Weekend Update 10/6/19

[dem34]

So yesterday I went to Atlas' HQ (yes, THE manufacturer) for their first ever Warehouse sale.  They opened up their warehouse to the public (you do have to register ahead of time to get in) to sell all the excess inventory (and some pre-production samples) at reasonable prices.  I got there around half an hour before the event and I was #40. 

Half of the N inventory had no trucks so you have to provide your own but the prices were cheaper factoring that in.  The other half were ready to run.

I've seen cheaper at train shows but here you don't have to hunt for them and there were some hidden gems that you would be hard to find at a train show.  And to boot Atlas provided free hots dogs (via Randy The Hot Dog Guy) and drinks.

I had to keep muttering "Need vs. Want...Need vs. Want...Need vs. Want" the entire time I was there.  I could have EASILY bought 10x since there were some really nice rolling stock there, especially the cabeeses.  Many were holding empty boxes, throwing in items like walking up and down the aisles of a supermarket. 

I was one of those box tossers. I feel kinda stupid not realizing who you were but going up North always stresses me like crazy. But, with the way they handled that little event makes me think the Atlas guys thought they'd have lines going out miles from the warehouse and not a friendly gathering. And it bugs me that they only sold the truck sets with the built in Rapido couplers, but I guess those were also a "hot" item for them to get rid of.

[MK]

I was one of those box tossers. I feel kinda stupid not realizing who you were but going up North always stresses me like crazy. But, with the way they handled that little event makes me think the Atlas guys thought they'd have lines going out miles from the warehouse and not a friendly gathering. And it bugs me that they only sold the truck sets with the built in Rapido couplers, but I guess those were also a "hot" item for them to get rid of.

Hey Al, next time just look for the guy with the Nikon as his third arm!  LOL!!!

Yeah, I just couldn't get that about the trucks.  I mean, they are a MANUFACTURER of the trucks right????  They could have sold that many more of the ones without the trucks if they HAD the trucks there for sale.  I can't believe they were trying to sell trucks with Rapido couplers in 2019!  The other trucks they were selling were just the wheels with no couplers (think caboose).  How could they be out of the Accumates???

I overheard that 300 people registered but a lot less came.  So they were a bit disappointed in that regards.  It's funny how they had Hillside Police at the ready for crowd control whne it turned out that it was not necessary at all.

[brill27mcb]

John, thanks for the reply. Bruce may have been in Casa Grande, but the Western Railcraft address on all the boxes hat I have seen is in Phoenix.

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If you can provide some documentation of the Bachmann and Model Power dates, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

Rich K.

[learmoia]

A train show find landed a Life-Like BL-2 with the split frame mechanism in WM fireball paint for only $40! Drop in a decoder, add couplers, change a number, paint some handrails and I have the whole class roster!

Looks great.. I didnt know Life Like did a split mechanism for those..

I wonder if 'THAT' model is in Atlas's hands now??

I believe there are some paint schemes to be done there.. (Late Rock Island, and some short lines at least.)

[johnb]

John, thanks for the reply. Bruce may have been in Casa Grande, but the Western Railcraft address on all the boxes hat I have seen is in Phoenix.

(Attachment Link)

If you can provide some documentation of the Bachmann and Model Power dates, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

Rich K.

All sources say that the PCC was 1983, Spookshow said 1982 for the Brill...and he said 1981 for the MP hodgepodge
https://www.trovestar.com//generic/zoom.php?id=124566

[brill27mcb]

Thanks, John, I have made those 2 corrections. My brain somehow slipped a decade on them. The separate Bachmann webpage that I wrote over 2 years ago does correctly have them in the '80s. Good catch!

Rich K.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I've started building a layout.




Basically, it's gonna be a Coal Country playground for MP15s and SW1500s.

More in the thread: https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=48056.0

[Steveruger45]

I've started building a layout.




Basically, it's gonna be a Coal Country playground for MP15s and SW1500s.

More in the thread: https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=48056.0

I hope you still run your IM SD40-2’s as well

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I hope you still run your IM SD40-2’s as well

Most definitely. And also anywhere I visit!
Although right now they're all up on jacks while waiting for, well, @Lemosteam to finish some stuff for them

[John]

I had some time this week to play around with the Photon .. I've purchased all the MT DODX flat cars, and need some loads .. On Thingyverse, there are some real nice armor files .. I took a set of Stryker 1/100 files and rescaled them to 1/160 ...  Printed and cured, I hit the first model with some gray auto primer to seal it, but next version I'm going to use something finer ..  also need to work on the orientation of the model in the print bed to get rid of the striations, but for a load, this should be nice ..










This last picture is a comparison -- left is a Shapeways model, the middle is the Thingyverse model scaled, and the right is the load shipped with a previous Micro-Trains 89 foot flat

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Those look great John.

[craigolio1]

Cody, what size butteries were you and I talking about using for the caboose lighting on Sunday?

Sorry can’t remember your handle.

Craig.

[spookshow]

Thanks all. Suggestions appreciated, but I think I'm just going to leave the soybean field as is. It's not even in the top 100 of sins committed on this layout, lol.

-Mark

[spookshow]

Thanks, John, I have made those 2 corrections. My brain somehow slipped a decade on them. The separate Bachmann webpage that I wrote over 2 years ago does correctly have them in the '80s. Good catch!

Rich K.

The GHB brass ITS car should also be back-dated a decade. It came out in '87.

-Mark

[nscalbitz]

...  I can't believe they were trying to sell trucks with Rapido couplers in 2019!
2-   The other trucks they were selling were just the wheels with no couplers (think caboose).

3-  How could they be out of the Accumates???

... Hillside Police at the ready for crowd control

Why? Believe they were selling excess, not a fire sale. Someone 5 years ago manufactured 10 years worth of a soon to become redundant, non-salable asset. Seems perfectly clear in my mind.

2- Yes the caboose truck was always sans coupler. They did it that way for a long time. Again, excess stock, I have several cards of them from local unsolds and regardless of their intended use, use them to refurbish non-runners of any kind for that era truck.

3- Again mass hysteria strikes. Out of..? No, current stock use and future proof for 5 years probably; and not overstocked so no need to discount to transfer assets, reduce inventory or save warehouse space.

The insidious speculative conspiracy theories over the most mundane of issues is hilarious.
Now, wheres that windmill gone....
d