Tomix JR E4 Max “Final Run” delayed... again

[Guest]

I just received yet another notification from Amazon JP that the Tomix JR E4 Max “Final Run” (97947) is delayed again.  This is the 3rd or 4th delay since I pre-ordered it back in Sept ‘21.  Delayed to Oct ‘22 now.

 

You wouldn’t think it would be that difficult to slap on a couple new decals to the existing E4 Max they already have?!

[disturbman]

You living under a rock? Worlwide supply chains have been disrupted and Japanese model trains makers are posting regular postponements, even Kato that produces in Japan.

Producing thousands of model train sets, even a re-edition, is a lot more complex than just "slap on a couple new decals to the existing E4 Max they already have".

 

edit: And chill, it's just model trains, your life doesn't depend on it.

Edited June 24, 2022 by disturbman

[Guest]

2 minutes ago, disturbman said:

You living under a rock? Worlwide supply chains have been disrupted and Japanese model trains makers are posting regular postponements, even Kato that produces in Japan.

Producing thousands of model train sets, even a re-edition is a lot more complex than just "slap on a couple new decals to the existing E4 Max they already have".

Hmmm, no. But thanks for asking.

 

Several other pre-orders I had for NEW trains have shipped as scheduled. As a very minor change wouldn’t have expected this.

 

Thank you for you helpful reply. LOL

[jappomania]

mmh... for my experience a normal delay can be around 1 or 2 months, another thing are license issues (sometime happen....es. Kato 700T )

 

https://www.tomytec.co.jp/tomix/products/n/97947.html

JR東日本商品化許諾申請中

(JR East Merchandising License Pending)

 

Ciao!

Massimo

 

 

 

[cteno4]

@Bob Martin Making this run is a full production run, only thing would be the die tooling was hopefully still available to use (but there have been cases when that was not true on a rerun and it has caused delays), so it’s not just a case of slapping new decals on as the trains had to be made. There are not parts even sitting around they can use except power mechs and such that are common to many Shinkansens. Never know if this was started at a factory that went down or had problems and not easy to move to another so worse delay than usual slowup. I would hazard a guess having missed the initial release (quite certainly due to covid and supply chain issues) timed for the same time as the last run they thought it something that could go on the back burner marketing wise.

 

Delays have always been a perennial issue with our hobby. There are a whole number of reasons delays happen under normal times and we have not been living in normal times the last couple of years. Most of tomix’s production is in China, which of course has had a lot of covid issues the last year hampering production along with a growing boom and bust cycle in small factories doing work like this. I’m also sure Tomix has a whole internal triage/ranking/priority list of when there is a constriction in production what gets done first and their priorities may not be yours as they look at a much bigger picture to deal with.

 

i think we also get spoiled some with Japanese manufacturers trying hard to keep a large number of releases on time even with all the variables. Generally the rest of the world had a much spottier time with release delays and they do fewer releases than Japanese companies do.

If you want to enjoy the hobby you just have to have patience with some runs getting delayed a good chunk.

 

jeff

[disturbman]

12 hours ago, Bob Martin said:

Several other pre-orders I had for NEW trains have shipped as scheduled. As a very minor change wouldn’t have expected this.

As I hinted upthread and @cteno4expanded upon, it's not a question of how minor a change seems to be. It's not like Tomix has pre-produced sets that are waiting for painting or sticker application lying somewhere. Most of the research is done and the moulds might already exit, but everything else still needs to be produced and/or designed.

Covid has profoundly disrupted supply chains and China zero-covid policy is impacting manufacturing and shipping. One Chinese manufacturer had to close down for the duration of the Shanghai lockdown which lasted months.

 

Delays were part of the normal pace of things but they have increased the past year or so. We do not post them here usually, but several are announced every month. If you want to get a better idea of the extent, you can check on "release posponement" posts by Yokohama Models.