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Fabulous Model Train or Epic Fail? - Rapido's HO Scale Bulkhead Flatcars
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 17 ส.ค. 2024
- Fabulous Model Train or Epic Fail? - Rapido's HO Scale Bulkhead Flatcars
This HO scale model train car is based on a bulkhead flatcar design built in the 1970s and 80s by several manufacturers. Bulkhead flats can be used for a wide variety of loads that don’t need to be protected from the elements. The bulkheads keep the loads from shifting beyond the ends of the car.
So how good is this highly detailed model? As usual, Dan evaluates the model train's packaging, prototype accuracy, paint & detail, and how well it operates and conforms to applicable standards.
If you're a fan of Canadian rolling stock, modern era train cars, or just trains in general, be sure to check out this review!
#modeltrains #hoscale #scalemodels #train #epicfail #rapido
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, you do the BEST reviews. Honest, fair, to the point, and I really like how you show how to fix any issues. Well done! A+ for an F review. lol.
Thanks so much! I appreciate it a lot.
Whoa, Dan. What a great video! You are doing a tremendous public service, for model railroaders, by bringing Rapido's short comings to light. I too hope that Rapido can fine tune their quality control. I would rather have more model railroad suppliers/manufacturers than not. Thank you for your service to model railroaders.
You're welcome. I'm glad you found the review informative. I'd like to see Rapido (and others too) do better in the quality control area. Thanks for watching!
I think this may be the first time I've seen a red signal on one of your reviews. Maybe Rapido meant to sell this as a "builders kit" lol. Happy New Year Dan and Nichole!
Came here to say the same thing. I have seen yellow, but never red. This was an eye opener.
This is the first time I've had to fail a model, so the first red signal. Maybe they should lower the price and put "some reassembly required" on the box. Happy New Year to you too! Thanks for watching!
Rapido has steadily slipping over recent years. They used to be top tier but not anymore. Good review as always. I sure don't think its the boxes.
I've seen enough quality issues that I'm getting hesitant to buy from them. I have a couple things on pre-order, so we'll see how those turn out. I'm hoping for the best. Thanks for watching!
Wow
Those bulkhead flatcars came apart too easy. I too was thinking about buying a couple of those from rapido, think I will wait a while and think twice. Thanks Dan
Good review.
I'm glad you liked the review. Unless you really want these particular cars, I'd pass on them and get some different bulkhead flats. Thanks for watching!
Well done Dan and you can add me to the list that had the bulkhead fall out. Both couplers on my unit were low. Easy fixes BUT not the way a $48 car should be out of the box. To top it off mine didn’t free roll but the wheel tuner took care of that. I did though cancel my pre-orders at the LHS for the Centerbeams because of this
Thank you for a honest review
I'm sorry to hear you had problems with your cars, too. I really think Rapido dropped the ball on this one. I'm glad you found the review informative. Thanks for watching!
Excellent impartial review Dan ,Rapido needs to upgrade their QUALITY CONTROL system.
I agree. I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
It's really too bad these cars fell apart, as I bought my friend a CN example that was just fine and it's a really nice car. I really like the wood deck. I know before covid Rapido management would visit their factory semi-regularly, but that stopped over covid and seems to have seriously affected QC, although I also noticed some QC drops in other manufacturers.
It's good to know at least some of them were okay. So many people have been commenting that their cars had issues, too. I would agree that quality control is an issue with a lot of model train manufacturers, this is just the worst example I've seen so far. I hope it improves. Thanks for watching!
Dan, I purchased a six-pack of these cars. On four of them, either one or both bulkheads had broken loose. On a fifth unit, a crossover end platform was loose. I also saw that the side panels on the bulkheads were not tight to the sides of the flatcar itself. I saw the same thing in the end view of the unpainted car on product description page, so perhaps this is prototypical? At any rate, that gap doesn't bother me so much as the issue with most of the bulkheads being loose. The inner packaging and the outer cardboard box were in pristine, undamaged condition. CA adhesive was used to attach the bulkheads and I was capable of repairing these myself. It's just that I wouldn't expect to have to do so on a premium model. This was not a shipping problem and absolutely an issue with lack of quality control. I sent them back for repair out of principle. I could not ship UPS (PO Box for US repairs) and had to use USPS. Holy Heck! It cost as much as a single car and I should have just walked out of the post office. But I shipped them. They came back awhile later, all in one piece now. Rapido should have reimbursed me for the shipping (they did not) but they did send some swag that I appreciated.
