Athearn and MDC not listed


GN.2-6-8-0

GN.2-6-8-0

Member
Had it brought to my attention yesterday that neither Athearn or MDC models are being advertised in the Walthers catalog.
While MDC has undergone ownership changes I'm a bit confused about the Athearn line being deleted. :confused:
 
As chip said, they're owned by Horizon Hobby. Horizon's business "direction" is to take some of Walther's train distributor business, so... Athearn & Roundhouse are now distributed though them, not Walthers.
 
This might be a good thing as I was told Walthers was making our local hobby shop have a mininum order amount before they could send or recieve anything. Being I live in a small town this was difficult for all parties involved.
Maybe the "new" reps will create a better situation.
 
Mingo, Walthers has always had a minimum order for dealer sales. I don't know if they've raised the minimum but any hobby shop that's going to carry toher than the bare minimum of stock should be able to meet the minimum order. Heck, there are times I think I meet the dealer mimimum.

Horizon is not a hobby wholesaler like Walthers. They deal in Athearn and Roundhouse locomotives and rolling stock exclusively, with I think a few leftover Roundhouse structures. Walthers stocks parts from about 150 different manufacturers and I think their total parts count is over 100,000. While it's nice to have competition, I don't think Horizon really has much of a chance against Walthers.
 
UP2CSX said:
Horizon is not a hobby wholesaler like Walthers. They deal in Athearn and Roundhouse locomotives and rolling stock exclusively, with I think a few leftover Roundhouse structures. Walthers stocks parts from about 150 different manufacturers and I think their total parts count is over 100,000. While it's nice to have competition, I don't think Horizon really has much of a chance against Walthers.
Click to expand...
Yes, they are, they just don't stock as much.
http://www.horizonhobby.com/Stores/Brands.aspx?StoreCatId=T
 
You're right, Josh, it's been a while since I've been to the Horizon site. They really have expanded their lines. Their stock is certainly not as extensive as Walthers but they've got a good selection of everything. All at retail prices, of course, but it does seem they are making a run at Walthers dominance on the wholesale side.
 
One other minor detail: Horizon owns Athearn and Roundhouse, the same way Walthers owns Life Like, Magnuson, SS Ltd. and several others. Sometimes this is a good thing, keeping a line alive after the original owners retire, pass away, or lose interest. Other times they just let the line fade away.
 
Well Life Like will be around, in sorts, for a while. As Magnuson lasted for time. We'll have to see.

I like that Walther's is not alone, it helps in finding stuff, in some ways, and SHOULD help pricing. Supposedly.
 
So seeing as all these products are no longer listed in the Walthers catalog does Horizon have a similar catalog of their product lines....:confused:
 
I think they only have an on-line catalog. Their web site doesn't show any reference to a catalog. I imagine that, except for their Athearn and Roundhouse lines, they'll let Walthers publish the rest of their catalog. :)
 
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