Here is a trivia question for historical types and is actual a question for some to provide answers.
What year and what was the first kit that MDC Roundhouse produced in plastic?
Have at it.
The freight cars in the 1953 catalog are metal, so I would assume it was at least the mid or late 50’s that they started using plastic.
I would guess it was in the mid 1960’s.
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I came up with that answer “Sans-Google”.
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-Kevin
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It was during 1961-62 when MDC changed from production of diecast metal car kits to plastic cars. Clarence Menteer, founder of MDC, and Irv Athearn, founder of Athearn Trains, were good friends. And during the change over Athearn supplied plastic car bodies to MDC which MDC painted and lettered and supplied with MDC cast metal underframes. The following cars were marketed by MDC as a stopgap between the end of their production of die cast metal car kits and the release of their own plastic freight car line. Externally, the cars appear to be Athearn cars until close examination reveals the cast metal underframe and MDC trucks. Since it was very easy to convert these cars to Athearn underframes, many can be found with Athearn underframes, but any Athearn cars with these road names are definitely MDC production since Athearn never used these road names or style of lettering in their own line.
Kit B40 - 40’ Sgl Door Boxcar, GN 11875
Kit B41 - 40’ Sgl Door Boxcar, ATSF 16964
Kit B42 - 40’ Sgl Door Boxcar, PRR 87743
Kit A50 - 50’ Dbl Door Boxcar, UP 187873
Kit A51 - 50’ Dbl Door Boxcar, NKP 86250
Kit A52 - 50’ Dbl Door Boxcar, MKT 99530
Kit G50 - 50’ Gondola, SP 160754
Kit G51 - 50’ Gondola, WM 54646
Kit G52 - 50’ Gondola, CB&Q 82298
Kit T40 - 40’ Chemical Tank Car, EBAX 919 (Ethyl Corp)
Kit T41 - 40’ C
HO Seeker has a lot of MDC Roundhouse info. Not sure they spell out the metal to plastic transition.
I still have an unopened batch of metal frame and plastic shell kits.
River City Railroad is still selling Roundhouse shake the box kits.
Some years ago I saw them online and supposedly bought out MDC Roundhouse stuff. I sometimes wonder if a company in China is making the plastic kits they sell. An email to them was unanswered.
I bought some old time all plastic 36ft cars around 2002 from them.
Rich
According to the Athearn Wiki, they obtained the MDC assets in 2004. Soon after they started offering rolling stock from the former MDC line in RTR form with metal wheels and KD compatible plastic couplers.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athearn
Athearn has upgraded some of those MDC freight cars. For example the FMC covered hopper was first offered in 2005 it’s original form with molded on grab irons. In 2008 the FMC covered hopper was upgrade to have wire grab irons and an etched metal roof walk and remains in the RTR line with those upgrades. Athearn has also upgrade the FMC double door box car to have fine stirrups and wire grab irons to improve it’s appearance over the old MDC version.
Some of the former MDC rolling stock which I assume Athearn deemed less “scale” in appearance has been moved into the “Roundhouse” line of products in recent years. Athearn has also moved some of the old blue box line into the Roundhouse line as well, including the old Globe based F7, shorty passeger cars etc.
I have four box cars, that still operate on my layout, circa 1962, with plastic bodies and metal floors. These came with “oversized” metal X2f couplers, and sprung trucks with plastic wheels mounted on metal axels. I also have several of the circa 1968 Roundhouse Penn Central kits, which came with solid trucks with plastic wheels, plastic X2f couplers, plastic body and metal frame. Some of the cars came unnumbered, with dry transfer numbers included, for multiple cars of one road name.
During the time frame, I bought these cars, I was transitioning from Lionel.
I was also buying Athearn Yellow Box cars, plastic kits, with sprung trucks that required assembly, and Athearn Metal cars which required complete assembly, including car body. I found the Roundhouse kits preferrable to the competition.