Thanks Richard. Scaling the images is not the problem. That's easy. It is the volume of each decal that needs to be purchased, and the ability to sell them to remain solvent. That's the kicker. I don't know how strong the other scales' demands for decals are since I do not model them.
Manny, Not trying to step on your toes, I am sure O and S and N scale decal demand would be small. Can you give us an idea of how many decals you would need to order and sell to stay ahead of the game and approximately what a decal in HO scale would sell for?
OK, really stupid question here- what era are your decals covering? And I'm going to second oldguy's request for yellow nose stripes on the black diesels (esp. GP7s and switchers).
I am starting out from 1880-1920. This will include a series of boxcars, gondolas, flats, and then steam locomotives, and heavy weight passenger cars. After that, I will do some Frisco diesels for y'all. Let me ask in return, are y'all (Frisco.org) asking for me to pick up where Oddballs left off? All eras?
No Richard. You are not stepping on my toes. These are all fair questions. My mindset is to make decals that will appeal to all levels of the hobby. Yes, I want to cater to the Frisco group, but I also want to cater to outside the group as well. As for the number to order, don't worry about that. My target for a decal is $4-$6.00, but, I would like to put multiple cars, locomotives, passenger cars, etc., on each decal, instead of just one.
Manny, I think that is a great idea, I use to put two road numbers on each decal and the numbers 0-9 so the person could put at least one more road number using the decal.
For what it's worth, I'm looking at N-scale... but for me, the decals need to be usable on late steam era cars at the earliest. Paul
My ears are open to you N, S, O, and Large Scale guys. Let me get the HO versions started. I will inquire with my producer to see what is involved in making them in variant scales. I have a minimum to buy so that will be part of the consideration. I understand y'all who want late steam or diesel era. I hear you loud and clear. Please understand that my releases of resin cars are turn of the century so I need to make sure that they are covered first. I'll get to you. Please be patient. I feel your pain. Lack of decals is killing this hobby and I want to stem the tide. My pet peeve is lack of communication and I will do my best to keep you all informed. At the proper time, I will submit questions as to what y'all would like to see in terms of rolling stock, engines, etc. Right now I have the first sets established. Further considerations will be granted in a few months.
May I humbly request that we consider producing decals for lightweight passenger cars? These have basically not been available since Champ folded its tent a few years ago. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named produced red FRISCO decals, but with "not applicable" car names. Microscale makes decals for passenger diesels, but now nobody makes decals for streamlined cars. GS
GS... I will be producing 1880, 1890 light weight and heavy weights at first. I will then do the streamlined cars. They will come.
I will see what is involved with the other sizes. When the time is right, I will set up a thread based on scales to see what everyone would like. Then I can get a sense of what to do and how much.
Great news. Suspect you're more interested in producing decals for your niche interest rather than producing what will sell and pay the bills. Nothing wrong with that as long as you can afford to do so. Hopefully, though, you'll produce the very popular Frisco decals from the transition era on up to the Orange and White era. Let the bread n' butter line of decals pay for your niche decals. And since I'm hoping, I also hope you'll be able to print them in various scales... such as S scale! Andre
Andre, I despise the premise of producing on the basis of what "I" want and y'all get the leftovers. I'm not like that. I need to get established and rooted. Yes, I will do decals that will feed my line of cars, but my focus is to do across the board. Patience is going to be key here. I'm not a millionaire that can just do everything at once. I have to prioritize. I'll do my best for everyone, but please understand, I have a business model to follow and that will mean success. I will get to the modern stuff. It's just going to take a little time. If you're patient, they will come.
For those who cannot wait, right now there is an individual (not me, not anyone I know) on the HO Interchange site selling batches of Frisco freight car decals. I am not a freight car guy, but for those who are, you might want to take a look at what he has. GS
Didn't mean to ruffle your feathers, but producing early steam first and not more marketable transition and diesel era decals will result in smaller sales numbers. You can take that to the bank. If early steam was a hot market, there would be much more product available for it. It's not. Early steam is a niche market in any scale, even among narrow gauge modelers. This comes from an enthusiast that also loves early steam. I have no dog in this fight and wish you the very best of success regardless of how you decide to pursue it. Andre
Since I just started in N scale, I only need steam loco decals to create 1522 out of an undec loco. But I'm sure my needs will grow. Rog
