Do you prefer box cars with opening doors?

Yes like opening doors they seem to look more realistic when running.

YES, ALWAYS! It was the way I was brought up!  :-)

No brainer. I even run some of them with the doors open, as is prototypical, especially pre-70's.

However, I gladly buy fixed-door boxcars - usually already assembled and 3-rail-trucked kits - of the older All-Nation, Athearn O, etc., and the nice brass ones, when the prices are right.

So - a fixed-door box purchase is not out of the question. Like everything else, it depends.

Opening doors, but of course!

Atlas is still milking those old outdated molds & design. They've been crushed by MTH's later model freight cars. New Atlas offerings, nothing new there.

I like both. The Lionel scale high cube box cars have non opening doors and that doesn't bother me.......Paul

Opening doors is an absolute necessity. How else is my 6 year old granddaughter and the rest of the little girls on this planet (maybe the universe) going to give their Shopkins long distance, high speed train rides in boxcars.

And if you don't know what a Shopkins is, then you are totally not hip!

LOL

Bob,

   The Great thing is there are thousands of different Atlas Box Cars available that have doors that open, one of my Favorites is the WAG Box Car they made years ago.  I have been purchasing them for my WAG Logging Train and they are quite nice, in fact better than the other custom made Cars.  Wish they were Tin Plate darn it.

PCRR/Dave

Non opening doors is not a deal breaker for me. 

Maybe as I understand Atlas's logic. Opening doors are a HUGE cost. More tooling, more painting and pad printing, more assembly which translates to more labor and chance of parts being broken during assembly and shipping. From my hobby dealings in manufacturing I can see a saving of 25% or more.......and that makes it a go/no go deal.  

Open doors. How else are the little guys gonna get out

Yep.

I definitely prefer non-opening doors.   I like the slides and tracks to be scale size and painted body color.    Opening doors always seem to lead to very oversize tracks and then many are just stamped black metal.   

I have several Atlas O box cars with opening doors.  I prefer being able to have the doors open as a choice, than fixed closed doors.  At today’s prices, there should be no question, doors should be able to be opened or closed. Actually, I have some of both, Atlas box cars that have opening doors, and non opening doors. Never really questioned it.  Good Question.

The cars are almost $100.00 per copy, they need to have operating doors at that price. No excuse. The less expensive MTH cars have them.

Opening doors of course.

Opening doors please.

To be realistic I think opening doors would be a good idea.

IMO, opening doors are not a necessity, but they should appear to be able to open and there should, at least, be an option for opening doors, even at an extra cost.

of course opening doors!!!!!

Yes, don't want them if the doors don't open.

The newly released Atlas O single-door box cars have seperate sliding doors. The Atlas O PLUG-DOOR box cars have molded in doors. 

Andrew

We are going backwards, $100 Atlas cars without doors that open, and thumbtack couplers return on Lionel’s $75 cars????

The new release is for PLUG-DOOR box cars. Have you ever opened the plug-doors on the Lionel 40' reefers and the MTH Premier 40' reefers? 

Andrew

Non Operating plug doors makes a lot of sense. Hard to make work really well and be in scale. 

Easy solution if you MUST have opening doors..... buy the ones that do.....OR....get a vendor in China to make them like you think they should be and show Atlas up!!!!

Yes I prefer boxcars with opening doors, it's really hard to hop a freight with no open doors.

Chris Sheldon

To me when I think of cars with out opening doors I think of the Lionel 6014 cars YUK!

Opening doors on everything and anything.

Especially when I was a kid

MONON_JIM posted:

The cars are almost $100.00 per copy, they need to have operating doors at that price. No excuse. The less expensive MTH cars have them.

 

So do the MUCH less expensive Menards boxcars! 

Jim 

The OPEN DOORS win by a HUGE margin!   

A combination of the two would seem to be ok.  You’re not going to open all of them.

Prefer NON-opening.  Opening doors have a tendency to open, and I prefer them closed.

Depends on how much compromise to fidelity is inherent in the opening door.

Only 3 of the Atlas O box cars have molded-in doors

Master 50' plug-door box car

Master 1937 ARR box car

Trainman 40' plug-door box car

The rest of the Atlas box cars have opening doors.

Andrew

The new Atlas O PS-1 50' box cars have doors that open. 

The Atlas O Trainman 40' sliding-door box cars have doors that open. 

Andrew

Arnold D. Cribari posted:

Opening doors is an absolute necessity. How else is my 6 year old granddaughter and the rest of the little girls on this planet (maybe the universe) going to give their Shopkins long distance, high speed train rides in boxcars.

And if you don't know what a Shopkins is, then you are totally not hip!

LOL

Hey Arnold!  I was never one to question your hipness.  If you let your granddaughter  give rides to Shopkins  in your boxcars you are definitely hip!!!

I'm definitely for open doors. No fixed doors here.

I usually keep my doors closed when running but I do like to have the option of opening doors. 

SIRT posted:

Opening doors, but of course!

Atlas is still milking those old outdated molds & design. They've been crushed by MTH's later model freight cars. New Atlas offerings, nothing new there.

 

 

 

Steve,

I was actually thinking of you and some others with your detailing efforts when thinking of this topic over the last couple months.   I have actually been leaning toward the Lionel box cars with loads. 

leapinlarry posted:

I have several Atlas O box cars with opening doors.  I prefer being able to have the doors open as a choice, than fixed closed doors.  At today’s prices, there should be no question, doors should be able to be opened or closed. Actually, I have some of both, Atlas box cars that have opening doors, and non opening doors. Never really questioned it.  Good Question.

I have several of both opening and non-opening Atlas O boxcars.  Now that my layout trackage is becoming saturated with rolling stock, I have to say opening doors are a must for any new additions.  

OPEN DOORS RULE!