HJ
I have read the German responses to the Chinese made LGB…Not very pretty at all. And in many cases much harsher than the North American comments.
I received the New LGB 43900 SP Composite Boxcar last Thursday and was very unhappy with the appearance and workmanship. And EPL knows it, now.
The Lone Railroader
The Lone Railroader said:
… I received the New LGB 43900 SP Composite Boxcar last Thursday and was very unhappy with the appearance and workmanship. And EPL knows it, now. The Lone Railroader
Marvin, Will they exchange it for a “better” one?? 
Producing in China without very tight QC is a bit of a gamble and a mfg’s previously stellar reputation can quickly loose its shine. 
If one always emphasized the sturdiness of the product, but said product now arrives with broken parts at the dealer’s/consumer, then it is time to either fix the problem(s) or change this tune
Of course that is strictly my opinion!
Hans-Joerg Mueller said:
The Lone Railroader said:
… I received the New LGB 43900 SP Composite Boxcar last Thursday and was very unhappy with the appearance and workmanship. And EPL knows it, now. The Lone RailroaderMarvin, Will they exchange it for a “better” one??
Of course that is strictly my opinion!
“Prejudice is a great time saver. You can form opinions without having to get the facts.†E.B. White
Of course, the Barry’s drive, being extruded, with actual ball bearings on the Stainless axles and no Mabuchi motors doesn’t enter into that, right?
Dave, Nah, this one was mainly about the “superior” plastics, but it could have been about the “superior” finish, too. There are many “LGB Quality Facts” in that PDF. JJ I bought my first pieces of LGB in 1999, at the same time as I bought a LGB catalogue. Since I’ve been a model railroader for quite some time, but never a collector, I just didn’t appreciate the intrinsic “collector value”. OTOH I learned to read and write and have made good use of those abilities. When I read the 1998 LGB Catalogue (very handy piece in both English and German) I started to compare what LGB claimed in the catalogue with the facts I have on hand - tomes of information on the RhB (Rhaetian Railway). Well, this may sound like prejudice, but there wasn’t very much that coincided with the facts. And since I believe that anyone should deliver what they advertise, I’ve been mentioning the shortcomings ever since. BTW just in case you missed “the pictures” I have a nice number of LGB pieces - as I mentioned I don’t collect.
And there is more … Not only do I “bash” LGB, I actually kitbash the “stuff”, too. It is one way to get much closer to the prototype.
Well, this may sound like prejudice, but there wasn’t very much that coincided with the facts. And since I >>believe that anyone should deliver what they advertise, I’ve been mentioning the shortcomings ever since.
ad nauseam…
Well Mr. Mueller,
that is quite a collection of products made by a company you keep on bashing and offending in forums around this world.
How come, nobody has ever seen a finished large scale model from your workshop in all these years? Did I miss something?
Have Fun
Otter 1 / Juergen Zirner
Zirner
Thats not a way to start off your first post on LSC. Keep it civil, please.
Hello , Juergen ,
Good to see you back again . Come to do some hot air balloon spotting ?
Mike
Quote:HJ
Will they exchange it for a "better" one?? ;)
The axiom “Figure the Odds” is the best reply on this question.
The Lone Railroader
One of many. Funny, they do all sorts of scenery and accessory stuff in a lot of scales, plus it seems you can clcik the Kr…oooops…GERman link too. Reminds me of the Pan Am pilot at Templehof in the early 50’s… Now, one would dare to ask. What is wrong with asking what the scale of an item IS? What is wrong with showing the facts? I need to post a photo of the new Mercedes being bult in China for you… a good writeup on Chinese quality in that regard is here: http://www.houstonbusiness.com/HBReview/may04_issue4/hbreview.html
Bob McCown said:Bob, ;)
Zirner Thats not a way to start off your first post on LSC. Keep it civil, please.
Zirner is just jesting, afterall that is his professed profession: he is a clown! http://www.zamponelli.de/
And his motto is: “there are days when I surprise myself”
Of course Enrico Zamponelli is just one of many pseudonyms he uses ie. Fritz on MLS, Otter1 on GBF, JZ in other fora, sometimes, when it suits him, he’s “Dark Man”.
I’m sure he’ll forgive me if I haven’t mentioned one or the other of his many handles.
And of course he does have a real (as in official) name: Hans Jürgen Zirner.
Welcome to LSC Jürgen!
PS Bob, Jürgen is disappointed that the handiwork that gets produced in my hobby workshop at home is not as freely accessible as he would like. 
