Menards 027 Box Cars

Just because they come from a big supplier doesn't mean it can't be NOS. There's actually a fair number of dealers that still carry older Williams & WBB stock in their inventory.

I am just surprised that they would inform you as a customer that their stock was 

NOS...........and not the newest items............Evan on Ebay, many are selling the newst stuff.  And many on there state,  NOS........

I have the Southern model and it wobbles ,I think I will take it apart and tighten the trucks if possible

Hi Model Railroaders

    Myself and my Baby Grandson, went to our local MENARDS, for paint & check out the Model Train Stuff. Yes - I like my 027 Box Car from MENARDS, at this time of year most of the train stuff in on the store computers. At Christmas time the selection is a lot larger.

Say Hi to Baby Adam at MENARDS.

Trainroomgary

Detroit, Michigan

www.youtube.com/user/trainroomgary

A friend who has some of the Menards cars has told me that "Lionel" is engraved on their floor's bottom side. I haven't seen one out of it's box yet to be sure, so I'm taking his word for it...

 

Bill in FtL

 

I only have the Southern car and there is no "Lionel" stamped on it. Not saying the others do not, just that this one does not.

There is nothing stamped on the bottom of my PRR Menards car.  If it was stamped inside on the floor, I would think I would see some kind of impression.  I too am not denying what this other fellow said, his could very well have Lionel on it.  Regardless it is a nice car, and that is what means the most to me.

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe die-cast metal car bodies are made from zinc alloy, not steel.  Non-magnetic.

 

Seeing these cars are strongly similar if not identical to WBB cars, I would suspect Lionel has nothing to do with them.

 

When was the last time you saw a brand spankin' new Lionel boxcar for 20 bucks retail?

 

Rusty

Bill in Ft.L:

 

Based on the replies to your post, we might be talking Apples & Oranges here. 

 

Is your friend’s car one of the NEW just released Menard’s box cars which is the subject of this thread or is his car an “older” production car from a Menards’s Lionel set?  How long has he had it?  If it's over a few weeks old, then it's not one of the subject cars of this thread. 

 

Bill in Orlando

FWIW: My Menards 2013 individual sale flatcars have "Made in China" stamped on the bottom of the metal frame. The die-cast trucks do not have separate springs, they are cast in also.

I think MTN nailed it 100%.........

I've been collecting AMT and KMT/Kusan trains for about 20 years - I like the little guys/underdogs in the O gauge world, and AMT was the biggest of the small O manufacturers to give Lionel some reason for concern.  They beat Lionel to market with aluminum streamlined cars - first with ultra tough to find smooth sided sandcast cars, and then with lighter weight corrugated cars in just about every car type, save for full length domes.  Next came the nearly scale sized boxcar (just a smidge under full scale length).  Lionel had to have been concerned with AMTs offerings, as they came out with similar items pretty quickly.  The other AMT cars were different from what Lionel was producing save for the depressed center flat, and their car was longer than Lionel's.  The AMT caboose was based on a C&O design, with side marker lights and a heavy metal frame.  AMT's trucks weren't very good rollers, but replacing their wheels with Lionel fast angle wheels (a slip on change) makes the AMT cars roll much better.

Hello Fellow Model Railroaders - More about the MENARDS Box Cars

I have attached two photos to share with you.

The MENARDS Body is injected molded plastic, THERMAL - SET PLASTIC

The extra weight for the car comes from the stamped steel floor.

On the top and bottom of the floor there is no manufactures name

on this production run.

Trainroomgary

Detroit, Michigan

www.youtube.com/user/trainroomgary

I tend to agree with Bill; sounds to me the friend's car in question was an older Lionel boxcar that was released either in 2013 or 2012 (can't remember which).  That release has nothing to do with the current offerings by Menard's which are the Williams by Bachmann boxcars.

 

The Lionel Mernard's boxcar was product # 6-36186, had a road number of 18456, and based on the common 40' semi-scale boxcar whose origins stemmed from the 6464 (later 9700 series) boxcars and are smaller than the Williams box cars.  You may want to ask your friend to check those numbers; I'd be willing to bet that's exactly what he has.

Gary,

That is what I have.

Thank you!

Mark

Thanks for the input guys! I happened to see my friend (the one who said his Menards car said Lionel on the bottom) today, and when I asked him which car he was talking about, he told me it wasn't a boxcar, but rather one of the flats with a vehicle on it, but he couldn't remember which one. I think the idea that it may have originated in a set may be the explanation for this car. The same fellow showed the whole club one of the Southern boxcars at breakfast Friday, but we never took it out of the clear plastic packaging, so I didn't get a good look at the floor to see that it was metal.

