Weaver models archive pages

Before Weaver posted the farewell message on the site now, I saved a bunch of stuff from their web site that I thought might be useful in the future.  Unfortunately, it is on my machine at work and won't have access to it again until Monday.  I'll have to see if it can be compressed into a zip file small enough to be able to email.

Andy

It's going to be interesting to follow demand for Weaver stuff now that they are gone.  A smart manufacturer is hopefully watching as a few of there models were quite popular like the troop cars and the 57ft Mechanical reefer.   Some of the passenger cars were pretty popular too.

Things like trucks and couplers,  a no brainer for someone to pick up and continue to manufacturer and offer for sale.   I'm looking for both steam era and modern era three rail diecast trucks now for Weaver cars........

Mark

But to answer your question directly,  As I understand it,  The Weaver website and all content,  for now,  is gone.

Mark

I saved this file on my computer, i hope it is what you need.

Very best,  Daniel

The trucks and couplers, at least in recent years, were made for them by MTH.  I would guess starting around the time they stopped using the plastic trucks and couplers.  So you just have to go to MTH or one of their dealers to get the trucks and couplers now.

Andy

Andy....  So what you're saying is that I should be able to get the diecast Bettendorf trucks with couplers (Weaver stk #718) from MTH?

Do you happen to know the MTH number?

I have some MTH trucks, P/n 20-89003, Premier Bettendorf w/couplers.  While very nice, they are definitely not the same as Weaver's 718's.  For my purposes, the 20- trucks will work, but not as 'conveniently' as the Weaver ones.  I enjoy building the old O car kits...All-Nation, Athearn, Ambroid, Quality Craft, et al...and the Weaver trucks require minimal or no modification to bolsters to achieve proper car height, etc..  Lionel's aftermarket trucks are a PITA to use for this purpose.  MTH's and Atlas's?...not so bad.  Weaver's....my favorite.  Besides, the remaining stocks of Weaver cars, as well as many on the secondary market, featured their plastic versions of the trucks.  The 718's are, in most cases, direct swaps.

So, if MTH is now our source, I imagine others besides myself could use some guidance/ordering info.

Thanks for the heads-up!

KD

Athearn Delrin trucks are the same height as the orginal weavers.   They were both made to NMRA recommended practice.  

The older Athearn metal ones are also good, but no longer made.  

I think the Athearn trucks are actually a little nicer than the Weavers in appearance and equalization for operation.   

I called MTH and they do not make the trucks for weaver now. They did back in the 90's and i asked Joe on facebook who made the trucks for them. He said weaver made there own couplers and trucks he has the tooling and hope's to sell them. 

Yes, I've used the Bettendorf and Archbar Athearn Delrin trucks on a few O2R models.

However, I'm not keen on their plastic wheels, and changing them over to metal wheels is, well, just more hassle.  Doable, but...  Then, if I used Kadees for my O3R operation, I'd be OK.  But, to adapt 'the lobster claws' to a car featuring the Athearn Delrin trucks....more hassle.

Ah, well, so it goes....

So, it seems from Chessie1971's response that I/we am/are outa luck until the tooling is sold and re-enters the market....and that with a liberal dose of h-o-p-e!

Thanks to all for your comments.

KD

Thanks Mark!! I also asked Joe if other brand trucks would work on weaver cars and he said he wasn't sure. I hope he sells the tooling. 

Switch Stand Train Shop in St. Louis, MO has both die-cast and plastic Weaver trucks in stock - not sure if they'll ship them but they had boxes when I was in there this week.

This hobby shop has the weaver trucks. I was looking on there website a couple days ago i seen them. http://www.mainlinehobby.net/

Try https://archive.org/

Put in Weavers web site URL.

They keep historic snapshots of web sites.

The internet never forgets.

The trucks that Weaver was using at the cash-and-carry sale were MTH RailKing trucks (30-89001 for Bettendorf, and 30-89002 for Roller Bearing).  I bought cars requiring both at the sale (they were handing out the trucks and couplers at checkout).  Beyond the lack of brake hoses, I don't know what the differences are between the Premier and RailKing versions.

I have never compared them to Weaver 718's, so I can't comment on how they compare.  What I can say is that they fit the cars I bought and look as good as any cars I bought from Weaver in the past.

The only 3-rail trucks, beyond some loose old plastic trucks, that Weaver had at the cash-and-carry sale were MTH-made.  So the only inventory of any Weaver-made trucks will be in the inventories of their former dealers.

Andy

Any trucks and couplers will "work" on Weaver cars.

- The earlier Lionel/K-line/etc with the high bolsters will make the car sit too high, but the fix can be (I've done it):

remove the Weaver car frame/floor bolster (cut it off, usually - it can't really be seen on most non-tank cars, anyway) and then attach the "high truck" with your

screw or pins of choice (this is model RR'ing - we're supposed to do things ourselves sometimes).

With the method above you can even put Postwar Lionel trucks on a Weaver car at a proper height! (I plan to do that one day - just for grins; also, they're good trucks.)

- any of the modern Lionel, Atlas, K-line/RMT, MTH trucks with the low bolsters will work

just fine. Again, mounting is case-by-case. You may have to drill the car, drill the truck - or both. Or neither. Not rocket surgery. 

- the modern Weaver die-cast truck/couplers almost certainly were not supplied by MTH; an MTH coupler design would have been, with all due respect to Weaver's supplier, much better.