Horizon Hobby Nscale MDC/Roundhouse

[Anonymous]

I understand that Horizon Hobby is the exclusive distributor for MDC/Roundhouse. When I checked out their website, I could find no Nscale products for MDC Roundhouse. I know MDC is being absorbed into Athearn, but shouldn't there be at least some old stock still available?

[MAbruce]

Actually, Horizon purchased MDC/Roundhouse. I think that MDC/Roundhouse is still it's own brand name and you should check their website.

Before the purchase, MDC was selling off their old kits on their website for unheard of prices. Those days are over.

[simon1966]

According to my LHS, who is a Horizon dealer, MDC Roundhouse is becoming the pre-WW2 war era line of R to R and kits. Athearn is going to be the post war line of R to R and kits. Some of the models that were MDC, will appear as Athearn and visa-versa according to this plan. They have just released a new look branding for the MDC R to R line of products, including all new style of packaging. I am not sure if this applies to N scale as well.

[brokemoto]

Athearn has announced some late nineteenth/early twentieth century 2-8-0s in N scale as well as some of the late nineteenth/early twentieth century box-type cars in N. These are from the same molds as the old MDCs. The paint jobs on the locomotives are a bit different and new road names have been announced for the cars. The locomotives are supposed to have either Accumates or MTs, I forget which, now, but either would be an improvement over the old MDC knuckle coupler. I do not know what they plan to do with the couplers on the rolling stock.

The price on the Athearn/MDC 2-8-0 is lower than that on the old MDC 2-8-0. Athearn has not announced a 2-6-0, but I can not see their letting that one die. While the 2-8-0 is strictly a late nineteenth/early twnetieth century locomotive, the mogul could actually be 'updated' with some minor modifications. More than a few roads kept old moguls, eight-wheelers and ten-wheelers around for years after they should have been superceded and scrapped becuase they were the only power that could operate on certain branch lines that had really crummy track and bridges.