Did Williams...and now MTH use any original tinplate tooling from Lionel Corp or did Williams make the tooling from scratch? If so...any particular items? I have heard mixed stories on this.
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How and where would Jerry Williams have obtained any of Lionel's original tooling?
Sounds very unlikely.
I don't recall reading anything about this in the Williams book.
Mike,
It's been many years ago. It's my understanding that the electric profile engines were made using Lionel Corp tooling. I own a Wms #9 and 318, both are dummies. I've also heard all the mixed stories. I also agree with CW. The question remains. Where and how?
Per the book, The Story of Williams Electric Trains, Williams had their own tooling made.
Steve
I tend to agree it would be tough to use prewar tooling. I think Lionel only kept what pieces could be adapted into Postwar production. The rest prob scrapped for the war effort. However its not unreasonable to think Williams got some tooling from Lionel as they were at arms length in 1970.
The idea that Williams or other companies used original Lionel prewar dies and other tooling is sentimental but is not correct. The book Steve cites explains at great length how Jerry Williams disassembled samples of the trains he wanted to reproduce, and sent the parts to the tooling companies. The tooling companies made new dies from the sample parts. John Hubbard, the author of The Story of Williams Electric Trains, talks about this in the first person: he was involved in working with the tooling companies for Williams.
So the reproductions were made from new tooling, and the new tooling in turn was made from disassembled original trains.
What I find interesting is that there's many stamping dies sitting around this country. There's all the Ives and American Flyer Presidents special dies from Dick Meyer from Rich-Art. And I understand that all of Pride Lines tooling and dies are for sale now. It's a sham that someone couldn't just stamp a bunch of them out and sell them as kits. I do know that it costs way too much to make tinplate in the USA now to sell and make a profit (not even break even). But I would love to build some custom President Special trains.
Do any of these companies still exist making custom tinplate? I remember Pride Lines used to make stuff for TCA. Is there any available history on them?
This book is a fair source of info on the MESG.
We all patiently await the time when Arno is ready to go with his dream book.
Steve
Originally Posted by Mike W.:
Do any of these companies still exist making custom tinplate? I remember Pride Lines used to make stuff for TCA. Is there any available history on them?
