The Encore Series
A Change in B.T.S. Policy
In 2012, we asked your opinion on the following:
Since we purchased Master Creations in 1998, we have upheld the MC policy
of not rerunning limited edition kits. However, from the time we acquired MC, the term 'limited edition' really
has not had the same meaning since we keep limited run kits in production until sales fall off. At that time, we feel the market is saturated and stop producing them.
Our logic is that some folks need time to decide if they want a kit and having a short availability window is not a good
thing for them or the hobby. We are extremely happy that the majority of our kits end up on a layout and are not kept
in the box to use as a future investment.
But that does not the help the modeler new to the hobby or one who has
changed their modeling direction. We get calls and emails frequently from folks looking for this limited edition kit or that one, and
they are frustrated by the challenges they face trying to build their layouts because these kits are no longer available.
So, we are thinking about doing what could be called an Encore Program where some of the older kits are brought back. All of the pre-B.T.S. kits will
need a complete re-engineering before we put the B.T.S. label on them; they were very hard to assemble and the instructions were weak. These problems
will be gone in the Encore kits.
The challenge for us is to develop a way to keep the original limited edition kit's value for the folks who purchased it just
because it was a limited edition. Perhaps we could do some small changes to make the kit different, yet basically keep it looking the same. B.T.S. labels, new & improved
instructions, no serial numbers, and better kit engineering will make these versions different anyway, so I suspect the reality is that the collectability
will still survive on the older kits just because they are the older kits.
Over 100 folks gave us their opinions. Only two felt it was a bad idea, and one of them admitted he does not even buy kits so the decision has no affect on him. Based upon all
the positive comments we received, we have decided to proceed with the Encore Program in HO and O Scales.
We still believe the value of the original collectable kits will be maintained
since there will be very obvious differences in the packaging. In addition, there will be differences in the details and, in some cases, even the engineering of the kit, the materials,
and the instructions. We hope you will be as excited as we are about the return of some old friends.
Thanks!!
Diane & Bill
The first HO kit in the Encore Series is the
Hyde Pulp Mill
The O Scale Hyde Pulp Mill is in stock!
The second kit in the
Encore Series
is the
Cabin Creek Coal Tipple
Back in HO, S and O scales!
The third kit in the
Encore Series
is the
Coon Gap Sawmill
Back in both S and O scale!
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