The issue left a definite bad taste in my mouth. But I am happy with their RS11's and RS18u's that I purchased. Out of eight units, the only issue I found was a loose end railing. Let's hope their PC&F 5241 boxcars are more carefully produced. I ordered 6 of the Berlin Mills car because they are a big part of what I model. Cautiously optimistic.
I'm sorry you had issues with your cars, too, and had to pay to ship them back. It's good that they were fixed, but I think you should have at least been reimbursed for the postage. I think the problem with these cars is the packaging. I hope that Rapido does better with future releases, too. I'm glad your locomotives fared better. Thanks for watching!
With the price rapido charges they should pull these back and fix the problems
They definitely should do that, especially with ones like this. Thanks for watching!
Great video review Dan and I really appreciate your review style. I purchased the BNSF Red version when it came out. The model was damaged upon getting it out of the box. Like you it required me to make repairs. I could have returned mine, however I really liked car, so I fixed my as you did.
I have increasingly become warry of Rapido products due to these very issues and their high cost - this car is expensive and, like my X72 box cars are flawed and require remediation.
As side note Rapido made a video, about these issues on this car, but as is their style it was in their tongue & check style of slap stick
I'm glad you like my reviews. Someone else mentioned the Rapido video, too. I haven't seen it, and I can appreciate humor, but on the other hand, I'd rather they put some effort into fixing the problems. If you've been watching my reviews you probably already saw my review of the X72. Mine wasn't nearly as bad as these flatcars, thankfully. I'm sorry you had issues with your flatcars, too. Thanks for watching!
Great review Dan ! I’ll have to admit, I also ordered two of these (BNSF paint schemes) and I was quite honestly holding my breath expecting mine to be damaged upon delivery. Surprisingly mine survived with pure luck, but heard many complaints in addition to how Rapido made a teaser video about the packaging of these cars. Have to admit the QC of Rapido is questionable at times. Nonetheless, entertaining to see one of possibly the first fail reviews, haha
My BNSF was fine too! Interesting that some suffered worse than others
I'm glad your cars arrived in good condition. It's good to know that it's not all of them, though from the comments, it sounds like a large proportion of the cars had issues. I've had other Rapido stuff that was not anywhere close to this bad. I'm hoping they can get their quality control issues handled. And, yes, this was my first fail review. Thanks for watching!
I bought two BNSF ones at separate times as well. Both of mine also had one or both bulkheads loose in the box from the sheer forces applied by the foam inserts. Nice cars once fixed up, but disappointing quality. I couldn’t see how the included air hoses were meant to be used as is either.
It's starting to sound like a lot of people have had this problem. It seems like they maybe should have re-thought the box design before shipping the.cars. And yeah, the air hoses are kind of useless. Thanks for watching!
I think what Rapido tried to do with the thin metal end sheet was great but the dissimilar materials really messed it up. My CN car was fine but my BCIT car dropped a bulkhead in the box too. Agreed they need to probably slow down just a little bit with the releases and production and get QC really dialed in. They're not alone though, bought an Intermountain woodchip gondola yesterday and one of the trucks was so badly warped only 2 of the 4 wheels made any contact with the rail.
I agree that the thin end sheets look nice, once the cars are repaired. I'm still wondering if the box design with the foam on the ends was a factor, too, something that was supposed to protect the model but ended up having the opposite effect. I have had some bad trucks on InterMountain cars, too, especially their older Canadian grain hoppers from early releases. The trucks in those were really terrible. It would be nice if we didn't have to deal with those kinds of problems. Thanks for watching!
I've got some Rapido models that are top notch and others that are pretty bad. These reviews help to weed out the bad. Thanks.
I've reviewed some of their other models in the past and some did well, so I'm hoping this isn't a trend. I'm glad you found the review informative. Thanks for watching!
Dan, have you done any reviews on Walther's main line and their proto products ? I was planning on ordering Walther's main line 68' bulkhead flats later this week.I seen a lot of "unhappy" comments about the qualities of the higher priced rolling stock and locomotives which is why I tend to stick to the lower to midrange models and upgrade them myself which I don't mind the challenge,thank you for another excellent review..👍
I have reviewed at least one Walthers model on this channel, and I have quite a few older Walthers models in my collection. Walthers is usually pretty solid. As you mentioned, sometimes the models aren't as detailed. I tend to purchase more detailed models, and I review what I purchase, but if Walthers comes out with something that I think I can use, I would review it. Thanks for watching!
That's a lot of money for "a ready to run" model that you have to build yourself.🤣🤣
Yes, it is. Thanks for watching!
