I think the name is “Bridge-Masters”, not Bridgeworks, and certainly not Bridgewerks…
Bridge-masters: https://www.bridge-masters.com/ - sell buildings and also buy and sell used trains
Bridgewerks: http://www.bridgewerks.com/ - make expensive analog variable DC power supplies
Bridgeworks: http://www.generations.com/ - company that works on leadership, business consulting… really weird…
Greg
Greg Elmassian said:
I think the name is “Bridge-Masters”, not Bridgeworks, and certainly not Bridgewerks…
Bridge-masters: https://www.bridge-masters.com/ - sell buildings and also buy and sell used trains
Bridgewerks: http://www.bridgewerks.com/ - make expensive analog variable DC power supplies
Bridgeworks: http://www.generations.com/ - company that works on leadership, business consulting… really weird…
Greg
Yeap that’s them, I’ll edit my post 
David Maynard said:
Vic Smith said:
… Speaking of ends. You read it here first.Someone here(g vendor) told me bitterly that Bachman is ENDING the Spectrum line. They are keeping the Big Hauler line for now but Spectrum will not resume production. Dang!Vic, I think we had better wait until there is some official word on the subject. How many times have we heard rumors, someone said that they heard from someone else that heard…
I don’t create wild rumors, I just spread them 
But I wouldn’t be one bit surprised by the news. Spectrum production had already been shelved indefinitely by Kader, couple that with Lee Riley passing, I have been expecting the other shoe to drop.
I was getting my engine tested and the guy just dropped it. It went something like this.
“You know Bachmann is dropping the Spectrum line?”
Yeah really? I knew they were holding production until the NOS was sold off
“No their dropping the whole thing”
What about the Big Haulers ?
“Yeah, their keeping that, their keeping just the ‘toy’ stuff” shrugs…
The problem is that these “wild rumors” have a very nasty tendency to be accurate, LGB, MDC, AristoCraft 
been researching a bit…
I’ve heard something preliminary and similar… the little big haulers are going away, big haulers stay, spectrum line of g will be limited or narrowed down…
Give this a few days and we’ll probably have whatever is happening confirmed.
Greg
Gee, I thought that Bachmann was doing well with their 1:20.3 stuff. I guess I was wrong.
David Maynard said:
Gee, I thought that Bachmann was doing well with their 1:20.3 stuff. I guess I was wrong.
When MSRP prices for them got close to brass for plastic you could see the writing on the wall. Many people I have talked to about that said yeah, I saved for so long to afford a Bachmann X I might as well save a bit longer and get an Accucraft Y. I think doing the C19 was correct, but it might have been too late after too many years of oddball offerings.
Vic, yes I can see your point. I didn’t pay MSRP for any of my LS Spectrum locomotives. I have not purchased any of the LS Spectrum rolling stock, because the street price is a bit high for me.
Greg Elmassian said:
been researching a bit…
I’ve heard something preliminary and similar… the little big haulers are going away, big haulers stay, spectrum line of g will be limited or narrowed down…
Give this a few days and we’ll probably have whatever is happening confirmed.
Greg
I positively confirm ONE of those, Lil Big Haulers…GONE.
Hans at Gold Coast Station confirmed he bought out Bachmanns remnants and is selling them at the show, full NIB sets $79, engines for $49 and cars for $17. Dang! I really like them! Need to BMW today
So I guess we better gettem while we can
Yep. I dont know how many other vendors might have some in stock. Not many I’d venture. Maybe Al Kramer. But most probably order/shipped from Bmann.
I went ahead and grabbed othee green tender engine
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Goddam phone keypad refuses to obey this morning grrrr.
Hans said he got 300. I don’t know if thats sets or peices. But I think between him and Al thats all thats left. But like the Toytrain LGB line. Get what you want because thats all folks.
Sunday is definetly families day. BridgeMasters despite the slack crowd said they did very well yesterday. Most of the used estate sales stuff they had was gone, glad I got what I did yesterday am, it would be long gone this am.
Sunday was better than Saturday …at least for me. Alot of questions about tiny circles and tinyer trains. Hope next year they can lure back more vendors. Talk was that next years show may be scheduled in August due to other events. We’ll see.
