(12/21/16) Canada Covered Hopper from Menards!

Brainel, thank you for your great response. I am always amazed by several things every time Menards produces a new train product. First of all, how they can produce such a nice product at such a low price. (You can state all you want that you can get older used manufacturer's items at a similar cost at shows, but these are new out of the box items, not someone else's "get rid" of item). 

Secondly, no matter what the product is, there are always wishers and whiners that are never satisfied. Who would have imagined a few short years ago that we would have been complaining about products made by a home improvement company as if that were their main business. 

Thirdly, I am amazed that the 11% rebate debate continues to be an ongoing issue. I understand Menards reasoning on the rebate to be In Store Only. This of course is to purchase items at the location of the store to get potential buyers to see what they have to offer...their main business 12 months out of the year. I think many feel that they are getting "cheated" because they can't use the rebate like those of us that live "near" a Menards. Well, I live within 50 miles of a Menards. Let's see, a trip to Menards and back is 100 miles. I get 30 mile per gallon, so let's say I use 3+ gallons of gas to go use my rebate. Right now, I would be pretty lucky, gas is down to $2.07, so I would only be spending $6-$7 dollars (probably $12.00 a year ago) to use my 11% rebate. So, I would have had to spend around $64.00 originally to break even for my trip. 

Lastly, I am amazed with Menards customer service and their learning curve with the train products. It is so gratifying that Mark is our personal liaison to the company workings. I am sure he started out as just a marketing manager, but has become our voice to anything Menards. Exceptional....and thanks Mark.

Rick

Good evening Menard's. Just a couple of ideas.

Got to love the GREEN!

RailRide posted:

RadioRon posted:

jim sutter posted:

Seeing this new release from Menard's takes me back to the good old MPC days.   At $17.79 this car is a steal.

But it is NOT $17.97 because most of us cannot take advantage of the Menard's "Rebate."

That's why I waited for the "free flatcar with each 19.99 train item" promotion instead:

(the ninth item is the "mega crane", which also counted as a train item )

--PCJ

That Mega Crane looks very much like one I received for Christmas in 1970 from Sears. That unit was exported from Japan and fully motorized. Mine still works and was a part of my childhood layout until I dismantled it in 2010. Now the crane awaits deployment when I build a family room addition to my home in the next couple of years.

Ken

Since we're discussing Menards trains, I thought I'd chime in with some questions regarding scale (I'm new to this so bear with me here).

Are the following scale?

1) Menards 40 ft. boxcars?  (They certainly look much larger than the Lionel equivalent)

2) 3 Dome Tanker cars?  (I just received my first set of 6 last week and they look pretty dam cool, also my first set of rolling stock)

3) Cabooses?

4) Hopper cars? (the pictures that I've seen show them to also be larger than Lionel equivalents)

Also, if Marks here, is Menards planning on rolling out any time soon some 50 foot boxcars?

Also for Mark, is the Burlington Northern green color accurate?  It appears to be olive drab green, most BN items I've seen appear to be a little brighter.  Or was this to show "age"?

This Soo Line covered hopper paint scheme from the 1960's could fit on the O gauge covered hopper.

The graphics would have to be moved around to avoid the ribs.

This is a Missouri-Kansas-Texas covered hopper scheme that can be applied to the O gauge covered hopper.

This Burlington Northern FMC covered hopper's graphics must be applied to the O gauge covered hopper.

The label on the photo is wrong. This is a covered hopper.

Andrew

My vote goes for M K T !!!!!

kmacleod posted:

RailRide posted:

That's why I waited for the "free flatcar with each 19.99 train item" promotion instead:

(the ninth item is the "mega crane", which also counted as a train item )

--PCJ

That Mega Crane looks very much like one I received for Christmas in 1970 from Sears. That unit was exported from Japan and fully motorized. Mine still works and was a part of my childhood layout until I dismantled it in 2010. Now the crane awaits deployment when I build a family room addition to my home in the next couple of years.

Ken

 

The "Mega Crane" is actually the mobile crane lying down in its box on the couch armrest

The tower crane standing behind it is the Tomy/Sears "Giant Crane" that I also received as a Christmas gift sometime during the 1970's. Mine also functions, albeit missing one of the diagonal straps that connect the counterweight to the tower.

This is the Menard's 'Mega Crane':

However, "mega" is subjective. Next to my Conrad-built Demag AC-1000, it's decidedly wimpy

...however the Conrad model was a cool $700* back in 2012 when I took delivery, as opposed to the 39.95 of the Menards one

*not including $30 shipping, but including a box-load of prototypical accessories needed to set it up for actually lifting stuff...

---PCJ

(psst...wanna know how these monsters are built?)

TrainGuyMcGee posted:

Since we're discussing Menards trains, I thought I'd chime in with some questions regarding scale (I'm new to this so bear with me here).

Are the following scale?

1) Menards 40 ft. boxcars?  (They certainly look much larger than the Lionel equivalent)

2) 3 Dome Tanker cars?  (I just received my first set of 6 last week and they look pretty dam cool, also my first set of rolling stock)

3) Cabooses?

4) Hopper cars? (the pictures that I've seen show them to also be larger than Lionel equivalents)

Also, if Marks here, is Menards planning on rolling out any time soon some 50 foot boxcars?

Also for Mark, is the Burlington Northern green color accurate?  It appears to be olive drab green, most BN items I've seen appear to be a little brighter.  Or was this to show "age"?

TrainGuyMcGee,

Scale has been discussed at length and everyone has different opinions, depending on what you compare them to.

We don't currently have plans to produce a 50' boxcar but if we have enough interest, it would be a real possibility.

Here is a photo of the BN hopper.

