Lombard still has some in stock.
I went and looked, and they do not list the undecorated model.
The place I ordered them from does not list the undecorated model either.
I would bet that Rapido cancelled the undecorated GLA hoppers. Since I did not order them directly from Rapido, I guess I never got a notice.
That is what I get for bargain shopping.
Thank you for sharing the tip.
-Kevin
A pair of mine arrived today —
NKP_181_Rapido by Edmund, on Flickr
Nothing was broken or loose in the shipping process save for one rear coupler that seems to be jammed open.
A note on the couplers, these are Rapido’s own “old Macdonald” couplers. [Macdonald-Cartier] They are pretty much worthless. Some reviews I’ve read, even in MR, for the recent Rapido cars and locos refer to them as being Kadee. They are NOT Kadee.
NKP_181_Rapido-1 by Edmund, on Flickr
Minus one point for the headlight LED configuration. IMHO the color leans too much to the “cool-blue” side and not a decent “yellow-white” or golden glow color. In addition there seems to be an arrangement of the lens that kind of makes the headlight and Mars light “shadowy” rather than seeing the full brightness of the lamp. The Mars light is set for a very slow oscillation. I’m sure that can be fixed in a CV setting. The number boards are nicely lit but perhaps just a tad bright. I’ll probably fix this by placing a small piece of masking tape behind the board which is a method I use to tone down the brightness and give the boards more of a yellowish glow.
NKP_181_Rapido-Proto by Edmund, on Flickr
[url=https://flic.kr/p/2nGLKGx][img]https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/52313576443_f1
The Rapido web site shows undecorated GLa hoppers, and shows them as “out of stock” - the question is did they really make any?
This hobby has changed considerably in the time I have been in it, and I don’t see all of it as good.
Just happy that I have much of what I need and want to build my upcoming layout, which, like my garden tractor, I expect will last me the rest of my life.
I have tried to be a Rapido customer, with little success.
My Bowser GLa hoppers are just fine…
Sheldon
My Proto PA’s are close coupled like this:
With this simple kit which has been offered for the Proto PA and E7 units for over 2 decades.
And my front couplers are like this and work fine.
There is no question that the Rapido PA is more detailed and more road specific correct. But my interest in PA’s is only for the roadname pictured above.
I had a set of undecorated PA’s on preorder as soon as they were announced, Rapido decided they could not make any money selling me those locomotives.
So I bought two more NOS Protos on Ebay.
And Ed, your Proto unit is missing the coupler lift bar it came with, note my picture from the bottom.
Sheldon
If they did, I’ll bet it was just enough to satisfy their pre-orders directly from Rapido.
I placed my pre-order from an online retailer that everyone said gave good service. They only charged my credit card for 0.02 for the reservation.
Oh well, it’s not like I am hurting for open top hopper cars. If I really want a GLA I think Funaro and Camerlengo makes a kit.
- - - - - - - - - -
When it comes to PAs, I just bought two NOS undecorated A shells and two NOS undecorated B shells on eBay, all from Athearn. I have an A/B powered Athearn set that has served me well. It looks like I will have plenty of chances to paint and detail updgraded bodies for them.
-Kevin
Already had three Proto PA’s and one PB which I powered years ago (the early releases only offered unpowered B units).
When Rapido canceled the undec units, I found several more Protos on Ebay and now have parts for two AB sets and a AA set.
And I bought spare axle sets, and other spare parts from LifeLike years ago when they were just 40 minutes from my house.
The Roster is now full in the PA department.
Sheldon
You make a good point there. If they see undecorated models as such a money loosing, extra trouble, issue, it would make sense to only produce those orders that they are making the full markup on as long as it is enough units for reasonable production deviation same as a separate roadname.
OR,
The retailers simply decide not to order them?
Sheldon
A Proto PA rear shot with all the parts.
Sheldon
Thanks for pointing that out, Sheldon. I had every intention of mentioning that fact but got involved with the other captions and also had other obligations away from the internet which precluded me from further editing.
These older PAs were actually on my “to-do” shelf for lubing and other upgrades and I knew I was going to be opening them up so thought there was no reason to replace the cut lever since I’d be removing it again soon to remove the shell.
NKP_187_Cut lever1 by Edmund, on Flickr
The trailing unit has faired better.
NKP_187_Cut lever by Edmund, on Flickr
Fact of the matter is, the horns are missing as well:
NKP_187_Missing Horns by Edmund, on Flickr
In later years the Leslie A-200 was replaced by a Nathan M-5 (reference my photo at PE Tower in an earlier reply) and I was in the process of performing this modification [:$]
I should have mentioned it.
Thanks, Ed
No worries, I just wanted others to be aware ofthe close coupling kit.
The Rapido units look very nice, but I don’t model any roads that actually had them.
Only ATLANTIC CENTRAL, B&O, C&O and WESTERN MARYLAND here. That is enough to try and do a fair job at modeling locomotive wise.
I don’t have any real gripe about the trend toward RTR high detail models, I have my share.
But:
I am not motivated to replace models I have always been happy with.
I have no interest in DCC or onboard sound.
I still like building models including the freelance/protolance thing.
I have new Bowser RS-3’s on preorder - WM and C&O.
