Rapido Newsletter-But is it in N scale?

[dem34]

A quick blurb at the end of their recent newsletter. Probably directly in line with the lack of N scale announcements recently.



Which frankly, I don't really get to be perfectly honest. Since a lot of the issues stated are things that atleast to me should be apparent fairly far back withought deep introspective.
-Low sales: Well when you pick a prototype for a railcar that was captive service for a single line or a small region, yeah its not going to go gangbusters. It should be obvious that a Centerbeam flat found in every corner of the US since the 80s is going to outsell an Ore Hopper that is only found on a single line in the hinterlands of Canada.
-Too detailed?: This is the one that really confused me. Like I don't think they really understand the root of the complaints. When I buy a superdetailed piece of rolling stock from Scaletrains, I put it on the track. It rolls, it navigates reasonable standard curves, only maybe the couplers leave something to be desired. From Rapido? Theres a good chance that a completely invisible brake shoe is rubbing on the axles, an invisible brake line is sitting in the path of the truck swing restricting it to 18" rad. Or an axle just doesn't want to roll. I love free standing grabs, but I shouldn't have to glue them back in after every running session.

Just have trouble wrapping my head around it that some of these issues were previously mysteries.

[CR4100]

Thanks for posting this. I don't get their newsletter.

I really hope that is a HR-412 (or maybe a M-420) in his hands.

[daniel_leavitt2000]

Yeah this is just confusing to me. I am deeply thankful that they made the Flexi Flo, but it is a VERY niche product. My annoyances lay with the CONSTANT need to fix tracking issues, couplers, wheels and trucks. I can swallow a $40 car, but not when it needs another $10-15 to make it actually work.

[mu26aeh]

And they continue to misread the market 🤦‍♂️.

[bbussey]

It helps if the N scale models operate flawlessly, or close to flawlessly.  Having super intricate detail on the bottom of the model is far less important than the model functioning.  And having proper wheel diameter and coupler height.  And having the couplers function.  The models need to be able to run in consists much longer on average than in HO scale.

[squirrelhunter]

Yeah, they needed to bring the SP single sheathed boxcars to N, not Canadian barrel ore hoppers or ATSF reefers that are only good for folks who model the 60's.

I thought the PC&F waffle side cars sold ok, and I got one, but they were a very small minority in SP's massive FMC double door exterior post boxcar fleet.

I assume they have a sour taste on the GP-20 tank cars, but that seemed to have more to do with shipping damage?

The newer breed of HO super duper detailed manufacturers (Rapido and Tangent in particular) seem to have an attitude that if they can't include every prorotype underbody detail, they don't want to make the car.  I think even the HO guys are starting to question the value of extreme undebody details given you can only see most of them if the car is derailed.

[James Costello]

"Our freight car choices have been hit or miss, so we're going to stop making them all together" is an interesting choice to make....

[mu26aeh]

And to say they are going to focus on locomotives and passenger equipment makes no sense.  They JUST cancelled N scale passenger trains due to low pre-orders and JUST mentioned that in the previous paragraph 

[wcfn100]

So much for the F30. 




Jason

[CBQ Fan]

I had to chuckle when I read this. I completely forgot that Rapido existed ever since I unsubscribed from their newsletter. I can’t recall ever seeing seeing a model train company so dysfunctional in a scale like they are. They couldn’t screw up NScale offerings if they tried. 

[Peachymike]

Too bad, I do a lot of repairs for my LHS, and Rapido is one of my biggest money makers. They (the hobby shop staff) say that RTR stands for ready to repair

[ljudice]

The centerbeams didn't sell well?

[mu26aeh]

The centerbeams didn't sell well?

Out sold the HO versions until the last week of pre order window

[packers#1]

I really like the Rapido boxcars I have, along with the centerbeams I picked up (and I really hope they do at least a second run), but the more announcements they put out just keep turning me off of them as a company. It just comes across as whiny and like they’re blaming the consumer for their choices not working out.

[thomasjmdavis]

Ah well...yet another condescending newsletter from a group that, frankly, hasn't understood N scale since Mike passed away.  Another email to send tomorrow to cancel my pre-order for stuff they are never going to produce. And, I think, one to cancel my newsletter subscription.

A couple of corrections-

A prime example of this is our recent VIA/CN sets that were cancelled due to low orders. As well as being a bit niche for the average N scale modeler, we realize now that it was simply too much train for too much money. Lesson learned!

First, EVERYTHING Rapido has ever made in N scale is "a bit niche". Everything. The Canadian and Turbo are the only things that comes to mind that fit into 2 niches (modelers of the prototype railroads that had them, and passenger train collectors).
Second, why would 8 cars be "too much train" when the Canadian was not?  Might I suggest that it was because the Canadian was a legit attempt to accurately model the train, while the 8 car "trains" were random collections of cars, with a train name slapped on.
For 1950s modelers, they obviously did not learn the lesson. The lesson is that if you market a train in a 1950s paint scheme with 3 of the 8 prototype cars done as 1960s and 1970s rebuilds (ie- did not exist as shown during the time the paint scheme was in use) with different window arrangements, and fixed steps (not to mention the Intercity of the 1950s included a lot of heavyweights, ...lo and behold, not many people will buy it.  I did not need 3 or 4  $60  "cores" to rebuild into correct cars.

Apologies to those who were anxiously awaiting them, but at the end of the day we’re a business that employs many people in multiple countries and would like to continue to do so!

Exclamation point after insulting your customers is always misplaced. We know Rapido is in business to make money.  The fact that ESM has had several runs of Magor and PC&F insulated boxcars in "State of Maine" paint would indicate for me that when a company FAILS in its marketing of a refrigerator car used extensively for decades by one of the largest railroads in the US...maybe it was a huge failure of by the marketing department.  Maybe, just maybe, someone should have marketed the cars somewhere that ATSF N scale modelers might see it.  Assuming those modelers are reading a newsletter from a company that has never produced an ATSF model in N scale was perhaps an error, do you think? (!)

OK, enough rant. They don't want my modeling money, I'll find someone who does. 

 Their exit from the N scale market (effectively, other than vaporware locomotives and foobie paint jobs on passenger cars and a once a decade name train) opens the market to others to take our N scale dollars.