[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Model Trains (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 10/19/2009 6:14:02 PM EDT
| Anyone know of any brands not made in China? Looking to get an heirloom set for my nephew but would love for it not to be made in china. |
I still have all of my stuff somewhere, I just get sad thinking how it's not being used......
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Lionel is still US made... I think
Kato is primo quality Japanese stuff. There are a lot of American companies selling very nice stuff, but if you read the fine print, most of it's still made in China... I think Micro Trains is US made, but not sure. What scale are you interested in, or are you just thinking toy trains, such as Lionel? ETA: Kato makes some awesome US Prototype models, but most of their track is Japanese prototype, so the tie spacing and general appearance is funky to American eyeballs. |
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I thought Athearn was still made in the US??? No???? Athearn buys some of their parts and locomotives in China, just like everyone else, except perhaps Kato. I think they source some of their components in china too though... :( I've been out of the loop for a few years, but last I heard Athearn was not the same company they were in the past. I think their founder died and they were kind of directionless for a few years. I think they have improved things lately though. Last I heard they were breaking into N scale and were really trying to get back their old reputation as the leader in HO... |
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I have been a lifelong gun nut, but trains have also been a frequent source of enjoyment for me too.
I think just as we on this board enjoy having the cool guns we see or read about and being able to shoot them, model railroading allows you to at least imagine you are operating some of the cool-assed equipment you see everyday or grew up watching. With the modern digital control systems and the quality of the products, whether heirloom "toy" trains, or scale models, it's really a lot more fun and less fiddling around to run trains nowadays. |
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I thought Athearn was still made in the US??? No???? Athearn buys some of their parts and locomotives in China, just like everyone else, except perhaps Kato. I think they source some of their components in china too though... :( I've been out of the loop for a few years, but last I heard Athearn was not the same company they were in the past. I think their founder died and they were kind of directionless for a few years. I think they have improved things lately though. Last I heard they were breaking into N scale and were really trying to get back their old reputation as the leader in HO... I love my old Athearn blue box kits. I know the ready to run stuff is much more prototypical, but there was just something about the blue box stuff that made it much more fun to put together and run. |
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Most of your new Athearn stuff and Lionel stuff is at least made or assembled in China.
Last I heard, Marklin was in bankruptcy...they filed for insolvency in feb or march of this year. If you're looking for HO or N and need more information about Kato products, let me know. 
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I thought Athearn was still made in the US??? No???? Athearn buys some of their parts and locomotives in China, just like everyone else, except perhaps Kato. I think they source some of their components in china too though... :( I've been out of the loop for a few years, but last I heard Athearn was not the same company they were in the past. I think their founder died and they were kind of directionless for a few years. I think they have improved things lately though. Last I heard they were breaking into N scale and were really trying to get back their old reputation as the leader in HO... I love my old Athearn blue box kits. I know the ready to run stuff is much more prototypical, but there was just something about the blue box stuff that made it much more fun to put together and run. Just an FYI...Athearn sent out an announcement earlier this week stating that the blue box kit line was being discontinued. |
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Most of your new Athearn stuff and Lionel stuff is at least made or assembled in China. Last I heard, Marklin was in bankruptcy...they filed for insolvency in feb or march of this year. If you're looking for HO or N and need more information about Kato products, let me know. Are you a dealer? IM if you can get me some good stuff at a good price. I have a 16 month old son, so soon I will be dragging out the old train stuff and building a layout with him. |
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I thought Athearn was still made in the US??? No???? Athearn buys some of their parts and locomotives in China, just like everyone else, except perhaps Kato. I think they source some of their components in china too though... :( I've been out of the loop for a few years, but last I heard Athearn was not the same company they were in the past. I think their founder died and they were kind of directionless for a few years. I think they have improved things lately though. Last I heard they were breaking into N scale and were really trying to get back their old reputation as the leader in HO... I love my old Athearn blue box kits. I know the ready to run stuff is much more prototypical, but there was just something about the blue box stuff that made it much more fun to put together and run. Just an FYI...Athearn sent out an announcement earlier this week stating that the blue box kit line was being discontinued. Blashphemy! I grew up putting those together... Sure they weren't that accurate but they were cheap, fun, easy to build, and they ran good, even with the shitty horn hook couplers! |