 

I remember picking up one of the Kusan flat cars in kit form (decorated for L&N) over 20 years ago, possibly at a train show. At some point, I cut it down the centerline to narrow it so I could use it on my S Gauge layout (back then, S scalers were so desperate for rolling stock that we kit bashed many O-27 items for use with S, including Kusan, KMT, & Lionel. I also remember buying a couple of tank cars and at least one caboose in kit form that came undecorated and packed in Williams boxes. I'm not sure whatever happened to them, but I'm hoping I still have them, perhaps in one of my many "unfinished project" boxes somewhere out in the garage...

 

Bill in FtL

MENARDS BOX CAR • In this video I will take apart a MENARDS Box Car to show Model Railroaders, that MENARDS sells a quality box car for $19.99 each. They also sell a weathered version for $24.99 each. They just came out with a U.S. Army Flat Car with a Tank. The tank has animated LED flashing muzzle gun, along with sounds & voices. All MANARDS rolling stock will navigate 0-27 curves.

Cheers from Michigan

Trainroomgary

Detroit, Michigan

www.youtube.com/user/trainroomgary

 

 

 

(watches video)

Definitely a Williams boxcar--it has the same coupler-height disparity as the others do with everyone else's rolling stock

 

---PCJ

I want to buy a bunch of there "southern" boxcars a dozen or so  and put the realistic sprung trucks that have real looking bearings that move from Atlas

 

Roller bearing trucks would actually be anachronistic on the Williams boxcar; the bettendorf trucks that are currently on the car are more accurate given the era of the boxcar design.

 

The metal undercarriage frame & the air reservoir detail part is the other dead giveaway along with the obvious boxcar body that matches the Williams/WBB boxcars from the original AMT/KMT/Kusan mold design.

I noticed just last night that my PRR boxcar wobbles a lot.

To Mark Boyce & Guys Following this thread.

Yes: I have also noticed wobbles with my Menard Box Car.

It goes over five switches and a 2% grade, but the wobble, does not cause any

derailments. If it becomes an issue, may have to park it in a yard.

Thanks for all your help with this issue.

Mark • You have the Mid America 3 Railers, Logo imbedded in your threads.

Can you please post a link, that shows the steps for this process. 

Trainroomgary

Detroit, Michigan

www.youtube.com/user/trainroomgary

I'd make Mernards aware of this issue; wheel axles being bent either as a result of a bad batch of wheelsets installed on the trucks at the factory, or more likely due to inadequate protection in shipping.

Try asking your question over here as there are some parts dealers among the members:

 

AMT_Kusan_KMT_Kris_Williams_Trains - Yahoo Groups

 

Bill

What’s that old saying, if it walks like a duck, etc., then it’s a duck!  It’s too bad that apparently no one on here who has one of these new Menards box cars also has a new Williams box car to compare them side-by-side and report any differences to us.  I’ll bet Williams dealers are not happy with these Menards box cars seeing that they undercut the MSRP of a Williams-branded box car by $50.00 per car.  That’s a 72% discount!

 

As I previously posted there are minor obvious differences such as the text on the doors and the reporting marks on the ends of the Williams cars which don’t show up on the Menards cars.  But those two differences certainly don’t account for very much of the cost difference. 

 

Bill

 

John,

I will have to check again.  I think the trucks are too loose.  However your suggestion is one I will look into.  I didn't think of it.  Thank you.

   The 4 screws holding the body to the chassis are another giveaway as to the origin of the car; AMT and KMT/Kusan used a diecast underframe that attached to the body with 4 screws.  I've found a few KMT/Kris cars with AMT/KMT diecast trucks,with a stamped out, sheet metal frame.  I don't know if KMT/Kris ever got the mold to make the diecast frame, but it would have made the cars more expensive to produce.  Some early KMT/Kris cars had Lionel metal postwar trucks, some have AMT/KMT diecast trucks, some appear with MPC plastic trucks.  You can sort of identify when the KMT/Kris cars were made by their trucks, but it's not foolproof dating by any means.

midamerica3railers.webs.com

Just received two Menards box cars...the SOO Line card keeps jumping the rails on the gargrave tracks and the Maine box car had two defective couplers that wouldn't stay closed, I have returned that one for a replacement. Not very happy with these inferior Menards products. Marty at Skpyvilrailroad

 

Until I see more posts like this that suggests there is a pattern with these cars, I will give them the benefit of the doubt for now.  I don't think Menard's would sell them and risk their reputation if the cars weren't of decent quality.