The cost of new model trains is a sufficient 'red light' for this modeler. I prefer second market kits instead. Does the current crop of highly accurate super detailed models enhance or detract from contentment in the hobby? For someone who enjoys building it yourself, I'm very satisfied with Athearn/Roundhouse kits.
I can understand that. I've had fun detailing older models. I am one of those people who likes a lot of detail, so for me it increases my enjoyment. Sometimes it's a time vs. money issue, and since hobby time can be scarce, sometimes it's worth it to spend a little more to get a model that's basically done out of the box. Getting an expensive model that is supposed to be good to go out of the box only to have it fall apart is no fun, though. Thanks for watching!
The way the car just fell apart like that is almost comical!
In hindsight, yes it was. I was less thrilled when I first opened the box. Thanks for watching!
Holy cow, A Fail! I've finally seen Dan fail a piece of rolling stock! A first for me.
This is the first time it's happened, so a first for me, too! Thanks for watching!
Dan what in the world was Rapido on when doing this model!? I’d never seen anything like it and I don’t think I’m ever gonna get these! Still the review video was great! Keep it up!
From the amount of comments I've had about people getting bad ones, I have no idea what they were thinking shipping product like this. Anyway, I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
Hey Dan. I finally sold my Rapido bulkhead car on EBay. I want you to know that I put it in it's original box for shipping. And I've noticed that the part of the cradle that holds the bed (middle) is tight enough to stop the car moving back and forth. I've tested pretty rufly many times. All of this to tell you that the foam supports Rapido has added to secure the car were not only damaging the bulkheads but completely useless at the end. I bet nothing would happen to the cars without them.
I think the foam inserts were an "innovation" that was a complete failure. I tossed mine and the repaired cars seem okay in the box without them, too. Rapido should have done like you said, and just left them out. I'd bet there would have been far fewer problems. Thanks for watching!
When they came I was going to buy some, but I saw a review from another YTber and decided not to. Your review is spot on as I can see the majority look to be failing... we won't say it enough, QC QC guys! how hard is it to open a dozen of boxes randomly when they get them in the warehouse?
I think you're right that they should have spot checked the shipment, and if they weren't good, they should have sent them back. ScaleTrains did something like that with their SD38-2s. I would rather wait longer for a good model than get a junky one. Thanks for watching!
Wow .😲 For the 4 years i've been watching your channel Daniel this is a first. An F & 🔴 signal 🚦 . I knew this wasn't good when you quickly came back on camera then for the second car even the pleasant 🎸 guitar music at the end was replaced with another tune.🤣 I myself had this happen to me with a Gondola car by Athearn green PENN CENTRAL fully assembled but wait just like you the car fell completely apart bad quality or my dealer tampered with it? Both you got it. I support this review if so many modelers experienced this that's not very good. If i purchased these now I would be prepared after seeing these they're good looking cars but to an extend several malfunctions. Wow Rapido you blew it.🤣🤣 However your F rating doesn't affect this viewer you tell it like it is for the hobby your opinion matters that I give this video 💯. & a green signal 🟢
Thanks Daniel.🛤️🛤️ 🎸
I suppose it had to happen eventually. Sorry to hear you had a similar problem with an Athearn car. So far that hasn't happened to me. I think the consensus with this one seems to be that the packaging design is actually damaging the car rather than protecting it. Whatever the reason, this was pretty bad. Anyway, I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
Bought 2, both BNSF, mineral brown and ex- BCIT/BCOL. BNSF brown - fine, the other - 'B' end bulkhead loose then fell off, 'A' end ex-over platform fell off.
Got it back to Rapido HQ where they exchanged it. Yes, the foam packing is a stressor. In my case mine was direct from Rapido.
I'm glad one of your cars was okay, and the other got replaced. As you said, the consensus seems to be that the foam end pieces are a big part of the problem. Thanks for watching!
The uncoupling levers look chunky as well. Thanks for the review.
They are a bit, yes. They look to be made of plastic. Photo etched might have been a better choice. Thanks for watching!
I bought one BNSF car and also one bulkhead had fallen off. On one of my Rapido bilevel commuter cars two small parts fell off too. Thank you for this review.
Sorry to hear you had issues, too. I was looking at the commuter cars, too, but decided to pass on them. I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
I'm glad to had seen this video.
I've only bought one item from Rapido Trains back in 2021
It happened to be a GM city bus from my hometown. It was mostly accurate on one of the 4. The other 3 had some errors.
