Model Railroading > About Rapido and N scale...

Hi all,

Every time Bill or I send out a newsletter, we get some very angry emails from N scalers. They are upset that Rapido doesn't bring out enough N scale products, and they seem to take this fact as a personal insult. The latest one arrived last night after Bill's Timetable newsletter went out.

We are primarily an HO manufacturer, and we have been very excited to get into N scale. We did so just as the economy fell apart, and we've had to seriously scale back all of our planned new products until things pick up. On the drawing board were at least two new N scale passenger cars as well as the N scale Turbo. They are still planned, but they will take a lot longer as we focus on surviving this recession and we are very careful about how we allocate our resources.

Please, N scalers: do not get angry with us for not bringing out enough N scale models. I am sorry it will take a little longer than planned to assemble a complete Rapido passenger train in N scale. But I don't think this is a valid reason to send us angry and insulting emails about how we have abandoned you and how we have caused you such misery and how our newsletters are "spam" if they don't have enough N scale content.

We are not a public transit service. We are not a health care provider. We are not funded in any way by your tax dollars. We are just three guys trying to make a living by manufacturing model trains. I'm sorry if we aren't bringing out enough products for you, but please don't drag us through the mud because of it.

Thanks,

Jason, Bill and Dan at Rapido

All,
To me it is a shame that we have these kind of people in the hobby.I understand your reply.
I have been modeling since 1953 and in HO!

Uncle Joe-Seffner,Fl.

N-Scalers tend to be small minded.

It can be turned the other way around because they have those fantstic autoracks from Red Caboose (stainless photo etched side panels) that is not and seemingly will not come out in HO.

Rick

That is ridiculous, Kato makes primarily N SCALE, Fox Valley makes N SCALE. Jeez, it is just MODEL TRAINS, there are far worse things in life to complain about. They should count their blessings and if they think model availability is bad in N Scale, they ought to try O Scale, it's even harder.

Sorry, guys... When I think Rapido, I think old-school N scale couplers - the "Horn Hook" of the N scale world. :)

-Eric

Whomever the "whinners" are, maybe they'd like some cheese to go with their whine!! I used to model N them moved to HO. Over the past 10-yrs, I've seen N scale grow with many new manufacturers catering exclusively to N . . . Kato is one of them. Athearn also jumped into N, so like one poster said, there are a lot more important things in life to be concerned about. If you don't like what you see, get a new hobby, but until then, get a life!!

Jim

I've just got to say that the Rapido passenger cars are probably the nicest available in N scale.

And its sad that people actually get angry and emotional over models... N scale or HO.

natemuhl Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I've just got to say that the Rapido passenger
> cars are probably the nicest available in N
> scale.
>
> And its sad that people actually get angry and
> emotional over models... N scale or HO.

Thanks for the compliment!

I can understand if someone has wanted a model for a long time (since childhood, for instance) then they can't help but get emotional about them. You should have seen me the first time we got a sample of the Turbo from the factory. I've wanted a model of it since I discovered model trains at the age of four.

But what I don't understand is the threats. "If you don't bring out your passenger cars more quickly, I am going to swear off Rapido and never buy any of your products again." Huh???? But that is the nature of a lot of the emails. I try to explain the economics of model railroad manufacturing and cash flow, but it is hard to argue against that type of logic.

We get similar emails in HO as well, though not with the same anger and vehemence as the N scale ones recently. "I've wanted the LRC all my life but your cars are taking too long to come out so I'm going to cancel my order." Of course he isn't going to cancel his order as he's wanted the things for 30 years, but he thinks that by threatening me it will speed up the process, as if I was sitting on a 10-foot pile of LRC cars cackling and rubbing my hands together with glee because I am not shipping them to him.

On days when we get several of these types of emails it can be very disheartening.

-Jason