New Athearn Web Site

[drsvelte]

Has anyone tried the new Athearn web site? It looks as if it is now converted completely to Horizon as you can place an order on-line.  Also, they have added a forecast of new product arrivals similar to Scaletrains.

www.athearn.com/

To me, though, its a step backward. My use of the "old"  Athearn site was for archival product searches and the "new" site makes it much more difficult.  I doubt if I would order any Athearn product from Horizon at full MSRP either.

[Deleted]

I like looking back through the announcements for information and hope you still can do that?

[nebrzephyr]

"My use of the "old" Athearn site was for archival product searches and the "new" site makes it much more difficult."

Agree 100%.

"I like looking back through the announcements for information and hope you still can do that?"

That looks to be improved. It appears you can now see years from 2005 forward.

Bob

[packer]

The links from google to product that even came out recently are broken now.

[csx3305]

General rule of thumb, it is very rare that websites change for the better.

[severn]

I ... kinda like it after a brief look. Maybe this is the the response to the scaletrains success with theirs (& tangent, etc)

I guess if I was a dealer I'd kinda wonder what my role is...

[Mr. Trainiac]

The biggest issue with the new site is the lack of ability to filter by specific model. I like the old HO page where it had three sections (Genesis, RTR, Roundhouse), and then a link to each type of car they made on those drop-down pages. I understand the need to update the site though.

I like the new e-store style layout, they just need to develop better filters so you can look at specific locomotive or freight car models. Filtering by the number of axles just seems goofy and mostly useless for experienced modelers who have been in the hobby for more than 5 minutes. There are 2,000 products listed in the Freight Car category, but almost no filtering options to remove irrelevant product types. There isn't even a filter for car types like Box Car, Tank Car, etc. The only options are Scale, Truck Style, and Reporting Mark, which are totally inadequate.

[Canadian Atlantic]

Mar 29, 2023 11:32:04 GMT -8 csx3305 said:

General rule of thumb, it is very rare that websites change for the better.

Agreed 100%. I gave it a spin and found it aggravating to use.

[csx3305]

i used it yesterday to try and figure out which numbers had been done on the patched out CSX PS2 2600’s,and……..It took some prodding but I finally got *some* results, but I don’t think it came back with all of them.

[Mr. Trainiac]

Mar 29, 2023 15:56:14 GMT -8 csx3305 said:

i used it yesterday to try and figure out which numbers had been done on the patched out CSX PS2 2600’s,and……..It took some prodding but I finally got *some* results, but I don’t think it came back with all of them.

Yeah, with the updated News Archive tab, it seems like data on past runs is a lot more complete.

The old website usually removed models after a year or two. Even if you knew a model was released in the past few years, sometimes you would get no results if the model was out of stock and no reruns were planned. Now that they have the newsletter copies, hopefully they can add these product numbers back into their website for archival purposes.

Atlas and Bowser both have pretty good archive and history pages. I can look to see which road numbers came out in which year for Atlas models, and Bowser has similar things for a lot of their rolling stock and locomotives, even going back to kits from the 90's. Athearn is one of the largest manufacturers in the hobby right now; I'm surprised there isn't more information about past models on their website or a separate easy-to-use archive page.

[richardthomasatal]

Like most of you, I agree the website is terrible. I think the root problem with Athearn is that Chris Palomarez left. He was not a corporate shill that did the bidding of Horizon's executives. He had a backbone. Jim Wiggin just lets them steam roll over him on every decision from pricing to website to model features. It's a matter of time before they fall behind competitors further than they already have.

[riogrande]

From what I understand Chris went to Caboose after the retail store failed and closed. Judging by listings on Ebay, Caboose exists now as an Ebay store.

[Baikal]

Mar 30, 2023 5:49:41 GMT -8 richardthomasatal said:

Like most of you, I agree the website is terrible. I think the root problem with Athearn is that Chris Palomarez left. He was not a corporate shill that did the bidding of Horizon's executives. He had a backbone. Jim Wiggin just lets them steam roll over him on every decision from pricing to website to model features. It's a matter of time before they fall behind competitors further than they already have.

Part of the Caboose Hobbies "give us your money" business model.  Did anyone send cash to help with the struggle?

-----------------------

"Caboose PBC is a Colorado-based public benefit corporation (soon to be majority employee-owned), and owner and operator of Caboose. The fundamental purpose of Caboose, as stated in our corporate charter, is to serve the worldwide community of train enthusiasts in the enjoyment of our shared passion for trains. Caboose builds upon the solid foundation of its rich 82-year legacy, occupying a singularly iconic space among the train enthusiasts and Denver retail communities.

