With Spring around the corner and some of you getting outdoors to get to the (train) tracks again, here are some completely unrelated thoughts and facts. No-- make that opinions.
Yours Truly is observing the eBay web site about once a week, looking for "just posted", "highest price", and "ending soonest". In my humble opinion, the market for LGB products is starting to show more realistic values in the high end and higher end area for locos. Mikados, Aster, Pullman sets and Mallets seem to be priced according to their values. The same holds true for F 7 See Through/ clear locos. Moguls on the other hand show all kinds of prices; from $ 400.00 for a Mogul made in 1990 or 1993 (value is approx US$ 1,200) to US$ 1,000.00 for China crap - ...quoting Famous Klaus...- (mint condition value will not top US$ 600.00). Similar realistic prices show up for cars that are rare like the # 35355 DB Passenger car or the 35350 DR Passenger car (around US$ 500.00 with a tendency to increase), but finds are still possible for old 1993 or older tank cars, Swiss "Mohrenkoepfe"( marshmallows?) and similar.
Yours Truly and the two Klaus' (your Famous Klaus and Klaus Baumann) believe that the market will consolidate within the next two to three years. This goes only for the existing LGB locos and cars being built between 1970 and 2006. If any of you owns an LGB loco or car or toy made before 1970, hold on to it, care VERY well for it and name it in your will! Yes, it will show up at a Sotheby or similar auction in about 5-10 years from now.
On another subject:
Klaus Baumann is currently working on Mallet and Forney data so that we can provide better information about those loco values and value development. One of his finds during this operation was that so many different Forneys were manufactured that LGB Nuremberg had to extend the series number from 5 digits to 6 digits for a certain time frame. So, in case you come across an LGB box with a 6-digit number on it and a "25" in it, we'd be interested in a photo. At the same time, so many Forney sets were made for specialty groups that -alas !- a Forney set was made for Florsheim Shoes. How 'bout that?!!
You have read about this subject here before, the lifetime of Buehler motors. Since we had quite a lot of questions about this, let me reiterate and add some, too. All LGB locos have Buehler motors in them except two:
One: The Porter which was made in Korea by PIKO and came with a Korean motor in it. To Klaus' knowledge no motors are available once the Original Korean motors are defunct/ kaput.
Two: a very very early LGB loco that had a Siemens motor in it. Klaus is currently working on more information about that loco or locos(?). If any of you have any information about that, Klaus would more than appreciate your information and contacting him.
A Buehler motor for LGB locos has an approximate life span of 15-20 years. At the time they were first utilized in LGB locos it seemed incomprehensible for the technical crew in Nuremberg that anyone would "play" with an LGB loco for either that long or that excessively to reach the end of that lifetime. To see some of those older Buehler motors still running is a nice confirmation for the old "Made in Western Germany"- Quality.
Sometime in the mid-nineties (1996-1998?) Buehler decided to change the design of the motors - recognizable by an all-silver colored body and no replaceable brushes.At the very same time Buehler also decided to outsource the LGB Buehler motor production to the Chech Republic. This turned out to be a problematic move. The motors did not have the same quality and lifespan as the ones made in Germany, so Buehler placed production back into Germany. These motors made in the Chech republic can go kaput without warning. Unfortunately there is no way to tell where a Buehler motor was made. But all in all the Buehler motors are the most reliable possible for the LGB locos.
Buehler motors for LGB locos are currently undergoing a price change. Where they will end up eventually is still to be seen. Unfortunately we heard more than one rumor that the new retail price will be close to US $ 150.00. We will keep you updated on this subject. Fortunately, Klaus has a sufficient number of motors available for his repairs and restorations, so your locos are safe with him.
Friday, March 23, 2012
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Nuremberg Toy Fair 2012 - My LGB Report
Our man at the Toy Fair - Klaus Baumann, a name you should keep in mind since you'll be hearing a lot about and from him in the near future specifically re his expertise in LGB loco values - send the "GARTENBAHN profi" magazine to Yours Truly which is the base for the following "news". In case any of you like to go to the original article please look for pages 6 - 15 in The "GARTENBAHN profi 2/2012 - Wieder Gas geben" ( meaning: stepping on the gas again). Taking the liberty to condense the contents dramatically here is what one German press is thinking about LGB this Spring.
Not much is new at LGB this year. It's more a "re-animation" of things well known, tried-and-true. The RhB series are shown in different colors. The Toy Train program got re-instated with a battery-driven, RC-controlled "Harlekinzug"(=Clown Train) for toddlers and an ICE, the German high-speed train. Within the RhB series the "Bernina" is a 3-part rail-car which is currently not available. Production is planned but a clear delivery date has not been set, with earliest delivery suggested to happen in 2013. (Yours Truly heard rumors that the German dealers are extreemly upset about the new Marklin/LGB policy to NOT publish information about possible delivery dates. Yet, they started selling by promoting pre-ordering. Yours Truly thinks that neither policy will help much to improve the new LGB image....). A Saxonian 1K loco was displayed at the fair in an unfinished housing, not yet motorized.
