Keith Edwards, MTL Founder passed away this morning.

[JoeD]

From the MTL Facebook Page.  I thought I would pass this on personally to the forum.  Keith's presence here at MTL has been missed since his retirement and the few opportunities we had to engage with him during his visits to the plant leave us with fond and sometimes eventful memories.  As we move forward we benifit as a company and as a hobby from his love for the craft and his dedication to his employees.  Godspeed.

We are saddened to confirm that our Founder Keith Edwards, 91, passed away peacefully this morning, July 26, 2012, at our local hospital of natural causes.  Keith was Co-Founder of the original Kadee Quality Products Co, along with his twin brother.  In 1990 he incorporated the Micro-Trains Line division to focus his time, interest and resources on N and Z scale model trains.   He retired in 2000, and enjoyed a comfortable retirement with family and close friends.
 
Keith inspired all of us at Micro-Trains, with his selfless passion for the hobby and business.  Micro-Trains employees, and his family will miss him so very much.

Joe
MTL

[Papa David]

He really changed the nature of N scale, and left an impressive trail for other entrepreneurs to follow.  The hobby owes him a great debt.

[Kisatchie]

I'm very sorry to hear that. 


Hmm... rest in peace...

[VonRyan]

Another great credit to the hobby has departed our masses and onto the place where the is no model is left un-produced in stunning detail.
He will surely be missed by every N scaler.

-Cody F.

[daniel_leavitt2000]

One of the true pioneers in N. He is responsible for the scale accuracy we take for granted today.

I wish I could say something about him personally, but never met the man. If his dedication to family and friends was anything like his love for the scale, he will be sorely missed.

[Alwyn Cutmore]

Hi Folks,

He really left a true legacy for N Scale folk to follow. His product was innovative and of the highest quality which even stands up to to-days standards. The Legacy lives on with the company producing and competing with the rest of the world in quality and on price.

A sad day for the hobby.

Regards

[GaryHinshaw]

His pioneering efforts enriched the lives of many an N scaler, myself included.  Requiescat in pace.

[mplsjct]

Echoing the sentiments put forth so far, N scale wouldn't be what it is today without him, may his soul rest in peace.

[rogergperkins]

Agreed that he changed the face of competition in n-scale.  I was a graduate student when I returned to model railroading and Kadee is what impressed me about n-scale rolling stock options.  I have remained a fan/customer for 35 years.  My sympathy and condolences to his family and co-workers.

[up1950s]

Sorry his retirement wasn't longer . I will not be shocked if the next collector car from NSC memorializes him . There's your worthy collector series , a string of old Pullman's with the name of the noteworthy N scale enthusiasts and or manufacturer personnel . 

[peteski]

There isn't much I can add to what has already been said. My condolences to Keith's family (both his close family and the extended family of MT employees).  Seems to me that he had a good life, doing what he enjoyed - I hope to live as long as he did.

[lock4244]

From a rolling stock perspective, I think that Kadee legitimized N scale to many from the standpoint that you could buy cars that were more than crudely rendered blobs of plastic on crappy wheels and trucks with Crapido couplers. Kadee gave us fine looking cars that ran well out of the box in a plethora of schemes (I loved all the shortline boxcars you could get from Kadee/MTL). The automatic uncoupling and delayed action was another of the perks that made N better for those more inclined towards operation and switching, giving rise to layouts rather than roundy-round train sets. Anyone that was in N before the plethora of mfg's like BLMA, Bluford, ESMC, EXR, IMRC, RC, Trainworx, etc. brought us a large supply of detailed models knows well just how significant Kadee was to our scale.

Back in the day if Atlas was the Chevy of N scale... affordable, good enough models that brought N to the masses, than Kadee truly was the Cadillac of N scale, giving us a higher pedigree of equipment for those who cared.

Rest in peace, Keith, and thank you.

[jmlaboda]

He is definitely owed a deep debt of gratitude from the N-scale community.  May his rest be sweet!!!  Job well done!!!

[Ed Kapuscinski]

He really changed the nature of N scale, and left an impressive trail for other entrepreneurs to follow.  The hobby owes him a great debt.

Agreed.

[Lemosteam]

Shipsure, thanks for informing the community.  His vision and product is what got me into the hobby.  I remember with true amazement the first time I read the markings on a hopper side with a monocle.  Amazing, couldn't stop collecting from there.  Condolences to his family, his legacy, RIP, and thank you. Need a gratitude smiley...