At the onset of the Coronavirus, we were already facing financial challenges due to the malfunctioning of our e-commerce app. As if to add insult to injury, our store was burglarized at 1:45 am on Easter morning.

We are therefore seeking $50,000 to assure our employees continue to receive paychecks, to help pay our rent, property taxes and basic operating expenses, and to launch our new e-commerce app, allowing us to address our customer needs worldwide. We need these funds immediately to help bootstrap a larger funding initiative to help preserve vital businesses within the train community of train enthusiasts

CABOOSE BECOMES AN EMPLOYEE-OWNED PUBLIC BENEFIT CORPORATION, and CHRIS PALOMAREZ JOINS CABOOSE AS GENERAL MANAGER.

LAKEWOOD, COLORADO JULY 2, 2020 – Now, more than ever, we as a society are called to true community, one that works for all of its participants. We at Caboose therefore stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters of color, firm in the conviction that Black Lives Matter, in calling for an end, once and for all, of systemic racism on the part of our public institutions and individual citizens.

Cultivating community has always been central to our purpose at Caboose, where we have been sharing our passion for trains since 1938. We are therefore proud to announce, effective June 1, 2020 that Caboose is now a 100% employee-owned public benefit corporation. Public benefit corporations are chartered around a larger, overarching purpose to balance stakeholder interests and make a difference in the world. The public benefit purposes, as stated in our corporate charter are “to serve the worldwide community of train enthusiasts in the enjoyment of our shared passion for trains; to empower our employees through majority employee ownership; and to do so in a manner that creates a material positive impact on society and the environment, taken as a whole.”

To that end, we are pleased to announce that Chris Palomarez, former brand manager at Athearn Trains, has joined the Caboose team as its general manager, also effective June 1, 2020.

“Ever since we purchased the iconic train store Caboose Hobbies in 2016, it has been our purpose to be a beneficial presence in our local and worldwide communities, and to make a profound positive difference through employee ownership,” said Caboose PBC President and CEO Kevin Ruble. “Immediately after we closed our store location in mid-March in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we set the intention of re-launching even greater than before, with fresh inventory, a new enterprise resource program (“ERP”), and new e-commerce presence to provide our valued customers the world-class experience they so clearly deserve. We are pleased to have Chris join our team at this momentous point in Caboose’s rich 82-year history, and look forward to his playing a critical role in this re-launch and future success.”

Note: Caboose is hiring.

www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?3,5056504

[riogrande]

Send good money after bad? No.

Caboose seemed to be ill conceived from the very early days. I always thought it was presumptuous for Caboose to advertise an 82 year old history when in reality it was a completely new shop with a new owner and new inventory and a new way of doing business and prices much higher than the old Caboose Hobbies, which I had done business a number of times in the past. Reportedly it received little or no inventory from Caboose Hobbies when it closed in 2016. As has been said many time by others, the best way to get a small fortune is to start out with a large fortune by opening a model train hobby shop.

Quite a few years ago I worked in the IT dept. of a bank and I recall the loan dept. would have to approve a business plan before making a business loan, such as to start a new business. The new owner of Caboose used proceeds from other businesses he had to fund Caboose from what was reported. I don't think a bank would have approved a business loan for that start-up hobby shop as they would have seen it as a bad risk. Buying and moving a D&RGW caboose to the shop parking lot also put a large unneeded burden ($50k?) that did little for the bottom line of the store. Coolness factor is not going to pay the bills.

People who visited the shop in 2019 before COVID hit reported the shelves were devoid of product so COVID may have only hastened what already was already going to happen barring un-for-seen large infusion of cash. I thought it was "interesting" that the owner changed the shop over to an employee owned company. Does that mean the employees invested their own money into what was, by then, a failing business? Did that remove financial burden from the person who started the shop in the first place without a good business plan and shift it to the employees?

During the final year and the aftermath, a number of customers reported paying Caboose for products and never received those products, nor refunds. At least that was the last I heard. One of the customers was one of the guys at Iowa Scale Engineering (ProtoThrottle) who got stiffed by Caboose.

Then Caboose went "woke" with their social consciousness statements, which might very well alienate many of their customers if they weren't into that philosophy and the baggage that comes with it. BTW, here is the financial info displayed on the go-fund-me page copy/pasted here:

$1,241 raised

This fundraiser is no longer accepting donations. If you are the organizer, beneficiary, team member, or donor, sign in to see additional information.

