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I didn't want to start this thread. Some are going to see it as "inflamatory" and perhaps it is but it needs to be said here. Dave Goodson (aka Curmudgeon) as many of you know, has been a member of MLS since the beginning. TOC ("The Old Curmudgeon") has also been the principal reviewer of technical matters for Outdoor Railroader/Finescale Railroader Magazine and later Garden Railways Magazine which he still does for Marc Horovitz.
The problems began before this but have reached a breaking point with Dave's review of the Bachmann K-27 in Garden Railways. The review was rather mild (mainly due to editorial license) but in no way hyper critical or unfair! In fact, Dave took some flak for his "kid gloves" handling of the K-27 review!
Bachmann, aparently, was not pleased. Not pleased at all! Doug Blaine, VP of Marketing for Bachmann was incensed about the review! He wanted Dave removed as a reviewer for Bachmann's products and he felt that Dave was biased against the "Universal Socket" that they had spent so much time, money and energy in developing(!) and thus couldn't give a fair review. Doug was especially upset about Dave's lack of positive reference to the Socket in the review.
This was all two days ago. Dave has been told NOT to "harrass" anyone at Bachmann. He is essentially "persona non grata. None of this information is classified. There's a heluva lot more but essentially Bachmann is trying to dictate who does their reviews so they get the most favorable person possible. The problem with this is that GR uses Dave because of his technical expertise, his attention to detail, his honesty and his utter objectivity! Dave has done this for 11 years. There are those of us that WON'T purchase a product until we have had Dave do a thorough evaluation of the model!
In addition to reviews, Dave also does evaluations of the models to find potential (and real) flaws and to devise "fixes" for them (the shim kit for the original Shay is a good example) and then reports to Bachmann about his findings so Bachmann can correct them. He isn't on Bachmann's payroll! He does this for the good of the hobby which is why Bachmann's attitude toward Dave is so unfathomable!
It is speculation at this point but the focal point seems to be Dave's resistance to DCC in large scale and the "Super Socket" in particular in a number of threads here on MLS and LSC. SOMEBODY has convinced Bachmann that Dave Goodson won't work with them and so Dave has been "excommunicated." Dave has decided that this fight is unwinnable and not worth the headaches and frustrations and I don't blame him! He has decided NOT to do any more reviews of Bachmann products so SOMEBODY has won! I hope he's happy because these strong-arm tactics have removed one of the best reviewers our hobby has ever had.
I have kept this post as impersonal as I could. I am bitterly disappointed with Bachmann and am disgusted at the politics that have brought this decision about. There is a LOT more to this but you will have to get it from somebody else. I will not be buying any more Bachmann engines based on their "rosey reviews" which will surely be dictated by their marketing department! Rather, I will now wait until at least a year has passed and watch the fallout from the inevitable problems that will creep up and then decide whether to purchase one or not. This is not a good day for our hobby.
The problems began before this but have reached a breaking point with Dave's review of the Bachmann K-27 in Garden Railways. The review was rather mild (mainly due to editorial license) but in no way hyper critical or unfair! In fact, Dave took some flak for his "kid gloves" handling of the K-27 review!
Bachmann, aparently, was not pleased. Not pleased at all! Doug Blaine, VP of Marketing for Bachmann was incensed about the review! He wanted Dave removed as a reviewer for Bachmann's products and he felt that Dave was biased against the "Universal Socket" that they had spent so much time, money and energy in developing(!) and thus couldn't give a fair review. Doug was especially upset about Dave's lack of positive reference to the Socket in the review.
This was all two days ago. Dave has been told NOT to "harrass" anyone at Bachmann. He is essentially "persona non grata. None of this information is classified. There's a heluva lot more but essentially Bachmann is trying to dictate who does their reviews so they get the most favorable person possible. The problem with this is that GR uses Dave because of his technical expertise, his attention to detail, his honesty and his utter objectivity! Dave has done this for 11 years. There are those of us that WON'T purchase a product until we have had Dave do a thorough evaluation of the model!
In addition to reviews, Dave also does evaluations of the models to find potential (and real) flaws and to devise "fixes" for them (the shim kit for the original Shay is a good example) and then reports to Bachmann about his findings so Bachmann can correct them. He isn't on Bachmann's payroll! He does this for the good of the hobby which is why Bachmann's attitude toward Dave is so unfathomable!
It is speculation at this point but the focal point seems to be Dave's resistance to DCC in large scale and the "Super Socket" in particular in a number of threads here on MLS and LSC. SOMEBODY has convinced Bachmann that Dave Goodson won't work with them and so Dave has been "excommunicated." Dave has decided that this fight is unwinnable and not worth the headaches and frustrations and I don't blame him! He has decided NOT to do any more reviews of Bachmann products so SOMEBODY has won! I hope he's happy because these strong-arm tactics have removed one of the best reviewers our hobby has ever had.
I have kept this post as impersonal as I could. I am bitterly disappointed with Bachmann and am disgusted at the politics that have brought this decision about. There is a LOT more to this but you will have to get it from somebody else. I will not be buying any more Bachmann engines based on their "rosey reviews" which will surely be dictated by their marketing department! Rather, I will now wait until at least a year has passed and watch the fallout from the inevitable problems that will creep up and then decide whether to purchase one or not. This is not a good day for our hobby.
