Anyone still actually make high-level kits for

[Grindar]

Trying to get back into the hobby, and wanted to start by doing some kits of locomotives and stock cars, and I'm having trouble finding what I really want. I always wanted to build a bowser steam loco, and looks like I'll never get the chance, them being discontinued. Would also like some rolling stock kits that are more than clip a shell on a body, screw on couplers and trucks, and weather.
Anyone have any suggestions for stuff to look at? I'm not partial to any road or era, just have the itch to build lol.

[Bill Nelson]

For real kits of freight cars there are lots of options.

In Plastic, Tichy train groups sells highly detailed kits that are definitely not shake the box variety very well detailed stuff, all the way to brake rigging, so detailed I am tempted to leave stuff off.


Labelle woodworking make beautiful kits of old wooden passenger cars
they build up to very fine cars.


there are a lot of wooden car kits if you are into turn of the previous century (that is an awkward thought) I'd have to look those up, although I have some very nice BTS stuff on my workbench right now, and I'm thinking Branchline trains makes some more modern passenger cars, so there are a lot of options out there, also there are resin kits from companies like Westerfield, that have a high degree of detail, and require more than shaking the box




I to missed the Bowser experience, but I have been working on one a club member picked up, on e-bay It has an excellent mechanism, and is a joy to work on; unlike most modern locomotives which are a nightmare to work on.

Check into the tichey train works stuff, and I will try to do more research, and perhaps post photos of examples of cars from my massive roster.


Bill Nelson

[Bill Nelson]

I have some unfinished tichey hoppers and gons on my Rr for testing, they are too light for my current mountain division, I'm planning a rebuild with gentler grades and wider curvs, so they may work unmodified on my hoped for future RR.

the hopper cars, I had a six pack of, I don't have a lot of the details on yet, as everything is scale profile, thus fragile. I have a lot of hand rails to install, as well as the lettering to do, which will be tedious for a private road


another picture is one of the unfinished Tichy hoppers (Black) with a shake the box hopper.


the last photo is a picture of the parts for a Boxcar kit, the phosphor bronze wire is to bend to shape to make the trainline brake piping.


You mentioned stock cars, Central Valley makes a very highly detailed plastic kit for a stock car. I have not built one, but every thing Central Valley does has always been top notch.

I did not mention them here , but my favorite Tichy kit is thier two for one shorty wood ore car. I have a big string of them in Ho (i'm suere there are pictures of them somewhere in the 40 something pages of documentation on my ho layout in the logging section ( logging in Eastern TN in 1928 on the DG, CC, & W RR)

also in the Narrow gauge section in my HOn3 locomotive shops thread I believe I documented the needed alterations (not much) for converting them to HON3


Hope this helps


Bill Nelson

[Grindar]

Those Tichy kits look great, exactly the kind of stuff I'm looking for. Any locomotives done similarly, or am i gonna have to go for a prebuilt and just detail with photoetch stuff?

[Bill Nelson]

I'm a retro kind of guy, so what is left of my brain is stuck in 1928. so I know steam locomotives, and am lacking of any solid knowledge about what is available in the diesel world. That said, the last known steam locmomotive kits that I am aware of were from Bowser, and from MDC before they were assimilated by Horizon Hobbies.



I can think all kind of evil thoughts about Horizon , as they discontinued all the kits, narrow gauge stuff, and spare parts, but the truth be told they were following the market, RTR stuff sells, while kits stay on the shelf now a days.


If you want to get deeply involved buy old brass and work to improve it. not cheap, or easy, and there are no instructions . check out my HON3 engine shops thread in the narrow gauge section.

I for one, am horribly disappointed, back in the late 60's as I was starting, I would look at the catalouges, and there were available drivers, frames boilers cylinder saddles, pilots cabs , tenders. I lived most of my life aqureining the skills to use all that stuff to build locomotives from piles of parts, and that stuff is no longer available. This bothers me more than the lack of flying cars. Hell it's 2012 already, we are supposed to have flying cars. that is a minor disappointment compared to the disappearance of kits, and locomotive parts for scratchbuilding. Life sometimes throws you ugly curve balls and this is one.


This is something that bothers me. I have a nice skill set at working with model mechanisms; but I acquired many of these skills building kits, and where will the next generation get those skills, I post a lot of stuff hoping they can learn some stuff from me, but I will probably just confuse them hopelesly.


Bill Nelson

[Bill Nelson]

Railmasters in Australia make fine SN3 kit locomotives SN3 is very close to the size of HO equipment, but represents 3 foot gauge equipment in the larger S scale

http://www.railmasterhobbies.com/loco.htm


Also Backwoods miniatures makes full locomotive kits, as well as body kits the body kits use mainly Ho mechanisms or On30 mechanisms,


their full kits are in On30 or on3.

http://www.backwoodsminiatures.com/0n3kits.htm


Nelson

[Badyin Macfadyi]

DJH in the UK still make some HO kits for the US

http://www.djhmodelloco.co.uk/prodpa...productid=3073