Trainworx Announcement Just got the email

[wazzou]

Walthers and Exactrail have done the PS 4427 low side car...MT and now Trainworx are doing the PS 4427 high side car. 
MT could have probably kept Trainworx form doing it if they had released more schemes in a timely fashion, so let's face it there are plenty of road names and paint schemes to do for Trainworx.

[coosvalley]

I guess I didn't read the thread correctly!....Two choices is reasonable, four would have been overkill!

I withdraw my bethgon comparison......

[Ike the BN Freak]

Would be nice if Trainworx also did the low hips, as it seems ExactRail is dropping N scale.

Will have to get a few of these anyways, probably a few of the later ATSF and a Frisco. Be nice to change up my unit grain trains so they aren't all Trinity 4780s from IM.

[sirenwerks]

MT and Walthers both.   The Walthers version wasn't terrible, they just quit making them.  And the MTL is a really nice car...I've bought every one that is remotely legit for my era/locale.   But same deal....you snooze you lose.   I love Trainworx stuff so I couldn't be happier about this announcement.

Walthers only did the low side version, AFAIK.  But yes, MTL dropped the ball.  NP had a fleet of 350 of the high side cars and it would be nice for one of them to release them, preferably Trainworx now since it produces multiple numbers.

The low side needs to be resurrected though, by someone.  Hopefully Trainworx will pick up the mantle.  There were several slight variations of the car built for PRR, KCS, and the TLDX fleet.  These included a very short run of side-ladderless cars starting in 1966, produced just before the redesign to the high side version.  But overall the low side version offers more paint schemes than the high side version, for sure.  It was owned by AC&Y, AT&SF, B&M, C&NW, CGW, D&RGW, DT&I, IC, KCS, Milwaukee, MKT, MN&S, NP, PRR, RI, SLSF, Soo Line, UP, and WM, with BN(SF), ICG and N&W acquiring cars through merger. Private operators include: The Andersons/AEX, B.J. Hughes/BJHX, Corn Products/CCLX, Commodity Traders/CTIX, Dow Badische/DBCX, Equity Union Grain/EUGX, FMC/FMLX, Garvey Elevators/GELX, Garvey Grain/GGIX, International Minerals & Chemicals/IMCX, Monsanto/MCPX, Quaker Oats/QOHX , Scoular/SBGX, and West Central Coop Grain/WCDX. TLDX cars were leased to ADM, Bartlet & Co. Grain, Beacon Feeds, B&W Coop, Carborundum, Cargill, Central Canada Potash, Continental Grain, Coop Marketing Association, Farmers Coop, Far-Mar-Co, Federal Bentonite, J. W. Flammer, Jack Follmer Grain, Louis Dreyfus, Mt. Auburn Elevator, Olin, Peavey, Pillsbury, Producers Grain, Rogers Grain, Sangaman Grain, Tabor & Co., Wayne Feeds, and Valley Mills, plus several non billboard TLDX schemes.  Some leasers, like Cargill, Scoular, and LD, had several different schemes and the direct owners also went through paint iterations.

Now, who will increase the variety of ACF Centerflows?  Athearn would do well to go beyond the 2970.

[jagged ben]

Argghh...  I think it's going to be hard to resist these.  So many good western roads. 

Will they have etched walkways and body mount couplers?

[jagged ben]

Are these them?

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=455372

[jagged ben]

Okay sorry for multiple posts...

I know that Exactrail's anti-discount policies may be annoying, but the cars mentioned are available on their website.    Cmon guys... 

[sirenwerks]

Okay sorry for multiple posts...

I know that Exactrail's anti-discount policies may be annoying, but the cars mentioned are available on their website.    Cmon guys... 

Of the many billboard schemes, ExactRail did 3 in N and they're no longer available.  I bought multiples of each and they're all sold out so there doesn't seem like there's much arguement for there not being a market.  ExactRail did 10 billboard schemes in HO, so it has the artwork for others.  And it missed 2 (early C&NW and NP) of the 3 class 1 schemes I want (I bought a 4th on a whim), so as far as availability I guess it's a matter of wants.

I should mention that it would be great if Microscale or another decal manufacture jumped on this opportunity and did decals for this car.  Especially for the billboard schemes since they're likely all popular enough for production runs.  ER may not have undecs available but stripping cars isn't a problem.

[Missaberoad]

Are these them?

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=455372

Yes, and the fourth car appears to be a Low side...

I believe the biggest reason for eliminating the "skirting" on these cars was to reduce Tare weight. It seems to be the governing factor in freight car design (especially hoppers) since the 1960's... 

I'm very excited to see the trainworx car, they are one of the most underrated manufacturer IMO... Their products put the larger scales to shame...

[nkalanaga]

The ExactRail cars are nice cars, and I have a couple.  If they really are dropping N scale, I wonder if they would consider selling the tooling to another manufacturer?  Their cars are nicely done, and similar models aren't readily available elsewhere.

[Ike the BN Freak]

I know that Exactrail's anti-discount policies may be annoying, but the cars mentioned are available on their website.    Cmon guys... 

Their direct only sales and "anti-discount" policy isn't what bothers me, its they have done one run, I bought all the cars from that run I wanted...and now there are no new ones...

[GaryHinshaw]

I saw plenty of these as a kid, so I'll get a couple for nostalgia's sake.  Trainworx is really serving the '70's modelers well these days.*

Will they have etched walkways and body mount couplers?

Their PD hopper did, so almost certainly I would guess.  The end cage detail on that hopper was a bit chunky, but otherwise a fine model.

-gfh

*I can think of no other N scale manufacturer that is as focused on the owner's personal modeling interests as Trainworx is.  It's pretty impressive that he is able to pull it off.

[sirenwerks]

I agree with Gary, Trainworx is a quiet manufacturer but cranking out plenty of 70s, and 60s fodder in excellent quality.  He also has started a line of etched details and is open to suggestions.  Pat deserves more praise.  If anyone else wants a URTX-style meat reefer, he was looking at the idea at one point and more emails might send him over the edge on the project.

[unittrain]

Trainworx is out of this world to us late 70's modelers I love their products they capture the essence of the era well especially in the area of intermodal when there was great diversity in equipment and roadnames

[jagged ben]

I saw plenty of these as a kid, so I'll get a couple for nostalgia's sake.  Trainworx is really serving the '70's modelers well these days.*

A Railcar Photos search for the Santa Fe with the big lettering revealed a heavily weathered one in 2006, IIRC.   So maybe not just nostalgia for you...