RMC May issue?
- Thread starter jackn2mpu
- Start date
Not sure if I mentioned here previously the situation RMC is going through currently, regarding the new and unfamiliar (for them) method of transfering copy from their HQ to their printer but it's giving them fits and setting back the publication dates. They have suggested that issues between April and perhaps as late as September may experience delays.
NYW&B
NYW&B
Said it before, will say it again: it's a shame the last good, general coverage train magazine seems to be going down the tubes. MR has become nothing but fluff - either pick up an issue or check out their website - as gaudy as a circus. Narrow Gauge & Shortline Gazette is excellent, but narrowly focused. Model Railroading was excellent but that's gone many moons back. A shame, as it was the mag where a lot of the good guys got exposure.
I'm afraid that the overwhelming factor responcible for the recent demise of several publications and the steady shrinking of the circulation of the rest is basically the contracting of the hobby itself. Some try to make a case for the Internet being the cause but anyone who spends any real time perusing all the different forums quickly finds pretty much the same group of posters present on most of them. Even the total of all the model railroad forums memberships across the Internet seems to be only a fraction of what one would expect considering just MR's (declining) circulation numbers. Still, were we to lose RMC, it would mark the loss of the only true craftsman magazine of any significant circulation (all the rest have readerships of around 10,000 or less). Incidentally, expect to see MR's page count to drop below 100 pages sometime this year and its monthly circulation fall below 150,000 next year, neither of which has occurred in more than three decades.
NYW&B
NYW&B
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Railphotog
Railroad Photographer
Got my April RMC in the mail today, it should actually be the June issue, one month ahead of its cover date. As long as I keep on getting them I don't really mind.
My MR subscription runs out shortly, I won't be renewing. As someone else mentioned, it is mostly fluff and has very little to interest me these days. I'll check it out at Wal-Mart (10% cheaper) to see if there is anything interesting in it. I really only subscribed a few years ago because the price at the time was so good for us in Canada, think it was around $52.00 with no $20.00 extra for mailing it to us.
My MR subscription runs out shortly, I won't be renewing. As someone else mentioned, it is mostly fluff and has very little to interest me these days. I'll check it out at Wal-Mart (10% cheaper) to see if there is anything interesting in it. I really only subscribed a few years ago because the price at the time was so good for us in Canada, think it was around $52.00 with no $20.00 extra for mailing it to us.
Graham Line
Member
morten1996
New Member
Hi all,
There's still no April-issue of my subscription over here in Germany (not to speak of May). It's now the fourth consecutive time that I have to wait more than the first three weeks of the month to receive an issue. No answer to my (several) mails.
I would expect that if there have been problems & delays with printing & shipping that they would send automatic, non-personal emails to the subscribers about the problem (subscriptions via the internet includes emails and location data of the subscriber).
It's a rather poor handling of customers in my eyes. All my other subscriptions from the US (OGR, Model RR news, Live steam, Home railway journal) have no such problem. Due to a smaller number of subscribers they can manage problems with personal contact which is rather impossible for a big magazine like RMC.
However, if RMC continues like this, the number of their subscriptions might suffer. The problem with RMC's shipping delay is developing into a monthly thread in this forum - not the best publicity...
Perhaps it would be easier to publish the magazine every other month, having two month for delivery....
Regards from a disappointed
Norman
There's still no April-issue of my subscription over here in Germany (not to speak of May). It's now the fourth consecutive time that I have to wait more than the first three weeks of the month to receive an issue. No answer to my (several) mails.
I would expect that if there have been problems & delays with printing & shipping that they would send automatic, non-personal emails to the subscribers about the problem (subscriptions via the internet includes emails and location data of the subscriber).
It's a rather poor handling of customers in my eyes. All my other subscriptions from the US (OGR, Model RR news, Live steam, Home railway journal) have no such problem. Due to a smaller number of subscribers they can manage problems with personal contact which is rather impossible for a big magazine like RMC.
However, if RMC continues like this, the number of their subscriptions might suffer. The problem with RMC's shipping delay is developing into a monthly thread in this forum - not the best publicity...
Perhaps it would be easier to publish the magazine every other month, having two month for delivery....
Regards from a disappointed
Norman
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Railphotog
Railroad Photographer
While RMC is relatively a "big" magazine, in actuality it is put out by a small staff, always has been. They've always been slow in paying for articles, and many years ago I had to write directly to Hal Carstens complaining about late payment. My last article a few years ago had payment delayed, so I wrote to the editor. He came back saying there were only three people in the office, and stuff gets backlogged.
But this isn't really an excuse, as the smaller Model Railroading used to send me a copy of the issue my work was in, along with a check as soon as the issue came out.
