Military Vehicles Magazine... trash or just garbage?

[pfarber]

I first subscribed to MVM I think it was 2004 after another CCKW owner mentioned an article they did on CCKWs. He had the issue on him and I read it. I thought wow, this is mildly informative, if not simply repetitive of what is in our beloved TMs that we can get for free.

So I subbed for a year. The articles were simply TM pictures and rehashing of things that anyone who owns an MV would know. Nothing 'new'.. no research, no what I would call historical research. Just crap like 'how does a generator work' or 'how to change a tire'. Hardly worth the $20 a year for 6 issues.

Well I resubbed in late 2010 simply to see if there were any new vendors (there were none) and check the classifieds (I swear the same trucks are still listed for sale). The straw the broke MVMs back is the horribly craptastic Spring 2011 issue 146. The "2011 MV AMBASSADOR ISSUE". This is how crappy this rag is:

24 pages out of 106 are dedicated to Government Liquidation ads. 25% of the magazine is ONE advertiser... and they really don't even sell anything in the ads, just ads on how to bid on an auction.

All the other advertisers were already known to me. So either I have my finger on the pulse of the MV hobby (doubtful) or there is simply not a lot of new things to be reported on.

Next (and the best by far) was the 'Communications' section... you know letters that people send in. There are 6 letters. The most FASCINATING part are the issues that they are referring to:

Letter #1
"When I received the the April 2001 issue..." J.R. Johnson, MI This is the APRIL 2011 issue. You local post office sucks if they take 10 years to deliver.

Letter #2
Not dated, but some ass hat rants how ILLEGAL it is to have flashing lights on MVs or ANY non-emergency vehicle. This guy is (of course) the PRESIDENT of some MV club. Unfortunately he is COMPETELY WRONG. Antique or Classic vehicles are REQUIRED to be as close to the original vehicle as possible... that mean lights and sirens. Sorry Mr H. Fackovec, President MVMVC in NH you are an uninformed tool.

Letter #3
"As usual, when I received my MV mag I sat in the parking lot of the post office to read it". He is referring to the December 2001 issue. How long has Mr. Jeff Houghton who lives in 'the Internet' been in that parking lot??

Letter #4
December 2002 issue about paint is being read with great interest by Mr. Thomas Milne of MN. Evidently this guy thinks about paint A LOT. 9 years of consideration should be enough to pull the trigger on a gallon or two.

My point? This craptastic rag is so bereft of readers that they have to dig into 10 year old archives to post letters? I would hope that a magazine with active subscriptions would have at least a handful of readers to write in.. even if to simply complain about the lack of letters.

No, I don't sub anymore. Any wonder why?

[retro-roco]

So, did you right them a lette to complain??

[pfarber]

A complaint from a non subscriber? Yeah, that will go far.

Many people miss the point.... email the magazine and that's ONE email.

Post my points succinctly in a public forum where many people can read and dis/agree and write the magazine on their own gets attention.

If you note that I backed up each of my valid points with data/information for you to decide (aka Fox News). Its much easier to say the magazine sucks and be done with it... but to line up several on topic points is much harder to do and bolsters the point I wish to make.

Its not about just being 'negative' or 'critical'. But about having a valid position to support the criticism with proof. I mean really, they have to dig 9+ years into the mailbag for questions? Why not give a contributor two more pages for pictures or more in depth research?

Can't they take modern color pictures of MVs instead of relying on B&W TM illustrations that are 60+ years old? Other than saving money (the TMs are public domain) and not having to deal with copyright (yet they will claim a copyright on the article) is lazy.

The one thing I agree with the MVPA about (in form, it still lacks function) is that most of the articles they publish are member submitted.

[retro-roco]

Paul,

The "wink" and "laugh" meant that I was joking! No need to justify your response... I agree with you, and wish that more people would share experiences like yours. Maybe if they did, there would fewer of these "rip-offs!

[pfarber]

Opps, misread that completely didn't I . Most people usually call me mean for making valid points. Most of the really good MV mags are in Europe. But I cannot justify the price (the dollar have not been at parity with the Pound Sterling in my lifetime) but they have some damn good articles.

I would hope that publishers made use of the web, and lower prices accordingly... but you have to sub to the PRINTED magazine to read the online one. How retarded is that?