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I thought Athearn was still made in the US??? No???? Athearn buys some of their parts and locomotives in China, just like everyone else, except perhaps Kato. I think they source some of their components in china too though... :( I've been out of the loop for a few years, but last I heard Athearn was not the same company they were in the past. I think their founder died and they were kind of directionless for a few years. I think they have improved things lately though. Last I heard they were breaking into N scale and were really trying to get back their old reputation as the leader in HO... I love my old Athearn blue box kits. I know the ready to run stuff is much more prototypical, but there was just something about the blue box stuff that made it much more fun to put together and run. Just an FYI...Athearn sent out an announcement earlier this week stating that the blue box kit line was being discontinued. Blashphemy! I grew up putting those together... Sure they weren't that accurate but they were cheap, fun, easy to build, and they ran good, even with the shitty horn hook couplers! Actually, I thought they had been discontinued years ago. I guess I need to snap some up. |
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Most of your new Athearn stuff and Lionel stuff is at least made or assembled in China. Last I heard, Marklin was in bankruptcy...they filed for insolvency in feb or march of this year. If you're looking for HO or N and need more information about Kato products, let me know. As an experienced model railroader, I give Kato a +100000 in either scale. HO usually has better availability on a wider range of prototypes but their N stuff rocks too, especially if you get a DCC system. BTW, "prototype" in model railroader lingo means the actual equipment, setting, or time period that a model is based on. DCC is digital command control... awesome and totally worth the money if you even runonly 2 locomotives on your layout. |
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Last I heard, Marklin was in bankruptcy...they filed for insolvency in feb or march of this year. 
Sad to hear that. My dad used to have some Marklin gear. Amazingly intricate work. Some of his pieces suffered from wheel rot: the alloy eventually disintegrated. |
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I thought Athearn was still made in the US??? No???? Athearn buys some of their parts and locomotives in China, just like everyone else, except perhaps Kato. I think they source some of their components in china too though... :( I've been out of the loop for a few years, but last I heard Athearn was not the same company they were in the past. I think their founder died and they were kind of directionless for a few years. I think they have improved things lately though. Last I heard they were breaking into N scale and were really trying to get back their old reputation as the leader in HO... I love my old Athearn blue box kits. I know the ready to run stuff is much more prototypical, but there was just something about the blue box stuff that made it much more fun to put together and run. Just an FYI...Athearn sent out an announcement earlier this week stating that the blue box kit line was being discontinued. Blashphemy! I grew up putting those together... Sure they weren't that accurate but they were cheap, fun, easy to build, and they ran good, even with the shitty horn hook couplers! Actually, I thought they had been discontinued years ago. I guess I need to snap some up. From their email from a few days ago... " October 16, 2009 Greetings, Effective immediately, we here at Athearn have made the difficult decision to discontinue the production of our Blue Box line of kits. There were several factors that contributed to this extremely challenging decision however, the primary issue revolved around affordability and ensuring that our Blue Box kit pricing remain aligned with what the market can bear. Unfortunately, due to increased manufacturing and labor costs it has been determined that we are no longer able to continue offering kits at competitive price points as compared to our already assembled products. For over 50 years the Athearn Blue Box kits have been sold worldwide, bringing happiness, joy and excitement to thousands of model railroad enthusiasts. Your passion for these products has allowed us to thrive and grow into the industry leader you still support today, and for that we are eternally grateful. Moving forward this will allow us to dedicate more resources to new and exciting projects in our Ready To Roll, Genesis and Roundhouse lines for another 50 years, or more. We will continue to support all service and warranty needs on Blue Box kits from our headquarters in Long Beach, California. You can find our contact information here. The Folks at Athearn " Not like there won't be thousands of them floating out there for years to come though. Plus, if one enjoys building shake the box kits, there are plenty of other choices such as Accurail still available. |
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Athearn is owned by Horizon Hobbies now.Used to be family ran but not anymore.