Available locos and cars have a hefty price tag this year . The RhB Gea 2/4 (No.211) is listed for Euro 600.00 ( approx. US$ 800.00 - in Germany!), the RhB Ge 2/4 in green (No. 202) will be Euro 550.00 (or US$ 730.00) in Germany. Quite a few cars have been re-manufactured some in new colors which will not necessarily support the collector's intention of supplementing their layout.
A really new LGB mold for a loco is actually a Marklin loco (E 10, a German Express Train Loco from the 1950's) and will be manufactured in the newly planned "Mix-and-match G-scale" and will NOT match the Old German LGB (version) standard. This is supposed to be a "counter-offer" to the new PIKO models. - Why - the Old LGB was a standard in itself...! A few more German locos are listed to be available sometime, as the VT 133 and the Niki S.
The US market gets the same treatment as the German customer: quite a few announcements and no specific delivery date include the Mikado in New York Central colors , the Porter steam loco (with no spare parts or spare motors available on the US or German market), and a White Pass Diesel engine No. 4 - 2-axle. Car-wise are scheduled (?) a Conoco tank car, a transporter with 2 muscle cars (Cobra and Corvette), and a 3-car Union Pacific live stock car set.
An opinionated Yours Truly believes that selling something someone does not have at hand is a bad thing in the long run. Promises are broken, contracts cannot be kept as traded in the first place, money is spent and goes where it does not belong. The looser is in the end the manufacturer because the customer will go where his wishes are fulfilled. For the Old German Standard LGB enthusiast that will be more and more the collectors/auction market or the estate market.
And now to something completely different.... a note from "the editor": Klaus' web page is growing. He would be tickled if you keep reading at www.traincraftbyklaus.com. He put an interesting "lemon-list" on it. You will find it under "Repair".
Not much is new at LGB this year. It's more a "re-animation" of things well known, tried-and-true. The RhB series are shown in different colors. The Toy Train program got re-instated with a battery-driven, RC-controlled "Harlekinzug"(=Clown Train) for toddlers and an ICE, the German high-speed train. Within the RhB series the "Bernina" is a 3-part rail-car which is currently not available. Production is planned but a clear delivery date has not been set, with earliest delivery suggested to happen in 2013. (Yours Truly heard rumors that the German dealers are extreemly upset about the new Marklin/LGB policy to NOT publish information about possible delivery dates. Yet, they started selling by promoting pre-ordering. Yours Truly thinks that neither policy will help much to improve the new LGB image....). A Saxonian 1K loco was displayed at the fair in an unfinished housing, not yet motorized.
Available locos and cars have a hefty price tag this year . The RhB Gea 2/4 (No.211) is listed for Euro 600.00 ( approx. US$ 800.00 - in Germany!), the RhB Ge 2/4 in green (No. 202) will be Euro 550.00 (or US$ 730.00) in Germany. Quite a few cars have been re-manufactured some in new colors which will not necessarily support the collector's intention of supplementing their layout.
A really new LGB mold for a loco is actually a Marklin loco (E 10, a German Express Train Loco from the 1950's) and will be manufactured in the newly planned "Mix-and-match G-scale" and will NOT match the Old German LGB (version) standard. This is supposed to be a "counter-offer" to the new PIKO models. - Why - the Old LGB was a standard in itself...! A few more German locos are listed to be available sometime, as the VT 133 and the Niki S.
The US market gets the same treatment as the German customer: quite a few announcements and no specific delivery date include the Mikado in New York Central colors , the Porter steam loco (with no spare parts or spare motors available on the US or German market), and a White Pass Diesel engine No. 4 - 2-axle. Car-wise are scheduled (?) a Conoco tank car, a transporter with 2 muscle cars (Cobra and Corvette), and a 3-car Union Pacific live stock car set.
An opinionated Yours Truly believes that selling something someone does not have at hand is a bad thing in the long run. Promises are broken, contracts cannot be kept as traded in the first place, money is spent and goes where it does not belong. The looser is in the end the manufacturer because the customer will go where his wishes are fulfilled. For the Old German Standard LGB enthusiast that will be more and more the collectors/auction market or the estate market.
And now to something completely different.... a note from "the editor": Klaus' web page is growing. He would be tickled if you keep reading at www.traincraftbyklaus.com. He put an interesting "lemon-list" on it. You will find it under "Repair".
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