Model Railroading > Today's new Athearn HO announcements include:

Genesis Challengers, including NP and SP&S
Genesis U50s
Genesis GP7/9s and GP40-2s
Genesis 57' mechanical reefers
Genesis oil tenders for Big Boys
SD40T-2s
2893 cu ft covered hoppers
24' ore cars
50' smoothside combination-door boxcars
200-ton rail cranes
Ford truck tractors towing 20' containers on chassis
container chassis



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 03/27/15 09:44 by toledopatch.

They're doing U50Cs now?

The Athearn website shows the U50 B+B-B+B. No mention of the C version.

djansson Wrote:
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> The Athearn website shows the U50 B+B-B+B. No
> mention of the C version.

Oops. My bad.

i looked at the ad for the NP/SP&S z6 challengers.  it shocks the hell out me they are starting to dab into what used to be brass only territory.   maybe there is hope for a plastic rio grande l-105 after all

Will Hemb
Flower Mound, TX

There is a mistake in the mention of a 200T crane.  It is the 250T crane that they've offered before. 

Rick

rschonfelder Wrote:
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> There is a mistake in the mention of a 200T
> crane.  It is the 250T crane that they've offered
> before. 
>
> Rick

In that regard, 200T is how it's listed on their Web site.

If anyone wishes to contact them about that, feel free. While you're at it, mention that the Conrail version of that crane or any other would not be valid before 1976 (they say, 1972+ for all road names).

Nice to see the SSW GP40-2s, and another run of SP SD40T-2s.

Kx450F_180 Wrote:
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> Nice to see the SSW GP40-2s, and another run of SP
> SD40T-2s.

With the "L" shaped engineer's side windows, I presume the SD40T-2s are "as delivered".

No N Scale and No HO or N Scale commuter.

No one seems to want to tackle the much requested Surfliner / California cars in HO or N (I know Walthers did one model in HO).

Athearn also seems to sell most commuter cars out very quickly and with most lines growing new car numbers would be much appreciated.

Northridge Switcher

They're doing the Challengers in N too....

There's N scale stuff, I just didn't make the effort to include it in my posting. But I did specify "HO" in the thread-head.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/27/15 14:49 by toledopatch.

northridgeswitcher Wrote:
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>
> No one seems to want to tackle the much requested
> Surfliner / California cars in HO or N (I know
> Walthers did one model in HO).
>
> Northridge Switcher

Outside of the California market, is there really that much request for the so called Surfliner/AmCal equipment? Walthers played it safe yet remained prototypical by producing the select repainted Superliners passenger cars for Surfliner/AmCal service. To their credit, I've seen 5-6 car train sets of the repainted Walthers models being push/pulled by Athearn F59 engines. While not prototypically correct, from 3 feet away they surprisingly look the part!

Mr. MRL

Looks like z-8 challengers, not z-6

Posted from iPhone

MrMRL Wrote:
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> northridgeswitcher Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> >
> > No one seems to want to tackle the much
> requested
> > Surfliner / California cars in HO or N (I know
> > Walthers did one model in HO).
> >
> > Northridge Switcher
>
> Outside of the California market, is there really
> that much request for the so called
> Surfliner/AmCal equipment? Walthers played it safe
> yet remained prototypical by producing the select
> repainted Superliners passenger cars for
> Surfliner/AmCal service. To their credit, I've
> seen 5-6 car train sets of the repainted Walthers
> models being push/pulled by Athearn F59 engines.
> While not prototypically correct, from 3 feet away
> they surprisingly look the part!

If California cars have significant design differences from Superliners -- which they must, because otherwise that scheme probably WOULD have been done by now -- I wouldn't hold my breath on this either. It seems like the California crowd desperately and LOUDLY wants them done, but who else besides a few collectors would buy them?

Sorry, you are correct there are two N Scale announcements.  When I look when the post first went up on T/O they (Athearn) must not have been done posting because there are now HO trucks showing and the 2 N Scale items.  

Did we notice the due dates on some items?  Feb, Mar, June 2016 Wow!

On the Surfliner cars yes the cars are different, and MrMrl is correct the Walthers cars in HO are good, if they added a cab car it would probably work for most HO modelers.

Kato is the logical choice to do a "Custom" run of the Amtrak Surfliners in N Scale using their custom painter who did the CalTrains sets and has been doing their custom locomotives.    The California Cars (northern CA Amtrak) might be more of a stretch.

Last time I saw a M/R survey the Surfliners in both HO and N were high on the modelers want list.    With the volume of Metrolink, NMR, UTA and other commuter cars Athearn sells in both HO and N it's really not a stretch to think that a full set of Surfliners (all correct cars) would not sell well.

Lok-Models did well with them in Brass in N Scale but they stopped all operations in June 2011 (even though their site is still up).   There were a couple of posts here on T/O about how folks were not aware of them and went to try to purchase (after reading about them on T/O) but he had already stopped selling.   A couple of old youtube videos shows the lighting effects on the cab-car and the overall quality in general.

Northridge Switcher

I have seen brass California Cars and Surfliner cars fetch $1000 a piece on auction sites. Therefore, I think there is a market for them in HO plastic. Consider Walthers Metroliner cars--even without catenary--they seem to sell. Surely there are plenty of modelers now and in the future even more modelers  who relate to the Cal cars and Surfliners than to the out of service Metroliners. 

railwaybaron Wrote:
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> I have seen brass California Cars and Surfliner
> cars fetch $1000 a piece on auction sites.
> Therefore, I think there is a market for them in
> HO plastic. Consider Walthers Metroliner
> cars--even without catenary--they seem to
> sell. Surely there are plenty of modelers now and
> in the future even more modelers  who relate to
> the Cal cars and Surfliners than to the out of
> service Metroliners. 

I'd be interested to see the actual numbers on the Metroliners, too.

On the Cal Cars, I don't live in California anymore, but it's what I model and I would figure out a way to afford at least one set of those cars.  And I'd be tempted to get a set of Surfliners.  

Nathan

Man... That announcement of the SP&S Challengers and NP Challengers is the best news I've heard in a long time.  I was all set to pre-order a SP&S Challenger in brass with Division Point until they got cancelled, but I'm elated that Athearn stepped up to the plate! Hip hip hooray!  Hip hip Hooray!  Hip hip hooray!  The only thing I'd prefer to see is the earlier road numbers, with the earlier tenders, because they are much more desirable than the later versions, that were more like the UP and D&RGW versions.

Now while you're at it Athearn... Don't you think we all need an Allegheny in HO scale?  ... one of the most awesome locomotives ever produced!

Cheers!  Mark



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/29/15 00:59 by SD40T-2.