stunthanger.com
General control line discussion => Open Forum => Topic started by: david beazley on August 22, 2014, 03:50:40 PM
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Posted on Carsten's Publications facebook page
It is with regret that Carstens Publicatons, Inc. will be closing permanently at close of business on Friday, August 22, 2014. Carstens Publications, Inc. has been a leading publisher of leading hobby magazines for over 50 years. Unfortunately the current economic climate has placed us in this position. Discussion is continuing with several parties who expressed desire to take on the continuance of the magazines. At this point there is still hope that all three titles will remain in existence. But I can offer no guarantees. We thank you for your patronage over the years, and wish you the best of luck in your endeavors.
--Henry R. Carstens, President
Carstens Publications, Inc."
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So our FM subscription renewal payments sent recently are just....'Poof'?
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Evidently. when I renewed earlier this year I did it for 2 years, figured they needed all the help they could get. Looks like it wasn't enough.
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Danged shame. I'd been 'addicted' to FM since the early '50s, yet its demise was probably unavoidable, given the current trend toward imported electric ARFs and other 'toys'.
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That's a major bummer, Flying Models is/was the best. :'(
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Danged shame. I'd been 'addicted' to FM since the early '50s, yet its demise was probably unavoidable, given the current trend toward imported electric ARFs and other 'toys'.
That and the shift away from print media. I don't know how much revenue they made from plans, but trying to keep that revenue in a world where people can just download stuff off the internet is going to be a hard thing to do.
Ah well -- it's been my favorite mag since I started modeling in the late 70's.
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That and the shift away from print media. I don't know how much revenue they made from plans, but trying to keep that revenue in a world where people can just download stuff off the internet is going to be a hard thing to do.
Ah well -- it's been my favorite mag since I started modeling in the late 70's.
I think this has more to do with it than anything, I must admit I'm sorry to say I haven't read FM in almost 10 years as everything I need is just a click away.
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Long time subscriber-last subscription ran out two months ago. Didn't renew-for once procrastination paid off. Magazine gone forever but I hope someone picks up their plans distribution even if it is the AMA. It would be a shame to lose all those great designs. :'(
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Seems like everything has gone digital. Just great - until your computer or iPod (or whatever) goes belly-up.
Sure do wish some enterprising outfit would assume and continue the Carstens pub's although that seems unlikely, given today's ARF/Multirotor/Assemble-don't-build mentality.
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I have a subscription to Aeromodeller. It is expensive, but I am really pleased with the magazine. I've subscribed to Flying Models for many years and very sorry to see it go.
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Boy, his really hurts! FM gone. CLW in need of subscriptions, and it too will be gone. In another thread the "Giant" R/C SIG is no more. Looks like more and more we will have to stick with SH for the source of CL news and views. I have been a FM reader since I was 11 years old. A constant subscriber since the 70's...^%$^$#%^#$!
Joe
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Read the notice again. There are other parties interested in taking over the 3 magazines. Let's keep our fingers crossed.
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Dagnabit!!!! It was with eager anticipation that I awaited each months issue of FM. I did not "do" rubber power, RC, electric power or even begin to understand slope soaring (no hills here) but I read the articles each and every one because they were so well written. They were written by folks that loved what they were doing. I hate to see that go away. My grandkids cut their teeth on FM and we taught some of them to read using FM.. It's kind of like loosing a good friend.
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Yeah, another party was supposed to take over RC Modeller too. Two years subscription down the drain. RC Sportsman was another publication that went down the tubes after I renewef for only a year. Yes, AMA did take over Model Aviation and has kept it going. But it is hard to see Flying Models go down the tubes also. Glad I only renewed for only a year. The last one Control Line World will be the last I will subscribe to if John doesn't shut it down early. I only hope with our leadership that Stunt News and PAMPA can at least keep something going for years to come.
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Has anyone received the June issue?
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As mentioned above, AeroModeller has resurfaced over here in England. Its editor and contributors are all real, genuine, proper modellers, and I'm finding my subscription a thoroughly worthwhile investment. I join you all in hoping there's someone equally dedicated and competent to take on the challenge of keeping FM going.