Anyway, I'm sure it will all even out eventually.
kbaker329
Member
I hate to see this become a RMC bash. The OP started the same thread last month. Guess what, RMC will be late this month and probably for the next couple of months. Should they be handling this better and putting more information out? Yes. But all of this was covered last month. I, for one, just hope that everything works out well and RMC keeps coming.
Yes, I started the thread a month ago. No, it's not an RMC bash. It's just expressing disappointment with what is a good magazine seemingly going off the rails. Hopefully they will sort it out, but what will really get my goat is if hobby shops and booksellers continue to get their issues before subscribers do. Why should the two be different?
jtudor
Member
I wonder if it would help in many of us emailed the publisher expressing concern with the amount of information forthcoming from them about what is happening, and asking them to post status updates on the website, and to also address the situation in print? We could point them to this and other threads on the topic to show the concern among subscribers and newsstand customers.
Personally I want this magazine to survive, and I do not want to bash it. I hope they get all the kinks ironed out and get back on schedule soon.
Personally I want this magazine to survive, and I do not want to bash it. I hope they get all the kinks ironed out and get back on schedule soon.
jtudor
Member
While I am not a current subscriber, I agree with this statement. I thought that the major benefits of subscribing were:
1. Lower cost than single issue prices
2. A guaranteed copy of the magazine each month
3. Receipt of the magazine before it hits the newsstands
4. Occasional or regular subscriber only special benefits
morten1996
New Member
I'm not bashing RMC. I'm not talking about a delay of a week or two.
It's more than a month over here - will the issue ever appear?
And no answers to mail, even on suggestions on automated, general mails to subscribers about delays on printing - that wouldn't be a big deal.
It'd definitely a poor service especially taking into account the additional charging of additional postage to overseas.
Norman
It's more than a month over here - will the issue ever appear?
And no answers to mail, even on suggestions on automated, general mails to subscribers about delays on printing - that wouldn't be a big deal.
It'd definitely a poor service especially taking into account the additional charging of additional postage to overseas.
Norman
kbkchooch
"retired" conductor
Patience is a virtue they say, so let's relax a little. I talked to RMC's editor last week about some upcoming articles of mine. I also asked about the schedule shift and passed on some of the comments I have seen here and on other boards. The schedule shift has been a problem for them too.
First it wasn't by RMC's choosing. It was by the outside company that does their printing. Unfortunatly they were not given any headway of this happening until the last minute.
This has not only affected publishing and distribution, but also advertising. (It's kinda hard to sell an ad when your cant be sure of exactly when it will hit the news stands.) This may be why some have seen it in stores before subscriptions were delivered last month.
This has affected all the Carstens publications across the board. Railfan actually has a 7 week gap between the last two publications! Over the next few months things will return to normal. They do hope to get a notice on the web site soon to explain.
As I said before, this was put upon them without any warning, and has caused problems for each publication in the line. The team has been scrambling to not only put together all the normal monthly issues, but doing it on an altered timetable all while putting out little fires along the way.
RMC and its sisters are not going anywhere, the hobby is not dead and the sky is not falling. If you have a real concern or problem their phone lines are open and the mailbox still works. Just please be patient and understanding. These folks are humans trying to overcome a major shift, all while putting out quality magazines. I wouldn't want the job!
First it wasn't by RMC's choosing. It was by the outside company that does their printing. Unfortunatly they were not given any headway of this happening until the last minute.
This has not only affected publishing and distribution, but also advertising. (It's kinda hard to sell an ad when your cant be sure of exactly when it will hit the news stands.) This may be why some have seen it in stores before subscriptions were delivered last month.
This has affected all the Carstens publications across the board. Railfan actually has a 7 week gap between the last two publications! Over the next few months things will return to normal. They do hope to get a notice on the web site soon to explain.
As I said before, this was put upon them without any warning, and has caused problems for each publication in the line. The team has been scrambling to not only put together all the normal monthly issues, but doing it on an altered timetable all while putting out little fires along the way.
RMC and its sisters are not going anywhere, the hobby is not dead and the sky is not falling. If you have a real concern or problem their phone lines are open and the mailbox still works. Just please be patient and understanding. These folks are humans trying to overcome a major shift, all while putting out quality magazines. I wouldn't want the job!
It would definitely go a long way to reader and subscriber goodwill if they'd put something up on their website. I mean - how long would that take - 5 or 10 minutes? Okay, the mailbox works - if you're talking snail mail who does that anymore? And if you're talking email, I HAVE sent emails and gotten no answer, and I've been polite in phrasing things. Probably more a case of they're getting so many emails they're getting tired of the whole deal.
The reasons why this happened to RMC are their problems, not ours. We paid them money to get issues on time. If something happened that makes that difficult or impossible, they need to let customers know what's going on and when the problem will be fixed. No excuses. They are not my friends. They are a business. I'm a customer that keeps them in business. If they can't take the time to communicate with customers, I won't take the time to renew my subscription.
