Athearn Containers first look.

[SkipGear]

The first batch of Athearn 40' Low cube containers arrived at the shop this week. A magnetic 3 pack retailing for $29.99 isn't bad and the containers are done very well. Printing is as good as anything we have, even includes gasket detail around the doors. They have marginally crisper detail than the JTC containers although maybe not as much printing detail. It's hard to compare because I do not have the same version of each to do an apples to apples comparision. Besides, I'm not a huge container fan, I leave that up to my son.

The big thing I care about is what works with what for building a train. The Athearn will nest nicely on top of either Kato or JTC containers with no problem and the magnets interact well with both. The issue is the reverse, neither will set well on top of the Athearn container. The crisper details, also result in smaller pins and pockets in the body. The smaller pins are nice because they fit well in the the larger holes of both the JTC and Kato and take up some of the minor variations in length of each. The problem is when it comes to the larger pins fitting into the smaller pockets in the the Athearn container. Athearn does not play well with Atlas and Scale Trains containers because of length inaccuracies, but does fit the Microtrains 40's (on top only, the MT containers don't have pins on the bottom.)

Some photo's of the containers. ---
Athearn - China Shipping,
JTC - White ONE
Kato - Pink ONE (custom paint)
Not sure who makes the Evergreen, it does have magnets. but is about a half a mm too short for the pins to line up.

[Mark5]

Thanks for the report Tony!

Watching for the smoothies (70s) where stacking is not an issue. 

Mark

[cfritschle]

Tony,

Thank you for the report! 

Large pins can be filed to make them smaller.  I usually file the molded pins on Atlas and JTC containers so they are shaped like an inverted cone.  I add pins to my DeLuxe containers using 0.02 inch styrene rod, and also file the protruding portion of the rod to look like an inverted cone.

Enlarging the holes to 0.02 inches should also be easy, and then it might be possible for the Athearn containers to be placed in the bottom position.  I plan on getting some to try it.

[Englewood]

Got mine in today, and I'm very impressed with the details and printing on the end doors. And for having magnets, the price is very good.

[jagged ben]

A whole bunch of new Athearn cans came and went at MBK today.  Glad I bought up enough Deluxe and Walthers 48 footers back in the aughts that I'm not mad about missing SP and APL and so on.

However I was pissed that the Australia-New Zealand Direct Line 20 footers ran out of stock between when I put them in my shopping cart and went to check out!  Found them elsewhere online (Hiawatha Hobbies) and said damn the extra money.   

Anyway, above pictures were helpful in convincing me that the China Shipping color is good on the 40 footers.  Thanks.

[SkipGear]

Forgot to add that the first batch of 20' came this week. Detail and printing is just as good as the 40'. Only issue is they are a couple of tenths of a mm too long to match up so you can stack a 40 on 2 20's. They magnetically stack with each other but the 40's do not have a magnet or plate in the right place for the 20's to interact even if the length was correct.

[jagged ben]

Forgot to add that the first batch of 20' came this week. Detail and printing is just as good as the 40'. Only issue is they are a couple of tenths of a mm too long to match up so you can stack a 40 on 2 20's. They magnetically stack with each other but the 40's do not have a magnet or plate in the right place for the 20's to interact even if the length was correct.

Boo, that is terrible to hear.  Especially since I just ordered a whole bunch.  I hope they are not too long to fit in Interail and Deluxe wells.  Will report when I get mine.

And yes, all containers should have magnets 10 scale feet in from the stacking posts.  Center magnets on 40ft+ containers are unclear on the concept.  I showed that to everyone years ago but no one listened.   

[cfritschle]

And yes, all containers should have magnets 10 scale feet in from the stacking posts.  Center magnets on 40ft+ containers are unclear on the concept.  I showed that to everyone years ago but no one listened.   

Jacksonville Terminal Company listened!   

Edit:  JTC has made this information available to all of the N scale container manufacturers.  https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1959/5441/files/Magnetic_connection_system_standards.pdf?11776714660056038565

[jagged ben]

Jacksonville Terminal Company listened!   

Edit:  JTC has made this information available to all of the N scale container manufacturers.  https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1959/5441/files/Magnetic_connection_system_standards.pdf?11776714660056038565

True, they put together a complete system.   Not exactly the way I do it but broadly compatible.

[MetroRedLine]

Forgot to add that the first batch of 20' came this week. Detail and printing is just as good as the 40'. Only issue is they are a couple of tenths of a mm too long to match up so you can stack a 40 on 2 20's. They magnetically stack with each other but the 40's do not have a magnet or plate in the right place for the 20's to interact even if the length was correct.

Thanks for this. I'll stick to JTC for my 20'ers, then. They set the bar really, REALLY high!

[SkipGear]

Oddly enough, once you drill out the pockets on the 20's so that the JTC pins will fit, the Athearn 20's fit perfectly under the JTC 40's.

[nkalanaga]

Skipgear:  Given that the Athearn 20s fit the JTC 40s, I wonder if the Athearn 20s are too long, or the Athearn 40s may be too short?

It doesn't matter to me.  Nobody stacked them in 1974, except at terminals, so they're just another flatcar load to me.  As long as they fit my various COFC cars, I'm fine.  Even the 1960s boxes, too wide and too long, will fit with a little filing on the corners!

[jagged ben]

So I got some of my Athearn 20footers today.  (Still waiting on my 40s.) 

Bad news is they are about a hundredth of an inch over proper scale length, which when you add two of those errors together means they kind of don't fit in an Interail 40ft well.  I was able to sort of pop them into one well, but not another.     Which admittedly is partly the fault of the Interail well, which is only 5 thousands or so over 40ft long, partly due to thick paint.   (JTC and Walthers 40s also have a tough time fitting in these wells, although Deluxe 40s typically do not.)     I can probably find a well here and there on my Interail cars which will take them.  Or, I can pair them with a Deluxe or Rolland can, although there are some height matching issues to deal with.     The long and the short of it (so to speak!) are that the tolerances on these models just aren't big enough.  I mean I don't think they're even as big in scale as the prototypes are! 

These have magnet on the bottom and a non-magnetized piece of steel on the top, held in by a nifty little bracket with a screw, believe it or not.  However the steel piece is too weak to work with magnets in other brand containers.  The pins on these are the longest I've seen and I'm sure I'll end up cutting them off.   Whatever, I have my own system.

Anyway, I don't mean to sound too critical.  The decoration is top quality, similar to what we've come to expect from JTC.  They'll fit Deluxe TwinStacks which means they'll fit anything else as far as I know.   Happy these are on the market and I'm sure I'll be getting more.

[SkipGear]

I have a set of Interrail 40' wells also and quite honestly, nothing fits them correctly except the DeLuxe 40's and they are tight. I stripped them of the overly thick paint and Deluxe are still tight. I don't use them as gauge for anything. I am getting ready to print containers just to fit those cars because I can't find enough Deluxe's to fill them.

[MetroRedLine]

I have a set of Interrail 40' wells also and quite honestly, nothing fits them correctly except the DeLuxe 40's and they are tight. I stripped them of the overly thick paint and Deluxe are still tight. I don't use them as gauge for anything. I am getting ready to print containers just to fit those cars because I can't find enough Deluxe's to fill them.

Whoa, thanks for the warning. I've always contemplated grabbing one of those sets whenever they surface on eBay or at a train show, but now that nothing I have fits in them (I've been selling off nearly all of my Deluxe containers and amassing mostly JTCs (and now Athearns, since they look great *and* are stackable with the JTCs), I guess I'll have to throw that option out the window now. Hopefully some company will come up with non-Gunderson 40' 5-well sets sometime!