Event Coverage The Death of R&C, Again (By Pat Ganahl)

I give all respect and thanks to those who gave part of themselves and provided automotive magazines for me to enjoy. They had their time and I cannot imagine growing up without them. Now, would only buy TRJ due to it's exceptional articles and quality, heck, its "coffee table book" quality.
But other than that, until the net goes away, I can't think of a reason to buy a magazine as a subscription.
My old subscription money now goes to Alliance membership. And don't tell Ryan, but its a bargain.

 

I was one that let my subscription lapse.
Too many issues were almost exactly the same.
Page after page of the same tired ads month after month. Some content that was relevant to my builds or my interests. But if I missed an issue it was NO BIG DEAL.
In the 60's and the 70's i couldn't wait for my issues to arrive.
The new mags are all cookie cutter assemblies. Nothing new and innovative in the layout, the presentation, the ads. No cartoons lampooning Joe Average or the nitwits doing dumb stuff. Same ads in all the magazines. Buying 1-2 issues a year where the content was relevant was enough for me.

 

Very well put by all of you. And the importance of showing support for the "Indies" is the only way they can survive.

 

A heartfelt & honest comment there Pat , very true , it's all about supply & demand too , the smaller guys hopefully will succeed as it's in our blood , not in a profit & loss statement .

 

You know, if you go to the Rod and Custom web site they still have a pop-up ad for a year subscription at $17.97.

 

First: Thanks to Pat for his contributions to my life-long (50+ years) addiction to R&C. One of THE BEST journalists in any automotive venue.

Second: Thanks to Ryan for running the best (better?) substitute for R&C that an old, set in my ways, curmudgeon could ask for.

 

I know a lot of guys will cringe at their mention, but, Ol' School Rods, and Car Kulture deluxe have both come along ways in content and direction. No... They dont have the history or prestige that R&C had. But they are out there and printing magazines. The quality of the cars featured has come up a looonngg way. I read them, and feel like they are done by real car guys and not just a batch of suits with clean finger nails! Go ahead and flame me for stating this if you want. Let the fires ignite! Support all the magazines that are left to us!

 

@pgan - Well stated! ... Thanks for sharing your perspective!

@Ryan - Absolutely nothing against Jay, Joey, or your TJJ Blog posts ... but it would be great to see more of these "guest Blogs" from writers like Pat Ganahl ...

 

As a point of reference, I supported a family four in the early sixties with income from free lance writing for Petersen as well as Chilton. Once the "suits" gained control, they cut page rates and travel budgets. I mentioned once before that I wouldn't take a pay cut on a byline column and was told that they could get another writer to do it for nothing. And they did!

 

Mr. G and Mr. C give a very worthwhile assessment here. How many of us began our days reading R&C...it inspired 'our' work, thanks guys for explaining a measure of the issues here.

 

Thanks Pat for telling it like it is and your opinion (based on your many years in this field) on what it will take for us as a group to try to support what is being created today. I don't know what else to say, but keep doing what you've been doing, there's plenty of us that appreciate it. A long time reader and fan of your work, Carp

 

Thanks Pat; Thanks Ryan. I'm always interested in what you each have to say.

I started subscribing to Hop Up in 1951. Still have every issue, from 3 different publishers.
Started subscribing to Rod(s) & Custom(s) in 1953. Still have almost every issue, through multiple rebirths; two of my cars were featured in R&C.
Started subscribing to TRJ at issue #1.
I think I've bought everything Pat has published.
I currently subscribe to TRJ, Kustoms Illustrated, and Diehards.
Been on the HAMB since 2001; just renewed my Alliance membership.

I have paid my supportive dues every way I know how.

 

Probably why Ive ben bombarded with 200% (LOLOLOL) off specials with the "SEND US MONEY NOW"

 

Well said!

 

That sums it up fairly well. Two comments. I couldn't quite understand why and how R&C subscriptions could be so cheap when they probably didn't have the circulation. Maybe they should have acknowedged there position, marketed themselves as a boutique, gone to six issues, better content, and double or triple the price.

Ok now for TRJ. I'll take 4 Rodders Journals, 4 HOP UP little books, and 4 ROD & Custom little books per year so I can get something in the mail every month!

 

R&C hasn't really been very good for the last few years, least to someone with a 40 plus years of reading it. I guess it's better for it to go than continue slowly dying. The only bad thing about TRJ and Traditional Rods and Customs is that they are quarterly. May try Rodding USA, but ain't no way I'm buying Ol Skool.

 

I would like to comment on Pat's remark that sometimes you have to be prepared to pay a little more. I agree. So often people ask straight up: "What is the cheapest..?" Complaints about quality are never far behind.

Whether it's publishing niche titles or an individual making custom parts for niche cars, those doing it are not necessarily making huge profits from what are generally very small runs. Time and materials are not free. We all need to understand that.

 

When I was a kid and just discovering hot rods, I bought Hot Rod magazine. Then I discovered Rod & Custom. I had no real job, just a little bit from my dad for helping him in his radio and tv repair shop. Those magazines were expensive in my little economy. But I really looked forward to buying them. Still have them. I guess Pat is right. I will have to pay proportionately now if I can find a magazine that instills that passion I once had for hot rod magazines. I have never seen Rodder's Journal but heard good things about it. I am in for one of the samples. If its good reading and not just wall to wall advertisements then perhaps that will be the savior of the magazine industry for us hot rod lovers.

 

Me too...

 

I wrote a response last night but deleted it before posting, a new fresh response

The way I see things is the corporate magazine publishing pushed their product and when things started to change to more grassroots orientation they didn't change. 15-20 years ago their business model made sense and made money, had they evolved with their readers wants/desires they wouldn't be merging, axing long established titles. The Internet can be blamed as the main reason for lower sales, but dissatisfaction with magazine content I believe is a key reason for lower sale numbers.

