IMPERIAL HOBBY PRODUCTIONS??

Just wondering if the still make models,I was looking foward to the reissue of the GP40FH-2 but that was over 2 years,and
was looking foward to the reading blueliners but nothing anymore about,there was a prototype on the web site and that was it,
I had also ordered comet trucks well over 3 years ago and still nothing,I guess there done,Im guess when I see or talk to
Joe @ Island model works maybe he would take on afew projects I would like to do,that reminds me I have to get ahold of
him for my PL42AC truck mounting hardware

http://ihphobby.tripod.com

Yes they are. The site seems to be inactive at the moment, but read the fine print for contact details.

he posts on here from time to time.

jwhite07 wrote:http://ihphobby.tripod.com

Yes they are. The site seems to be inactive at the moment, but read the fine print for contact details.

website has been inactive for over year now. If you google specific models, you can find their pages on the internet, but you can't directly access them. Everything seems to be increasinglky nebulous SEPTA store offerings. They're also getting increasingly expensive as more "features" are added. And I used to think that $180 married pair kits were bad! I miss those days....

To be fair, i saw a Silverliner V on Ebay the other day by someone who must have picked it up at the SEPTA store. If I have time before class, I'll go over and take a look and see if anything interesting has arrived.

Turns out the vendor for the wheels in the Comet trucks discontinued the wheelsets IHP used....SO, he has a stack of truck frames sized for a certain axle diameter that he can't get anymore. I just ordered 5 pair of truck frames from him, figuring I can make something work out for the axles, but until I have them in hand I have no idea what I'm gonna do.

If you leave a message, he's pretty good about returning calls. When I spoke to him, we were able to work something out with the trucks when he'd otherwise given up on selling them.

Mike will probably post here at some point on the matter, but in conversations with him he's basically getting out of the resin casting business. But since this is how he makes his living it sounds like we'll see more injection-molded stuff in the future. I hate to see him stop producing so many nice models, but he still has the CAD work and the tooling so all isn't lost.

IHP is far from done, in fact you will see some professionally produced, high-quality injected plastic products start to appear over the next few years. The first, the HO Kawasaki LRV, is already underway in China and should be available in the SEPTA Store (only!) this Fall.

IHP is gradually discontinuing resin and short-run products because the resin casting process is no longer a viable means of production. After 20 years of doing it professionally, I personally am tired of it. In addition, some of the sources on which we relied for other components like wheelsets, motors, etc. have all changed their designs or made them difficult to get, or gone out of business entirely, making the short-run, custom builder business model less viable as well.

Most of our current resin HO traction range will be discontinued over the next year as tooling wears out. What is still available is listed on the IN STOCK page on our website. Order it now as it may not be available next month, or even next week. You can order some of these items through our eBay Store but some items are only available through the website and you can take advantage of volume discounts if you order direct, too.

This change in business model will give us more time to create CAD for future injection molded plastic projects, as well as for our Shapeways page. We have a small but growing range of N and TT scale items on Shapeways. We just added the N scale AEM7 shell to the Shapeways selection and are working on the next N scale project. We also will be starting a CAD drawing service for those who need one-off or specialty parts for their projects. This can now be done through 3D printing; no tooling required. Details will follow on the website when we've worked them all out.

The IHP website is back open again for business, so take a look to see what's up and what's coming.

Mike Bartel
IHP
http://ihphobby.tripod.com

Incidentally, the Reading MU project is being curtailed. No 'Blueliner' or other variations will be produced. Seems there wasn't enough interest. We will no longer produce RTR Reading MU models; we will only produce kits of the coach as-built. The coach kits will be produced in very short runs at a time. They will contain all parts and decals (including wheelsets and pantograph) to build a complete nonpowered model. The first run of these is already sold out. Watch for the next run announcement and get your pre-orders in when it is made. Runs of these will continue only as long as the tooling lasts.

Thanks!

Mike Bartel
IHP
http://ihphobby.tripod.com