They ship with used boxes.
I'll never buy anything from Rapido.
Have a nice day/night.
A lot of people seem to feel the same way. If Rapido doesn't get their quality issues handled, they're going to lose business. Thanks for watching!
My 4 cars did this as well. I won't keep those end foam pieces. Honestly I'm ok with the bulkheads easily coming apart, it'll make weathering so much easier.
I think the foam pieces may very well be part of the issue. I've had the cars in the boxes without them since I fixed them and they seem okay. Thanks for watching!
I remember a decade ago when Chinese manufacturing QC took a hit with the buyout of Sanda Kan by Kader. One would hope that in 10 years they would have worked out the bugs. (I guess it's to be expected when we rely on our mortal enemy to produce our stuff.)
LOL you don't know who our enemy is, they live here at home and in a small country in the middle east.
I don't think Rapido has anything to do with Kader
I don't know much about the manufacturing process overseas, but I do wish they would fix the quality control issues. It's not just Rapido, but this particular example is the worst I've seen. Thanks for watching!
I suspect the forceful insertion of the foam inserts at the factory broke loose the bulkheads. These cars are just a whisker short of being junk, and Rapido should be ashamed to sell them. Time to step up and offer to replace any and all models with which customers are not satisfied. In my experience Rapido’s quality is the least consistent of the major manufacturers.
I am inclined to agree that the foam inserts are part of the problem. I don't know what the issues were, but I remember ScaleTrains delayed it's release of some of its SD38-2s because they weren't satisfactory. I wish Rapido had done that with these. Enough people have had problems that it likely would have shown up if they'd spot checked some of the shipment from overseas. If I was running a model company, I wouldn't want to ship stuff like this. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi Hi Dan. Whoever designed the packaging made a fundamental mistake by failing to understand two things. First, the connections between the bulkheads and the deck have limited surface area and are therefore inherently fragile. Second, any force applied to the upper portions of the bulkheads puts the connections under enormous stress because of the mechanical leverage created by the height of the bulkheads. In light of these factors the packaging should have been designed to support only the deck and allow the bulkheads to ‘float’ within the packaging, following freely any slight movement of the deck. Rapido has been in business long enough to understand this. It is an ambitious company that has innovated and improved the hobby in many ways but often gets out in front of its skis. Moloco, ScaleTrains, and Tangent Scale Models have also made important contributions to the hobby with far less drama. Thank you for all your efforts.
I’ve bought 3 . All 3 came apart taking them out of their boxes .
I'm sorry to hear that, but it sounds like we're not alone. I've been getting a lot of comments about the same issue, so I think a lot of people had the same problem. Rapido really should do something. Thanks for watching!
After the SP SW1200 mess they released I refuse to buy anything from them, no quality control or care in the product.
I sold the SP SW1200 I reviewed because it had too many things wrong with it for my tastes. I am getting hesitant to buy anything from Rapido myself. I have another freight car on the shelf waiting to get reviewed that's been there for a while. I guess we'll see how that does. I pre-ordered a couple of their SP dome cars. I'm really hoping that wasn't a mistake. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi Unfortunately the new release Walthers SW1200 with SP light package is better in some places, worse in others...Really looking forward to the Piko KMs coming soon!!
Great review. I never thought that I would get to see a product that failed your review. It looks like I won't be buying Rapido's bulkhead cars.
I guess it had to happen eventually. I know some people think I'm a harsh grader, but it's actually difficult for a model to fail this badly with the rating system I use. Thanks for watching!
Had the same bulkhead problem myself on one end with the one my kids got me for Christmas.
Sorry to hear that. I hope it didn't make them feel bad. Thanks for watching!
BCIT cars are intended for international use; BCOL cars are Canada-only.
You should really have returned them to Lombard Hobbies, not Rapido (out of country). It's good feedback to know something is terribly wrong. I'm sure Lombard doesn't want angry customers!
Loose parts could have been due to poor quality control or bad design, not just packaging.
Why should the dealer have to eat them?
Thanks for the info about the reporting marks. I got these because I've always liked the green British Columbia paint scheme. I'll have to use a little modeler's license to run the BCOL car on the Donner layout. I could have returned the cars, but I knew I could fix them so I opted to just forge ahead with the review. I don't blame Lombard for the issues. Enough people have had problems with these that I don't think it's due to shipping or damage while in the hands of the dealer. I think you're right that the quality control and/or design is the likely culprit. Thanks for watching!
