Kickstarter: ME Models Tracks for both metal and ABS only track pieces

[Matt Dawson]

I ordered a load of 9V compatible track (R104 and R88 half curves, straight tracks and adapter pieces) on the 1st and emailed them on the 26th after no update (they did say 2-4 weeks on their website) and still haven't got a response.

Paypal gives 180 days to file a claim so if I get no answer within the next couple of weeks I'd say they've gone bust and I'll be asking Paypal for a refund and sourcing some BrickTracks instead and copper tape...

[Duq]

I bought a pack of R72 metal curves a while ago. They've been on the shelf for a while and now I'm trying to put them together with ballast, using the instructions from lgauge.org.

I've got two bags, each for a half circle. The first bag went together fine, but the second bag seems to be a bad batch. All of the rails have a clutch issue on one end. Where they have that issue it's nearly impossible to get anything to stick. It's like an old slapstick movie: you push one down and two others come off. And when I say coming off, I mean jumping a few inches up from the table.

I think the system is overly complicated for the metal track. Because the track connects with the metal shoes there really is no need for plates with the snap-connectors. They could have made the rails simpler by not having the overlap that's needed for normal 9V track, doing away with the snap connectors and just having a single anti-stud at the end of the rail. That way you would have been able to simply use a 2x8 plate to connect two sections.

My experience with the R88 plastic track was quite positive but sofar I'm not impressed with R72 metal track. I'll probably end up just kragling the sections together...

[Jeffinslaw]

4 hours ago, Duq said:

I bought a pack of R72 metal curves a while ago. They've been on the shelf for a while and now I'm trying to put them together with ballast, using the instructions from lgauge.org.

I've got two bags, each for a half circle. The first bag went together fine, but the second bag seems to be a bad batch. All of the rails have a clutch issue on one end. Where they have that issue it's nearly impossible to get anything to stick. It's like an old slapstick movie: you push one down and two others come off. And when I say coming off, I mean jumping a few inches up from the table.

I think the system is overly complicated for the metal track. Because the track connects with the metal shoes there really is no need for plates with the snap-connectors. They could have made the rails simpler by not having the overlap that's needed for normal 9V track, doing away with the snap connectors and just having a single anti-stud at the end of the rail. That way you would have been able to simply use a 2x8 plate to connect two sections.

My experience with the R88 plastic track was quite positive but sofar I'm not impressed with R72 metal track. I'll probably end up just kragling the sections together...

Glue is your friend... I had to glue all of my ME 104 and 88 together.

[kieran]

Never did get mine, oh well 

[Duq]

Adding to the fun, I had a handful of rails where the groove was so far off-centre that the wheels of a 9V train motor failed to touch the metal rail on top and the trains stopped dead. After filing down the plastic on the inside I managed to get the trains running. Going by the stuttering motor in some places I probably have some more filing to do.

 

[PasDeChocolat]

Hi all,

Could anybody give me some return of experience with me models?

I know the debuts well rather slow but I'm curious about how the things are going now.

I'm planning to order alternate lego tracks and me model is one of the possibilities.

Many thanks in advance.

[asleepatheswitch]

Well, the news is not good!  The web site shows no products and the phone is disconnected.  Mike does not return calls, so I think they are gone.  I  have R  88s and they work great but never received the R 104s.  Brick
Tracks says they will be testing 9v track around Thanksgiving, so probably your best bet.

[Jeffinslaw]

2 hours ago, asleepatheswitch said:

Well, the news is not good!  The web site shows no products and the phone is disconnected.  Mike does not return calls, so I think they are gone.  I  have R  88s and they work great but never received the R 104s.  Brick
Tracks says they will be testing 9v track around Thanksgiving, so probably your best bet.

Yikes... not great for the community... 

[3797]

3 hours ago, asleepatheswitch said:

Tracks says they will be testing 9v track around Thanksgiving, so probably your best bet.

Where did you hear that? He didn't update his thread on here in more than 2 months. I actually thought he gave up on the project.

[coaster]

30 minutes ago, 3797 said:

Where did you hear that? He didn't update his thread on here in more than 2 months. I actually thought he gave up on the project.

Nope, don't worry, we're still on it.  I have another batch of prototypes due around Thanksgiving/beginning of December.  Doing a simulated production run to see what bugs we still have to work out.  Haven't updated the thread lately because i didn't have anything to report, but it's still an active project. 

[3797]

I'm glad you're still working on it. Your thread is the reason why I check the forums almost every day. Never read anything about BT anywhere else.

[PasDeChocolat]

Coaster,

When will the production restart? Is the delay impacting non metal orders?

 

 

 

[justinwebb]

24 minutes ago, PasDeChocolat said:

Coaster,

When will the production restart? Is the delay impacting non metal orders?

 

 

 

Coaster isn’t with ME models, he owns brick tracks which is different from me models.

[coaster]

28 minutes ago, PasDeChocolat said:

Coaster,

When will the production restart? Is the delay impacting non metal orders?

