Rivarossi moulds

[pedromorgan]

does anybody know where the Rivarossi moulds are RIGHT NOW? i know that walthers have had some big boys and some allan(i know i am not going to spell that right!)gahhnys since lima went bust so which factory were they made in? does walthers have any claim to them? personally i do hope hornby gets them. we might see rivarossi stuff going for propper prices in england!
we could see the big boy back at the £140-150 it should be at.

Peter

[Anonymous]

I would guess that at the moment the moulds are probably wherever they were last used (Italy?). I too hope Hornby are successful in bidding for the former Lima group as it should improve the situation for customers of all the ranges concerned. I do know that they plan to shift all production out to the far east if successful - this should result in better models at lower prices - the paintwork and printing on Hornby's latest models are superb and make some of their older '70s tooling look almost as good as modern models. They have also improved running qualities massively - I have no experience of Rivarossi but if their models recieve the same upgraded finishes and drive systems as the older Hornby models we could see some truly superb locos for very reasonable prices.

[Anonymous]

The only claim Walthers has or had is the exclusive US distributorship.

[Anonymous]

A GOOD QUESTION !!!

I think that, when it happens, Hornby will get the EUROPEAN Rivarossi forms but not the US forms.

The new passenger cars were made in China ! It´s so printed to the box.

I have also a new UP FEF-3. At the box is printed "MADE IN ITALY". My dealer told me that in the customs declaration was written "CHINA".

COURIOUS: In the box are the same little orange qualitycontrol - papers that was in use by ROCO !!!

I´m not sure in the moment.
It´s possible that RIVAROSSI (US-models) is today owned by Walthers,
or
RIVAROSSI is only a Walthers trademark!!!

You see this in the catalogue - Rivarossi is the first manufactor behind Walthers ever!

Fact is: When the new cars and the FEF-3 were made in China, and the cars were made from new forms, I´m near sure that the Lima group is NOT the owner of this castingforms.

When Lima is in bankruptcy since mid 2003, they will place no order in China for this models in late 2003 / early 2004!

When available - spareparts for new models comes from Milwaukee!!!

[ciortato]

Last news are that a group of italian business men would have to take Rivarossi group; so production would have to remain the same. In Italy, we have lost a great point of reference for our hobby. In fact Rivarossi-Lima group produces the most part of Italian high quality models.

[nfmisso]

Latest news on Hornby's site is over 1½ months old:
http://www.hornbyrailways.com/pages/nws_det_press.aspx?NewsItemID=331

At Walther's site, there are no future dates for items not in stock
https://www.walthers.com/exec/search?manu=635&split=300

From Hoovers:
http://www.hoovers.com/hornby/--ID__119708--/free-co-factsheet.xhtml
"Hornby makes miniature trains and other vehicles mainly for the collector-hobby market. The company purchased Italian-based model railway maker Lima in 2004, whose brands include Lima, Rivarossi, Jouef, Arnold, and Pocher."

Walthers has no claim to any of the tooling.