Kato September Announcements

[Mark5]

Not too  many PC passenger cars ever produced in any scale.

Atlas did the corrugated lightweight (Rivarossi) cars in PC. ;D

[MichaelWinicki]

Atlas did the corrugated lightweight (Rivarossi) cars in PC. ;D

I just purchased a 3-pack of those off of eBay for like $25 after shipping.

I guess I have to install the MT1017's in order to get a knuckle coupler on them.  Trouble is that from what I've read the 1017's are a PIA to put on.

[James Costello]

The repeated road numbers on containers doesn't bother me (since I can't see them anyway), but it would be nice to do 10 containers in say 5 paint schemes - although I guess if you're going to do one scheme, APL is a good one.

Not that great if you model BNSF.....
But this strategy is always going to upset someone.  :

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Oh man, both those passenger sets are very appealing to me.

[Mark5]

Oh man, both those passenger sets are very appealing to me.

I've actually been tempted to get an early Amtrak train together. The lack of a coach in the set put me off though. I may bag the E though.

[ljudice]

yep, forgot UP got most of the APL business.

[Bob Bufkin]

I've actually been tempted to get an early Amtrak train together. The lack of a coach in the set put me off though. I may bag the E though.

There are several Centralia coaches that would more than fit the bill for early Amtrak.  Their PRR coach could even be used in PC trains.  You could leave it PRR or paint out Pennsylvania and apply PC worms.

[Mark5]

There are several Centralia coaches that would more than fit the bill for early Amtrak.  Their PRR coach could even be used in PC trains.  You could leave it PRR or paint out Pennsylvania and apply PC worms.

Yeah, but more coin. If Kato makes a 4 car set with coaches it'll probably street for about what I'd pay for two Centralias.

This would pretty much be fantasy for me anyway as in 1973 or even 1974 there was no passenger service at all on the Pokey.

The Mountaineer restored service in '75 only to be killed and replaced with the Hilltopper which was in turn killed before the end of the decade.

[Bob Bufkin]

Mark

I remember taking an Amtrak train from Norfolk to Bluefield way back when.  Don't remember the train name or number.  The photos I took somehow disappeared and they were some good ones. 

[Mark5]

Mark

I remember taking an Amtrak train from Norfolk to Bluefield way back when.  Don't remember the train name or number.  The photos I took somehow disappeared and they were some good ones. 

I rode the Mountaineer once (Amtrak #s 54, 55), and N&W trains before they died in 1971. I travelled this route at least once a year. The Hilltopper was #66, 67.

So odds are Bob that it was between 1975 and 1979.

[Sokramiketes]

Yeah, but more coin. If Kato makes a 4 car set with coaches it'll probably street for about what I'd pay for two Centralias.

More expensive, but lighting and diaphragms are already installed, so it's not apples to apples, even if you don't necessarily want either of those features. 

But if you want Kato, why not just go with some Kato coaches in a prototype scheme like UP?  If it's early Amtrak you're after, rainbow is more interesting than a matched set of phase 1 paint.

[Mark5]

But if you want Kato,

I don't care about Kato.

why not just go with some Kato coaches in a prototype scheme like UP?  If it's early Amtrak you're after, rainbow is more interesting than a matched set of phase 1 paint.

More UP!!!!

Actually, yeah a four car matched set would be a good "core" for a rainbow in certain circles.

However, I didn't see rainbows on the 1975--> WV trains.

I don't even know if Es ran on the Mountaineer or Hilltopper. When I rode The Mountaineer (1975) the loco as a SDP40F with heritage equipment (complete with dome car!). Towards the end of the Mountaineer (77) and on the Hilltopper, Pooches or F40s with Amcan Sausages seem to have been the rule.

The later trains were a loco and a couple cars.*

*possibly a factor in their discontinuance.

[sundowner]

WTF? The Maxi-IVs had 6 containers with different numbers..... why not do the same for this release?
Even Kato's 2-pack of containers contain different numbers.
I understand that Kato wouldn't want to deal with 10x SKUs for the loads.... but if you can't do it right, why not sell them without the loads and keep regularly releasing multi-unit packs of containers separately like they are now?

The last two runs of Maxi-IV all had containers with the same numbers. I have 12 CN and 12 CSX containers with the same numbers. It sucks but its really hard to see those numbers ubless you are right in front of them

As far as the car goes it looks like Kato did it to DI again releasing a car that DI annouced but never deliver.

[James Costello]

The last two runs of Maxi-IV all had containers with the same numbers. I have 12 CN and 12 CSX containers with the same numbers. It sucks but its really hard to see those numbers ubless you are right in front of them

As far as the car goes it looks like Kato did it to DI again releasing a car that DI annouced but never deliver.

I guess Kato got tired of managing the multiple containers earlier - the first releases of the EMP and BNSF cans had different numbers.

DeLuxe NEVER announced a Maxi-I.

They had announced the Maxi-III conversions known as "short stacks" where the wells were cut down to 40' but this is a very different animal than a Maxi-I. The flyer in NandW's post clearly shows a Maxi-I with the distinctive flat sided well.

It is interesting that in the last 5 years Kato got the jump on all the other manufacturers and now has the two most popular modern era double stack cars in their stable.

[Ian MacMillan]

Awesome! Maxi-I's! Woot