Hey Dan, great review and kudos on calling out Rapido on their quite questionable QC quality as of late. When I heard that my LHS had received these cars, I paid them a visit without seeing any reviews beforehand. Even so, from just looking at the boxes I could see that each and every CN car had one of the bulkheads broken off. When I alerted an employee about the issues, he told me they were already aware and that it was a widespread issue. I did buy a CNIS one after opening the box, inspecting the model, and being assured that I could get a refund if need be. That car was fine and I still have it but this model in general is deservedly a Fail and an epic one at that. Rapido always adds jokes to their videos so they look different from other manufacturers but the only thing funny about them now is their inability to produce a half-decent model.
I don't know the ins and outs of running a model train company, but if there are as many bad ones as it seems like there are, Rapido should have known about it. If it were my company, I wouldn't want to ship product like that. It would be better to make people wait longer, like ScaleTrains did recently with their SD38-2s, than put out bad product. I'm glad you managed to get a good one. They are nice looking models (at least once they're fixed). I know Rapido's "humor" is kind of their schtick, but in this case, making jokes about bad product seems kind of tone deaf. Thanks for watching!
There's another issue on their Royal Hudsons, I've heard many eccentric rods snapping.
If this is the garbage Rapido pumps out, then they can keep those models where the sun don't shine and I'll happily keep running Mantua, Bowser, and other old steamers.
I have one of the Hudsons, but I haven't run it much except on the workbench while I was doing a review. I hope it doesn't have that issue, but I guess time will tell. Thanks for the heads up and for watching!
That's a lot of money for a car with a multitude of issues.
For sure. More people have been commenting, and it sounds like more people got bad examples than I knew about when doing the review. Way too much. Thanks for watching!
Reminds me of how I bought a BNSF bulkhead and the trucks were loose. I thought of the FAIL moment, LOL
It's really disappointing when brand new models arrive with broken parts. I hope you were able to fix your model. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi the car will be weathered, so the car will be fixed up regardless. Also, where did you get the FAIL sound from?
I recorded the fail music and voiceover myself.
Great review Dan. I bought two ICE ex BCOL cars from Lombard when they first came out and both were in the same shape as your BCOL car. I haven't bothered to fix them yet, but none of the loose parts look broken so it shouldn't be too difficult to fix them. I plan on getting some of the NSC ballast cars in CP and MILW when they release, so hopefully they iron out their quality control by then.
I'm sorry you had issues with your cars, too. It sounds like a lot of people are in the same boat. I hope the ballast cars are better. Thanks for watching!
I'm interested to see if Rapido addresses this. They seem small enough to care and make the best release videos...
Thanks Dan.
Rapido doesn't care.
I hope they address their quality control issues. If they don't, I think it will eventually hurt them because a lot of people will be reluctant to buy their products. I'm already getting there. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassiAlmost all my modelling friends have either said “never again” to Rapido products, or at the very least refuse to pre-order so they can decide whether or not to buy after the product gets released.
@@DanielCortopassi and all, thanks. It's a good insight - I wasn't aware of their reputation; only a very cringe video trying to justify Chinese manufacture as a negative reference.
I started as a kid, super detailing Athearn BB kits and have returned with tools like 3d printing, resin casting, and the internet as great tools... so buying Rapido or even Athearn today defeats the point (for me). Additionally, prices are nothing like when I was a kid 🙄
Wow sorry that happened to you but nice fix in the end the area i model these cars are seen daily loaded with steel plates, steel beams or empty thank you for the heads up i plan on changing out those airhoses
I wasn't able to find a lot of photos of the real cars to get a good idea of what the air hoses should actually look like. I don't see a practical way to use the ones that were supplied, though. If I can get some better reference material I might try to do something with mine, too. Thanks for watching!
Thanks for the informative review Dan. Perhaps Rapido should offer a rtr/craftsman line of products, ha ha…
I suspect this was bad qc prior to shipping from overseas fwiw.
I'm glad you liked the review. If these were offered as a kit, they would have had no problems! You're probably right about the quality control issue. Thanks for watching!
Yep, their QC leaves much to be desired. It's getting expensive to be a dealer.
I could see that. I think everyone would benefit if Rapido got the quality issues fixed. It would be better to have happy customers, not people who want to return bad models. Thanks for watching!
Sadly I’m seeing this more and more over the market. The more detail models the more they just fall apart. Gone are the days of a robust atlas car or a somewhat detailed Athearn car.
I buy a lot of scaletrains locomotives and cars they have amazing customer support but even them the box’s are becoming more and more like the old Athearn blue box “shake box kits” with some assembly required due to parts falling off.