But honestly, there are only about 5 or 10 more locos that I have any need or interest in aquiring.
Sheldon
Sheldon–
I have 5 new Bowser RS-3’s here, and although I may be biased due to once working for them 30 years ago, they are fantastic, and I think you will be happy when yours arrive.
My local train store owner friend is trying to get me just 1 Rapido PA-1. Most PA-1 units of most road names were spoken for before the last distributor (to my knowledge) received their container just a couple days ago.
I have the two C&O numbers and the two WM Fireball numbers on preorder in DC. They will round out my rosters for those two roads nicely
The WM units are exactly correct for my era, the C&O units close enough (they were delived some months after my Steptember 1954 “setting”). SAee I don’t loose sleep over little things like that.
After that, I would like to find a nice WM Pacific.
I am sure the Bowser RS units will be to my liking, I have seen their work.
I like PA’s, that why the ATLANTIC CENTRAL has them, but I have no use for them in any of the road names that actually had them.
Sheldon
Sheldon–
I was trying to get back to topic not in any way insinuating that you should buy any decorated PA’s that don’t fit your railroad’s theme.
Well, ok, that’s fine.
As I pointed out Rapido once again missed their chance to get my money, Bowser will get it instead - all of it since they are ordered thru their outlet…
As this hobby becomes more and more about buying expensive toys built by others, I become more determined to maintain those aspects of the “old ways” I enjoy.
Rapido and others have past the point of diminishing returns in my opinion. Bachmann has pulled back from the excessive detail market as prices push ever higher. Athearn and Bowser seem to have a good balance of cost vs detail. Broadway still thinks sound is more important than even basic model accuracy in some cases.
Again, I’m just happy I have nearly all the trains I want and need for my new layout.
And I don’t have any emotional need to trade them on on something newer or “better”.
There is a saying in construction - the enemy of “good” is “better”.
And in carpentry - it is not perfection, it is the illusion of perfection.
Sheldon
Getting back to the original topic, who has gotten the Rapido PA and what do you think of them.
Oh, I missed this comment previously and would like to respond:
(I am not authorized to speak on behalf of any manufacturer so should keep names out of this.)
Some manufacturers would be fine with selling undecorated models. They’d sell anything they could to make an honest profit.
One major issue for them is that the factories in China do NOT want to offer undecorated models. Specifically they do not want their people having to count out, double check count, and package all the parts for an undecorated model. They do not want to write up instructions. Even the undecorated freight cars coming in from some manufacturers can come without any instructions at all–and the prospective kit builder had better know the prototype well to know where parts go. They cannot be packaged the same way as a decorated model, so separate packaging must be designed. All of that has a cost associated with it.
Also–regarding the idea of only making enough to cover orders–the last time that one manufacturer offered undecorated locos they only ever received about 40 orders. That’s all there ever were. Minimum quantity established by factory to do them was 100. So are you saying the manufacturer should produce undecorated diesel locos at a net loss?
In the factual real world example I am citing, the manufacturer decided to make the 100 (minimum order as established with factory) undecorated diesels anyway, perhaps as a form of “customer service”, but ne
John,
Do you have or have you actually assembled a Tangent undecorated kit? I have one of their steel bay window caboose kits and Tangent provides VERY detailed assembly instructions for that and ALL their undecorated kits on their website for download.
The NYC bay caboose instructions are 39 pages in length and contain a plethora of helpful photos to aid the modeler in assembling that specific car. Having written detailed work instructions as part of my job, I can greatly appreciate the time & effort taken by Tangent to put something like that together for its customers. They have also done a fine job of organizing the various pieces/parts in separate numbered bags to aid in the assembly process. Either they did that themselves…or had the folks in China do that for them.
The above makes purchasing an undecorated Tangent kit well-worth the price - to me. And, apparently, the undecorated NYC cab caboose kits were popular because there are NO more available on the Tangent website. The fully-assembled, painted & detailed NYC cabooses were gone in a very short time after their release in early Sep '21. I was delighted to nab two of them directly from Tangent before they disappeared. They are gorgeous!
Tom
Hi Tom–
I believe on another forum someone stated they received a covered hopper kit with no instructions at all. I thought he stated it was Tangent’s. It is possible that it could have been Exactrail’s?
Just in case, I have updated my post above to remove Tangent’s name.
My apologies and thank you for the update.
John
Back to the Rapido Alco PA/PBs. I have not yet received my Santa Fe PA/PB-1 pair; I will comment on it once I have it in my hands. However, several eBay dealers posted pics, and as Ed (gmpullman) had pointed out, Rapido did not correct the brake cylinder issue (the cylinders are not arranged horizontally as would be prototypical, but they follow the upper curve of the truck). Considering the price of these units and that Rapido was aware of this issue, I find this truly disappointing.
In a previous thread about the Alco PAs, a poster had referred to a planned run of these engines in brass by Division Point. Well, more recently DP released pics of their UP #80/8080 Coal Turbine 3 unit set. The #80 unit is essentially an Alco PA-1, and it is a georgeous model.
However, my brass dealer contact (www.railmodel.com) is nor very optimistic that DP will come out with the PAs in the foreseeable future. Reservation numbers were just too low.