Atlas i think may be U.S Made, not sure. No matter who made them or where they all seem to have Japanese flywheel 5 pole motors now. I like the newer HO stuff it runs much smotther, quieter and steadier than the older ones from 30 years ago that used to stumble and flicker and speed up and slow down on their own. I got lucky, ATLAS released a series of GP-38-2's a couple years ago in HO scale for "R.J. Corman Railroad Group" and they are both Numbers in my home town that run from Cresson,PA. to Keating,Pa. and are kept in the yard in my town. |
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Athearn is owned by Horizon Hobbies now.Used to be family ran but not anymore. Atlas i think may be U.S Made, not sure. No matter who made them or where they all seem to have Japanese flywheel 5 pole motors now. I like the newer HO stuff it runs much smotther, quieter and steadier than the older ones from 30 years ago that used to stumble and flicker and speed up and slow down on their own. I got lucky, ATLAS released a series of GP-38-2's a couple years ago in HO scale for "R.J. Corman Railroad Group" and they are both Numbers in my home town that run from Cresson,PA. to Keating,Pa. and are kept in the yard in my town. Most everything Atlas is now made in China and has been for some time...including the motors in their units and Atlas line of track. |
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Go "HO" More accesories available if you feel like making a layout with the kids. Hell i even have M1A1 Tanks, Humvees and M-900 series trucks in HO scale for my U.S. army Train.(No not the Model power Missile force one!) Mine is an honest to god U.S army red and yellow GP engine with DODX and Yellow and red U.S.A.X. Army box and Tank cars.
Also Lionel can be tempermental because of the contacts needing to make contact with the third rail and the motors always needing lubricated. HO you lubricate and your good for hours and even days, Lionel you lube run for half an hour and stop and lube again!! Stick with "HO" since there are more manufacturers and supplies available. "N" scale is up and becoming popular, I refuse to go that small, it's too damn small to work with for me, hell my fingers would be too big to put the cars and engines on the rails. |
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Weaver O gauge trains are mostly made in the USA. they look like the only choice for US made O scale unless you pick up some old Marx or Lionel.
http://www.weavermodels.com/index.html as for American made HO scale, you can go with Athearn blue box, or Bowser/stewart. I think a lot of their stuff is still made in America http://www.bowser-trains.com/ Branchline is also made in the USA http://www.branchline-trains.com/ I think there are a couple others, but I can't remember them right now. |
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Negative Ghostrider!! Bowser is still in business in Montoursville, Pennsylvania. Bowser/Stewart Hobbies/English's Model railroad supply and "Toy train heaven" are all owned by the same guy.
Well, it's hard to find anything hobby related made entirely or at all in the USA anymore, and the comapnies that make the stuff get bought and sold so much you cannot keep track of it hardly at all. But hell even the Bachmann stuff ain't to shabby anymore, it ain't the cheap crap of 20 years ago anyway, I have some "Spectrum" engines i would place right up their with Athearn and Atlas as far as realism and detail and good running. The important point is not to get to anal about realism and building your layout if you do so with your kids, Hobbies are supposed to be fun not stress you out. I Love railroads, real, model or otherwise and will appologize to nobody for it. |
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Ah yes the spirit of 76 set have one my parents bought for me and my brother during the bicentenial.
The red white and blue engine with the number 1776 for the engine number, it was an ALCO C-426 engine i think. with a Paul Revere car an Minute man car and washington crossing the delaware river car then the caboose also had the red white and blue motife and the 13 stars in a ring with 76 in it. T.Y.C.O. My hobby dealer in this area calls it an acronym: T-oys Y-ou C-an't O-perate. |
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I don't know shit about trains, but my dad has a cool collection. I'll see if I can snag some pics when I'm over there tomorrow for my son's birthday. He has some OLD trains. All metal locomotives, if I had to guess, that are at least WWII-era. He has a lionel train from the 50's or 60's that is a military locomotive that launches missiles, along with a car that carries a helicopter that actually flies, and another car that carries more missiles. He got them for Christmas when he was a kid.
