I know, it is a silly question, but what the heck? I got my first few in package deals off E Bay when I first got started in the hobby. At that time I did not know what junk was. Then I found this site and started to learn about model railroading and what it took to make rolling stock pull and track right.
I did like the color and looks of them and wanted a train that had multiple cars of the same kind. So I started playing with the tricks of the trade. Adding weight, PK 2000 wheel sets, reaming out the trucks and adding Kadee couplers to the body of the car.
Around 2007 I think I single handily drove the prices up on E Bay to around $10.00 a car! [(-D] At my Apex I had around 36 of them! [:-^] Sold a few on E Bay and gave some away as trade. Still have around 25 to 28.
I learned a lot from them and still run them on the layout. Sure got some funny looks dragging 30 of them around the club layout with a PCM Big Boy! [(-D]
What brought up this question today is I added 10 of them to a 40 car train just now being pulled by a Y6 b and a few [B]
Hi Ken,
I only have one, my Grampa John bought it when I was a kid, 1975ish, give or take… We put many miles on her, on the door core loop layout he built with, at the time, brass & fiber tie flex track.
I have not done much with the car, actually want to leave it original for Grampa!
As, it is my one good vintage car.
The other rolling stock is long gone, & however, I have been building, re-building, the Tyco 2-6-2 with brass Precision Scale parts & others to really commerate that childhood experience, & one which I can now enjoy again, even to extremes…
I think Grampa would be pretty happy, He sure would enjoy (in my mind he is, with me), what I have today…
I have two, both purchased on Ebay. One was complete and I added metal wheels and body mounted Kadee couplers. The other was just the body. I rebuilt it using bits and pieces from the junk box. It also has metal wheels and body mounted Kadee couplers. The two combined cost me about $15 including the parts and couplers. Both are Tyco Brown Box, No. 358-F -1974 Release.
What I have is the old Varney metal kit lithographed side reefer with Old Dutch Cleanser as the scheme
I believe there may have been such a car paint scheme in the days of billboard reefers before they were outlawed on antitrust grounds. So the Varney car with its metal ends and modernized roof is probably not the prototype that carried the paint scheme, but it is a handsome car.
Not to turn this discussion in a different direction, but I don’t understand why so many people detest Tyco stuff. I have AT LEAST 300 Tyco Cars run most of them regularly with no problems. But as Jeffery said above, they do need a little “help” with weights and couplers.
And, they are available in “lots” on the Bay for 2 -5 dollars a car.
For just a crazy minute, I thought you fellows were talking about Old Dutch POTATO CHIPS, a product made and heavily advertised in the upper Midwest back in the 60s and 70s! What possibly would be in the hopper-,fresh potatoes on their way to the food plant? Then, someone mentioned CLEANSER and my excitement died down- but how about a Bon Ami Cleanser car ( for those of us whom remember Mom scrubbing he bottoms of those cooking pots and pans??? Cedarwoodron
Well at the risk of reopening some old scars, it is hard to explain to someone who was not a modeler in the late 1950s early 1960s. I think the reason is that Tyco, originally a division of Mantua Metal Products, took a very respected and reputable name in model railroading with products that any modeler from beginner to veteran was happy to run on his layout and used it to sell a line of products some of which was simply not very good and some of which were toylike travesties of scale models. Their cheesy chrome plasted Alco diesel, fake GGI, and other such items are examples. Originally that Alco diesel was quite a nice model and available in Green Bay & Western paint.
The disdain is for taking such a respected name and making the name no longer mean what it once did. In 1960 just about any HO modeler would be happy to run a Tyco/Mantua boxcar or 0-6-0 on his layout. Someone bought the name and exploited it and the tooling. Those who remember the old name resent that.
Those who do remember, can pick and choose among the Tyco offering for those that offer some potential: their 50’ flatcar, Swift mechanical reefer, and gondola are examples.
i too bought tyco stuff as a starter to get into mrr. also didn’t know what they were and what they had as history of company. learned alot from them and still have alot os stuff such as a sd-24 up diesel, a 0-6-0 chattanooga steam loco and 12 peices of roling stock including 1 of these old dutch cleaner hopper cars. Thinking of getting rid of the 0-6-0, just needs traction tires (last ones lasted 3-4 hours) and the armeturure needs to be cleanded again (not that hard just requires alot of time and patience)(I did the diessel and it took over 2 hours to do it). the smoke still works!
Ken, I could have wrote an identical post word for word, it applies to me perfectly, only instead of Old Dutch Cleanser Tyco hoppers, my item was Tyco Heinz 57 reefers.
They where just junk we did not know about the ruined good reputation part. The loco’s broke down real easy and it was a case of what spare parts[:(]
Some of the well quite a lot of the rolling stock was toned down a bit and made look more presentable and bulked out quite a few layouts trains.
A lot of the building kits where used as well.
I still have some Tyco cars not sure about the old dutch one, I would not know the good ones form the real toys.
I do know I liked the bright colors at the time un like the boring greys and brown’s of the UK stuff which I had and still have.
Most of my Tyco is missing the brake wheels now. Any one got any suggestions as to a good after market brake wheel I can use to replace them, and the brake standards from the one and only wild west style coach I have.
Would like to get them back to the looks complete standard so I can use them on the layout toy or not.
I had one Tyco Old Dutch covered hopper: it had been sitting in the window of a nearby hobby shop and had deformed somewhat from the heat of the sun. Since it was free, I was glad to take it home.
I had originally thought that it might be an interesting project to turn it into a wreck-damaged car, but decided instead to use it to modify the really big tender that came with the original Bachmann Northern. After shortening the tender and changing it to a coal-type with an open bunker, I used part of the hopper’s top to model a new bottom for the tender, then built a pedestal-style frame using the cut-up original sideframes and some sheet styrene, plus a bunch of Kadee coupler box covers and some wire to make the leaf springs. A friend owns the loco now, but here are a couple views of it on my layout:
