I didn’t need those Moguls, but I wanted to run steam that looked good. So I had to pay up. I think the same thing happened when AZL made those great brass diesels. I think some did collect, but I think a lot of the earlier purchases were from people that wanted cool looking locos to pull their freight.

With injection molded plastic locomotives from MTL and AZL, I think the resale of the brass will most likely be suggested retail…unless it is something rare/unique, like the high hood SD 45.

So my guess on what is happening is that there are a lot of runners out there who in the past might have paid a “collector’s” price just to run something they thought was cool and couldn’t get anywhere. How many Marklin Amtrak F7′s have sold since the MTL painted F7 came out? I don’t know for sure, but my guess a lot of the Z crowd likes to run and thankfully we can do it in style these days!

The one thing I probably should have written in the article originally, that is if you really enjoy collecting something and it makes you happy… go for it! I wasn’t trying to rain on any collector’s parade.

In our hobby (as in the rest of life) money is an important thing, it’s not the only thing and life is full of intangibles :)

Really I wrote this piece because I was a little surprised at how much the prices on some used Z gear has recently dipped.

Your MTL Moguls are a great example of collecting pieces because you really like them (they are incredibly cool). That much better that you run them too!

John
Ztrains

I mean these listed as a manufacturers retail at $499. I have two of them. The 1681 and the 1798. Would I like the 1795? Sure, but I won’t pay more than retail. Sorry they don’t mean that much to me. There is a little common sense principal to the thing. I paid $390 for the 1681 in an auction, and $500 for the 1798 (excluding tax).

So here is the deal, if I can get a great running great looking steamer for 200 bucks…why get an average runner with no tender pickup? (they can be made to run exceptional, but you’ll need Gaugemasters and Jorger controllers) I do run these things almost daily.

The appeal of the Moguls is that they are the only small steam that looks correct in proportion. AZL nailed the GS4, Cab Forward, and the Challenger…most people cant afford those. Even the Casey Jones from Marklin looks a tad bit toyish.

In the end it is a great time to be in Z, if you love running trains. For someone collecting hoping for a big payday, I think you need to get lucky.

Heck even I couldn’t resist a GP30 from AZL that runs as good as all my N scale equipment, for only $140!