cheap LHS for the CLASS A, a TRIX BIG BOY is in the low 900.00$ bracket up here).