New N Scale Announcement from Walthers

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

Walthers has just announced the following press release:

Atlas Model Railroad Co. to Acquire Walthers N Locomotive and
Rolling Stock Tooling

Atlas Model Railroad Company, Inc., and Wm. K. Walthers, Inc.
have reached an agreement under which Atlas will purchase all N
Scale locomotive and rolling stock tooling owned by Walthers,
including the Walthers N tooling as well as former Life-Like
tooling. Atlas will incorporate this tooling into its Atlas
Master, Atlas Classic, and Trainman N Scale lines. Walthers will
continue to offer N Scale items in its Cornerstone,
SceneMaster™, and Walthers Controls brands, including new
items as well as items currently in those lines.

“We feel that this tooling has found a great home with Atlas.
They have a strong N Scale offering and these tools will help
them bring some exceptional products back to the market,” said
Phil Walthers, President of Wm. K. Walthers, Inc.

Tom Haedrich, Executive Chairman at Atlas added, “We’re pleased
to be bringing these former Walthers N Scale models back to the
market so that they can be enjoyed by present and future model
railroaders alike. These locomotives and rolling stock will fit
right in with our existing N Scale lines and we are committed to
producing them with the latest technology, prototypical accuracy,
and high quality you’ve come to expect from Atlas.”

Established in 1932,

2

Hopefully this will mean the re-release of the former LL C424.

3

I am pretty excited by this news and look forward to what Atlas will be reissuing!

Regards.

4

I wonder if they’ll eventfully do the same thing with their HO line?

I have purchased very few Walthers brand locomotives and rolling stock because of operating issues. However, I did purchase one of their reissues of the SW1 switcher, which runs well, IIRC. The original release (early 90s) is still a great little locomotive and one of my favorites.

Tom

5

That does not surprise me at all seeing Walthers was never all that interested in N scale.

Atlas has excellent N Scale track record so,I can’t wait to see the drives under the EMD switchers.

Wonder if Atlas will release those beautiful 0-8-0,2-8-8-2 and 2-8-4s?

6

Clearly Walthers is retrenching, but my understanding is that they had some specific disappointments with N rolling stock in terms of market size and being left with too much inventory after the initial purchase “rush” - which is the way rolling stock stuff (less so structures it seems) is being bought and sold these days, like it or not. In other words the N scale rolling stock market was for them different than their HO market in some key ways.

Dave Nelson

7

This might be great news. Sometimes I get disappointed each month when Walthers releases stuff in HO but not N. (I did bought the TTX &ATSF Maxi-I, III and SW9 BNSF).

It would be nice to see steam locomotives again and return the old diesel locomotives.