I have been posting a lot, it seems, about the MT F7, and with good reason: as a relative newcomer to Z scale, most of my stuff is Micro Train equipment. I have had a ball fussing with the 3 F7s I have, and find their rolling stock (and track) to be highly useable and well-made. I recently received a message from a fellow "TrainBoard" member suggesting I contact MT, just to let them know of my satisfaction. I sent an email yesterday during lunch, and within 5 minutes had a response from them, and an hour later got another (email) from the CEO himself, thanking me as well. It's my understanding that there has been some less than positive posts about the MT line, but I for one am a big supporter of their products. In as small a field as Z is, I think it's vital we support all the players. Without them, where would we be? Mark in Oregon
I'm just concerned with their fine running hood units' disappearance. I know MTL had issues with their (chinese, of course) contractor who built chassis for these units, but now all looks like pre-2005 era, before they first released their GP35. And now, for a few years, no more information about these, we don't know if we can expect them again in the future. Rather puzzling... And in my own case I'm not very optimistic as I believe I've read somewhere that MTL's new management is not very fond of Z, but on the opposite is willing to expand its N scale line. I hope I'm wrong... Dom
MTL follows Warren Buffet's guidance to new companies: Delight your Customer. I ordered parts from them two weeks ago and the MTL rep apologized, saying the parts couldn't go out on Friday because the parts department was closed. Nevertheless, was delighted to get the parts on the next Monday! Above and beyond. MTL is criticized because they are running their business like a going concern, and the market for Z is flat as a pancake. So they are not investing tens of thousands of dollars in new tooling, new models and extended runs of every roadname ever in existence. But they have a formidable catalog since they have been making Z since the seventies. And except for a few boutique German firms, they are the only game in town for Nn3, which is all but extinct. Their couplers are simply the most realistic, OPERATING, couplers in existence; their product is first quality, their pad printing is superlative, and they stand behind what they sell. MTL spends where the money is, N. Want more MTL Z? At my favorite online dealer there are 137 Z items on CLEARANCE alone, with multiple numbers of each item. There are 2100 Z items in his regular sale category (but clearance items are included there also). When dealers can start clearing out of this glut of Z product you "might" see MTL go back into new Z production. I'm just thankful they are trying to release one or two new roadnames of cars and F7's each month. And their factory weathered and graffiti cars and locomotives are over the top! So if you can't find something you like in this cornucopia of Z, order a 3D print of it.
I'm also rather fond of MTL, I like the coupler, customer support and parts availability, and they have a wide range of common rolling stock types and roads. There have been several comments made here that I believe are somewhat inaccurate that I would like to try to clarify. My first non-Märklin locomotive was the F7, in a Kadee box about 1985. It was about this time that Keith Edwards founded MTL as a spin-off from Kadee. As I recall, Mr. Edwards passed the management of the company down to the kids about 2003 and I'm not aware of any significant management changes since. At least the same people have been manning the MTL booth at shows since 2010. As to their commitment to Z, I suggest people look at the MTL databases: http://micro-trainsline.com/databases When I did an analysis last year I found that MTL has fairly consistently over the past 30 years averaged 4 new cars per month, a set about 4 times per year, a new car style once a year. On the locomotive side, the F7A/B(dummy) ran for 20 years before they produced the GP35 and since then produced the SD40-2 and retooled the F7A/B(powered). All of model railing is flat. The PCR division of the NMRA has been running a membership of 1000 +- 50 for years. Yet when you look at publicly available data, Z scale is growing: Ztrack reports modestly increasing distribution every year, retail sites are selling out of product faster and if you watch invoice numbers sales seem to be increasing 5-10% per year. If I were to criticized MTL it would be not taking more advantage of Z scale growth. Some food for thought. Mark
All valid points made; I think their database alone is worth my support! I still have 'way too much N scale; all equipped with MT couplers. All of the 2 rail O scale I have boxed away have KDs. I cannot imagine this hobby (in any scale) without either MTs or KDs....and all made right here in Oregon! (The other) Mark: (this one) in Oregon
I just wish they'd bring the SD40-2 back... MTL has probably the cheapest Z scale rolling stock out there, and it looks great... only thing i have to do to MT cars is buy metal wheels... AZL (which is a big reason why Z scale is growing) i have to swap for MT trucks and metal wheels... and their rolling stock hovers around HO scale prices... Have you seen a Corn Syrup tanker? They are about $45 alone! MT should make some more modern cars and I'll probably never look at AZL for rolling stock again... (locomotives though, I'll buy definitely.)
You get what you pay for. I like MTL, but after 2 wasted SD40-2"s, I am not likely to go that route again. My F7's run well enough, but they took a fair amount of fidgeting. MTL was willing to have a look at my SD40's, but $50 per hour plus parts is just not going to happen. I have only had 1 AZL issue and they are standing behind their product. Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to knock MTL, there is plenty of room for both MTL and AZL Trey
The MTL SD40-2 was like a cost accountant was appointed MTL SD40-2 production manager and he outsourced the SD40-2 to the Yugo factory for assembly. Downgrades to plastic gear reductions in plastic trucks that made the F7B unit look like a perpetual motion machine; "snap fit" truck sandwiches to hold the gears/wheels in place, but could be misfitted or plastic warped and the snap popped open too easy; "pop-in" trucks to frames instead of brass screw attachments that fit well..maybe once; iffy assembly of the frames, binding drivetrains, broken tabs for the circuit boards, no more instant swap to marklin couplers.....sigh - I only buy MTL SD40-2's for the motors now.
oh well I still want a few... If you have SF, or KCS ill gladly take them off anyone's hands... Just not for MSRP... since they are so "crappy"
Downgrade to plastic? Have you opened an AZL locomotive lately? If I may quote Rob A from the AZL forum (typos corrected): "Märklin uses metal gears in their locomotives. Great 1980s technology. They need to be oiled. We use a type of POM (polyoxymethylene) for our gears. POM is also known as acetal, polyacetal and polyformaldehyde which are forms of an engineering thermoplastic used in precision parts that require high stiffness, low friction and excellent dimensional stability. Examples of parts that are frequently machined from the acetal plastics, including Delrin, are wear strips, rollers, and bushings and other applications requiring a combination of strength, low moisture absorption, dimensional stability and chemical resistance. " Read more: http://azlforum.com/thread/622/new-azl-couple#ixzz4BQzPPXj6 Professionally, I've run Delrin gears in equipment 4000-5000 hours per year at a rate of a couple thousand RPM on a forward- reverse cycle of 1-2 seconds. The right plastic will outperform metal parts any day. But I do agree the SD40-2 can require some TLC to get it to work well.
I am starting to understand why my sd-40 doesn't run........ The guy who tries to fix it, sees problems with the gears and probably a bent frame..... My gp-9 however runs great! I really like their freight cars. Fair prices for nicely detailed, good running cars. Without MTL, it would be hard to have a fleet of cars.