The statements put out by Caboose remind me of a prevailing narrative we see in media during recent years where people forsake common sense for dreams, and reality for fantasy. It's like people have swallowed the message preached by Disney over the years that if you wish upon a star, your dreams will come true. Reading the fluff put out by Caboose seems to fit with this Disney-like narrative. Anyway, apparently many looked at the sequence of events and opted not to join in with a venture which was like the proverbial house that was built on sand.

By way of posterity, here is a quote posted by Iowa Scale Engineering from Dec 2020:

"Iowa Scaled Engineering

As small business owners, we hate to disparage other small businesses in the hobby – and within model railroading, most everything qualifies as a small business. We’re all trying to make a few dollars while providing products and services our fellow modelers want. However, we hit the breaking point a couple weeks ago. Let me get straight to the issue:

Do not do business with Caboose in Lakewood, CO. They don’t pay manufacturers, they don’t fulfill customer pre-orders (or refund down payments), and they don’t communicate.

We have a rather unique arrangement with our dealers, since there’s not the margin in products like the ProtoThrottle to give the usual dealer discount from manufacturers (typically ~60% of MSRP). The arrangement is that we carry the inventory so no payment needs to be made until an item sells. Once the item sells and the dealer has cash in hand, we invoice them for a cost that roughly splits the profits. Once we’ve been paid, we’ll ship them more product. It’s a win-win – we get greater sales and the dealer makes money with no cost of inventory.

Or rather, it’s a win-win until some dealer sells the product and decides to just pocket the cash rather than paying up.

Enter Caboose.Last summer (2019), they sold 4 regular ProtoThrottles, 1 black ProtoThrottle, 2 NCE receivers, and 4 ESU/WiThrottle receivers. We invoiced them on September 6 for a total of $2598. Attached is the invoice if you’re curious (edited so we don’t quite reveal our dealer pricing). We then contacted them again in late September 2019, visited in person in October 2019 to deliver a paper invoice, and then continued to send certified mail, email and call them in March, June, September, and twice in October 2020. We have been far beyond reasonably patient with them. The only acknowledgement we have received to our last three queries was a single cryptic sentence last week. While it didn’t address any of the issues, it did confirm they are receiving and ignoring our communication.

COVID is not an excuse. These items were sold and they had the cash in hand for them six months before the pandemic even emerged from China.It’s not just manufacturers experiencing Caboose’s unethical behavior – it’s customers as well. I personally pre-ordered 5x N scale Rapido 8-40CMs from them on October 10, 2018, putting down a $292.45 down payment. At the time, I wanted to support them as a local model railroad shop. Neither the 8-40CMs nor a refund on the down payment has ever shown up, and the ones I ordered through other sources arrived a month ago (Sept 2020). Emails go unreturned. My assumption is that they never received the product to sell, and given our experience with them as a manufacturer, I certainly have a guess as to why. My assumption is also that my down payment money is long gone, and there’s nothing in the coffers to refund it.

A normal business would take them to a court of law. Michael, Scott, and I have day jobs that actually pay the bills, the amount is relatively small, and there’s an old adage about blood and turnips that applies here. So instead, we’re taking our case first to the court of public opinion – our fellow modelers. If Caboose pays their year-late invoice in full and either refunds my down payment or delivers my 8-40CMs, I will post an update to this story. In the meantime, please share this with your friends."

[stevef45]

No more parts available through Athearns new site?

[csx3305]

Mar 30, 2023 7:50:54 GMT -8 Baikal said:

Mar 30, 2023 5:49:41 GMT -8 richardthomasatal said:

Like most of you, I agree the website is terrible. I think the root problem with Athearn is that Chris Palomarez left. He was not a corporate shill that did the bidding of Horizon's executives. He had a backbone. Jim Wiggin just lets them steam roll over him on every decision from pricing to website to model features. It's a matter of time before they fall behind competitors further than they already have.

Part of the Caboose Hobbies "give us your money" business model.  Did anyone send cash to help with the struggle?

-----------------------

"Caboose PBC is a Colorado-based public benefit corporation (soon to be majority employee-owned), and owner and operator of Caboose. The fundamental purpose of Caboose, as stated in our corporate charter, is to serve the worldwide community of train enthusiasts in the enjoyment of our shared passion for trains. Caboose builds upon the solid foundation of its rich 82-year legacy, occupying a singularly iconic space among the train enthusiasts and Denver retail communities.