Before scaletrains brought exactrail the Conrail coil shield cars had a known issue that caused them to be “bowed” right out of the package.
I've seen a lot of models with a loose part or two, though none as bad as these flatcars. I agree that the more detail there is, the more chances there are for something to come loose. I have a lot of ScaleTrains locomotives, too. So far mine have been pretty good for the most part. It's nice to know their customer support is good, just in case. Thanks for watching!
Fail! Love that guitar riff. Thank you for this honest review.
I'm glad you liked the music. I had to do something special for my first fail. Thanks for watching!
There are probably people who need this car for their model RR but it looks like you may need to treat this car somewhat as if it was kit. I thought about getting one or two of these cars but read a lot of similar feedback after they came out, mainly that they were frequently in pieces fresh out of the box. For that reason I chose to take a pass, but I've got a decent variety of bulkhead flats that were frequently in trains crossing the Rockies so this wasn't on my want list. My biggest pet peeve of bulkhead flat car models is they sometimes have bulkheads that lean inwards. That didn't seem to be the case here but ExatRail bulkheads did this and a ScaleTrains bulkhead also did it.
I can see that having the bulkheads leaning would be annoying, too. I didn't notice that on any of the ScaleTrains or ExactRail bulkhead flats I have, but I don't have all that many. I had to square the bulkheads on these cars up myself when I was gluing them back together. The one that didn't come loose seemed like it was in the correct orientation, so it's hard to say if that would be an issue on these cars if they didn't self destruct. Anyway, I hope you found the review informative. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi Being and SP fan and also a lot of lumber on bulkhead flats crossed the Rockies on the D&RGW going east, I have a good number of them. My favorites are the Wheels of Time bulkheads. The review was informative. If I decide to pickup one of the Rapido flats, I'll expect a kit to assemble! 😏
I received an Exact Rail bulkhead flat like that. It arrived in pieces and a warped deck. To their credit, Exact Rail shipped a second car. It arrived in pieces, but the deck was straight, so I glued the pieces together. I have several Rapido cars (covered hoppers) that arrived in perfect shape. So, I guess that release was flawed.
Sorry to hear you had trouble with your ExactRail cars. I've always had pretty good luck with their products, and I'm hoping ScaleTrains will continue that. I've had other Rapido models arrive in good shape, too, so I'm hoping this release is not going to become a trend. Thanks for watching!
That was your first review with a failed rating. There are a few F- locomotives in my fleet. I am planning to give the away in the future.
Yes, this one was pretty bad. I've never had a model self destruct to this extent before. Thanks for watching!
That reminds me of the over glorified Athrean "bluebox" special. I had a few of those over the years. Some of those models were better off fully pre- assembled. Coupler heights were easier to replace back then too.
Bought 2 of their 3800 cuft hoppers almost 2 yrs ago , one of them needed new trucks due to its tilt and a atlas bulkhead flatcar did the same thing
Tilt can be annoying and difficult to fix. Sometimes a little work with a file can help. It's unfortunate that a lot of models have quality control issues like that. Thanks for watching!
Always hope your holidays were good
Ours were nice. We hope yours were, too. Thanks for watching!
It would be great if you got some standard TTX ones, although they aren’t being used as much anymore and most that I’ve seen are falling apart much like your models
I'd be open to TTX cars if they were used in the 1990s, which is my main era of interest. I don't think I'll be getting any more of these Rapido cars, though, not unless they change the box design. The general consensus seems to be that the foam pads on the ends that are supposed to protect the bulkheads are actually doing the opposite and breaking them. Thanks for watching!
Imagine not being experienced with fixing models and getting something like this in the mail!
That would be pretty bad, the sort of thing that could even discourage beginners from wanting to continue in the hobby. Another good reason to want Rapido (and others) to improve their quality control. Thanks for watching!
I own 3 of these Rapido bulkheads (2 BNSF, 1 CP) & had similar problems out of the box with all of them -- bulkheads loose or fell off, bent stirrups, etc. Additionally, the etched metal walkways on the ends of the cars come off a LOT, so much so that I'm about done with trying to put them back on. I want to like these Rapido bulkheads for their empty weight & overall look, but they seem mighty fragile.
It sounds like a lot of people had similar problems. It's too bad because as you said, they have a good weight and are pretty good looking cars once they're fixed. I hope Rapido fixes the issues with these if they ever do a re-run. I'm certainly not in a hurry to get any more. Thanks for watching!
so after all the bad reviews of this car, by so many people, including myself, Rapido posted a video of these cars in there boxes falling down the side of a cliff, with a caption , who knows what the mail system does with your packages..
