WOW, Superior Modelling by far!!!
I am learing what I need to do in the future following the detailing & total artistry displayed here.
Incredible modelling, thank you for sharing, & inspiring!!!
If I’m not mistaken, Intermountain and Red Caboose have an arrangement where Intermountain sells the r-t-r stuff, while Red Caboose offers the kit versions.
To add to your list, Funaro & Camerlengo offer resin kits, like this B&O wagontop:
…as does Westerfield:
…and Speedwitch Media:
Another one offering resin kits is Sunshine Models, although I have no example to show.
The Rail Shop, Inc. offers styrene craftsman-type kits for carbon black covered hoppers:
I’m not sure it would be considered a kit, but I picked up this Walthers Pennsy RPO at English Model Railroad Supply about a month ago. It was mostly assembled except for doors, diaphragms and grab irons, and was unpainted. I modified the porthole-style windows in the doors and painted and lettered it for my freelance home road:
According to Lee English, Bowser will continue to offer freight car kits as long as they continue to sell.
Tichy kits are still available, although I can’t say for sure if they’re still in production.
[IMG]http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b399/doctorwayne/freight%20cars/Somenewfreightcars004.j
Ha, I was just thinking that I’ll post up my narrowgauge wrecker, coincidentally built from the same Gould/Tichy kit. I used the Tichy boom idler kit to run with my standard gauge 25 ton derrick.
With the wrecker, I narrowed the wheels to 3’ gauge, lowered the couplers to NG height, and made a few other mods. I bashed a Blackstone 30’ flat to use as an idler car for the wrecker.
The wrecker represents OZ, the Rio Grande wrecker that was requisitioned by the War Dept in WWII, given new 42" gauge trucks, then disappeared mysteriously (I suspect was sunk when shipped overseas). Instead, OZ stayed closer to home on my layout, fixed up to help support vital war needs by ensuring that the narrowgauge had a wrecker that could respond quickly in case of need.
Another kit I modified was that produced in HOn3 by PSC for the Rio Grande 6500 series steel flat cars. I added log bunks to two in order to haul long poles that will be treated and used for building powerlines. It never was, but it could have been.
Mike, Per Intermountain’s website, they list Red Caboose’s RTR stuff; but, RC is not shown as a kit producer. The kits shown at that website are listed under Intermountain. Don’t know what this actually means.
Several years back, Red Caboose began a relationship with IM where IM produces and distributes the RC line. My memory of the arrangement was that it was not an actual sale of RC to IM, but it’s a bit hazy to me exactly what the relationship entails. So it’s a technical definition. There are RC kits being made – by IM.
Problem is in using this definition is that RC could get sold again or just go back to producing their own kits. I wouldn’t worry about definitions based on corporate ownership, licensing or even current production. Makes more sense to me to simply say whether or not you’re going to find RC kits out there available to buy and build under a particular name, because that’s what you need to know to ask for and find them at the LHS, shows or on ebay.
If you do want RC kits, you pretty much need to order in advance. IM, RC, whoever, treats kits like RTR cars, unless you order it, you’ll have a hard time finding one once the run is delivered. Again, not sure why the RC kits are listed under IM, but when you buy one, I’m pretty sure it’ll say RC on the box. However, I haven’t ordered any RC kits since the changes were made, so I can’t say for sure. This may have changed[^o)]
When I ordered those X-29s (shown earlier) a couple of years ago, I bought directly from Red Caboose. They seemed to be clearing out their inventory in preparation of the arrangement with Intermountain. I don’t recall if I was told directly or read it on their website, but Intermountain was supposedly going to be doing all production of the Red Caboose models, and selling the r-t-r versions, while kits could be had through Red Caboose - I don’t see kit versions of Intermountain’s own stuff on the Red Caboose site, but when I checked today, they do have most of their own kits for sale. Intermountain’s site shows their own kits and, in the r-t-r section, some of the r-t-r Red Caboose cars, too.
Wayne
This is a Tichy tank car I recently completed. It is a wonderful kit, but has many fragile plastic parts; seems like something breaks on it every time I touch it. I replaced the plastic end handrails with brass wire because of this. Done with a Champ decal set.
BM 4806 is an IHC kit; I kitbashed the interior to match the prototype floor plan, the interor paint scheme is also similar to one of the 3 prototype schemes. Painted with Alclad on the outside.
This Russel winged snowplow, an Ambroid kit, was my first attempt at a wood craft kit about 40 years ago. I restored and repainted it a couple of years ago.
Caboose MEC 646 is a kitbash of an Atheran BB boxcar and wide vision caboose to match some boxcars converted to cabooses in the MEC shops in the 1960s.
Caboose MEC 556 is a Roundhouse truss rod kit that is a close match to an MEC prototype; painted in the pre-1955 colors.
The boxcar is another Athearn BB undecorated kit that I painted as a CR patch job over PC colors; using a Walthers decal set
[IMG]http://i139.photobucket.com/albums/
I stand corrected, Red Caboose does sell kits. They are undecorated, meaning they will need painting and lettering; but, they are still a kit manufacturer and that is great!
I would have loved to include Speedwitch Media to the list; but, it appears to me that although the website is up and you can get to it, beyond that, I wonder if the company has ceased doing business.
i would like to add a few manufactures to your list.betlehem car works make very nice passenger car kits.they are moderatly hard but are very sharp.now that the purchaser of westerfield models has caught up with the backlog,he is back to taking orders for all the kits in the catalogue.these make very nice freight car kits.one more is southern car and foundry,they make both passenger car kits(sp baggage and baggage mail) also tank cars od a certain type. hope this helps. johnk
Dr. Wayne, I attempted to access Rail Shops, found their website and it was functioning, however nothing seemed to be available. Has anyone ordered from this company recently? If so what did you order, when did you order it and how was the service?
