Does anyone out there know the status of Walthers Gold Ribbon kits? Have they been discontinued never to return or just sold out for a the short term. There were some nice structures in this series. Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.
Only Walthers could tell you for sure. However, if you look at the status of the Gold Ribbon kits on their website, it does indeed ook like they’re discontinued the line.
When they show the status as “Sold Out” or “Disc when Sold Out”, that usually means curtins for the product.
I agree, it’s a shame. There were some nice structures in that series. Maybe they intend to re-release them in their new “Laser-Cut” line, on which, presumably, the profit margins are higher! We can but hope.
Realistically, Walthers can’t keep producing every kit they’ve ever made, and also keep coming up with new stuff. From time to time, they will “un-retire” a product and do more production runs. The Car Float and it’s associated Car Float Apron are a good example. These were history for years, so much so that the original $30 kits were going for over a hundred on eBay. They came back into production a couple of years ago, and now they are again unavailable.
Send them an e-mail and ask. If enough people want something, they may do another production run. But, they need a reason to think that the demand is there, and they’ll never know if you don’t tell them.
As I read the online catalog, the Gold Ribbon structures say “sold out” – Walthers can and does say “discontinued when sold out” and they did not use that phrasing here. And sometimes quite a period of time can elapse between “runs” of a given kit. I guess my advice would be, if you see a Gold Ribbon structure that you must have at a LHS or train show, buy it rather than take the chance. But don’t be shocked if it reappears – or is changed over to the RTR line.
Dave Nelson
Hi to all who responded.The good word from Walthers is that the line has been discontinued and by all accounts all pieces in this collection have been sold out. There were no kits in this series made this year for Walthers. They suggest I try items from their new line of kits. I haven’t seen anything in their new offering that I would like at this time. It doesn’t look as good as the regular Walthers products I have been used to seeing and using over the years. Maybe I’m too much of a traditionalist. Maybe I’ve modelled the 50’s and early 60’s too long. Only a good railway doctor could tell me for sure. Nothing lasts forever and things change.Thanks again for your posts
This may sound a little like 20/20 hindsight, in view of the previous post, but to decode Walther’s inventory (based on my e-mail exchanges with them):
“Discontinued when Sold Out” means, “It’s in stock, but if you want it, buy it now, because we’re not getting any more.”
“Sold Out” means, “We used to carry this product but we don’t have it anymore. We’re keeping the product on our website for a while so people can reference the number and find dealers who have received the item.”
Any other entry in the “Expected” column tells when they expect to receive the item, or “Unknown” for those cases in which they expect to restock, but don’t know when the item will be available.
Yeah I put several of their kits together. They are okay
They say you don’t need to paint or glue them. But to get the most out of them I always do both. They lack a lil detail, but are nice quick kits to put together and the price is reasonable.
Yeah, sure. You don’t need electricity for your layout, either, if you’re happy with a static display. Personally, I think paint and glue on the Gold Ribbon kits adds a lot to the product.
They were nice, attractive structures which fit my layout’s style and theme perfectly. It’s a shame that they’re not making them any more.