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Cool stuff,
My dad had his stuff from the 50's and would set it up around christmas. It was big stuff, IIRC the engine was a foot long or a bit bigger. A steam diesel I think. All gone, parents divorced, mother rented house to "friend" who stole all the stuff from the attic and sold the trains, her diamond wedding and engagement rings and even our dog who they were supposed to watch. We did get the dog back. If there was one of the items I wanted back it was Chester the labrador. Still wish I could run those trains though. |
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I thought Athearn was still made in the US??? No???? Athearn buys some of their parts and locomotives in China, just like everyone else, except perhaps Kato. I think they source some of their components in china too though... :( I've been out of the loop for a few years, but last I heard Athearn was not the same company they were in the past. I think their founder died and they were kind of directionless for a few years. I think they have improved things lately though. Last I heard they were breaking into N scale and were really trying to get back their old reputation as the leader in HO... I love my old Athearn blue box kits. I know the ready to run stuff is much more prototypical, but there was just something about the blue box stuff that made it much more fun to put together and run. Just an FYI...Athearn sent out an announcement earlier this week stating that the blue box kit line was being discontinued. Blashphemy! I grew up putting those together... Sure they weren't that accurate but they were cheap, fun, easy to build, and they ran good, even with the shitty horn hook couplers! yeah, it is but by the time you swap out with decent metal wheels and Kadee couplers and/or take some extra efforts to keep those damn clips on you are just about at the price of the assembled cars. But for the beginning kid, those kits were a good way to learn how to do things right, and at a reasonable price. |
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You kids probably don't remember names like Varney , Mantua, Tyco, Hobbytown of Boston, Bowser Revell. Aristocraft, ah yes those were the days. Steel wheels, real sprung trucks, Pittman motors. Makes me want to dig out some MR's from the 50's . Gone all gone Bowser is still around |
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I apologize in advance for the long-winded reply. I grew up around HO gauge trains and have a sizable collection of it in my house (probably more than I ought to). The last 10 years or so has brought a lot of changes to the HO marketplace. Now, locomotives with sound are offered by pretty much every manufacturer. There is a push away from the standard DC powerpack over to DCC. The level of detailing on the products is much higher. Separate ladders and grabs, pilot details, correct horns, etc. are the norm. There has also been a trend away from kits and toward more ready-to-run products. However, pretty much everything ready-to-run in HO gauge is foreign-made right now; this includes Athearn, Atlas, Bachmann, Broadway Limited, Kato, Marklin, MTH, Roco, and Walthers.
Bowser is still made in the US, but they are phasing out their steam locomotive kits. Bowser also has purchased the Stewart Products. Some of the Stewart locomotives used Japanese (Kato) and Korean (Ajin) drives; I don’t know where those are being manufactured right now. Roundhouse/Model Die Casting is now owned by Athearn/Horizon. Similarly, Life-Like/Proto 1000/Proto 2000 has been purchased by Walthers. Mantua has been purchased by Model Power, who does some select runs of the Mantua products (mostly their steam locomotives). I don’t know if they are still made in the US; the Mantua products never interested me (too generic, not detailed enough, etc.) If you are buying the set for an heirloom set, then avoid the cheaper Bachman, Life-Like, and Model Power sets typically sold around Christmas. Most of the freight and passenger cars still being made in the US are mostly the “craftsman” style kits (think along the lines a very detailed model kit). These have free-standing details such as ladders and grab-irons. Branchline, InterMountain, and Red Caboose are three companies to name a few, but their ready-to-run products are made in China. Kadee cars are ready-to-run and made in the US. Bowser freight car kits are also made in the US, but their ready-to-run cars are assembled in China. There is also a dozen or so resin companies (companies such as F&C, Rail Yard Models, and Westerfield) whose kits are made in the US. Typically they make models of niche prototypes that will probably not be made in plastic form. One has to be careful about Marklin. A lot of their items are AC while most Americans are used to DC. They do have a counterpart line, called Trix, which makes HO equipment. Also, Marklin has a somewhat different philosophy when it comes to accuracy; they look right (much like Lionel of old) until you get a scale rule after the models. I cannot comment about the other gauges (Z, N, O, etc.) as HO takes enough money from my gun budget. Finally, how old is your nephew? If he is still pretty young, perhaps O or even G gauge is better bet for him. They are typically more durable than HO (and especially N and Z), and have more operating features if he is of the age where he “plays” with them. James Edit: I forgot about Accurail. Their kts are still made in the US and are close (if not a little bette) than the classic Athearn "Blue Box" kits. |
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Lionel is made in Korea and China now. Last US production was early 2000s.