All of the manufactures listed in the first post of this thread seem to have working websites with stock on hand, this is prerequisit to my posting that manufacturer on the lsit.
Speedwitch is/was a one person shop and last I saw he was just selling on e-bay on stuff that he had on hand. From what I have heard he is not producing anything else. I have 7 of his kits and I like them very much.
Steve
That is too bad! It looks like Speedwitch produced some really nice kits. Selling off the inventory on Ebay seems like a quiting business move, to me.
Wouldn’t this thread be a great candidate for a “Sticky”?
However, maybe the thousands who want their rolling stock RTR, preclude our small little group of model builders who want to build them!
Actually I think we RTR guys still build kits but,prefer the more prototypical RTR cars.I currently working on a data only Accurail 50’ plug door boxcar and just about ready to add the decals.I consider myself a tad disappointed because there is a gap at the top and bottom of the door…Yes,I was well aware of this issue when I bought the kit but,I still like using these data only cars.I like the added screws for the couplers and trucks.
With todays highly detailed locomotives maybe thousands of us decided the RTR cars with superior details would compliment today’s detailed locomotives.
A price oddity.
Also at the discount price I paid for that data only boxcar I could have gotten a Atlas Trainman boxcar with metal wheels $2.00 cheaper-$11.99 for the kit with plastic wheels and door gap vs.$9.99 for the Trainman with metal wheels…I’m still scratching my head trying to understand that.
However,in this case its not about the price or RTR vs. kit.
It was all about the need.
Brakie,
Many of the kit manufacturers mentioned in the list at the beginning of this thread, produce kits that are every bit as detailed as your $40.00 Ready To Run cars. Some of them even charge the same price for their Ready To Run painted/decorated equipment as they do for their unpainted/undecorated kits. Figure that one out!
Didn’t I just say above: “Maybe the thousands who want their rolling stock RTR, preclude our small little group of model builders who want to build them!” Doesn’t this mean that you RTR guys are winning, if this were a contest?
I stopped trying to reason that out since it doesn’t make sense-at least to my feeble mind.
If this is a contest then they’re no clear cut winners since the hobby is to diverse for one market.
I like RTR but,I still like to decal cars so,Accurail’s data only cars is on the top of my kit list.
Why?
A lot of today’s car just carries the railroad’s initals and here’s where I can do some one off cars like DSRC (Dakota Southern) or perhaps a HS( Hartford & Slocomb) single door 50’ boxcar…
Now,which is better a $11.99 car and decals or a (say) $35.00 HS car with just the initals? Of course the $11.99 car won’t be exact and won’t have the air hose,brake piping detail and uncoupling bar but,those details can be added by the modeler but,I can live with that.
BTW…I have several cars I want to decal using the data only kits…
What someone else wants to do – especially when it depends on what some manufacturer wants to produce – doesn’t keep me from building anything I want. It’s a myth that RTR is hurting kit- or scratch-building. RTR simply opens the hobby up to those who don’t build kits – currently. Nothing wrong with that. It doesn’t move my cheese at all. If someone buys a RTR car, it’s no skin off my nose and it sure doesn’t prevent me from doing what I please.
Much of my modeling is in HOn3. Before Blackstone, it was either brass, kits, or hire someone to build kits for you (the last was something only a very tiny minority wanted or could afford.) With Blackstone, I can concentrate my modeling on things I want to do. No need to build that 50th Rio Grande 3000-series boxcar, for instance, or install a Tsunami in a brass loco (although I can certainly do both.)
I do think it’s important to show what can be done, both in straight-forward, built-by-the-instructions kits and ones that are bashed into something else. RTR is a good intro to an even more engaging hobby once you decide you want your skill set to advance beyond taking the credit card out of the wallet stage. But I think we should avoid setting up barriers between the RTR crowd and everyone else. They’re usually just strawmen anyway, since it’s a very, very rare model railroader these days who doesn’t engage in some mix of RTR and kit-building.
This thread is a good example of offering info to encourage people to become more engaged with the hobby.
I agree with Mike, not because we are HOn3 releated, but now, today, you actually can buy better RTR, & today, our time is more of a preimum.
Although, I feel a real sense of satisfaction, when I build a model, detail it, or even only switch wheels & couplers.
I feel I have something that better than before, & in the case of my Custom Lokies, something no one else has, in the way I do those builds.
There is nothing wrong with RTR, but for me, I would like to enjoy assembling them just the same.
More KITS, PLEASE!!!
More UNDECORATEDS, PLEASE!!!
Just my Opinion…
I would add Rio Grande Models to the list. The kits are basically a box of sticks and some castings but they do come out nice and the company offers some unusual prototypes. The box cars and and other closed sided rolling stock use laser cut and scribed parts…
Three examples:
I believe I have included everyone’s suggestions for kit manufacturers. As I stated; prerequisite to being added to the list is that the business appears to still be actively doing business. If there are more kit manufacturers that you know of, that are not on the list, please, let me know and I will add them.
It appears interest in this thread is waning. It doesn’t look like the website will make it a “Sticky”. So, for myself, I will make a copy of the list and place the copy in my word processor.
I didn’t look but,I will add Bev-Bel,Robin’s Rails,Rail Runner,Mckean and the older Yard Master kits from Branchline.
Those can be found on e-Bay and train shows.