I love building Proto 2000 and intermountain kits, and the are hard to come by these days, due to slowed production. DARN![xx(]
I still see them at my local LHS.
Don’t worry to much. Kits will still be around, even if in smaller quantities. Just keep an eye on the market.
I do like the RTR stuff. although its not really ready to run unless these manufacturers would start putting KDs on stuff. Still, Im partial to kits. Theyre just fun to build, not to mention cheaper. Im going to try and scratchbuild some cars too. When I do Ill post a thread about it, but Im not sure when it will happen.
Better grab 'em while you can. While I think kits will always be with us, the numbers do seem to be dwindling.
Enjoy
Paul
Since you have to gauge wheel sets and couplers(and replace them any way) why not exercise a little more initiative and assemble the whole kit. I have been accumulating undecorated 34’ hoppers for a coal region fleet for a free lanced railroad. Keep them coming Athearn! I also enjoyed assembling Walthers old metal sided passenger kits from years ago.
Will
Definitely kits… easier to weather.
I voted “bring back the kits”, but only because thold Roundhouse steam-era stuff is being produced as RTR only. They’re great kitbash bait (especially the wood passenger cars and cabooses), and I don’t need any of the RTR cars.
Otherwise, there’s not a single manufacturer who has completely eliminated kits. Heck, I recently built three brand new Intermountain ATSF stock car kits. And with the ginormous inventory I have of resin freight cars (100+ at last count), I don’t see my freight car kit building days ending any time soon!
Atlas and Walthers RTR okay, but anything else I’d rather do from a kit.
Of course I’m saturated with cars so buying any more is going to be a rare thing.
I remember my P2K flatcar kit. That turned out as good as RTR, but with added satisfaction. Too bad most of my kits don’t turn out like that.
Trainboy
I like kits. Cheaper upfront and easier to modify. Plus I enjoy putting them together.
Nick Brodar
Go to S, kits galore, if we don’t build them, very few will…
Dave
Kadee and Atlas rtr are fine, besides they don’t do kits. Branchline still has great kits,and some of Red Caboose and Intermountain come out as kits, but they seem to be limited. The best place seems to be train shows,they seem to have more odd kits for sale then lhs’s do.
I have 14 different 4 bay covered hopper cylindrical grain car kits by Intermountain that I’d like to sell. If anyone is interested please email me. Also have some Accurail box cars and McKean kits as well.
The only rtr that I buy is from the used table at the LHS. It all gets the paint stripped off, and at least a complete upgrading of the details, and in many cases, a complete rebuild, depending on what prototype I’m trying to replicate. Then new paint and lettering, and of course weathering. As far as new rtr, in the era I’m modelling (mid-to-late ‘30’s), there is nothing I’ve seen that in my opinion is truly ready-to-run. Proto made a good attempt with their version of the 36’ Fowler boxcar, but the oversize grab irons and steps, coupled with the $35.00 to $40.00 price tag made them less appealing to me. I did manage to pick up six car bodies (no floors, weights or trucks) for $1.50 each, and they should be coming out of the shops next week: new steps and grabs, new scatchbuilt floors with brake gear, new board-by-board roofwalks ( the original ones were 6" short on either end) and all re-lettered and weathered.
Wayne
Don’t forget about accurail and bowser. They still produce kits.My [2c] is that kits are easeir and cheaper. We are a hobby after all. I like the good selection of resin kits that are available now as well. More specific road only kits are available that way. Sylvan, westerfield and funaro and carmlengo all make decent well detailed kits.