Your review was one of the ones I watched. If Rapido is trying to blame the post office for their problems, that's really bad and irresponsible. Maybe they're trying to be funny, but it's not. More people have been commenting, so there have been a lot more bad examples than I knew about while making this review. There's no way that many different models going to that many different people were all damaged in transit (and all damaged in more or less the same way). Thanks for watching (and reviewing)!
I own 2 rapido SP B36-7s in HO scale and there were a lot of small detail parts (4-8 in each) that were loose in the packaging upon unboxing the locomotives. I have a few of their GP38-2s on pre-order as well as some of their rolling stock in HO, so I'm going to see what condition those models arrive in before I pass judgment on Rapido. On the flip side I have never had any issues with their N scale products having loose parts.
I have quite a few Rapido models, and most of them arrived in better condition than this one, including one of the HO SP B36-7s that I reviewed here a while back. Some have had some issues, but not this bad. I hope your pre-order models arrive in good condition. Thanks for watching!
Wow, I've never seen such a case on a railcar. I wonder if it's all across the run or possibly just the Bcol
I've been hearing from other people that have had similar issues regardless of the road name. I can't say for certain, but it seems more likely it has something to do with the car design or box design. Thanks for watching!
@DanielCortopassi thank you for getting back with me! I might buy 1 just to see but I'm definitely debating it more than I have before due to the scrapyard feel out of the box!
Hey Dan... Many thanks for another very interesting review. I'd say that this one is the most awkward you've done so far. I remember you told me that you would review that bulkhead car but let's say that Rapido's looking very bad here. As you said, damage is already done. Many many modelers were caught with that issue. I was unlucky with mine mostly because either Rapido or the distributor have answered my request. But looking at your own cars... I think I'm bless that mine didn't end up here in that bad of a condition. In another hand, I'm sad that Rapido fail in delivering this very beautiful model to their customers. Because in fact, it's a VERY nice bulkhead car. Probably 100% of those cars came out broken like this. I paid mine $79 CAN currency. I thought of buying their new RS18u chop nose engine... I'll put everything on HOLD for the moment. After a few months (they released it just before Xmas), I'll see how bad (or good) it finally is and make my mind more rationally. Thanks again. Never seen an F grade so far. It's crazy. And you've handle it like a Pro !
I appreciate you telling me before about your experience with this particular model. From the comments on this video, it sounds like a lot of people had the same thing happen. I agree that these are nice looking cars once they're fixed. I just wish they hadn't had so many issues. I have become a little hesitant to buy more from Rapido. I still have another freight car to review and I have a couple cars on pre-order from them, so we'll see how that goes. This is my first F grade review. I'm glad you found it informative. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi Hey again. It was very interesting as usual. I forgot to tell you that it's easier to fix those bulkhead cars but gluing back the bulk frame and then, the big flat plate. That's probably how they assemble them at the factory. I'm wondering if Rapido made a mistake in putting those "stoppers" instead of putting none. Here's what I think happened : they probably ordered the plastic tray and found out that car was moving loose in it. Soooo, some bright mind came out with the idea that putting stoppers to avoid car movement would be the best solution. They should at least try it by giving one car model box a hard time and see if it was protecting it properly. That bulkhead car looks as good as Scaletrains units. But it really not help give themself a good name. And by not answering my own request, they finally made it worst. I'm not a big Rapido buyer even if They're offering many nice looking models. That episode doesn't help them at ALL ! Really bad Quality Control here...
@@DanielCortopassi Hi Dan. I finally "cured" my SW1500 BLI cab gap gluing a thin strip of 10 thou styrene underneath side and rear parts of it. I then painted the thin strip a yellow close to UP amore yellow and it was done. Next step will be to weathered engine. And FINAL step : Selling ! I could choose between a lot of nice engines or useful cars... I finally both that lemon instead !
I come to think of it! I would have given an automatic failure grade before starting that review. This reminds me how bad quality a Hornsby is.
The car ended up failing on points, but I do reserve the right to do an automatic failure if a model can't function as intended, which this car couldn't in the state it came out of the box. Thanks for watching!
I had one bulkhead loose out of 2 ordered. Overall,they are great models, though.
I'm glad yours weren't as damaged. Now that mine are fixed I think they're pretty good looking cars. Thanks for watching!