Regards
John
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Danged shame. I'd been 'addicted' to FM since the early '50s, yet its demise was probably unavoidable, given the current trend toward imported electric ARFs and other 'toys'.
Me too Mike, remember in the mid fifties when they published every other month for awhile?
I always enjoyed the "Fixit Wright" episodes...they provided lots of hints and tips that you could tuck away in your memory for future use.
George
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I have a complete collection, from the current (and I hope NOT the last) issue to the first Flying Models in June 1947, the Air World mags before that, and working on completing it's predecessor, Flying Aces. I would have to say it has been my favorite magazine of them all. Very consistent in content through out the years. They always managed to keep the mag fresh, but still familiar, at least to me. I guess once Harold Carstens passed away, it was too much for the rest of the family to carry on. I hope some one does pick it up and makes an effort to keep it the same. I would even settle for bi-monthly again like they did to the fifties to keep it going. Aeromodeler is bi-monthly and that's fine with me.
Type at you later,
Dan McEntee
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Well, we still have the monthly 'Hobby King catalog' (aka 'Model Aviation').
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The internet is contributing to the demise of magazines.
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I saw this coming. The magazine got thinner and thinner with less and less advertising. I know that there have been interested parties but no takers.
AMA forced membership for insurance and Model Aviation helped close the doors of Flying Models and American Modeler.
Model Aviation, several years ago, said that they were going to concentrate on the basics, and the next issue featured $10,000 jets. As Uncle Mikey has said, it is now nothing but Arfs.
The "Hobby Industry" greed has not helped. The quad copters, etc. are pushed for the quick buck and people are not told that they might require insurance.
The latest issue of MA has an added cover saying the the FAA might ban model flying, but the truth is that they are responsible for the problem when they gladly accept the high end advertising for the quads, Jets, 1/4 scale airplanes etc.
AMA could care less about the loss of FM, but to true modelers it is a major loss. .
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It is a shame that FM closed. I had been a subscriber for many, many years, but didn't renew with my subscription running out in July of this year. I had noticed that they were carrying more and more ARF reviews and fewer and fewer building articles. And I just didn't want to spend my time leafing through FM like I already do with MA trying to find something of interest. So, I felt more like they closed the doors on me than I did on them. But it's still a shame...
Scott
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I saw this coming. The magazine got thinner and thinner with less and less advertising. I know that there have been interested parties but no takers.
AMA forced membership for insurance and Model Aviation helped close the doors of Flying Models and American Modeler.
Model Aviation, several years ago, said that they were going to concentrate on the basics, and the next issue featured $10,000 jets. As Uncle Mikey has said, it is now nothing but Arfs.
The "Hobby Industry" greed has not helped. The quad copters, etc. are pushed for the quick buck and people are not told that they might require insurance.
The latest issue of MA has an added cover saying the the FAA might ban model flying, but the truth is that they are responsible for the problem when they gladly accept the high end advertising for the quads, Jets, 1/4 scale airplanes etc.
AMA could care less about the loss of FM, but to true modelers it is a major loss. .
not
"AMA could^ care less about the loss of FM, but to true modelers it is a major loss."
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not
"AMA could^ care less about the loss of FM, but to true modelers it is a major loss."
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So true.
Once again: today's 'AMA' - Academy of Multirotors & ARFs. My representatives? Hardly!!!
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Carstens Publications, Inc. was a publisher of books and magazines related to the railroad and airplane hobby fields; the company closed down on August 22, 2014. Many of the titles published by Carstens are older than the company, and have long established histories in their respective markets. Carstens is the chief competitor to Kalmbach Publishing in the scale model hobby and enthusiast field. What makes Carstens stand out from the competition is the in-depth detail and active voice of the books and magazines. The company's current list of monthly magazine titles includes:
Railroad Model Craftsman
Railfan & Railroad
Flying Models
The company also publishes a line of annuals dedicated to modeling narrow gauge railways and railroad photography, including:
The On30 Annual
The HOn3 Annual
Great Railroad Photography
Carstens also publishes a number of books on the subject of railroad history and scale model railroading, as well as a few select titles related to the world of aviation and model airplanes.
