How many remember the "old" ROW products?

I remember Right of Way Industries back in the 1990's.  IIRC they were based in Ohio and run by a man by the name of Bill Benson.  At the time they sold lots of high end scale stuff, with the first series of scale passenger cars that I can recall a line of high end brass engines and a huge transformer who's power rating trumped them all. They also offered accessories, lighting and track signals.   Right of Way  apparently went out of business under some very unfavorable conditions. The product line never resurfaced and AFAIK it is dormant. Sunset Models sells some similar stuff but the rumor is that a company in South Korea may still have a the tooling.

I wish I knew where their Dockside tooling went, always thought that was a neat little model.

Originally posted by Dennis Lagrua:

but the rumor is that a company in South Korea may still have a the tooling

What tooling [what little of it] would you have for Brass models?

Well former ROWI switch lanterns are being sold by Steve Brenneson of Ross Custom Switches. Rowi's hand made switches was for crap but Steve B. of Ross improved on the idea and made them into a solid product.

The Rowi transformers are worth getting if you are a conventional running RR. I have the 480 monster that I traded  a Lionel postwar Z to obtain and the rowi has worked flawlessly for me.

Their articulated engines are good for people with tight radius curved layouts[ 042-072]

oh I forgot, their ALCo PA's are "Da Bomb" for conventionaly run locomotives It would be great if they had the signature turbo lag smoke!

I don't have any of their stuff but a friend has their big transformer and uses it with Legacy.  Here's some scans from the 1991 R-O-W catalog. 

Bill

I have a few of their double stack cars but nothing else. I believe they were the first to put roller bearings on the axles of the passenger cars. Barely touching them they would roll a long way. The transformer was outstanding. If I remember there was no directional buttons so you had to turn the voltage knob off and on.........Paul

We had a set of the beautiful D&H PA's. Great Alco sound set and powerful as all get out with twin Pittman motors. No flywheels but with judicious use of the throttle they were quite smooth.  Lots of scale detail including windshield wipers, hoses on the pilots and multiple lights - front number boards, side number boards, center of the windshield, rear of each unit.

I'll post some photos when I get home later today. The sides were a handsome 'stainless' finish which stood out against the 'silver' painted trucks, pilots, and fuel tanks. Real beauties!

One hundred and thirty six remember ROW.

I remember ROWI. Drooled over those catalogs, wishing I could have some of their stuff back in the day.

The UP caboose Donald posted was a nice piece and was an accurate model compared to what was available at the time.  

I shouldn't say this, but ROW equipment - brass locos, plastic Weaver-like cars (no experience with track, signals, switches) - is under-appreciated. Unusual designs - RK-like design, but scale-sized , per the 2-8-8-0's and others; interesting; their PRR T-1 is visually compromised (and articulated!), but has a charm all its own - it'll practically turn in its own length, and runs well.

My ROW pieces appear well-made. I believe that Ajin built them (the brass); Ajin made/makes a lot of 2-rail items.

(FWIW: I have read here(?) that Ajin, as opposed to Lionel's "usual builder", whoever that is - also built the Lionel NYC Niagara. Um. Maybe a bad day? Ajin is Korean, though I don't know if the construction is done there.)

Yep sure do remember. I have one of their transformers. It's a power beast. Never even gets warm.

Yes they made some decent cars and other items but the majority of their steam engines were plain JUNK. No if ands or buts it was junk. The prices he charged was outrageous for the time. 

I saw one engine that had the motor mounted by one screw through the top of the boiler. 

Stay away from ROW products. 

Those of you that went to York back then in the day should remember the layout that Bill would put up in the building next to the grandstand.  One of the magazines had a picture of it years ago.  Don't know if it was OGR or someone else.  It was pretty big.  They also displayed their products there too.

Rick

If I remember correctly the Bill Benson of R.O.W. was also involved in brokering the deal to sell the D&H Alco PAs to Mexico and helped Ross Rowland do a quick rebuild of Reading T1 2101 in a Baltimore scrapyard to become the 1976 Freedom Train engine on the East coast. Later I believe Benson got in trouble with the govt. and was facing some jail time. Then again maybe it was a different Bill Benson.................  

I liked their products I have a few of their B&O type LED color position signals.  Work really nice and have a timing circuit built in.  

I only have one item, a NYC flatcar with 3 Allis Chalmers die-cast tractors.  Picked it up a couple of years ago, for I think about $35.  Nice piece and the tractors alone are probably worth the $35.

Jim

I can't forget ROW. About a third of the switches on my layout are from them. I have to say they look and sound much better in the catalog. They weren't too bad when they were new.

Unlike Ross, they lacked the splines that hold the ties in place. So when they were taken up from their original installation, they became unstable, with shifting ties and moving rails, i.e. they fall apart because they were only held together with super glue and cheap spikes.

If you are in the market for used switches, caveat emptor! I have seen numerous occasions where people try to pass them off as Ross, some deliberately, some unwittingly. They should sell for a lot less than Ross. Ask to see the bottom!

Elliot is right on da money, honey when it comes to describing the characteristics of rowi switches. Ross and even Curtis switches are much better built than rowi switches.

ROW B&O Docksider. The plug in back of the cab connects to a sound unit in a boxcar. The switch in front of the stack is for SMOKE UNIT / OFF - ON.

These locomotives were also called "Little Joes." B&O POWER, by Lawrence W. Sagle and Al Staufer, provides specifics, as follows:  "Class C-16 (Tank), 0-4-0, 19" x 24" cyl., 48" drivers,120000 lbs. wt., 28800 lbs. t. p. [tractive power]. These were oil burners. Nos. 96 to 99 were built by Baldwin in 1912.

Nos. 96 and 99 were changed to coal-burning, saddle-tank locomotives in 1912, with coal boxes replacing the oil tanks at the back. Small, slope-back tenders were added in 1926, with new cabs, entirely changing the appearance of these two locomotives. They were reclassified as C-16a. The weight became 109100#, tractive power 27600# and the steam pressure 180#. They were used in Philadelphia until retired; No. 99 in 1944 and No. 96 in 1945.

Nos. 97 and 98 worked at Mt. Clare, Baltimore, by day, and along Pratt street at night. Their numbers were changed to 897 and 898 in 1950. They were scrapped in 1951.

These were the famous "Little Joes," the Dockside Switchers. They served the industrial sidings and the piers along Pratt street, succeeding old numbers 31 and 316. No. 31 was the first to be equipped with a large cab enclosing the entire locomotive. The horses had become accustomed to the small street cars of those days, and it is possible that the B. & O. successfully hood-winked the equines. A colorful feature of the Pratt street line was the horseman who always rode a half-block ahead of the locomotive, blowing a horn to warn all that he iron horse was approaching. He also acted as a traffic policeman at street corners. Having held up the cross traffic until the locomotive had passed, he would gallop ahead to the next corner, all the while blowing loudly. The urchins of Southwest Baltimore would often plague him by calling him "Paul Revere." A city ordinance compelled the B. & O. to provide this outrider for the locomotives on city streets, and it was not until World War I that the practice was discontinued. Trucks and automobiles do not frighten as easily as horses.

The C-16 locomotives were very modern, with Walschaert valve gears, piston valves, and Ragonnet power reverses. They have been replaced by two small 400 h.p., steeple-cab, G. E. diesel locomotives. (p. 91)