But if you want a tough-as-nails train for your kid, get him a Lionel, but get him an OLD one. Values are going down on these trains and you should be able to piece him together a nice die-cast steam engine with smoke and whistle, a few freight cars, caboose, figure-8 or oval of track, and transformer for a few hundred bucks tops. Steam engines to look out for in terms of good value would be a 2055, 2065, 2035, 2018, and 681. 736 and 2046 are nice but more expensive. 671, 2025, 2026 are nice but don't pull much. There are many others, too. Make sure you run if first to verify everything works. When you get it home take it apart and clean everything, lube it up, and it will outlive you. For the cars it really doesn't matter. Just avoid anything overly lightweight. The new Chinese made "fasttrack" really is a million times better than the old sheet metal track. Not that it holds up any better, but it's easier to setup and take down and runs smoother. Looks better, too. Also, get a newer transformer. |
| MTH is make in Korea and finished here. But it is some of the best stuff. If you want hard to find stuff they make it. Kato is most of my running engines, along with Athearn Genesis or Atlas master series are good. |
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I would agree with the above poster on Lionel...look for post-war era equipment (1945-1969) and piece together what you want. I had a 2035 steam loco that someone gave to me a couple of weeks ago that looked like it had been sitting in a box in a barn or basement for 30 years. After a teardown, cleaning, lubricating and reassembling, it still works like a charm. It will outlive me and my nephew can beat on it all he wants over the holidays.
Fasttrack is nice...the caviat being that turnouts are bloody expensive. The one nice thing about older tinplate track is that it's cheap and readily available in large amounts at train shows, etc. While I certainly do love HO and N scale (I was a custom painter for years and work for one of the above mentioned manufacturers), neither are well suited for young children. I figure 8 would be about the age that N and HO becomes feasable for children. For something for around the tree with alot of 'play value' for little kids, O would be much better. |
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I used to work for Front Range Models, we made our own stuff (FRM & TAPP) as well as stuff for McKean (?) (hell, it's been so long (late 80's)) the owner was a cheap SOB. I helped improve the GP9 engine (most of the engines put out were not that great), but as models (kits) go, they were pretty good, IIRC. |
I'm in the second year of setting up a Lionel Christmas layout around the tree. The grandkids are getting old enough to enjoy the trains but not yet old enough to set it up and run it on their own so O gauge is perfect for them. The post about fasttrack is correct, easy to setup and looks good. My problem is, I am running out of room to put all the "stuff" I want into the layout.
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I would agree with the above poster on Lionel...look for post-war era equipment (1945-1969) and piece together what you want. I had a 2035 steam loco that someone gave to me a couple of weeks ago that looked like it had been sitting in a box in a barn or basement for 30 years. After a teardown, cleaning, lubricating and reassembling, it still works like a charm. It will outlive me and my nephew can beat on it all he wants over the holidays.