Early years[edit]
The roots of the company go back to 1933 with the establishment of The Model Craftsman magazine in Chicago by Emanuele Stieri, and edited by Harold V. Loose. Charles A. Penn took over the company in 1934, and the publishing house established offices in New York City. In 1942, the company was moved across the Hudson River to suburban Ramsey, New Jersey. When it was started, the magazine focused on all kinds of home hobbycraft, but in 1948 the magazine was renamed Railroad Model Craftsman, focusing on the model railroading hobby exclusively. It is this distinction that prompted rival publication Model Railroader to proclaim "Model railroading exclusively since 1934."
Carstens postwar era[edit]
In 1952, Harold Carstens (known to his friends as "Hal") joined the staff as an associate editor. He had been a contributor to the magazine before coming on board as a full-time staff member. He moved up the editorial ranks and was named president of the company following the retirement of Charles Penn in 1962. In 1955 the company moved to larger quarters in an old telephone company building on Arch Street in Ramsey. A second move placed the company in the historic Ramsey Journal building right alongside the Erie Railroad main line and across the street from the Ramsey train station in July 1963. Hal Carstens purchased the company outright from Charles Penn later that year and renamed it Carstens Publications in 1969.
Expansion to present day[edit]
In 1969, Flying Models magazine was acquired by the company, adding coverage of the model airplane hobby. In 1973, the company relocated to its current headquarters in rural Newton, New Jersey. The new Railfan magazine was established in-house in 1974, dedicated to the railroad enthusiast and the hobby of railfanning. In 1979, Carstens purchased the old Railroad magazine, which started publication in 1906, and combined it to form Railfan & Railroad magazine.
In 2006, Carstens Publications launched the successful On30 Annual, a special publication dedicated to the modeling of narrow gauge railways in O scale. This was followed up in 2009 with the establishment of the HOn3 Annual, which focuses on HO scale narrow gauge modeling. Both annuals are edited by Chris Lane. In 2010, the editors of Railfan & Railroad launched a special edition titled Great Railroad Photography, which was a showcase for innovative and creative photography both contemporary and vintage.
Henry Carstens is the company's president and publisher, having taken over after his father Hal Carstens' untimely death in June 2009. He is assisted by his mother, Phyllis Carstens.
Notes[edit]
^ "Carstens Publications, Inc. - Choose Your Hobby!". Retrieved 2012-03-31.
^ "Railroad Model Craftsman - Craftsman Classics". Retrieved 2012-03-31.
^ "Carstens Publications Inc., About Us". Retrieved 2012-03-31.
^ "Carstens Publications Inc., In Memoriam - Harold H. Carstens (1925-2009)". Retrieved 2012-03-31.
External links[edit]
Official website
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · Edit on Wikipedia
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The closing of Carstens reflects an on-going, very unfortunate, change in our culture. Looking back to when I was growing up in the 50s and 60s I can see the start of that change, which still continues. Up to, say, the mid-60s America had a large component of do-it-yourselfers. Open up any Popular Mechanics magazine from the 50s or earlier and you'll see what I mean. Not any more.
Long story short, if kids these days express any interest in model airplanes they ask "where can I buy one of those?" They never ask "How can I make one of those?" This is just a reflection of our culture. We have gone from being a nation of mostly self-reliant doers (and all that entails) to a nation of mostly nanny-staters. It is why so many of you hate ARFs. Its not that they aren't a useful product, but its that they represent a change in our culture that is really quite disappointing/offensive to those of us who try to be self-reliant.
Sadly, for those who are not self reliant and who do not understand why some of us want to live in a culture that is made up of independent, self-reliant people, there is no explanation - they simply can't understand why you'd want to make something when you can purchase it. They can't understand why you'd want to do something yourself rather than have someone else do it for you. In response someone is going to fallaciously argue: "well you purchase your food at a grocery store. You don't hand-raise the crops yourself, harvest them, etc." They just don't get it and never will.
Its an outlook on life, not a need to rub two sticks together every time I need fire....
Scott
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Well things like this forum have a affect on paper publications.
Where do you go to see who won the Nats? Here or wait 4 months for the magazine to publish it.
Where do you go for a modeling tip? Back issues or forums like this?
