Subject:
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Re: 9V Train Motor Being Discontinued?
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.trains
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Date:
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Tue, 28 Mar 2006 20:35:44 GMT
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Viewed:
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3649 times
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In lugnet.trains, Eric Kingsley wrote:
[...]
>
> This is very important feedback. Lets try an informal poll...
>
> If 9V trains do get discontinued...
>
> 1. Would your club disband or significantly cut back on public appearances?
> (List your club and number of appearances)
>
> 2. Are there any clubs that would continue to show using the new Battery
> powered IR Trains?
>
> 3. How tightly are 9V trains and your clubs survival tied together?
>
>
> It is important that folks take this seriously and post honestly. If you have
> any other feedback in terms of how your club would be affected if 9V trains were
> discontinued please share that as well.
>
> The more information the Ambassadors have in terms of how a decision such as
> this affects the community the more we can try to influance decisions within
> LEGO before a point of no return is reached, such as happened with the color
> problem.
>
> I will take your feedback and put together a document that I will submit through
> the channels I have open to me and we will see what happens.
>
> -Eric Kingsley
> LEGO Ambassador
Hello Eric,
As a member of FreeLUG (ILTCO affiliated) and a 9V train fan here are some
answers to your questions.
1 In 2005 we had about 4 public appearances with train layouts. Personnally I
manage completely one of them happening in Orléans (France), which have seen
about 10400 visitors last time and dealing exclusively with train modelling. For
that event, the 9V train motors are provided by myself (with my personal money)
and we use about 10 motors over two days, 8 hours/day. Each time we are invited
by the organisation committee because of the public impact our Lego diorama has,
especially when compared with more classical train modelling. To tell the truth,
they say they want us, because we bring more people to the show. I don't like to
put me in front, but this is a simple fact.
2 We do not consider yet to use IR trains for events mainly because we have big
layouts in big halls where IR transmission is not efficient. Moreover, the
number of simultaneous trains in circulation prohibits the use of the IR system
proposed by TLC. I use DCC control to operate my trains.
3 This is no joke to say that if 9V train motors are not produced anymore, I
will surely take the decision to stop organizing the event in Orléans (By the
way the next one is 11-12 november 2006 on a stand of 28mx3m). The reason why I
will stop is simply that I would like to keep my train motors as long as
possible in good shape over the next decades. If I use them for events, I know
they will get corrupted in few events, just like it happened already for two of
them. As long as Lego produces these motors, it is not a problem of money for
me, I can afford to buy few motors every year for the events. But if the 9V
train motor is discontinued, my decision will be to stop providing my motors for
events. This will almost surely kill our participation to Orléans' train model
railroad event. Our club will definitely survive from this decision, we have
many other events during the year and not only train events, but I wonder if my
friends organizing other FreeLUG train events would not take the same kind of
decision for the very same reasons.
In addition, I can tell you that at each event, hundreds of visitors are asking
us where to buy Lego train products. Yes that much! Over 10000 visitors, it may
be not so much in proportion, but we are always surprised by the number of
people still interested by Lego trains in Orléans and around. We are always very
disappointed to orient them to shop at home (many of them don't use internet),
just because the two local toys retailers in Orléans don't sell Lego train
products anymore. I recently asked one of them ("Le magasin bleu", Orléans) the
reason of this lack and he explained me that he ordered last november 2005 Lego
train products to TLC and he is still not delivered in march 2006.
Hope this helps,
Philippe "frogleap" Label, FreeLUG member.
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Message is in Reply To:
 | | Re: 9V Train Motor Being Discontinued?
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| (...) Ted, This is very important feedback. Lets try an informal poll... If 9V trains do get discontinued... 1. Would your club disband or significantly cut back on public appearances? (List your club and number of appearances) 2. Are there any (...) (18 years ago, 28-Mar-06, to lugnet.trains) !
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