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Post by emdmrs1 on Feb 27, 2015 14:28:51 GMT -8
According to Walthers at www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/920-41372 , it would appear the HEP E-Unit project is cancelled. Per an email: "Important News on WalthersProto® Commuter Equipment The Alaska Railroad coaches (920-15505 Standard and 920-16505 Lighted) will be delivered in June 2015. However, the Amtrak® EMD E8HEP Locomotive and all Amtrak and RTA/Metra Pullman-Standard Bi-level Commuter Coaches and Cab Cars as announced in the January 2015 Walthers Flyer have been cancelled." With sadness, Michael |
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Post by atsfan on Feb 27, 2015 15:11:41 GMT -8
Lack of sales ?
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Post by edwardsutorik on Feb 27, 2015 15:15:59 GMT -8
I wonder how much this was due to Walthers not filling in the portholes. I would think not much. Although, on a brighter (speculative) tone, perhaps it was cancelled until the porthole problem can be fixed.
A similar thing happened with Walthers' new 53' stack car. The old one was cancelled. Then a new and improved one was announced.
Ed
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Post by Great-Northern-Willmar Div on Feb 27, 2015 15:25:31 GMT -8
Ding ding we have a winner. More appropriately put would be lack of advance reservations. |
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Post by rails4dmv on Feb 27, 2015 15:33:29 GMT -8
Maybe Walthers didn't want their Amtrak E8 released around the same time as the Broadway Limited Amtrak E8A/B, which is due out any day, week, month or year.
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Post by railthunder on Feb 27, 2015 23:51:34 GMT -8
Perhaps and hopefully their going back to the drawing board and doing them without portholes. Time well spent in design and prototype fidelity equalis purchasing power! That was the SOLE reason I did not order any. Had they been done without portholes I would definitely have bought at least one or two if they did them in the Phase II and Phase III stripes. That was the other drawback is aside from the porthole issue they were doing them in the Phase I scheme which lasted a short time. I hope we see them someday without portholes.
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Post by slowfreight on Feb 28, 2015 5:32:09 GMT -8
Not that blanking portholes is impossible, but it seems retarded to me that if you want accuracy you have to strip a factory paint scheme, make the mods, and repaint it back into the same paint scheme. Not that you can't salvage the factory paint but if you go to the effort and it's a visible patch, that's pretty lame too.
We're not talking about moving a horn or adding a hand grab, so if Walthers can't get the basic spotting features down I'd buy a BLI and rebuild it anyway.
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Post by ambluco on Feb 28, 2015 7:19:45 GMT -8
Alaska HEP #P-30 has portholes, they are smaller than regular E/F portholes.
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routerock
Junior Member
Rock Island in 1977
Posts: 94 
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Post by routerock on Feb 28, 2015 9:37:05 GMT -8
I don't think that would be the cause on Walthers cancelling their E8's. I really don't think anyone evens cares at Walthers if something is correct on a model or not to be honest.
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Post by Great-Northern-Willmar Div on Feb 28, 2015 11:00:17 GMT -8
I don't think that would be the cause on Walthers cancelling their E8's. I really don't think anyone evens cares at Walthers if something is correct on a model or not to be honest. I had corresponded with Walthers and they said they would not be making any alterations to the E9 tooling to remove the portholes. Now maybe this changes in the future, but Walthers also said a few years ago when they did some corrections to the E8/9 shell that a complete re-tool was totally out of the question. To alter the E8/9 tooling to remove the portholes would require extensive work. It is like the Chicago commuter CNW and Rock Island F7's. They added the HEP detail in place of the dynamic brake panel, which was already removable, but on the CNW version didn't relocate the main reservoir, battery box, rear batten strip, access panel or tool a new pilot with the HEP plugs. They went just so far and stopped. Another nail in the Amtrak E8 with HEP may have been the sluggish sales on the Rock Island HEP F7, which is now on sale at Walthers. About the time Walthers announced the Amtrak engine, they had recently sold out of the CNW HEP F7's. Maybe Walthers saw interest in the HEP modifications and announced the Amtrak E8. But now sees with the glut of Rock Island HEP F7's that the success of the CNW doesn't translate across the board. Plus the reservations had to be not even close to the minimum. Walthers also cancelled the Metra/RTA bi-level commuter cars, which I suppose they were going to roll out with their Metra F40PH with the stripped down Tsunami sound. |
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Post by rockisland652 on Feb 28, 2015 11:42:17 GMT -8
It would help sales if the RI engines had more than the red bilevel cars to pull.
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Post by rockfan on Feb 28, 2015 12:00:36 GMT -8
Agreed whoever makes the silver (budd?) cars for all the roads that had them, they will sell very well.
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