I wouldn't be holding my breath for any of the previously made RMT products to be issued again anytime soon, including the snap track. I've been told by a couple of people with connections, that the new RMT products are being produced by the same facility that produces the trains for Menards.
This appears to have some validity, because if you look at the photos on the RMT website, they bear a striking resemblance in appearance and features (including different car numbers) to the products being offered by Menards. The box car is nothing like the shorter 6464 type produced previously, but instead looks just like the Menards one including the painted door guides. The shorter "Bopper" hopper now appears by the photos, to be identical to the 4-quad hopper being offered by Menards. Some of the woodside reefer cars previously made by RMT were quite popular (the A&P one comes to mind... the ones sold under the O-Line banner went fast). Yet there are no woodside reefers being offered now. Ironically, Menards as of date, has no offered reefer either.
The one product mentioned not being produced by Menards is the ore car. But given that RMT produced the shorty PEEP passenger cars, not from new tooling, but from cutting the body shell on the K-Line Madison style passenger car (a very clever and ingenious idea at that!), I can't help but wonder if the same idea wouldn't be applied now to the longer quad hopper body.
Well, it all remains to be seen. I personally doubt that Kader would allow another facility to use tooling and dies under their ownership, but who knows. Or can RMT compete with the price and service offered by Menards on what visually appear to be products from the same dies?
Time will tell. You read a lot of comments here concerning totally new products that NEED to be made. Yet I don't see anyone stepping up to the plate, taking the huge risk, starting a new company, and investing the hundreds of thousands of dollars it takes to bring just one single new product to market from new tooling.
One thing for certain: They (RMT) feel confident enough (no small task in this current train market) to have some new product made, and have already announced some different roads not thus far offered by Menards. That alone is worth a thumbs up.
