LEB Hobbies doesn't sell Ninco anymore?

[rsoward]

Been window shopping and noticed LEB Hobbies - http://www.lebhobbies.com/

isn't listing Ninco cars for sale in their 1/32 scale menu choice. Search results come up with no Ninco cars as well.

Is this true?

Thanks,

Ryan

[HomeRacingWorld]

Looks that way. Can't blame them really...Ninco is a tough sell these days on this side of the pond.

[Modlerbob]

I have a few Ninco cars and would have more if they were priced about 1/3 less. They are good cars but take more than minor tuning to get right, especially on Scaley sport track. Even on wood I have had to work harder to get them to run smoothly. No surprise to me they don't sell well.

[hksk25]

I saw they have a bunch of Ninco cars on eBay with decent starting bids. Probably the last of their stock.

Harry

[ElSecundo]

Ninco is pricing itself out of the American market. We have a club that likes Ninco, and our LHS is hardly selling any Ninco at all because of the prices. There's a big case full of Ninco, with some really nice cars, but it just doesn't make sense to buy any more. I think the shop will stop carrying Ninco soon (just my guess).

[Cincyslots]

He's not alone! Once I'm out of Ninco stock on hand, I'm done.

Bruce

[WB2]

I only have two Ninco cars. Both are made in Spain.
I'm not sure how much of their production is now done in China, but the higher prices would be indicative of manufacturing in Europe.
Everything is relative. A lot of people don't mind paying $40 for a Carrera car and then spending more money replacing the guide and running gear. No one squawks about the cost of a BRM 1/24 car. And we all have high-priced cars that took a lot of time and effort to be made runnable.
For those that like the brand - they'll buy it.
For those that don't see "a value" - they won't buy it.

[Modlerbob]

[ElSecundo]

[dreinecke]

I've been a detractor of theirs for years...however...I LOVE their classics. I've only purchased 2 new ones...all the rest were traded or purchased used - oh, one I actually was given as a gift from Harry...he was tired of seeing me drool all over it...

On one hand their classics are awesome. On the other hand they can be out of scale.
On one hand they make great investments. On the other hand I can buy 2 different brand cars AND take the wife to Taco Bell afterwards.
On one hand there are not many moving parts. On the other hand $90 for a car with 10 parts and tampo is insane.
On one hand the NC-1/2 motors are among my all time favorites. On the other hand they now come with the equivalent of a Parma Death Star...

Bottom line: great cars, easy to tune, the M/T-1 is the PERFECT replacement for the stupid motors, PG Tires fix them right up, and Ninco as a company has become so irrelevant in 2014 that it makes me want to cry. If they would bring the cars down into the $50 range they would sell them all day long.

Lucky for me bargains can be found from people liquidating inventory and eBay auctions. Sad, sad days....

[ElSecundo]

Yeah, David, we can count on bargains still, at least for a little while. They just won't be able to sustain a retail presence for much longer at this rate.

I'm putting together a hundred cars to sell at this swap meet coming up, and I'm still reluctant to put any Nincos on the block.

[Harry Slotter]

It was Ninco cars that got me back into slot racing with their original DTMs back in 1993/4, when Scalextric cars were rather terrible (and continued to be awful for quite some time...). The Ninco Alfa 155 was an absolute blast in comparison. So it is somewhat saddening that Ninco seems to be in such a sorry state in the US market. At US$90 retail, I would certainly not buy. These same cars are available from dealers in the UK at GBP40 - around US$65 (around about the same price as other brands there). So why are Ninco priced so high in the States? The other concern is the very limited range of cars announced for 2014 so far - if that is all the releases planned for this year?

[Cincyslots]

Wonder what MRC has to say???

[dreinecke]

I'm trying to figure out how much pocket money Kurt will have after the swap meet...he should be able at least to take Jenny out for a dinner nicer than White Castle I'm guessing...

[HomeRacingWorld]

Nicer than White Castle? Such a place exists where?