I hope this helps. Thanks for asking!
-Mark the Menards Train Guy

Mark, happy holidays to you and your family! Thanks for everything you do for us on this forum! Your customer support is much appreciated! Hope Santa puts a Military or Alaska caboose in your stocking! LOL--Sorry, I couldn't resist!

Be a tight fit, I think Cabinet Bob may already be in there!! LOL

play trains posted:

Be a tight fit, I think Cabinet Bob may already be in there!! LOL

so... your saying Mark needs a bigger stocking , Right?    LOL   ... Merry Christmas Everyone !!

TrainGuyMcGee posted:

Since we're discussing Menards trains, I thought I'd chime in with some questions regarding scale (I'm new to this so bear with me here).

Are the following scale?

1) Menards 40 ft. boxcars?  (They certainly look much larger than the Lionel equivalent)

2) 3 Dome Tanker cars?  (I just received my first set of 6 last week and they look pretty dam cool, also my first set of rolling stock)

3) Cabooses?

4) Hopper cars? (the pictures that I've seen show them to also be larger than Lionel equivalents)

Also, if Marks here, is Menards planning on rolling out any time soon some 50 foot boxcars?

Also for Mark, is the Burlington Northern green color accurate?  It appears to be olive drab green, most BN items I've seen appear to be a little brighter.  Or was this to show "age"?

1: The boxcars have been reported to be very close to scale for a PRR prototype (X-29). This makes them a little larger than the traditional-sized (i.e. 6464-derived) Lionel 40-footer but smaller than what most of us see as a typical "scale" boxcar.

2: Depends on which prototype--tank cars were all over the map in terms of size, it was dependent on the weight of the commodity they were to carry. The triple-dome tank cars are assumed to be traditional sized. Doesn't mean there isn't a real-life version that comes close to its scale measurements, just that nobody has done the research here...yet.

3: Pretty sure the Menards' cabooses are traditional size.

4: The hoppers are the same size as Lionel and WBB quad hoppers. You may have seen a video comparing them to Lionel 2-bay hoppers, which was...well not comparing equivalents.

---PCJ

Because the Burlington Northern open-top hopper was already made in Cascade Green with white graphics, the BN covered hopper scheme will have to be different.

For the Burlington Northern covered hopper make this scheme of a light gray body with black lettering.

These two bay covered hoppers are similar in style to the four-bay covered hopper.

Andrew

There were larger capacity Burlington Northern covered hoppers painted light gray with black markings.

Here is one example of how to apply the BN name on the large covered hoppers.

Andrew

There is a large potash plant 120 miles east of here in Ft. Dodge, IA. See all sorts of Canadian cars there and also on the UP here in Sioux City.

Dick

Mark, there is a very big flaw that needs to be adressed here in the coupler design on all your gold line of cars. So much so it keept me from buying a milwakee coal hopper car yesterday in the store. I realy wanted that car by the way. 

The issue is with the trucks. The issue here is that the screws holding the pot metal side frames to the sheet metal on the trucks  are comming striped out. The design of the pot metal truck side frame allows for the screws to be inserted and tightend down just right one time. If done improperly there is no bite of the pot metal hole in the side frame to holed the screw in place and tight.  Thus the screw cannot be tighted down at all. This results in the screw falling out or becomming lose and the side frame of the truck falling off and loose and allowing  the wheel sets too just fall out. This is a random occorance depending on how the coupler assembly was screwed together. Some cars are fine and others are not. Maybe caused by overtightening of the screw when initialy assmembled. None the less before I buy a car from the store I check for this problem if it is evident on the car I am going to buy I place it back on the shelf. I will not buy it.

This also creates a problem for the next buyer. I want more of these cars as I like the size and the decorations offered. With the great prices offered on these cars one can easily build a long boxcar or coal train of his choice,But and the BIG BUT IS......having gotten multiple cars at random with this problem I will not  get anymore untill this is fixed. I will not order any car or sets of cars online because I am too afraid of getting a car with this problem. I dont have any replacment couplers and I am tired of getting a new car and having to replace the trucks as soon as I get it out of the box. 

I realy want to buy more of these cars especialy the new coal and hopper cars. I am not ranting here let me be clear. I realize with your outstanding customer service we can return any defective car hasel free. This gets old though and I am sure from you perspective it is not good either. I am saying all of this in hopes that you can impliment a design change here on these trucks so that this cannot happen at all. Maybe smaller holes in the metal at the scew points where they enter the pot  metal side frames or tiny scews with nuts on the other end that go in these holes to keep the side frames on is the solution. Keeping the nut on the inside portion of the frame and the screw towards the bottom. then if it needs to be tightend because it becomes loose during shipping and handeling it can be done buy us the consumer with out removing the truck assembly frome the car. This is exstremly nessesary on the cars where the truck is rivited to the car. Hope you can find a solution here to this adressed issue with the trucks. Here is a upclose photo of the problem area of the truck to wich I am trying to describe here. Hope you can resolve this issue. This will help all of us who love your cars and want to keep buying them a 100% out of the box trouble free truck and coupler part. Thanks roger.

Sounds and looks more like a over tightening issue at the factory.....easy to do with assembly line power tools......they often need to be 'reset' between production runs and are not....thus we get stripped screw holes. 

Dave I belive you are 100% right here. I used to work on an assmbly line using the very tools you talk about. We made small electrical breakers and boxes. does anyone here have a suggestion for mark on making this step in the truck assembly process fullproof. That way any assembly line worker that day on that station cant make a bad truck. This helps everybody here including menards. I realize QC is lacking on some things. This can be avoided though and not have to be missed by the qc person if this part of the assembly process was adressed. Has anyone else here gotten a bad truck on a menards car more than once or at least once. Am I just making too much out of nothing here. What do others think here?