Horizon and Comet Cars in N & HO - Plus a lot more!

[Point353]

I appreciate the links but I can be a bit more patient at those prices. Isn't Rapido coming out with these at some point also?

$75 is too much for a loco with an MSRP of $115? That's a 35% discount.
What price were you looking for and do you expect that the Rapido version will be less expensive?

[CBQ Fan]

$75 is too much for a loco with an MSRP of $115? That's a 35% discount.
What price were you looking for and do you expect that the Rapido version will be less expensive?

Ah, the joke is on me.  They are still in MAP pricing!  These have been around long enough that my usual haunts would list a discounted price. Thanks for making me take a second look. 

[EspeeGoldenState]

Metallic silver is difficult to photograph, or compare in photos. I also believe thet both cars aroudn the HOrizon car woudl have been stainless stell, where Horizon is supposed to be dull aluminum color.  It would be interesting how a 1:1 photo of a Horizon and Amfleet car show both silver colors.

While I haven't got my Horizon cars yet, I'm basing my train off the Missouri River Runner. Where Horizons and one/two Amfleets are usually in the consist. I've only linked one pic, but a flickr/google search would yield plenty.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/stefanloeb/15304619958

The weathered/faded Horizons definitely have that dull aluminum look compared to the Amfleets, almost he same muted colors of the P42.

[peteski]

That's perfect. Thank you both!  That proves my point.

[CBQ Fan]

That's perfect. Thank you both!  That proves my point.

Was your point that painted cars fade significantly more than stainless steel? 

[peteski]

Was your point that painted cars fade significantly more than stainless steel?

Comet cars are *NOT* painted.
The dull grayish silver is their bare aluminum skin.  And yes, I was making a point that those Comet cars should look different than Amfleets (or other stainless steel skinned cars, or even other Amtrak heritage fleet cars which are painted silver).

[davefoxx]

Comet cars are *NOT* painted.
The dull grayish silver is their bare aluminum skin.  And yes, I was making a point that those Comet cars should look different than Amfleets (or other stainless steel skinned cars, or even other Amtrak heritage fleet cars which are painted silver).

Agreed.  That aluminum looks closer to Amtrak's Platinum Mist paint than it does stainless steel.

DFF

[ncbqguy]

Does anyone know a shop that has any of the NJ Comets in stock?  A friend missed the boat on preorders and really wants some coaches now.
Charlie Vlk

[dem34]

Does anyone know a shop that has any of the NJ Comets in stock?  A friend missed the boat on preorders and really wants some coaches now.
Charlie Vlk

He can try calling the model RR shop in Piscataway NJ. They don't like online or even mail orders but if he plans to buy a few then I doubt they'd say no. Was there last Saturday and there were about 20 trailers and 15 cabs left.

[ncbqguy]

He can try calling the model RR shop in Piscataway NJ. They don't like online or even mail orders but if he plans to buy a few then I doubt they'd say no. Was there last Saturday and there were about 20 trailers and 15 cabs left.

Great!  Just forwarded to my buddy!
Thanks,
Charlie Vlk

[MetroRedLine]

Anyone have these in N scale? How do they roll?

[dem34]

Anyone have these in N scale? How do they roll?

Pretty well as long as the brake detail doesn't rub on the tread. If it does its fixed fairly easily by carefully levering it off the tread with a blade.

[daniel_leavitt2000]

Anyone have these in N scale? How do they roll?

Roughly the same as the Kato Amfleet cars. You should be able to do a full 5 car train with one Kato F40PH without modifications. You can probably hit a 2% grade with one engine but anything more than that and you may see some slipping.

I really like the cars but the snubber assembly is really delicate and prone to breaking. I had one truck broken out of the 15 cars I received. Rapido is sending a replacement.

The other issue I have is that the trucks are not attached by pins but rather split pegs. These can break if you remove the trucks several times. Since the pegs are integrated into the chassis, you need to order an entire new floor assembly to replace it. Not only that but there is a very small and fragile washer between the truck and body that forms a "U" shape. This needs to be oriented correctly around the split pin. This is also very prone to breaking and I needed to make one out of .05" sheet styrene. It is a very perplexing decision to have made the trucks this way and I hope they revise this on subsequent runs.

As for the body color, I'm OK with the silver. These things appeared to be delivered in a bright aluminum finish - maybe not polished, but pretty close to stainless steel color. They quickly changed color, but I found they changed colors on railroads differently. For example, the Amtrak car seen earlier is much lighter than many MBTA comets I have seen.

My guess is that different car washers affect the aluminum surface differently. For example, circular scrub pads used on some railroads might leave a fine surface swirl which could lead to a more uniform oxidized surface. I think that is what is going on with the Amtrak cars.

The MBTA uses fiberglass bristles on a roller to clean the MBTA cars. This leaves deeper groves along a single plane and may account for the slightly darker color of the MBTA cars.

In either case, Rapido is modeling the cars "as new" so I think the silver they chose is appropriate. By the time the MBTA cars took on a dusty graphite look, the purple also faded considerably. Both can be modeled by a fade coat. The windows pop out with ease, even though glued in.

Yeah the cars are expensive, but they required the engineering of an engine to get everything right. I counted four different paint colors just on the interior for example.

[brill27mcb]

[...]

As for the body color, I'm OK with the silver. These things appeared to be delivered in a bright aluminum finish - maybe not polished, but pretty close to stainless steel color. They quickly changed color, but I found they changed colors on railroads differently. For example, the Amtrak car seen earlier is much lighter than many MBTA comets I have seen.

[...]

When the Comet II's were manufactured by Bombardier, the side assemblies were gone over with a huge belt sander to provide a straight and uniform "brushed" finish. The window openings were cut out later in the process.

Rich K.

[basementcalling]

Who knew AMTRAK cars in N scale would be more expensive than some tickets to ride the real trains that feature these cars.