Do you write an article for a paper publication or publish pictures and a short write up here?
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I saw this coming. The magazine got thinner and thinner with less and less advertising. I know that there have been interested parties but no takers.
AMA forced membership for insurance and Model Aviation helped close the doors of Flying Models and American Modeler.
Model Aviation, several years ago, said that they were going to concentrate on the basics, and the next issue featured $10,000 jets. As Uncle Mikey has said, it is now nothing but Arfs.
The "Hobby Industry" greed has not helped. The quad copters, etc. are pushed for the quick buck and people are not told that they might require insurance.
The latest issue of MA has an added cover saying the the FAA might ban model flying, but the truth is that they are responsible for the problem when they gladly accept the high end advertising for the quads, Jets, 1/4 scale airplanes etc.
That's more or less what I said when I responded to Hansen's email. My slant was that they were asking around for any information about "incidents" that the FAA was referring to in their proposal, and how "unfair" it was to tag hobby RC with the drone stuff. That was a decent point. But on the cover of the current MA that I got the day before, what did I see but a 1/3 scale ARF hovering 18" off the ground in front of a crowd. And inside, ad after ad for RTF quadcopters, more giant or high speed turbine ARFs, etc. There's more ad then there is content, and you and the others are right - they are competing directly with commercial mags. And, they have a big tax advantage. It's not supposed to be a "business" - it should be run in a professional, business-like manner, but it shouldn't be competing with other businesses.
Now you see why we fought so hard a few years ago.
The other points are valid, too. Paper magazines aren't a very good way to spread news. The internet is a FAR more immediate and cost-effective way to go, that's why all print media is rapidly dying.
Brett
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I called Flyingmodels last week asking about the June issue.
The lady said it was going out next week. I told her that I never received my May issue, she said that they would send me a replacement. After reading about their closing I figured that was it.
Surprise, got the May magazine today!
Ed.
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If we do in fact get the June issue and it is the last one, then that would make 67 years with that title. Flying Models came out under that title in June of 1947. It would have started in June and ended in June. It started as Flying Aces, and was Air World for a while, then became Flying Models. All through the three titles, the volume and whole numbers series never stopped, so in the publishing world I think that makes them all the same entity. I think Flying Aces started in 1928. I have some copies of it that are the size of the old Mechanics Illustrated, and it was just a pulp story magazine with no models in it. I have been busy with other life stuff and have lost track of completing the early part of my collection and need to work on the details of that. Someone made a post elsewhere, I think it was Phil Cartier, that said don't give up hope on FM just yet. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and hope it can continue, even as a bi-monthly. The history of model aviation that has been presented in the pages of this and the other magazines is beyond most people's comprehension I think. The advances in aviation and other technical areas have been marked in the pages of the magazines. We have all the hub bub today about all the "drones" but how many remember when the then thought super secret U-2 spy plane was revealed in the pages of Model Airplane News in their "Planes Worth Modeling " feature. That made headlines in all the major newspapers across the country. Articles during WW-2 on how to keep modeling during the critical war materials shortages. The entry into the jet age and looks into the future of aviation. Almost every major full scale airframe that has taken flight has been built and flown as a model, often before the full scale rendition did! And it was all covered in the model mags.I love my model magazines! Digital has it's place, and can help with some preservation and replication, but there is nothing that can compare to holding history right in my own two fat little hands!
Type at you later,
Dan McEntee
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A :o My advanced three years subscription is POOF! ??? a few years back, I paid cash for a reclinning chair, yet to be manufactured, for my wife, to be given to her on her Birthday! n~ WRONG! WILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN! ~^ The checked had been already cashed, when two weeks later, the furnature business went belly up!! HB~> I didn't get a dime back, after two years! ALL the creditors ran off with the remaining $$$$$!! >:( I will miss the great mag, just like I miss Model Builder mag! :'(
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Bummer, loved FM.
I love Hobby King, too. And Hobby People. Ebay is awesome, I can get NOS stuff, better prices on current stuff, there are a lot of great things available today.