Well, I don’t really feel a huge obligation to satisfy Hans Jürgen Zirner’s curiosity and for that reason I choose carefully where I post which pictures of my handiwork. Seems reasonable to most people I know.
@ Dave,
Thanks! The way I see it most people are able to follow a link in a signature. If you have the choice of language that should be straight forward , too. But, you just never know! 
@ Mike M
MM said:From what I gathered, Jürgen is busy not to resemble a hot air balloon when he's paragliding. ;) :D :D
hot air balloon spotting
John Joseph Sauer said:
>>Well, this may sound like prejudice, but there wasn't very much that coincided with the facts. And since I >>believe that anyone should deliver what they advertise, I've been mentioning the shortcomings ever since.ad nauseam…
That was just in case you overlooked my previous explanations on where I’m coming from. See I’m a man with patience, I don’t mind explaining my reasoning yet again.
Dear Mr. Mueller,
Thank you for your warm welcome. I am amazed to learn that new participants to this forum are getting spyed-out, x-rayed and details from their private live reveilled to the public. I hope, I passed the test.
You forgot to mention my eight books on the market (4 different names), two LPs, regular contributions to magazines and periodicals (some train related.) It is not unusual for artists, to use different names. Nobody ever blamed D. Copperfield for not using his real name in show business.
My Secret Service files seem to be hosted in Canada. Thank You for not mentioning my direct wire to the Mafia, Cosa Nostra and Al-Quaida and my complete absence of any humor.
Returning to the theme or title of this thread. What is so strange about a company trying to make profits? Don´t we all prefer good fees or wages. You can not really expect a company, to pay the customers.
So if Piko or other makers try to get a maximum price for their products in America, everybody can still order it in Germany or elsewhere. At least readers of fori are connected with the rest of the world and are able to research and compare prices via the net.
On the other hand, it is still cheaper for me, to order and reimport a Mercedes or Porsche in New York than to buy it at the shop next door. Or I have the choice, to pay 800 or 900 Euro for an Bachmann Shay over here at a local dealer or order one for a few hundred Dollars in America.
Even some dealers import directly and don´t buy from official importer. That is one part of Globalisation.
Most customers of today are true democrats. They vote with their wallet or credit card. And most customers realized, you cannot get top quality for a few pennies.
Have Fun
Juergen Zirner
Hello Hans Jürgen Zirner,
There is no secret service file on you in Canada, not as far as I know anyway. But if one needs that many pseudonyms just for the Large Scale fora it doesn’t hurt to get a “heads-up”, that prevents a lot of confusion.
In this thread I didn’t question the profit, I pointed out the different marketing approach (the title of the thread hasn’t changed!). It is a fact that Northamericans are savvy when it comes to frugal buying and most of us know how to calculate exchange rates and shipping expenses as well as the Europeans do. In other words if the PIKO Taurus hits the European market at 220 Euro MSRP (probably lower at street price!) then few will be “kind enough” to shell out considerably more in North America. Nothing to do with how democratic our wallets feel on a given day, everything to do with a level playing field!
Cheers, eh!
Has this turned into a food fight, but with words?
The Lone Railroader said:Hi Marvin,
Has this turned into a food fight, but with words?
Nah, so far I chalk it up as Zirner being out of his element and not quite understanding the original post - one of his favourite expressions in German is “Das verstehe ich nicht” ( I don’t understand that)!
If that’s the case in one’s native tongue, chances are good that some of the finer points in a foreign language thread are not being comprehended. OTOH I noticed that he understood what a select array of LGB equipment I have - proof again that a picture is worth a thousand words.
As they say: Carry on!
"Hans-Joerg Mueller" said:Wheeeeeeeeeeee! Another pillow fight!! :P
As they say: Carry on! :D ;)
Warren
Warren Mumpower said:"Hans-Joerg Mueller" said:Wheeeeeeeeeeee! Another pillow fight!! :P
As they say: Carry on! :D ;)Warren
Perhaps you misunderstood, the “carry on” refers to the well known series of British comedies http://www.dvdtalk.com/dvdsavant/s658carry.html
Lots of good laughs! And lots of linguistic twists and turns, you gotta hand it to the Brits, they do that really well!
Hi,
As long as Mueller claims to know better than I do, what I understand or not, a pillow is the wrong choice of tool.
He might as well debate with himself or run with his head against the next wall again.
Meanwhile I sit back and relax and follow Mueller´s first LGB-Material-Bash. Or maybe simply watch annother hot air balloon disappearing behind the horizon.
The “Carry-On” level is a bit flat for an average German. Most of us prefer Monty Pyton, Tommy Cooper or Spike Milligan.
Have Fun
Juergen Zirner