I also hope that Atlas will rerun their SWs. They are highly prized by 2 rail guys and usually go for high prices on the secondary market. I have four of them but none with sound. Definitely would like sound command equipped version.
This is very pleasing news. I wish them all success. I think I will go to Atlas site to see what they bought.
@John Pignatelli JR. posted:This is very pleasing news. I wish them all success. I think I will go to Atlas site to see what they bought.
I attached their email to the initial post for this topic.
@AGHRMatt posted:I attached their email to the initial post for this topic.
Thank you Matt, you getting used to retirement?
@John Pignatelli JR. posted:Thank you Matt, you getting used to retirement?
Getting there. Bought another SD45. Going to change its road number. Needed it like a hole in my head but the one you tipped me off to looked lonely.
I think you need a person with a huge drive to make a O scale train line work in todays market.
You need a guy who is a maven in industry, a person with a vision of what needs to be done, a person who is not afraid to throw large sums of money into a project.
This person has to have great knowledge of electronics.
He also has to have a mechanical mind.
You need...Elon Musk. 
@John Pignatelli JR. posted:You need...Elon Musk.
This needs to be on the Dead Rail forum.
@Chuck Sartor posted:My question is where is all the other first generation diesels going? Did not see F units, GP7, SD9, GP20, U25B, etc.
Prefer the Atlas F unit tooling to the MTH.
Atlas has more variations while MTH has the worthless opening nose door.
@Cogen1981 posted:Lou,
I agree with you, continuing DCS is a beautiful thing. I have owned and operated DCS, TMCC, and Legacy for 10 years, and I find both systems have their pros and cons, and I don’t find one to be superior than the other.
DCS certainly has some quirks and is more sensitive to signal interference such as dirty track. With that said I find DCS to be reliable for the most part. MTH has come a long way with its PS 3.0 locomotive hardware and I have had yet to have a board fail. I find DCS to be easier to set up, the two way communication system is great, and the ability to piggyback DCS onto Legacy is an excellent feature.
Bottom line is TMCC and DCS are both great systems, and it would be a enormous loss on the hobby to lose one
I find the biggest issue with DCS to be when using a remote the software doesn't always give you an accurate message to the situation.
Many times it will say "Out of Range" when actually the handheld remote isn't out of range at all, rather that the TIU and Engine have lost touch with each other. Seems when they went to the Wifi and app work on the remotes software stopped.
One of the coolest features of DCS is the fully automatic forward, reverse, or crossing horn/whistle sequences. Yet when you place two engines in a consist, you lose the crossing sequence capability. That has got to be the "Worst Feature Ever"
Hopefully this will be a great move for Atlas and help all the current MTH operators as well.
@BobbyD posted:Prefer the Atlas F unit tooling to the MTH.
Atlas has more variations while MTH has the worthless opening nose door.
Hope this accelerates Atlas GP offering. Still DONT REALLY KNOW if in production or not !!! Does Atlas need MTH factory to execute the production of the loooonnnggg promised GPs ???? Atlas GPs FAR SUPERIOR to MTH GP.
Does anyone think Atlas will offer its motive power with a choice of TMCC or DCS ?This would allow them to market their products to operators irrespective of which operating system they have and not be accused of abandoning their existing TMCC customers
@John Pignatelli JR. posted:You need a guy who is a maven in industry, a person with a vision of what needs to be done, a person who is not afraid to throw large sums of money into a project.
You need...Elon Musk.
With with the best case scenario being zero return on the investment with the more likely a loss on the investment. That's why there is so little new tooling made these days; there is no return on the investment with little prospect on getting return on the investment.
Elon gets return on his investments and everything he does is for eventual massive returns on his investment be it Tesla, SpaceX or Bitcoin. BTW, his investment in Bitcoin is already worth billions more than he exchanged for it.
@FJI posted:Does anyone think Atlas will offer its motive power with a choice of TMCC or DCS ?This would allow them to market their products to operators irrespective of which operating system they have and not be accused of abandoning their existing TMCC customers
I hear going forward it'll be DCS only.
@WBC posted:With with the best case scenario being zero return on the investment with the more likely a loss on the investment. That's why there is so little new tooling made these days; there is no return on the investment with little prospect on getting return on the investment.
Elon gets return on his investments and everything he does is for eventual massive returns on his investment be it Tesla, SpaceX or Bitcoin. BTW, his investment in Bitcoin is already worth billions more than he exchanged for it.
