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Hello. My name is Jack Rimer and our company, Coasterdynamix, used to make a roller coaster model in HO. It sold well, despite its shortcomings, but it scared us away from HO scale gravity rides. We pride ourselves on making reliable and fun models. It was neither (although it looked great). Anyway…we have been producing a line of O gauge amusement park related models for years. These do well, but the O gauge market is not that large. We are kicking around the idea of making a line of amusement park rides for HO. I guess what I need to get is opinions on the viability of this market segment from HO enthusiasts. Kit or pre-built or hybrid? Ride ideas? Thanks in advance for the feedback!
Neat idea but I believe you’ll find the market will be small in almost any scale, being kind of a niche modelling thing.
There are a few guys here that have managed to squeeze in amusement parks on their layouts.
There’s an HO scale roller coaster on a small layout in the mall here, albeit rather crude, but it depicts the glory days of the beach.
I remember your Comet roller coaster kit. It looked absolutely amazing!! But, seeing it in operation, the gravity part of the ride just didn't translate well to HO scale (it moved too fast to look realistic). But, even as a static model, it would still be the center piece of any HO scale amusement park. Without a roller coaster and/or a ferris wheel, it wouldn't even qualify as an amusement park, but more like a group of kiddy rides at a county fair. I don't have room for an amusement park on my layout, but have often thought about doing a beach town amusement park on a diorama. I often regretted not getting that roller coaster when it was available (though, for my use it would have been more for a static display). A ferris wheel of comparable detail to your coaster would be the only other ride critical to the formation of an amusement park. With a ferris wheel, the lighting would almost be more important than the rotation.
I went to a car show in Ocean City, Maryland a couple weeks ago and the roller coaster and two ferris wheels were the dominant fixtures of the skyline in that part of town. I believe the plan was to tear down the older ferris wheel when the new, larger one was completed. But there was enough support to keep the old one at the pier, that it was preserved. Now there are two ferris wheels there.
Incidentally, I guess the only two rides that could possibly be stand alone rides, in a city park, would be a merry go round and a ferris wheel. So without an available roller coaster, those would be the only two rides that might make sense to produce.
Hi Jack! I built your HO rollercoaster and did a write up for the Internet Modeler site years ago. You even sent me an updated version after I wrote asking a question so I would get my information correct. I added some enhancements and really enjoyed the build. That said, I never could get the cars to stay on the tracks. I've given up on completing an entire amusement part due to lack of space and also a availability of affordable rides. If you came out with classic/vintage rides like a Tiltaword and scrambler I would be very tempted to revisit the idea. I would personally prefer them in kit form. Oh, and welcome to the forum.
Besides roller coasters, my favorite rides, as a kid, were the Autopia type go cart rides. But it might be difficult making the HO scale child size vehicles operational.
Coasterdynamix, used to make a roller coaster model in HO. It sold well, despite its shortcomings, but it scared us away from HO scale gravity rides. We pride ourselves on making reliable and fun models. It was neither (although it looked great).
I’m revisiting this thread almost a year later. We have decided to test the HO waters with a rocketship ride. At first, it will come assembled and ready to run. If it does well, we may make it into a kit. Here is a rough prototype so you can see the nostalgic look we are going for.
