I need a couple worm gear sets for an HO SW9/12. Since Walthers bought out life-like I can’t find aany company info.
lvrrsayre,
I recently contacted (11/17) Walthers about the availability of getting P2K parts. One of the customer service representatives contacted me back with the following message:
So, it looks like they’re still busy trying to clean up all the loose ends from the acquisition. Maybe by the beginning of the year things will be back to normal and LifeLike parts will be available for order.
Hope that’s a help…
Tom
I still think they are so busy trying to keep WalMart happy that they are unable to fulfill their other obligations. Hopefully, like was said above they will eventually get things sorted out and will be able to get back to business as usual
Bob DeWoody
Trying to get LL parts from walthers is a lost cause for the time being. But you may be in luck. Proto 2000 gearing is very similar, if not identical, to athearn BB gearing. So, you could either get the gears for an athearn blue box SW or get a NWSL kit. There is no guarantee that they will fit, but I think they should.
sorry guys sounds like a mess ,i called them before the take over about a worm gear on a ho E-8 and they sent it out free of charge and shipping ,i hope walters keeps up the same great service
Carl.
Last I talked to Walthers is they hope to have all in order by the end of January 2006 … I have a question and would like to know if any one has heard of this … Did the Hearitage USRA 2-8-8-2 PRR ever come without a cab? … I was told that at the end of Life like the quality control went down hill and that some engines was ship out without the cabs. Life like was sending cabs out but, now that Walthers took over the Parts are still in trailers . Walthers is telling me that they are not sure of this … Does any one have any idea? … Thanks for reading. … Craig
Work to live/ Don’t live to work [;)]
This acquisition is really bad news for HO modellers. Walthers has its points as a distributor but the stuff it manufactures is never better than mediocre, often worse, and with extremely inconsistent quality control. In terms of the quality I came to expect, I expect that the P2K line is history, but in marketing terms it will live on. I predict that “genuine” pre-buyout P2K will rise in value on E-Bay.
When the acquisition was first announced, Walthers indicated that Life-Like would continue as a wholly-owned but partially autonomous subsidiary. Its too bad that this plan has apparently been scrapped.
First Walthers manufactures very little of its product (almost all overseas) and Lifelike made 0% - all made overseas so saying Likelike was great and Walthers isn’t just is not supported by the facts. The manufacturing and QC is all overseas at various factories and in this case I would bet a lot that it is at the same factory, which would explain why the buyout happened so swiftly.
I RECENTLY NEEDED A GEARED WHEELSET FOR A LIKE-LIKE BL-2. 1 OF THE GEARS WAS CRACKED. I E-MAILED WALTHERS AND I RECEIVED 2 SETS OF NEW WHEELS WITHIN 10 DAYS OF THE E-MAIL. I THINK THAT WAS GREAT SERVICE. THE GEARS AND SHIPPING WERE FREE OF CHARGE.
I suspect the Walthers service will be the same as LL. There were only a few guys that ever answered the phone for service in the LL days and the service was great. Never asked me about warranty or if the card had been mailed in. They just sent out gear sets!
As far a Wal-Mart and all of those race sets - that was a done deal long before Walthers bought out the LL stuff, and I am sure that stuff was already built and shipped to Wal-Mart about the time Walthers bought them…
A couple of years ago, I sent an email to Walthers asking about the SW1 drive ‘upgrade’ kit they offered for ‘free’ for their SW1(now discontinued). They sent me a set(no charge) about a week later.
Jim Bernier
I called Walthers 11/28 to get replacement side frames for a PK2 E8 that I can’t find the parts list for. The guy (Jack or John) I talked to looked up the part number I needed and quoted a price. I ordered the parts, together with some detailing items, that day. They were packed by Walthers 11/30 and arrived here in Northeast Ohio on 12/3.
Not bad service!
I just bought 2 Proto 2000 GP 30s, and one had all 4 drive gears on the wheelsets broke. I called Walthers and the rep told me that he would send me 8 (for both trains even tho only one currently needed them). I was happy till today when I got the parts in the mail. I was told I would get 8 I have an invoice for 4 and only recieved 2. [:(!] I guess I need to call them again.
To, update on the Life like 2-8-8-2 problem … Walthers called me back and said they got in touch with Life like. They told him that they never heard of cabs missing on any of the 2-8-8-2 engines. They said that the PRR came through with different tenders and that they sent out dog houses for the tenders but no missing cabs. I think the person that told me that didn’t have all the facts right. Walthers said that they have a lot of parts to unload yet and that they probably wouldn’t get into those trailers until Feb or March of 06. so If you want any Life like parts you might have a long wait …
Craig
Work to live /don’t live to work[;)]