Made in the USA

[Seayakbill]

At last nights Lionel seminar at the LOTS convention in Omaha the Lionel execs stated that the made in USA boxcars have run into a manufacturing setback. The manufacture selected by Lionel apparently doesn't have the capabilities required per the Lionel execs.

They also stated that the Lincoln Funeral train may be delivered in the 4th quarter. They had colored drawings of the loco and the United States of America casket car. The car will have 2 caskets, Lincoln and his son.

   Bill T

[Seayakbill]

I left out that the Made in the USA boxcars are the 4 Presidents cars

[LL675]

just the fact that LIonel needs to go to an outside vendor to prduce a car is just sad.

[Seayakbill]

You would think that a simple 6464 style boxcar could be manufactured by Lionel at their facility. I am guessing that setting up the facility with tooling and being compliant with OSHA regs is just cost prohibitive.

[Bob Keller]

Lionel hasn't had a factory since, oh, 2001; so there isn't a production line waiting to spring back to life. They would either need to start a new line or subcontract. Maybe they should have approached Weaver to do the job.

[wallyworld]

Ogaugeoverlord

Lionel hasn't had a factory since, oh, 2001; so there isn't a production line waiting to spring back to life. They would either need to start a new line or subcontract. Maybe they should have approached Weaver to do the job.

In the thread I started on defining a future classic toy train, I think this thread reinforces my own view that when you look at how eras have been delineated ( post-prewar) ours, rather than be called the Modern Era, will be perhaps pegged as the "Offshore Era" wherein subcontractors do the work and the major toy train manufacturers do not manufacture toy trains in their own facilities for better or worse.They seem to me more of a marketing -distribution -development sales force than what we came to know in America in years past with real brick and mortar factories here, which should not surprise anyone if we look at what is actually produced directly by a firm here, versus output subcontracted elsewhere. The irony in all this seems to have been the impetus to reduce costs and yet of course, costs to the consumer have risen. Beyond brand names that are more a virtual reality  or trademark than a manufacturing base, from a personal point of view, a admittedly subjective one..something indefinable has been lost, that is hard to put into words, perhaps a sense of history attached to American products versus  subcontracted products ordered by essentially what has become more of a marketing ploy than a tradition, not that there are not wonderful toy trains to be had in this modern era, but it's a brave new world, as they say. Maybe its simply nostalgia because I don't think for a moment things such as they are will return to what is past, but the other day, I was running my MTH equipment on the tinplate, traditional layout alongside the older stuff, and it struck me how my "modern trains" were sort of third hand products compared to the Marx "Iron Beast"..No editorializing here, just a personal view. Perhaps a jaded one.

[IDM1991]

I believe that MTH has a production facility of their own somewhere in Korea.  Perhaps it would be wise for Lionel to follow this lead, rather than being lumped together with every other manufacturer under one roof.  You're absolutely right; Lionel has, in many respects, been reduced to status of a quaint ideal rather than twenty-first century reality with a pedigree that stretches back to well over a century ago.  Regardless of what corporate umbrella it has fallen under (Lionel Corp., Fundimensions, LTI, Lionel LLC), Lionel has always been a supplier of miniature electric trains, and that's the way it should stay.  None of this "manufacturing partner" nonsense, please.

[traindaddy1]

Maybe "Off Topic" but I'd like to see the Lionel Executives look around their storage facilities for the old 6454 small boxcar molds.  Maybe they could re-use them as part of their "Made In America" plans.

[rtraincollector]

Seayakbill

I left out that the Made in the USA boxcars are the 4 Presidents cars

there were a couple others also but not sure if there still making them I believe one was a NYC boxcar.

[RRaddict]

MTH use to have a factory in Korea but has since moved to China to be manufactured a long side Lionel, Williams, and some others.  The owner Mike was married to a Korean national who's family had ties to factories over there but they divorced and that was the end of their manufacturing trains in Korea so they moved to China.  if we want to rebuild the economy in this country we can start by building new plants for as many things as we can that now come from China.  It will take someone with a true vision and the boldness to take a chance of starting new and not to mention a lot of money.

[Penny Trains]

I wonder if the market could handle a doubling or tripling of the msrp though.  In reality that's what it would take to get back what we once had.  At least if you look at it from a "one or the other" point of view.  Lionel may well be trying very hard to get production back, although this first endeavour doesn't seem to be going as planned.

Becky

[Andrew Falconer]

I did not realize that Starting Over in the USA was so difficult these days for everyone.

Has everything been cut back so far that it hard to get started again?

Andrew

[Seayakbill]

Not sure if restarting the boxcar manufacturing process is that difficult or if it was just a bad choice in the selection of the manufacture. As some have stated in this thread, Weaver already has the manufacturing process, why not give them the contract. The LCCA already uses Weaver to repaint Lionel rolling stock for their unique items.