Bowser BigBoy discontinued

[0-6-0]

Hello OK guys I have been back in the hobby for 3 years now so I missed a lot . I know most of the steam kits are not made any more but is there any one left that makes them beside Bowser ? And if know one is buying kits will everything be RTR one day ? Are we on the way to buying are layout in one big box ? Just paint it and some detail and you are set . Don't get me wrong I have a bunch of RTR stuff but I really like building it to. I am now stating to get in to scenery and like it but not that good yet.Working on kits helps it easer to pant parts then the hole thing or have to take a new loco a part to do it. It just seems to me we lost part of the hobby. Have a nice day Frank

[R. T. POTEET]

i heard something even worse while talking today with dan on yardbirdstrains.com, he says that  all of the metal kits built by bowser are discontinued due high price of metal and non builders due to rtr  locomotives, i just when i got back into model railroading and felt pride as to building my own kits.

the only thing that he suggests get 'em while their hot

This is, indeed, dire news! I would hope that it were just a rumor but, unfortunately, I fear your information may be correct. Somehow or another, I just cannot fathom a model railroad hobby without Bowser die-cast steamers. I wonder if Bowser did not see the handwriting on the wall when they purchased Stewart a few years back.

I don't really have an immediate interest in returning to HO Scale but my 67 year old fingers are getting just a little arthritic and I may have to give some serious thought to doing just that in the future. I had always considered that, if I did decide to return to HO Scale, I would build my fleet with die-cast kits and that, automatically, infers Bowser.

I was prompted to google Hobbytown of Boston to inquire as to their status; things are not well in that theater also. Apparently Bear Locomotive has suspended operation and is selling down it's Hobbytown of Boston stock and it looks seriously like that name is also going to soon disappear. The last I heard Tiger Valley is still in business and, of course, there is always MDC/Roundhouse and Model Power periodically reintroduces one of the Mantua kits but, to the best of my knowledge, those are the last of the die-cast kit builders.

"THE TIMES, THEY ARE A'CHANGIN'"

Cjcrescent, I appreciate your info on TLC; those people just seem to have ridden off into the sunset without a fair-the-well. I remember peeking at one of their kits one time; sure did seem to be a lot of parts in there.

[dinwitty]

I think there are some small obscure steam kit makers out there, but they are not as big as the MDC, Mantua, Bowser.