At the onset of the Coronavirus, we were already facing financial challenges due to the malfunctioning of our e-commerce app. As if to add insult to injury, our store was burglarized at 1:45 am on Easter morning.

We are therefore seeking $50,000 to assure our employees continue to receive paychecks, to help pay our rent, property taxes and basic operating expenses, and to launch our new e-commerce app, allowing us to address our customer needs worldwide. We need these funds immediately to help bootstrap a larger funding initiative to help preserve vital businesses within the train community of train enthusiasts

CABOOSE BECOMES AN EMPLOYEE-OWNED PUBLIC BENEFIT CORPORATION, and CHRIS PALOMAREZ JOINS CABOOSE AS GENERAL MANAGER.

LAKEWOOD, COLORADO JULY 2, 2020 – Now, more than ever, we as a society are called to true community, one that works for all of its participants. We at Caboose therefore stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters of color, firm in the conviction that Black Lives Matter, in calling for an end, once and for all, of systemic racism on the part of our public institutions and individual citizens.

Cultivating community has always been central to our purpose at Caboose, where we have been sharing our passion for trains since 1938. We are therefore proud to announce, effective June 1, 2020 that Caboose is now a 100% employee-owned public benefit corporation. Public benefit corporations are chartered around a larger, overarching purpose to balance stakeholder interests and make a difference in the world. The public benefit purposes, as stated in our corporate charter are “to serve the worldwide community of train enthusiasts in the enjoyment of our shared passion for trains; to empower our employees through majority employee ownership; and to do so in a manner that creates a material positive impact on society and the environment, taken as a whole.”

To that end, we are pleased to announce that Chris Palomarez, former brand manager at Athearn Trains, has joined the Caboose team as its general manager, also effective June 1, 2020.

“Ever since we purchased the iconic train store Caboose Hobbies in 2016, it has been our purpose to be a beneficial presence in our local and worldwide communities, and to make a profound positive difference through employee ownership,” said Caboose PBC President and CEO Kevin Ruble. “Immediately after we closed our store location in mid-March in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we set the intention of re-launching even greater than before, with fresh inventory, a new enterprise resource program (“ERP”), and new e-commerce presence to provide our valued customers the world-class experience they so clearly deserve. We are pleased to have Chris join our team at this momentous point in Caboose’s rich 82-year history, and look forward to his playing a critical role in this re-launch and future success.”

Note: Caboose is hiring.

www.trainorders.com/discussion/read.php?3,5056504

Sounds like a real pie-in-the-sky hippie circle jerk

[nebrzephyr]

Mar 31, 2023 2:52:35 GMT -8 stevef45 said:

No more parts available through Athearns new site?

if you do a search for "parts" they still show up..

Bob

[cemr5396]

Found it in 5 seconds, no search required

[edwardsutorik]

Mar 31, 2023 4:10:42 GMT -8 csx3305 said:

Sounds like a real pie-in-the-sky hippie circle jerk

Some local governments look kindly on people who talk/act that way. If a person wanted some of that kindness, that person might consider doing what it takes to get it. Or not.

Nuthin' like enforced morality.



Ed

[nebrzephyr]

Mar 31, 2023 11:10:53 GMT -8 cemr5396 said:

Found it in 5 seconds, no search required

I should have been more specific. I was trying to say if you're looking for a specific part.

Bob

[richardthomasatal]

Ah yes I saw the former Caboose owner Kevin Ruble at the Rocky Mountain show this weekend. I was surprised he had the nerve to show his face. There is still owed money to some people and companies. Back to Athearn, Chris made a bad decision to leave but they are not the kindest of employers. I was once told the brand manager averages about $10 an hour when all the hours spent are figured up.

[Baikal]

Apr 2, 2023 7:34:55 GMT -8 richardthomasatal said:

Ah yes I saw the former Caboose owner Kevin Ruble at the Rocky Mountain show this weekend. I was surprised he had the nerve to show his face. There is still owed money to some people and companies. Back to Athearn, Chris made a bad decision to leave but they are not the kindest of employers. I was once told the brand manager averages about $10 an hour when all the hours spent are figured up.

What makes you think it was Chris' decision to leave Athearn?  Based on his history at Scamboose?

Do you think that's true about the $10 per hour- because someone told you so?  More likely just another modeler/foamer fantasy that people love to repeat because "ooooohhh!"

