MTH Premier RS-11 Diesel Locomotives Announced

June 7, 2022 - M.T.H. Electric Trains will be releasing the Premier O Scale RS-11 Diesel Locomotive in four select liveries in 2022. Each of these unique schemes will be available in limited production quantities and will begin shipping to M.T.H. Authorized Retailers in December 2022.

Check out each of these offerings HERE.

Each can be ordered via the M.T.H. Dealer Portal by selecting the All MTH Order Forms link and then proceeding to the 2022 Uncataloged Catalog form while indirect accounts should see their favorite M.T.H. Authorized Distributor. The order deadline is June 22, 2022.

ABOUT THE RS-11 DIESEL LOCOMOTIVE

The RS-11 was Alco’s answer to the hugely popular Electro-Motive Geep. Alco had, after all, invented the road switcher: a multipurpose engine with great visibility fore and aft, capable of anything from slow-speed switching to full-throttle mainline hauling. And in the late 1940s and early ‘50s, Alco’s pioneering RS-1 and RS-3 had sold well. But Alco’s 1600 hp model 244 motor had acquired a reputation for unreliability, and the Electro-Motive GP7 and GP9, copying the road switcher concept, became the runaway best-sellers of first-generation diesels.

One wonders today if Alco’s problem was really its motor or EMD’s commanding sales lead. Back in World War II, EMD had been the only company permitted to manufacture road diesels, and shop crews nationwide had learned to service the EMD 567 prime mover. Perhaps a lack of familiarity led to lesser-quality maintenance of Alco motors; as evidence, Alco fans today point to the New Haven, an all-Alco railroad that got great service from its Alco fleet while others complained.

In any case, the RS-11 addressed the reliability issue with a new Model 251 V-12 motor, offering 50 more horsepower than the contemporary GP9. At least a dozen Class 1 railroads in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico bought the new engine after it was introduced in 1956. Some used it in passenger service with an optional train heat boiler. Later a low-nose version with better forward visibility was offered. But while the RS-11 was a good locomotive, the race had already been lost. Sales numbered in the hundreds while Geeps sold by the thousands. Some RS-11 orders were simply fallout from EMD’s success — when they couldn’t make Geeps fast enough, Alco got the overflow orders. While Alco soldiered on for another decade, introducing its Century series of locomotives, the RS-11 turned out to be the last Alco diesel that sold in significant numbers.

This RS-11 can offer stiff competition for the Geeps and F-units on your railroad - or, like the prototype, you can mix them together in lashups, thanks to Proto-Sound 3.0 technology. Our RS-11 features the distinctive notched-nose look of its prototype, separately added grab irons and windshield wipers, illuminated number boards, etched metal safety tread on the frame walkways, legible builders plates, remote Proto-Couplers front and rear, the authentic chant of an Alco prime mover, four pickup rollers for stall-free running on virtually any track work, and Proto-Speed Control for tremendous pulling power at any speed from a crawl to full throttle.

June 7, 2022 - M.T.H. Electric Trains will be releasing the Premier O Scale Gondola with Junk Load Cars in four select liveries in 2022. Each of these unique schemes will be available in limited production quantities and will begin shipping to M.T.H. Authorized Retailers in February 2023.

Check out each of these offerings HERE.

ABOUT THE GONDOLA CAR WITH JUNK LOAD

On its customer Web site, the Union Pacific Railroad characterizes a gondola as an "extremely sturdy open design" for carrying "rugged unfinished commodities"; its "large flat interior design with side walls" is described as "more flexible than a flat car." These qualities make the modern gondola particularly popular with the steel industry, for transportation of loose materials like scrap metal, waste, coke, and slag as well as finished products like iron or steel plate, pipe, structural steel, and rails for railroad track. Our car replicates a 52’ mill gondola, so-called for its popularity with steel mills, and carries a removable load of scrap metal that might be recycled and used to stamp parts for autos, appliances, and a variety of other products.

Other commodities commonly shipped in gondolas include mineral ores, granite slabs, gravel, logs, lumber, railroad ties, and even prefabricated railroad track, also known as "panel track."

The name for these cars actually predates railroads. In the early 1800s, utilitarian flat-bottomed boats with low sides used to transport the coal down the Potomac River to the Washington D.C. area were called gondolas as a spoof on the much fancier Venetian gondolas. Similarly shaped coal-carrying cars on early railroads earned the same moniker. As more specialized cars were invented for coal service, the gondola evolved into the general-purpose car it is today.

Weekly Five Or Fewer Remaining Inventory Spotlight

June 7, 2022 - Each week, M.T.H. releases product lists spotlighting quantities of Five Or Fewer items that are remaining in our onhand inventory. In many cases, these items will NOT be re-run in the future and these lists could be your last chance of ordering them before they're GONE FOR GOOD. Don't miss out on these items!

Premier O Scale 3-Rail

RailKing O Gauge

M.T.H. S Gauge

Each of these items is available for order now. Direct accounts can order via the M.T.H. Dealer Portal by selecting the All MTH Order Forms link and then proceeding to the Instock Order form link while indirect accounts should see their favorite M.T.H. Authorized Distributor.

M.T.H. Electric Trains will be releasing the Premier O Scale 2-10-4 steam locomotive in two select liveries beginning this Fall. Each of these prototypical schemes will be outfitted with Proto-Sound 3.0 with the Pennsylvania version sporting, for the first time, a quillable steaming whistle. Each livery is available in two cab numbers in very limited quantities. The locomotives should begin shipping to M.T.H. Authorized Retailers in October 2022.

Check out each of these offerings HERE.

M.T.H. Electric Trains will be releasing the RailKing O Gauge SW1200 Diesel Locomotive in four select liveries in 2022. Each of these unique schemes will be available in limited production quantities and will begin shipping to M.T.H. Authorized Retailers in December 2022.

Check out each of these offerings HERE.

M.T.H. Electric Trains will be releasing the RailKing O Gauge Modern Tank Cars in four select liveries in 2022. Each of these unique schemes will be available in limited production quantities and will begin shipping to M.T.H. Authorized Retailers in November 2022.

Check out each of these offerings HERE.