Hey, ESM:... What ever happened to the X-72 Project..

[learmoia]

Curious what ever happened to the X-72 Project.. (More importantly.. the under frames)

I'm designing some decals to do 10-15 of them... It'd be cool to have some fresh under frames for them!..

Just curious... ~Ian

[bbussey]

It's still on the schedule (with all new tooling rather than utilizing the ex-Life Like body), but the X65 is ahead of it.

Keystone floor/underframes are in stock, Hydra-Cushion floor/underframes are out of stock. They will be back in stock when the X65 or next X58 batch is released. Possibly in late 2017.

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]

The reason for new X72 tooling is because it's cheaper to do that than to buy the bodies from Walthers.

[nkalanaga]

Will there be undecorated X58s?  I could easily paint my own CB&Q/BN cars if I had the modern, built without roofwalk, version. 

[bbussey]

It's unlikely that we ever will release undecorated models, as the demand doesn't warrant it.  But BN is on the list to do. 

The red CB&Q cars on the modern body remain in stock, so it's unlikely we will reissue the scheme in the next few releases.  It would be easier to buy the decorated models and renumber, than to paint/decal from scratch.

[learmoia]

It's still on the schedule (with all new tooling rather than utilizing the ex-Life Like body), but the X65 is ahead of it.

Keystone floor/underframes are in stock, Hydra-Cushion floor/underframes are out of stock. They will be back in stock when the X65 or next X58 batch is released. Possibly in late 2017.

(Attachment Link)

The reason for new X72 tooling is because it's cheaper to do that than to buy the bodies from Walthers.

Ohhh.....I may have to rethink my plans....   It's crazy to think that Walthers was charging you so much for the bodies that it is cheaper for you to build your own from the ground up!  Which would make the Walthers shell pretty much worthless..

It's amazing Walthers still has legs left with as many times they've shot themselves in the foot in the N scale market.

Fwiw, I was buying complete X72s for $2/car 10 years ago ( Bevbel, Industrial Rail, LL, etc)

I sold most of them years ago but I still have a few I was going to paint in various conrail schemes.

~Ian

[bbussey]

Or, you could utilize those $2 bodies by putting them on the ESM Keystone floor/underframe, which would be more economical as well as not having two wait two years for the new model. 

The X58 floor/underframe fits in the Life Like body after shaving about .020" off each end.  The Keystone underframe is correct for the X72, while the Hydra-Cushion underframe is correct for the X65.

[amato1969]

X65...  Excellent...  Stay on target...

  Frank

[Mark5]

My LV sights are set on the X65:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2706442 (7160)

Oh wait, is that an Evans design? (7140-7189)?

I assume 8300-8399 are X65?

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1194312 (8337)

Mark

[unittrain]

Can't wait for the X65 NYC and LV schemes

[bbussey]

My LV sights are set on the X65:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=2706442 (7160)

Oh wait, is that an Evans design? (7140-7189)?

I assume 8300-8399 are X65?

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1194312 (8337)

It's home-built, Despatch Shops, first for New York Central and P&LE, and subsequently for Penn Central and Lehigh Valley.  P&LE kept their fleet when they separated, the rest survived well into Conrail.

[Ike the BN Freak]

The red CB&Q cars on the modern body remain in stock.

I need to order one of these, seems my dealer can't get it from anyone for some reason.   And need to order a couple keystone frames, got a few of the Life-like bodies to paint up for Conrail.

[nkalanaga]

Bryan:  I don't need any more red CB&Q, as I still have one of mine in storage, lacking in-service space for it.  But a CB&Q green car would be a nice addition, and probably not a great seller, since the scheme was short lived.  The best bet there would be to wait for the BN models, and remove as much of the lettering as possible.  BN green doesn't always cover bright red well, and stripping plastic models with a lot of relief isn't easy.  I have old MRC-ConCor models in both green schemes that need to be replaced...

Ike:  The CB&Q cars are nice.  If you have the money buy one of each.  The extra can stay in the box if you don't need it now, like mine, but you never know when you might want another.

[cjm413]

Ohhh.....I may have to rethink my plans....   It's crazy to think that Walthers was charging you so much for the bodies that it is cheaper for you to build your own from the ground up!  Which would make the Walthers shell pretty much worthless..

It's amazing Walthers still has legs left with as many times they've shot themselves in the foot in the N scale market.

Fwiw, I was buying complete X72s for $2/car 10 years ago ( Bevbel, Industrial Rail, LL, etc)

I sold most of them years ago but I still have a few I was going to paint in various conrail schemes.

~Ian

There are a few cars that could probably use the flat X-panel roofs