 

 

 

Not at all - plastic tracks in R104 and R120 are in stock ready to ship.  The smaller sizes we plan to start tooling in 2018, I just need to get pay back on the first tooling before I can invest in those (injection tooling isn't cheap).

The metal rails and how they integrate into the tracks is the question before the house, but I believe I have a better solution.

@3797 I'll try to be better about posting here.  I don't want it to look like I'm spamming the board with ads.  I  am more active on our facebook page, and I did just add some nice pictures to our site.  I kinda wanted the 9V progress to be a nice Christmas surprise!

EDIT: yes, as justinwebb said, I'm with BrickTracks.  I have nothing to do with ME Rails.  As far as I can tell, they're done.

Edited November 14, 2017 by coaster

[ScotNick]

Oh, I|m definitely looking forward to any 9v tracks, one question/hope though - will you also produce "normal" straight tracks for 9v? The originals are getting a little bit expensive, because everyone (running 9v) needs many of them. Also double length straight track would surely be appreciated and shouldn't be too hard to make 

[zephyr1934]

A couple of things, first, Coaster is responding over in the BrickTracks thread to discuss any and all things BrickTracks, please follow suit.

Second off, if it is true that ME is out of the lego compatible track business, I would still like to express my gratitude to them for leading this effort to the betterment of the entire AFOL train community. While many of us might be stinging from orders that were paid for but never completed (myself included), I fear they might not have ever made it in the black. ME took the risk, showed the demand and allowed so many of us to start building bigger.

[weeble1688]

I agree with what you are saying Zephyr, but man it hurts to have been one of the original KS supporters only to have never gotten anything from them, other than one email over a year ago looking for more orders - which I declined to do, since I had not seen anything since they took my money during the KS in May 2014. Personally, I think it stinks that they were more than happy to sell track on their website, but not fulfill their original KS orders!

PS - Coaster, I hope your venture succeeds - I still have need of larger-radius track!

[zephyr1934]

Yes, I was fortunate enough to complain early on to ME and they sent the plastic portion of my KS backing. They wanted to wait to ship the 9v + PF together. I am not saying I like what they did to people, I'm just saying that they probably lost their shirts. And while they did s**** over a bunch of customers, there was a silver lining in it by proving the market. Ultimately ME was too ambitious and over promised. I think BT approach of only a couple of parts at a time is much more viable. Definitely cruse over to BT, they are shipping what they are selling... but that is wandering off topic again.

[hankdelsi]

That would be a shame if ME was done.  I did bug them periodically and did get my KS plus additional metal track orders.  I'm at maximum density so don't think I would ever expand further and need more track. I would have though all other backers were complete at this time.

[djm]

7 hours ago, hankdelsi said:

I would have though all other backers were complete at this time.

Nope. I believe there are a lot of backers who never received anything. I ponied up $1000. I received none of the tracks or the special edition train related to the pledge. I've learned my lesson about backing kickstarter projects.

David

[zephyr1934]

4 hours ago, djm said:

Nope. I believe there are a lot of backers who never received anything. I ponied up $1000. I received none of the tracks or the special edition train related to the pledge. I've learned my lesson about backing kickstarter projects.

David

Youch! I had no idea they were that bad. Why on earth didn't they give the biggest backers the highest priority for shipping? That is definitely inexcusable. I do hope that my earlier posts were not taken as offering any support for what the did do to backers like you, or any of the unfulfilled backers for that matter.

[peterab]

16 hours ago, hankdelsi said:

I would have though all other backers were complete at this time.

Nope, I had a pledge of $270 too and have seen nothing. Mine was all plastic so there was no reason as far as I can see that my pledge couldn't have been completed. I got an email a year ago saying it was ready to ship if I could confirm my shipping address. I did confirm and have heard nothing since.

[McWaffel]

At this point ME really sounds like a scam to me. In future I will hold back and wait until more than just a few people ordered and received before I even think about placing orders for anything 3rd party. Although I have to say, 4D Brix really did it for me. I was in very close contact with them and it all went super smoothly. Which to me just shows it can be done properly but at the first signs of trouble I'm out.

[kieran]

Never got a reply, did not back too much. It is still annoying that I never got the track I wanted 

[BrickStorm]

I was one of the Kickstarter backers, and I too never saw anything come of it, Though I knew what I was getting into, so I'm not entirely fussed about investing.

It's a shame I didn't see the metal loop that was a reward for my pledge, but after all the trouble they had with the metal rails I don't blame them.

I do feel for those who ordered a product throught their store though and never saw the order; as someone who was once an employee at a business that failed, it still hurts that there were some customers we just couldn't provide for, but in the end there was nothing I could do.

 

As far as I know, I never recieved any correspondance from them asking for an updated shipping address/details during that period last holiday season where they said they were mailing out pledge orders, which seemed funny to me...

Were there any Australians here that Kickstarted/Backed them that saw their pledge reward (of any sort) get delivered?