Interesting comments on this post. I was wondering what happened this year; earlier date and less vendors, and seemingly less layouts…and assumed that it was the upcoming National Garden Railway Convention being so close with bit of competition. I attended the show for the first time last year and not knowing what to expect was happy with the overall experience. I attended yesterday (Saturday) and although my son got a touch of the stomach flu I was able to come out for about 2 hours. While it wasn’t horrible it just wasn’t the experience I had last year.
I don’t know the history with the Queen Mary, but that would be a huge draw for me with future shows. My family has stayed on the ship and its a great experience.
Economics is huge thing in the hobby…the garden side is so pricey that years before I had a good paying career this was only a dream. Even though I’ve been in the hobby for just about 9 years it is still pricey and I really have to decide where best to allocate discretionary funds. To keep anything alive there needs to be different levels available that are affordable. Perhaps that is why (if its true) that Bachmann is pushing the Big Haulers series…a bit more affordable, etc.
So, I don’t know…I’m coming back next year with my son and our friend and hope that there is an infusion of excitement for all involved.
Richard
Regarding the shows schedule, from what I was told next years show hasn’t been scheduled due to other scheduled (IOWs Paid) events are already booked for June, I suspect that happened this year also which is why we got a show in May this year. Also I suspect talking about moving the show as late as August kinda means its a filler event for the OCC, given that they own the show means they only make money if they sell tickets and booths, no one putting up $$ up front to rent the hall. there was even mention that the show might be held at another (less premium?) venue, where exactly I dont know. Again this is all from talking to other exhibitors.
The problem with all this is that traditionally the shows vendors are offered the opportunity of renewing their option to return the following year, probably at an early bird rate lower than once its closer to the event. They offer this for a period right after the show closes, however without a firm date, the vendors cannot commit and hence they cannot renew, OCC needs to get a firm date in hand. I suspect the NGRS in July might have sapped a few vendors, but I think the date change a month early might be more to blame.
Also the fact that each year there are less vendors is more worrisome to me. As one person explained it. A vendor come to the show but dont sell what they expected so they decide not to return the following year, a visitor comes to the show but cannot find a vendor selling what they want, or the vendor is asking for the Moon and Mars price-wise, so the visitor decides not to come back the following year, this goes on for a few cycles and next thing you know, you have few vendors and few visitors. not a good thing.
Now I saw alot, I mean ALOT of stuff being carried by visitors so clearly those that did show up came ready to haggle. The fact that I saw ALOT of large scale boxes in hand being carried makes me think its still got a big large scale presence, as has been said, BridgeMasters came ready to move stock, but I was also disappointed that the attendance has definetly waned since even last year. I dont think its the economy, because Costa Mesa was bonkers busy. I suspect the change in date, and lack of advertising might have had alot more to do with the drop off than anything else. Will there be a show next year, yes, I think so, but when and even where, are still up in the air.
PS the Swag List: we don’t do these anymore, we should. I miss them, so here’s mine:
Bachmann Bug Mauler circus 4-6-0 $10, parts for my Lil Haulers.
Bachmann NIB Lil Big Hauler 0-4-0 w/ tender $75, $20 more than I wanted to pay, Hans had the blue locos for only $40, but I really wanted the tender and he only had the one, I dont mind, I’ve paid that before on Fleabay only this time I didn’t need to add shipping. I’ll likely pick up a couple more blue ones at Pomona in July, just to have them in reserve
Bachmann 0-4-0T Saddletanker, $50. The RARE round tank switcher I have wanted back ever since I sold mine and instantly regretted it. Runs fine, apparently sat on a display case its entire life, good for me.
Two ‘Mountains In Minutes’ urethane foam building facades, one used $8 back alley facade, one still shrink-wrapped storefront facade$20, I have seen these sell for over $50 each on Fleabay so I grabbed them immediately. Got a place for them on the harbor layout.
I also got a few figures, and someone made me an offer for the Angry Beaver layout! I have to really consider it because it was a decent offer! the sad thing is that if I could easily get another circle of Aristo track to build another I probably would sold it on the spot. But because I only have one more of the little circles, I’m reluctant.
