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 Posted - April 18 2014 : 5:21:30 PM
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My distributor connection tells me Model Power is going out of business.
While I have no doubt someone else will pick up the structures, since they're made by Pola, this does leave the Mantua line in limbo.
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 5:27:16 PM
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WOW! Kinda sad. Maybe some on will pick up the Mantua line and re-introduce more steamers from the by gone days. What a surprise.
" Heck with counting 'em rivets, TRAINS ARE FOR FUN! Not called the Mad Scientist for nothing either!"
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 5:33:12 PM
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To me this is good news and bad news. It's good news because the cheap and nasty Model Power line will be gone forever. It's bad news because the Mantua line will be wiped out of existence.
-Steve
"A lot of modellers out there who go to these train shows see broken HO stuff and go, 'This is useless' when, in reality, they can still be used for modeling whether it's as a prop on your layout or a cool project to make something old new again."
Edited by - kovacste000 on April 18 2014 5:35:41 PM
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 5:39:27 PM
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| Who knows, it depends how they go out of business, they could sell the rights to someone else.
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 6:01:14 PM
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quote:To me this is good news and bad news. It's good news because the cheap and nasty Model Power line will be gone forever. It's bad news because the Mantua line will be wiped out of existence.
Originally posted by kovacste000Â -Â April 18 2014Â :Â 5:33:12 PM
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Well...be careful what you wish for. I don't want to see ANY of the model railroad manufacturers shut their doors, especially one of the lower priced ones. I liked their Metal Train line - those are some decent locomotives.
I do hope there is a silver lining from this 
http://tycodepot.com/
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 6:26:20 PM
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quote: quote:To me this is good news and bad news. It's good news because the cheap and nasty Model Power line will be gone forever. It's bad news because the Mantua line will be wiped out of existence.
Originally posted by kovacste000Â -Â April 18 2014Â :Â 5:33:12 PM
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Well...be careful what you wish for. I don't want to see ANY of the model railroad manufacturers shut their doors, especially one of the lower priced ones. I liked their Metal Train line - those are some decent locomotives.
I do hope there is a silver lining from this
Originally posted by JNXT 7707Â -Â April 18 2014Â :Â 6:01:14 PM
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Yeah it is good too remember that cheap trains are usually the way people get into the hobby. I know I never would have been given that first train set if all that was available was some high detailed and high priced RTR stuff.
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 6:45:39 PM
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| Aw, man! Model Power is a pretty good company. They are still one of the few companies to have the classic bridge-and-trestle set identical to the kind offered by AHM, Cox, Life-Like and Tyco, and their MetalTrain products were unique, and I was planning on getting one of their Mantua GP-20s! (Are the non-DCC versions actually DCC-ready?)
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 9:19:17 PM
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| My guy says to expect close-out deals on the stuff, so I would say if you want one put some cash aside now and see what happens.
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 10:16:38 PM
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I find that their production in the last ten years has nosed over from bargain through frugal to just chinc. They've doubled the prices on their stuff but made the plastic thinner, the colors sloppier, and the quality lower. Worst of all they've gutted their product line of the buildings that made them unique (houses) and stuck with the molds similar to other manufacturers, which makes them have less of an edge compared to others.
I love the older Model Power stuff like their RS-11's, the building kits (before they turned them all into built-ups) and their cheaper sets... but they don't have that anymore. Mantua I though was okay (the stuff older than me was better), but I'm just kinda put-off by modern offerings.
I hope they don't go under, but they perk up so that it's worth buying from them again
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 11:43:40 PM
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| I don't care for MP products. Think I have one home kit by MP....
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Posted - April 18 2014 : 11:57:11 PM
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quote:Aw, man! Model Power is a pretty good company. They are still one of the few companies to have the classic bridge-and-trestle set identical to the kind offered by AHM, Cox, Life-Like and Tyco, and their MetalTrain products were unique, and I was planning on getting one of their Mantua GP-20s! (Are the non-DCC versions actually DCC-ready?)