And y’all wonder why threads get deleted,....🙄...lemme give ya a little hint,....nonsense like this,...
Pat
I'm glad to see a number of MTH models will now be made by Atlas. I'm especially hopeful this development, and apparently Atlas' access to MTH's former factory, will allow Atlas to resume making it's own designs. As between an Atlas design and MTH, I choose Atlas first. I think some folks, especially those who've come into the hobby in the last ten years or so, think of Atlas as a marginal and sporadic supplier. But in the ten or so years after Atlas entered the O market in 1998, it regularly announced and regularly delivered innovative new models. I found Atlas typically came closest to its announced delivery dates, usually having the model to dealers within a month or two of the announced arrival date.
I do wonder how some models made it "in" to the sale but not others. Presumably Atlas has no interest in tooling that duplicates its own models. But why Atlas would want, for example, the SD40-2 tooling is beyond me. That one's just not a terribly accurate rendition of the prototype and not up to Atlas standards. Other late MTH designs, like the SD45-2T, SD50, or AC4400, among others are better detailed and more accurate but aren't on the list. So I wonder if other tooling was spoken for, or if the tooling was sold in lots or something else. At any rate, this all is great news, especially if Atlas resumes regular production.
RM
@WBC posted:With with the best case scenario being zero return on the investment with the more likely a loss on the investment. That's why there is so little new tooling made these days; there is no return on the investment with little prospect on getting return on the investment.
How does that explain 3rd Rail's offerings which are all new tooling with just a few exceptions?
@Rich Montague posted:I do wonder how some models made it "in" to the sale but not others. Presumably Atlas has no interest in tooling that duplicates its own models. But why Atlas would want, for example, the SD40-2 tooling is beyond me. That one's just not a terribly accurate rendition of the prototype and not up to Atlas standards.
The main problems with the MTH (as well as Lionel) SD40-2 are the undersized fuel tank and wheel base. These should be easy fixes as they are separate from the body.
Other late MTH designs, like the SD45-2T, SD50, or AC4400, among others are better detailed and more accurate but aren't on the list. So I wonder if other tooling was spoken for, or if the tooling was sold in lots or something else. At any rate, this all is great news, especially if Atlas resumes regular production.
If I had to venture a guess, based on a comparison to imported toy lines, I’d wager a sum that certain molds are tied to a particular company/factory over there in the Pacific.
In the world of Transformers (the toy not the electrical component) Hasbro imported various models from different Japanese toy companies, and rolled them into one product line for the US market. Some of the transforming robot toys were made by Takara (two separate toy lines in fact), while others were made by Bandai/Takatoku.
@GG1 4877 posted:How does that explain 3rd Rail's offerings which are all new tooling with just a few exceptions?
Yeah, I agree. I’m not even sure why tooling costs go up in price. Look all all the different things made out of plastic available for peanuts on Amazon. The wheels, gears, and truck side frames are probably a bit more costly I guess. Anyway, all of that requires injection molds to be made, and manufacturers change the cases on products on a whim to suit aesthetics. I’ve seen many products with the exact same internal guts, just with an updated case.
@Rich Montague posted:I'm glad to see a number of MTH models will now be made by Atlas. I'm especially hopeful this development, and apparently Atlas' access to MTH's former factory, will allow Atlas to resume making it's own designs. As between an Atlas design and MTH, I choose Atlas first. I think some folks, especially those who've come into the hobby in the last ten years or so, think of Atlas as a marginal and sporadic supplier. But in the ten or so years after Atlas entered the O market in 1998, it regularly announced and regularly delivered innovative new models. I found Atlas typically came closest to its announced delivery dates, usually having the model to dealers within a month or two of the announced arrival date.
This was my experience as well with the locomotives I ordered from Atlas during those days. I call it the “Jim Weaver” era. Post Jim Weaver era was a different story. I hope Atlas has someone in mind who will manage the O scale side of things for them like Jim did. I think it’s great that they have the MTH factory to start making models but they also need someone at the helm to make sure things go right.
@rplst8 posted:The main problems with the MTH (as well as Lionel) SD40-2 are the undersized fuel tank and wheel base. These should be easy fixes as they are separate from the body.
The MTH model has more problems than that. The cab is wrong as are the frame ends. Those are part of the body shell of course.
RM