Drone wars will be the next fight, and it'll be the AMA that screws it all up for us modelers, but then the government is increasingly up every single citizen's wazoo and it gets worse with Google, facebook, and the like catalouging all of our movements and behaviors via the little gadgets they sell us. I'm sure they don't use any of that for nefarious uses, or involve the government directly, oh...maybe they already have...
Praise heavens we didn't see any of our favorite stunt heroes personal pictures hacked on the internet, yes thank heavens.
Chris...
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That's more or less what I said when I responded to Hansen's email. My slant was that they were asking around for any information about "incidents" that the FAA was referring to in their proposal, and how "unfair" it was to tag hobby RC with the drone stuff. That was a decent point. But on the cover of the current MA that I got the day before, what did I see but a 1/3 scale ARF hovering 18" off the ground in front of a crowd. And inside, ad after ad for RTF quadcopters, more giant or high speed turbine ARFs, etc. There's more ad then there is content, and you and the others are right - they are competing directly with commercial mags. And, they have a big tax advantage. It's not supposed to be a "business" - it should be run in a professional, business-like manner, but it shouldn't be competing with other businesses.
Now you see why we fought so hard a few years ago.
The other points are valid, too. Paper magazines aren't a very good way to spread news. The internet is a FAR more immediate and cost-effective way to go, that's why all print media is rapidly dying.
Brett
Yeah, makes it much easier for agencies like the IRS to cover thier tracks..."Sorry my DOG ate my computer disk". LL~ LL~ LL~
Randy Cuberly
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<sigh>...I miss the old days.
(But then, everyone knows that.) LL~
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The closing of Carstens reflects an on-going, very unfortunate, change in our culture. Looking back to when I was growing up in the 50s and 60s I can see the start of that change, which still continues. Up to, say, the mid-60s America had a large component of do-it-yourselfers. Open up any Popular Mechanics magazine from the 50s or earlier and you'll see what I mean. Not any more.
Long story short, if kids these days express any interest in model airplanes they ask "where can I buy one of those?" They never ask "How can I make one of those?" This is just a reflection of our culture. We have gone from being a nation of mostly self-reliant doers (and all that entails) to a nation of mostly nanny-staters. It is why so many of you hate ARFs. Its not that they aren't a useful product, but its that they represent a change in our culture that is really quite disappointing/offensive to those of us who try to be self-reliant.
Sadly, for those who are not self reliant and who do not understand why some of us want to live in a culture that is made up of independent, self-reliant people, there is no explanation - they simply can't understand why you'd want to make something when you can purchase it. They can't understand why you'd want to do something yourself rather than have someone else do it for you. In response someone is going to fallaciously argue: "well you purchase your food at a grocery store. You don't hand-raise the crops yourself, harvest them, etc." They just don't get it and never will.
Its an outlook on life, not a need to rub two sticks together every time I need fire....
Scott
Scott,
This the best philosophical explanation that represents what most of us are, that I have ever read on this forum. Well done.
Bill
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Thanks for the compliment Bill!
But this is also a reason for not giving up. We ARE the DOERS. We can't let the none-doers argue us out of that. While we are DOING, they are sitting and writing on-line and persuading. People are incredibly easy to influence into moving in the wrong directions, but it takes will and determination to go in the right direction. With all of the current forms of instant, easy communication it is easy for the none-doers to argue their point. You can see that the number of DOERS have declined pretty much in relationship to the rise of communications since the 50s and 60s.
Guys: you got to get up in the morning and say to yourself "I am going to be a DOER today. I am going to build my kits, I am going to fly my planes, I am going to do whatever I do to the best of my abilities. And I am not going to let THEM argue me out of it. I will be proactive and I will DO. I will not be passive and I will not get caught in the trap of sitting and listening to the non-doers."
Dang! Now I got myself all wound up and it's almost bedtime... #^
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Well, I just miss Fixit, Tailskid and, especially, Bunny!
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Mike: who else, do you think, knows who they are?
#^
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Well, I just miss Fixit, Tailskid and, especially, Bunny!
They were staples of the 50's. But I think that most modelers have long since moved on. I hate that record titled lost in the 50's tonite.
Dennis
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I remember Fix it ,Tailskid and Bunny and I AIN'T that dang old!!
Ans none of the guy's on this forum are either...Just been here LOOONG time...