# The Train Department and Accucraft



## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

I know that I have had many projects come through here over the years and very close ties with Accucraft but as of today due to unethical actions taken by Accucraft I will no longer sell their product. 

I will still offer the same support and service that I have always offered and I am still here for everything else I have brought to market and do for you all.


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Sorry to hear that! What did they do?


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## du-bousquetaire (Feb 14, 2011)

Yes Jason that is very bad news.


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## aceinspp (Jan 2, 2008)

Wow that's a shocker. Later RJD


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

Over the last 18 months there have been a number of things that all add up to the end result. There is a lot that I just will not discuss. But the latest productions and all fixes after the fact show what my concerns point to. 

Recently, the new direction seems to want to more mimic the workings of Aster in the hopes that they can develop and build a loco a year and be happy. Also all the 1/32 products were stripped from my ability to sell to move to a sell direct platform I was told. This left a hole in my sales and questioned the ability to keep the business operating how it was. So with that loss, I approached Accucraft as usual to start working on a new project to follow after the SRRL Forney and the 1/32 heavyweight project that I have been working on for years now to plan to build a new loco offering in 1/20.3, a market that has been neglected for a couple years now. This was shot down on the basis that we no longer see the need to work with you on new projects, So I had offered to do it as a commission which was told that, Accucraft no longer takes any commission projects. So basically I was put into a corner, Do I just give up and never work to bring anything new to the market? Or do I move on and bring to market something under my own directive or through another willing builder. Well I choose both. 6 months ago I started to develop both a production locomotive with Bowande and also a locomotive in house with Justin Koch who also does all my coal conversions and designs. Both he and I are in this for a full time job, with no work both of us end up calling it quits and just getting a regular job and no more train business other than on a much smaller scale. So I was basically told that if you sell out product your not allowed to make your own locos. Regner, Roundhouse and Wilson Locomotives are all competing companies, there is no difference just that Accucraft has always tried to be the only game in town, buying the Aster rights moved them one step closer but just because you own the rights doesn't mean its the end game. Life goes on and new product will come out, time will show. Right now many customers still have a stale feeling due to the uncorrected problems on the Decauville, I heard it often and the lack of sales/orders for the newly released Wren proves just that.

With my endevors I always strived to have the best quality and build available. Be it a loco that was being built or just a kit I offered. We were able to get Accucraft to really step up their game, though its fallen off in recent years. It really peaked with the Fairymead in quality and attention to detail. And the first loco the Masonbogie, took them to new heights.

To touch on the Forney for a moment, Accucraft requested that we design and supply the correct boiler drawings. This was done quite recently and hopefully they will copy and implement this design with no changes. Also same went for the valve gear. Justin had designed both parts 100% All were supplied but time will tell how they get used. 

So with what I bring out in the future I will still hold the same demand and quality in anything that has my name on it.


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## placitassteam (Jan 2, 2008)

Jason, I am really sorry to hear all that turmoil. You are my go-to guy for all my steam related parts and I am not sure what I will do if you decide to call it quits. My buddies who depend on me for help to keep their locos running will also be hurting. Good luck and best wishes, Winn


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

Winn, I'm not going anywhere. I will push through and I'll still be around to support this fun hobby for years to come. Thank you for your support. Thank you all. Its because of all my customer following that I am still around today in this endeavor of mine.. 



Winn, It was 2007 when I started my first project with Accucraft. The Masonbogie. when everyone said you will never do it and its not a loco that will ever sell. We sold 150 steam and 150 electrics! Still to this day the most beautiful loco they ever produced.


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Jay, with all due credit and respect, the Masonbogie was not exclusively your project. Claiming exclusive credit, in this case, is simply not true and is the only unethical behaviour I can identify in your thread. But I hope you will succeed in your future endeavours. With best wishes from Tokyo, Zubi


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## Accucraft UK (Sep 16, 2013)

"Right now many customers still have a stale feeling due to the uncorrected problems on the Decauville, I heard it often and the lack of sales/orders for the newly released Wren proves just that."

I am sorry, but that statement cannot go unchallenged. Although we (Accucraft UK) were not involved in the detailed design of the Decauville, we, and others in the UK, flagged up the location of the gas tank as a potential problem when the sample was brought over to the Peterborough show; our advice was subsequently ignored. When it became evident that our concerns were correct we tried to resolve them with a compromise solution but, ultimately, our original suggestion that the tank be under the footplate proved to be the only sensible option.

As UK distributors we (Accucraft UK) undertook to supply replacement tanks to all UK customers and, with the help of our repair agents, recovered, modified and re-delivered the majority of the batch (some owners kindly opted to do the work themselves) at our own expense. We also provided the same service for those UK customers who had purchased 'grey imports' from the U.S. (which were not covered by UK warranty), again, at no charge to the customer. As far as I know (going by the number we have fixed), every single UK example has had the replacement, under-floor gas tank and our customers seem satisfied with both the model and after-market support they have received. There can be no "stale feeling" in the UK because the problem (not of our making) has been addressed and fully corrected in all cases.

Despite the fact that the Wren topped all the polls in the 7/8ths" world we will never sell as many as a gauge-adjustable locomotive such as the Quarry Hunslet or Decauville but I am pleased to say UK pre-orders are healthy and we anticipate selling our allocation before delivery. It may be apparent that the factory has undergone a transformation with the inclusion of the Aster range and methods of production have changed accordingly - this has not been without some inconvenience to Accucraft distributors but we feel our patience has been rewarded with a greater throughput of new models annually (in a variety of scales) and accelerated delivery times. It will be noted that we announced the WD Hunslet at Llanfair in 2017 and delivered the project in just a calendar year. This will become the norm in future with new releases taking significantly less time to appear than in the past (one of the main gripes about Accucraft) and better coordination among the worldwide 'family' of Accucraft distributors - although, alas, this means there are unlikely to be any more dealer commissions.

As for the Wren, we hope to effect delivery in the first half of next year (yes, that's right, within nine months of its announcement) and, with the gas tank safely under the cab floor, feel sure it will be a crowd-pleaser!

Graham Langer (Managing Director, Accucraft UK)


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

Zubi - I was the person that spearheaded the Masonbogie. Starting with David Fletchers drawings and adding in a few other key people in the design aspect of it including Winn. Hence the reason I brought it up to Winn. Also remember that I was just a customer, not a dealer back then. Though I was asked to keep preorder logs and maintain a list of interested parties. All that was eventually handed over to Royce as he took a majority of my logged orders. The rest were spread around to the rest of the dealers. Also keep in mind that I got nothing in the way of any payment on the project, just the knowledge that it was there because I started it. I even ended up purchasing one through Royce who at his loss cave me it at dealer cost!


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## zubi (May 14, 2009)

Jay, I am not diminishing your involvement in the Masonbogie project, in particular by keeping the list of parties interested. But please remember that I asked you (and others) to initiate this project, by posting the project proposal on this forum. Who did what is not as important as the end result - it did turn into a fantastic product, one of Accucraft's best if not the best. Thank you and David and Royce and the entire team at Accucraft at that time (including Cliff) for this! With best wishes from Tokyo, Zubi


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