Originally posted by wiley209Â -Â April 18 2014Â :Â 6:45:39 PM
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Did you know that pretty much every single H0 scale locomotive in existence can be fitted with DCC? So the answer to the question is kind of yes even though I don't know if it will work with engines like that.
-Steve
"A lot of modellers out there who go to these train shows see broken HO stuff and go, 'This is useless' when, in reality, they can still be used for modeling whether it's as a prop on your layout or a cool project to make something old new again."
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Posted - April 19 2014 : 12:17:22 AM
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really?? well geee & MP has a few old Tyco buildings too
& there are a few I wants 
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Posted - April 19 2014 : 12:58:35 AM
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Sorry to hear it, but not really surprised. The current market seems to be made up of older modelers who want and can afford the upscale hyper-detailed models, leaving entry level stuff to gather dust on shelves. The sad truth is that model railroading is graying, and I don't think there's enough new blood getting into the hobby seeking out less expensive options the way many of us did 30 or 40 years ago. Those that are are probably buying used stuff on eBay and at shows like we do, or saving their pennies for the big ticket stuff.
Plus, Mantua Classics can hardly be considered a budget priced line, especially with standard line Bachmann as competition. It's the same catch-22 the original Mantua ran up against. Still, those steamers look pretty good with the new blackened RP25 wheels.
The Tyco Depot
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Posted - April 19 2014 : 09:52:15 AM
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quote:I find that their production in the last ten years has nosed over from bargain through frugal to just chinc. They've doubled the prices on their stuff but made the plastic thinner, the colors sloppier, and the quality lower. Worst of all they've gutted their product line of the buildings that made them unique (houses) and stuck with the molds similar to other manufacturers, which makes them have less of an edge compared to others.
I love the older Model Power stuff like their RS-11's, the building kits (before they turned them all into built-ups) and their cheaper sets... but they don't have that anymore. Mantua I though was okay (the stuff older than me was better), but I'm just kinda put-off by modern offerings.
I hope they don't go under, but they perk up so that it's worth buying from them again
Originally posted by Islanderh93Â -Â April 18 2014Â :Â 10:16:38 PM
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Going out of business is going under.
Built up is just a current industry trend but most of the structures can still be had as kits, because they are made by Pola in Germany and Model Power is just a name on the box, just like Tyco or AHM was on some of the same structures. Which, I will note again prices on some of the structures have not gone up in 20 years.
Heck, even the Atlas re-issue of the old AHM/IHC Rural Station which I thought was high at $23, I picked up a sealed IHC issue the other day that has to be at least 10 years old and it has a sticker on it noting it was $20, with a bar code on it.
DCC ready in modern parlance means it has an 8-pin NMRA plug so you can just insert decoder and go.
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 12:39:34 AM
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quote: Those that are are probably buying used stuff on eBay and at shows like we do, or saving their pennies for the big ticket stuff.
Originally posted by NickelPlate759Â -Â April 19 2014Â :Â 12:58:35 AM
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Yes, and with that - let me present to you something that outright took my breath away today:
http://shop.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=258_324_340_918&products_id=5628
What took my breath away is the price. $42 for a Bachmann freight car. I haven't quite got used to $60+ passenger cars from Walthers yet 
http://tycodepot.com/
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 07:22:03 AM
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quote:$42 for a Bachmann freight car.
Originally posted by JNXT 7707Â -Â April 20 2014Â :Â 12:39:34 AM
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$42 x (how many freight cars on a typical layout?) = (so who's rich?)
I can remember when I would have balked at $42 for a locomotive. The world has gone mad.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 09:15:08 AM
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quote: quote:$42 for a Bachmann freight car.
Originally posted by JNXT 7707Â -Â April 20 2014Â :Â 12:39:34 AM
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$42 x (how many freight cars on a typical layout?) = (so who's rich?)
I can remember when I would have balked at $42 for a locomotive. The world has gone mad.