Exactly what's I'm talking about! Fasttrack is nice...the caviat being that turnouts are bloody expensive. The one nice thing about older tinplate track is that it's cheap and readily available in large amounts at train shows, etc. The point about the switches being expensive I had not considered...yeah probably pass on it for that reason alone. It's hard to expand when you can't afford a turnout! While I certainly do love HO and N scale (I was a custom painter for years and work for one of the above mentioned manufacturers), neither are well suited for young children. I figure 8 would be about the age that N and HO becomes feasable for children. For something for around the tree with alot of 'play value' for little kids, O would be much better. 100% Agree. HO and N are too delicate, too too sensitive, and too..well...boring to keep little kids occupied. You need something substantial that doesn't mind misaligned track, dirty track, or rough handling. Three-rail O gauge trains were designed as toys for kids to play with, then the market evolved to also offer scale models (with some compromises for small spaces/compatibility/simplicity) as the hobby matured. |
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Seriously? 
I'm not a big fan of that company on the RC hobby side. I suppose they're great if you like paying double. 
Honestly, there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth when Horizon bought out Athearn. Right before the merger, Athearn had purchased the Rail Power Products (RPP) line, and some of the first things that Horizon did were to end the distributorship of Athearn products by Walthers as well as allowing only “brick-and-mortar” hobbyshops stock them. Some even predicted that it was the beginning of the end for Athearn. However looking back on it, I think it was a good thing for the hobby. The quality of Athearn products have improved. For example, gone are the metal strip electrical connectors. Their paint department has improved markedly since the purchase. Athearn has gone back and retooled some of the RPP shells (GP35, GP40X, SD40 and SD45) and replaced the old “fat-body” GP35’s and SD45’s. Newer “Ready-to-Roll” products (like the later SD40-2’s, SD45’s, and SW1500) rival the detail found in the Genesis (their top of the line) but at about $50 off the price. The Genesis freight car line is dead, but the newer “Ready-to-Roll” cars are almost as detailed (usually minus the air hoses and uncoupling levers) and certainly better than the old “Blue Box” kits. After they purchased the MDC/Roundhouse line, Athearn switched a lot of the exclusively steam-oriented products over the Roundhouse brand while taking the more modern items (RS3’s 50’ mill gons, FMC hoppers, etc.), retooling them, and releasing them under the Athearn brand. I’ve probably bought more post-Horizon Athearn products than in the 10 years preceding the merger. Before that period, the last new Athearn locomotives I know I bought were two of the SW1500 switchers. James |
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Unfortunately the hobby of model railroading, like most of its enthusiests is dying. Kids would much rather play video games and racing car sets. It's been dying for years and there are just not enough hobbyists taking it up to support the industry.
We all love trains. Those train sets bring back great memories. But unfortunately that's not enough. The hobby will sadly be gone soon. |
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FWIW, right now we are in the golden age of HO (and possibly other scales, but I don't follow them)
The accuracy, detail & selection are out of this world compared to the old days. If I were assembling the 'best of the best" I would do the following: Find the railroad you like, this is mostly for engines and passenger cars. Freight cars have always been mixed in transit. If you model steam, brass is a bargain right now, the market collapsed when top-notch plastic models appeared on the scene And the plastic models are excellent - look at Proto 2000 (ex-LifeLike, now Walthers), the Genesis line by Athearn, and offerings from Broadway Limited, Precision (can't remember their exact name at the moment) Diesels? Same deal, add in Atlas, Stewart/Bowser, Intermountain and Kato Rolling Stock? All the above plus Branchline (which is outstanding and US made), Walthers, Red Caboose, and Kadee. Here are two places to start, along with Fleabay: modeltrainstuff.com http://www.walthers.com/exec/page/bargain_home (sign up for their newsletter - monthly flyer with good deals) Anyone can buy a pre-packaged 'heirloom' set, putting one together yourself takes it to the next level... Go to your local hobby shop, and start there. They can use your support, and it was a place of wonder for many of us in our younger days. |
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I just thought I'd update. I was at my parent's house for my son's birthday.
The old train he has is a Lionel 257 engine and 257T tender. Looks like they were made around 1930. He also has the cars that go with it, an 803, 630, 629, and one other that I couldn't see the # on cause it was turned around. He also has a 2025 with tender and a 671 with tender. Neat old trains. I couldn't get pictures to take cause they are in a glass case. Too much other activity going on to get them out. |