@Francine posted:Here's another possibility for you: The molds in China are owned by China, NOT THE MANUFACTURER (it doesn't matter who or where they were made. IHC from Philly was put out of business by this, and today I was informed that S helper and Aristo craft were both victims as well.
It is possible that since Lionel had a working relationship with MTH (from what i've heard Lionel and MTH were made at the same factory), that some S Helper may be released as Flyer for the 75th anniversary.
Food for thought?
S Helper was put out of business by Sanda Kan essentially "firing" their customers to concentrate on making trains for large customers.
From the NASG website:
"2010: Sanda Kan (the main Chinese manufacturer) stopped making models for many companies, including S-Helper Service.
2012: nearing retirement age and not being able to retrieve their tooling from China, Don announced that MTH Electric Trains bought the company's tooling."
The 2021 Flyer catalog was likely put to bed long before Mike Wolf announced his retirement. IF there is a buyer waiting in the wings for the Showcase Line, we probably won't know until MTH finally turns off the lights and locks the door around April-May-June.
Rusty