The proof is "The Rodders Journal*" "Traditional Rod & Kulture Illustrated", "Ol Skool Rods" & "Car Culture Deluxe" they have grown so much that they are available in Newsagents, Supermarkets and petrol stations here in Australia. They sell because they give the reader content they want, not being told what they should want. (* TRJ only @ newsagents).

Bring on the next chapter in publishing, both electronic and printed.

 

Time for "indies", and "enthusiast" driven business models? Well I'll be-kiss my-go to hell!
I seem to be doing that now, but look for my announcement elsewhere in a post near you.

The only thing I disagree with lamenting about is the mention of corporate greed. Let it happen. Offer them a single-fingered salute and spend elsewhere. That greed is something destined to fail and we've seen plenty of that too.

 

Ryan said "The reader didn't kill the hot rod publishing industry. The corporate publisher did."

Agreed. Personally, I would rather have a quality publication for more money than a cheap one full of irrelevant content and boatloads of ads. I have supported a lot of these rags for a loooong time just because they were part of our culture but haven't been pleased with the product for even longer. My bad.

The world changes. Maybe this is the opportunity for a new crop of passionate car folks to create the next wave of automotive media business templates that can be successful and cater to the enthusiasts in this tech era.

I'll miss R&C (and a couple of the others) but am ready to see what comes next and support those efforts the best that I can. Hey, who ever thought that AMBR would be a Phaeton........

 

Support the HAMB.
Look at what we get for less than 14 cents a day !
Become an alliance member..
Thank you Ryan.

 

Well said Ryan, and I would like to think Pat is smart enough to realize how wrong he is in his thinking.

 

GUPPIES EATING THEIR YOUNG?

Been a R&C reader for several years. Guess my August 2014 issue of R&C may be one of the last?

My question is response to the comment about the big corporate system killing their publications if they don't turn a profit - or enough of a profit. For sake of discussion, I wonder what the accounting at R&C looks like? When all is paid out do they actually make a profit? How much? Or does R&C actually end up in the red each year? If it is killed off, is killed off because it actually looses money or just does not perform at a high enough rate. There is a big difference between the two. So which is it?

I've done some self publishing over the years. What might turn a profit for a small organization ("mom & pop" publisher type, etc.) and be a viable enterprise might not be profitable enough for a large corporate operation with numerous titles to run. Or perhaps they want to consolidate their product line and etc.

At the end of the day, I just want to know did R&C truly go broke? Or is it just another casualty of a familiar product being killed by the larger corporate owners? Kinda like guppies eating their young...

 

Creative accounting when it comes to magazines is very interesting! I was looking at a title owned by a major media company. Without the corporate overhead for the NY headquarters, I could have started out in the black with the first issue! I think that the magazine guys went to the same accounting school as movie execs,


Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!

 

A lot of very well thought out ideas here and I greatly appreciate Pat's and Ryan's concepts as regards the demise of R&C et. all .... I think taken in context we are just experiencing the old adage "the only constant is change" ... as electronic information takes over the mantle of "information dispenser" I feel we will continue to see the demise of more and more printed favorites. There will always be a few quality printed publications for the dedicated followers but unfortunately I think we are victims of the inevitable conclusion of most printed matter, hard to say for an old book lover like myself, but true ... I think.

 

I've been an Alliance Member for three years and I actually buy stuff from the HAMB's Alliance venders. Don't know what else I can do.

 

Businesses die because:

1. They do not meet their customer’s needs. They do not die due to lack of customer support.

2. Shit happens. Recession, earthquakes, hurricanes….or the internet (dunt dunt dunnnn.)

I think it was a consequence of 1 and 2 for R&C. I also think there are a lot of people in media trying to figure out how to make money on content these days. The internet is a great thing. I can post up my opinion to the “editor” right away, it does not get ignored, and I can get responses right away…like I could get this post pulled –but at least I would know it was read by someone

I really think overall, as car nuts, we are better off as a group than we were 10 years ago -from an information standpoint. Of course I would like to see good content rewarded, and I am willing to pay for it (and have btw).

Kelvin

 

R&C was one of two publications i subscribed to because i got them both for 3 years for 36 bucks. i would have bought it at the news stand anyhow. i still buy 2 others regularly when they are published, titles that we're all familiar with, and for no other reason than content. one is super slick and super nice and super expensive as far as this goes, but its worth every penny and then some. the other is still nice, but there are always typos, and i could care less because the content is on point and the price is right, but id still buy it at a couple of bucks more per unit.

now on to boutique pubs....
i've always been a big fan, but my wallet doesn't afford my affinity so much any more.
i was a huge fan of DiCE, Greasy Kulture, Deadbeat, Gearhead, Garage, Burnout, etc. etc. etc., i just don't have the discretionary spending budget for all these pubs every month.

But i still LOVE the small run mag.

Enter Speed & Chrome Illustrated.
My buddy @Lancer is the publisher and my Club Brother. He's a spot on dude who does it simply for the love of it. he put out 8 issues then took 7 years off. we've been talking about a reissue for well over a year now and he finally green-lighted the project. i volunteered to write articles for the book because i believe in the roots ethic in pubs like this one. its a thin book, but only because its not crammed with adverts. there are probably as many features as in a newsstand rag, but without all of the interruptions. its all quality material and is focused on a very specific niche market. i like it.

nowadays, i'm so much more likely to take a chance on buying a book like this online, than to keep spending money on page after page of iffy features, sponsored tech articles and enough ads to gag a moose.

The HAMB has created something magical for guys like us.

I heard @Evel mumbling about some potential online media offering for guys like us.

we're in the age of availability, now it up to content providers and consumers to partner together to proliferate this thing that we do.