Originally posted by scsshaggy - April 20 2014 : 07:22:03 AM
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I know, right? I've seen tons of H0 scale locomotives that are decent quality that are at train shows for less than $42. A lot of them come with packaging still. For $42 I could get a whole lot of H0 scale freight cars or two H0 scale locomotives at the train show.
-Steve
"A lot of modellers out there who go to these train shows see broken HO stuff and go, 'This is useless' when, in reality, they can still be used for modeling whether it's as a prop on your layout or a cool project to make something old new again."
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 09:33:53 AM
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quote:
I can remember when I would have balked at $42 for a locomotive. The world has gone mad.
Originally posted by scsshaggy - April 20 2014 : 07:22:03 AM
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Quite mad in my opinion. I still balk at $21 freight cars. Heck, if I go over $10 it better be pretty special. Needless to say I never buy new!
So apparently Bachmann - who I have recently defended as being the next Athearn with affordable pricing and decent product - has decided it's going to follow Athearn into the stratrosphere of high-detail/high-buck RTR.
And Model Power is going out of business.
Definitely becoming a hobby for the wealthy, which is fine - there's more than enough second-hand product out there right now to carry me through the rest of my life......
http://tycodepot.com/
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 10:18:26 AM
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Jerry: Like you, I thrive on the swap meet/feal market stuff , although I tend to get disappointed at the continual re-display of train set garbage, as one of my recent posts/ complaints described.
Those Model Power cars were available at $6.00- $8.00 at my local (Tampa) Hobbytown, a little over a year ago, then all of a sudden, they jumped in price to $12.98 and more. Either Hobbytown already knew the future (end of Model Power) and marked-up early, or Model Power decided to go out with a bigger bang for their buck in contemplation of their drop dead date.
Either way, given the poor graphics many of their cars have, they are not much better (and in some ways inferior) than old Athearn BB cars I like to get at the swap meets. I have re-purposed several of their cars, and do not consider them sancrosanct as "collectable" items in my rolling stock inventory. If I see a project car I want to do, those Model Power cars are like turkeys the week before Thanksgiving- nervous! 
I bought a box of 25 Model Power flex track strips from Trainland (NYC) several years ago when track was still very cheap in bulk, so I will "honor" them a bit in my layout as I finish the track work, but otherwise regarding Model Power: no tears from Tampa!
Ron
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 10:28:47 AM
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quote: quote:
I can remember when I would have balked at $42 for a locomotive. The world has gone mad.
Originally posted by scsshaggy - April 20 2014 : 07:22:03 AM
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Quite mad in my opinion. I still balk at $21 freight cars. Heck, if I go over $10 it better be pretty special. Needless to say I never buy new!
So apparently Bachmann - who I have recently defended as being the next Athearn with affordable pricing and decent product - has decided it's going to follow Athearn into the stratrosphere of high-detail/high-buck RTR.
And Model Power is going out of business.
Definitely becoming a hobby for the wealthy, which is fine - there's more than enough second-hand product out there right now to carry me through the rest of my life......
Originally posted by JNXT 7707Â -Â April 20 2014Â :Â 09:33:53 AM
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That's what I'm already doing. If you look at my collection of H0 scale model trains, they are mostly second hand trains I got in donations and at train shows.
-Steve
"A lot of modellers out there who go to these train shows see broken HO stuff and go, 'This is useless' when, in reality, they can still be used for modeling whether it's as a prop on your layout or a cool project to make something old new again."
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 11:21:09 AM
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Siouxlake ron - full disclaimer, I think I have bought one new Model Power item - a low-nose GP7 that I have described as The Coffee Grinder - before I knew any better. Wasn't bad for the price but I wouldn't get another one. And yes, my Model Power rolling stock pieces tend to get nervous around project time too
So no tears but I will miss them all the same. Lots of model railroaders get their start on "trainset junk", so it serves a purpose. Will really be interesting to see how it all plays out. I see their Metal Train F7s are already on clearance at half off - somehow I've got the bug to nab one of those, so that will be my silver lining.
http://tycodepot.com/
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 6:30:45 PM
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quote:
Definitely becoming a hobby for the wealthy, which is fine - there's more than enough second-hand product out there right now to carry me through the rest of my life......