[hudsonyard]

their seems to be a lot of skullduggery about the model RR industry from people who do not work inside of it, trust me it's probably really not that exciting i think. If it's anything like the manufacturing i work in it's lots of e-mails that don't get answered and problems sourcing material.

[richardthomasatal]

Apr 2, 2023 8:50:41 GMT -8 Baikal said:

Apr 2, 2023 7:34:55 GMT -8 richardthomasatal said:

Ah yes I saw the former Caboose owner Kevin Ruble at the Rocky Mountain show this weekend. I was surprised he had the nerve to show his face. There is still owed money to some people and companies. Back to Athearn, Chris made a bad decision to leave but they are not the kindest of employers. I was once told the brand manager averages about $10 an hour when all the hours spent are figured up.

What makes you think it was Chris' decision to leave Athearn?  Based on his history at Scamboose?

Do you think that's true about the $10 per hour- because someone told you so?  More likely just another modeler/foamer fantasy that people love to repeat because "ooooohhh!"

   I know first hand on both accounts. 

[Baikal]

Apr 2, 2023 10:54:50 GMT -8 richardthomasatal said:

Apr 2, 2023 8:50:41 GMT -8 Baikal said:

What makes you think it was Chris' decision to leave Athearn?  Based on his history at Scamboose?

Do you think that's true about the $10 per hour- because someone told you so?  More likely just another modeler/foamer fantasy that people love to repeat because "ooooohhh!"

   I know first hand on both accounts. 

How's that?  I don't think you know what "first hand" means.  "I was once told the brand manager averages about $10 an hour", lol, told by who?  Lilith Rumorstein?

Based on your record, people aren't going to believe much of what you say.

Of course you make no coments about his literally scamming people and promoting nonsense.  Which are not hearsay.

Who wants someone like that as the face of their company?

[richardthomasatal]

Apr 2, 2023 11:04:43 GMT -8 Baikal said:

Apr 2, 2023 10:54:50 GMT -8 richardthomasatal said:

   I know first hand on both accounts. 

How's that?  I don't think you know what "first hand" means.  "I was once told the brand manager averages about $10 an hour", lol, told by who?  Lilith Rumorstein?

Based on your record, people aren't going to believe much of what you say.

Of course you make no coments about his literally scamming people and promoting nonsense.  Which are not hearsay.

Who wants someone like that as the face of their company?

   Kevin Ruble scammed people, Chris fully expected Caboose to succeed.  Who the hell would go to work for a company that they planned on failing in a short period of time?  Sounds like you have sour grapes with Chris Palomarez and just admitted via PM that you are an ex Athearn employee.  So defend your ex employer all you want but I have information to the contrary.  I don't care who believes it or not, this isn't a courtroom.  It doesn't take but 50-80 hour weeks for the common earner to be reduced to $10 an hour from being involved in something around the clock if they are salaried or hourly and clocking out when leaving the office but continuing the work after hours.

[thmy]

Apr 2, 2023 15:32:04 GMT -8 richardthomasatal said:

Apr 2, 2023 11:04:43 GMT -8 Baikal said:

How's that?  I don't think you know what "first hand" means.  "I was once told the brand manager averages about $10 an hour", lol, told by who?  Lilith Rumorstein?

Based on your record, people aren't going to believe much of what you say.

Of course you make no coments about his literally scamming people and promoting nonsense.  Which are not hearsay.

Who wants someone like that as the face of their company?

   Kevin Ruble scammed people, Chris fully expected Caboose to succeed.  Who the hell would go to work for a company that they planned on failing in a short period of time?  Sounds like you have sour grapes with Chris Palomarez and just admitted via PM that you are an ex Athearn employee.  So defend your ex employer all you want but I have information to the contrary.  I don't care who believes it or not, this isn't a courtroom.  It doesn't take but 50-80 hour weeks for the common earner to be reduced to $10 an hour from being involved in something around the clock if they are salaried or hourly and clocking out when leaving the office but continuing the work after hours.

Don't pay attention to Baikal, he is an Athearn shill. We all know Athearn ain't the same since 2020.

[lyonwonder]

Athearn's website has been acting haywire since yesterday with everything being "IN STOCK" even though most of the items are pre-orders and the listings no longer say when they're supposed to arrive.

I hope it's just a glitch that gets corrected soon.

[edwardsutorik]

Just don't go to the new website to learn about such Athearn products as 2893 covered hoppers.


Ed

[tony]

What does it tell you when you visit the Athearn Service Center page and the image is of a remote control airplane controller?