Hmmm…maybe I should buy a track bender and sell the little circles at the shows… Hmmmm (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-undecided.gif)
We attended an Anniversary party Saturday night and there were a few men there who came over to our table to ask about garden railroads. They were all under 50 with teenage boys and ALL were very interested in getting into the hobby. The one common factor for these folks NOT getting into large scale was the lack of hobby shops and other vendors selling LS stock OR hobby shops JUST NOT selling train stuff anymore. All of these people blamed the electronic game technology as a major factor. One guy I talked to extensively is into remote control tanks (starting at lengths of 24 inches all the way up to and including the 1/4 scale monsters). These things can cost as much as a 1 inch or 1-1/2 inch scale live steamer. This guy commented about the Big Train Show being at the OCC and was thinking about going and taking his two teenage boys (BOTH very interested in trains) on Sunday. But because they attended last years show and it was so lacking in LS vendors, he was just reluctant to spend the money to drive 60 miles one way and pay $30 plus to attend.
Bottom line is that this ls hobby IS dying. Those of us already in it know where to go to get parts and which vendors to contact for locomotives and rolling stock whether high end Aster or Accucraft or middle of the road like Bachmann. But if Bachmann has now decided to no longer manufacture the Spectrum line, then I will have no recourse but to buy my Fn3 from Accucraft (but I always have anyway, except for some Spectrum to bash). I don’t see how this niche of the model railroading hobby can survive and bring in “new blood” if there is no one to buy FROM. That flat out will not work!
I have commented before that I have participated in the riding scale railroad hobby for almost fifty years. In the middle fifties and early sixties, you were pretty much on your own for building engines and rolling stock. There were very few vendors. Now there seem to be many more vendors and small dealers selling detail parts. There are even folks buying businesses and taking over for those old timers in the hobby to carry it on. You don’t see that in LS. This next weekend, Los Angeles Live Steamers will be having its 60th Anniversary Meet and we are expecting a huge turnout of engines and rolling stock (according to the correspondence we are receiving). Funny, Accucraft will be in attendance and selling stuff. Where are all the other vendors in LS? We have plenty of real estate for LS vendors and we have a brand new elevated railroad of 45mm track for BOTH steam and electric! Built by Triple R Services, owned by Charles and Ryan Bednarik. Great opportunity for vendors to sell their wares surrounded by operating riding scales and 45mm. Accucraft is smart in marketing…where is everybody else? Just sayin’. Plenty of blame to go around for the demise of the LS hobby.
Gary based on the amount of stuff I saw people carrying, and the fact that Accucraft is doing very well, I dont think LS is anywhere near demise. The problem is the the demographics are skewed to the already long established guys, there is almost nothing out there to lure the starter into the hobby.
When was the last time anyone saw a large scale starter set in OSH or Home Depot or Lowes or any of the places like a gardening center or garden show? Bachmann had a golden opportunity with its Lil Big Hauler line, and instead of spending $2 more on each locomotive to add piston rods, which would have had instant appeal for starters and long established modelers, they went cheap, and WORSE that cheap, almost NOBODY even KNEW they existed! No Toys-R-Us at Christmas no OSH no marketing WHATSOEVER, that was a huge FUBAR from Kader, I spoke to a Bachmann rep at a show a couple years ago and I got the distict impression that KADER, (not bachmann) wants NOTHING to do with large scale when there’s ready money to be made in long entrenched markets in HO and N. I suspect this is why we are seeing the retraction of LS offerings, also rumor is On30 will also take a hit. Kader has its head up its arse IMO. Bachmanns Chinese overloards are only looking at the instant $$ so they are thinking very short term. There is money in HO, N and in large scale only to them in the Thomas and Big Hauler lines, everything else will get reduced or eliminated.
As for the other manufacturers, USA does nothing to draw in new participants, almost all their offerings are for already established large layouts. Accucraft is for the Mercedes Benz crowd, and other than that, who’s really left? LGB is almost invisible, Piko is trying hard, slowly becoming what LGB once was in terms of presence, but its a slow road to plow. They really need more exposure.
Vic,
I agree with you about the exposure and the marketing in trying to lure new folks into the hobby. That’s why I commented on the 40-50 something guys still wanting to get into the LS niche, but only hearing about it by talking to folks like me helping those to find vendors and access to parts. The hobbyist, not the manufacturers, are the ones trying to pass the word along about this hobby. That was my point about the contraction.
Parents today are trying to pay bills, house, car, food, cloths…etc. They take a child to see the show and get interested in buying a starter set so they start looking and soon realize they just can’t afford $275 to get started. I think the biggest problem is LS is pricing itself out of the middle income market and what you do find at a reasonable price is not worth buying do to poor quality. Lets face it, even at this show most dealers wanted full retail and in some cases more than retail. That being said dealers like Gold Coast had great prices and even would work with you some.