Originally posted by JNXT 7707Â -Â April 20 2014Â :Â 09:33:53 AM
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Good thing I've gotten a new job that pays well last month, and the timing was just right with my new model railroad layout being planned!
But I do prefer secondhand stuff from time to time, as I like my layout to be a mix of newer and older products (like a modern Bachmann or Walthers locomotive pulling older Tyco and Life-Like rolling stock, stuff like that.) Most new stuff I go for is for track, motive power (in many cases) and landscaping, and a few buildings and such, along with a bunch of older structures, rolling stock and accessories. In fact, I'm even finally moving up to DCC with Bachmann's E-Z Command system as it's perfect for beginners to DCC (though I'll probably use one of my spare Tyco power packs for the AC accessories, and save my MRC Tech-4 280 for something else.)
It's also worth mentioning in Robert Schleicher's "The HO Model Railroading Handbook" (formerly "The TYCO Model Railroading Manual"), it says in the first chapter, "Even at today's inflation-boosted prices, you can buy a complete ready-to-run train set for less than the price of a single locomotive in the 1950s." (This goes back to the first edition from 1979!)
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Posted - April 20 2014 : 8:36:37 PM
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| A Bachmann $42 list price means it won't be hard to find it for $21 or so from their "friends" who retail it for the dealer's price.
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Posted - April 22 2014 : 10:30:12 PM
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Well, the Model Power website has this to say:
quote:
Dear Model Power Customers,
After nearly 50 years serving the hobby industry, our 3rd generation family business will closing effective immediately.
In 2007, our banks began an aggressive deleveraging process. They no longer approved of a profitable and paying client such as ours, which had been reliant on inventory. This is why one of the industry's most extensive lines, had begun to see much of its products unavailable on the market. Now it will no longer be seen at all.
During these past 7 years, we had made changes to the business in order to accommodate and adjust to the changing nature of the business relationship with our lenders. We had offered multiple solutions to our lenders in order to "fix" our situation, all were rejected, came with different restrictions, or offered to little too late. In all our efforts, no arrangements by our lenders would allow for Model Power to arrive at a position in which we could get back to fill our customer needs.
We would like to take the time to thank all of those whom we have worked with the past 50 years. To our customers and competitors within the industry, we thank you.
Sincerely,
The Model Power Family
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I'm still hoping someone else picks up the Mantua line (hope Walthers is reading this!)
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Posted - April 23 2014 : 01:41:33 AM
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| So they got screwed by the banks. If they're smart, they'll reorganize with a new name and pick up their own stuff again.
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 Posted - April 23 2014 : 10:03:54 AM
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I wonder how much they want for the company
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Posted - April 23 2014 : 11:50:13 AM
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Maybe,
If they put solar panels on their locomotive they could get a Federal Grant. look at Solyndra Solar.
Regards, John **********
I fail to understand how a single mind can embrace abortion and condemn capitol punishment at the same time. <> Junior
Edited by - JRG1951 on April 23 2014 11:50:50 AM
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Posted - April 23 2014 : 1:21:59 PM
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quote:So they got screwed by the banks. If they're smart, they'll reorganize with a new name and pick up their own stuff again.
Originally posted by lvrr325Â -Â April 23 2014Â :Â 01:41:33 AM
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Operating a business with a bank involved is high risk and a bad idea...
MicroBen, who wants to buy a business that's broke ?
Walt
Luck, usually comes dressed in work clothes...
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Posted - April 23 2014 : 4:42:43 PM
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| That's how new business is often created, on the bones of old business when the assets of the bankrupt business are sold to satisfy the debts.
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