Ok wow, I'm sorry man! I had a similar experience with two used models falsely advertised as brand new. A WalthersProto 0-8-0 switcher with original Soundtraxx Tsunami sound and the HO MTH N&W 611 with MTH's ProtoSound 3.0. A side detail piece fell off in my hand on the 0-8-0 on top of both models outright not working. However, a model falling apart straight out of the box is something I'm thankful that hasn't happened to me yet.
Sorry you had trouble with false advertising. That's never a good thing to have to go through. I never had a Proto 0-8-0, but I have a Proto 0-6-0 that's one of the sweetest running steam engines I own. I hope you can get yours repaired. Have a bad 611 sounds very disappointing. Beautiful engine. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassi yeah, I reached out to the website I bought both models from. tomorrow makes 3 weeks waiting for a reply. I have a Bachmann 611 that fell off my layout snapping the plastic part that connects the tender to the locomotive because it hit the ground so hard it broke one of the screws holding the part in place. My dad got me a new screw, but I still needed the part itself. The Part on Bachmann's parts website stays sold out, so that's how I began my hunt for the MTH version. However now, I'm just going to wait for ScaleTrains' Version of N&W 611 to be released and in stock.
False Advertising is a reason why I watch your product reviews! As in the past, I kept getting burned by sellers on Ebay, and now this website (and the model manufacturers when I was a kid).
So..... rapido is bringing back blue box kits? 🤣
Haha... If they cut the price a lot and just sold them as kits that might be better. Thanks for watching!
I agree wholeheartedly
I'm glad you found the review informative. Thanks for watching!
Hey it's just identifying as a kit!
I guess one way to solve the problem would be to put "kit" on the box. Haha. Thanks for watching!
Fair review !!!!!!!
I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for watching!
Wow!
Yes, that's how I felt when the car fell apart. Thanks for watching!
Ladies and gentlemen we have our first grade F car.
It had to happen sometime. Thanks for watching!
Oh my God I am very shocked
I was, too, when the one car fell apart completely. Thanks for watching!
Cortopassi is a famous name in racing. Google up Cortopassi Glass Slipper drag racing car. Thanks for your interest and information sharing with our hobby.
That's pretty cool. I'm not related to those guys as far as I know, but thanks for letting me know about the story. I've been a bit of a gear head at various times in my life, too, so it's pretty neat. I'm glad you liked the review. Thanks for watching!
Did you get backlash of last Rapido cars review ? This is not something manufacturers like to see. You're not the only one you experienced the same issues with those cars on TH-cam. And you got nearly 8K subscribers. As you're probably doing the best HO scale reviews on the net, this is seriously to consider. You did your very best to put your finger on what's wrong with the package than the cars themself. You judged the cars on the same level you're doing all reviews. It's certainly not your fault if they came out broken like this. Hopefully it was possible to fix them completely. Some modelers had probably not the same luck !
I haven't had any backlash so far. I guess we'll see what happens, though I'm not really sure what they could say. I mean, so many people have been commenting about having the same problems. It's not like it's just my particular cars. I don't think they could say I'm biased, either, because I've reviewed other Rapido products that have done much better. My cars seem pretty good now that I fixed them. We'll have to see how they hold up when I start using them on a layout. Thanks for watching!
I will never ever buy anything from Rapido again. Their quality control is terrible lately.
I can understand that. I've become a little hesitant myself. I've got a couple items on pre-order, so we'll see how that goes. Thanks for watching!
The frist Red!
Yes. It was bound to happen eventually. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassino problem I bet that there will be more in the future
The too many problems for a car of that price
Totally agree. Thanks for watching!
FAIL! Good grief. You had the covered hopper missing half its graphics (you let that one off easy). I have 2 new Walther's GP9's that both had to go back for warranty repair. Makes me flinch each time I press the buy button. Ugh.
At least that hopper was intact, but yes, that was also disappointing. Sorry to hear about your GP9s. I really hope the model train industry as a whole can clean up its act with regard to quality control, otherwise it's going to make a lot more people hesitant to buy stuff. Thanks for watching!
Oops
Yeah, this one was an oops for sure. Thanks for watching!
They are narrow cars not a 122 inches they suxked as real cars they where built for lumber loads..
I wasn't able to find too much information on the real cars other than what was in the paperwork that came with the model. Thanks for the info and for watching!
I worked at a Particleboard plant in Springfield ,Oregon we could not load them.
@@DanielCortopassi
Rapido has their head so far up their own asses with their gimmicks etc that they just don't care about QC, once they have your money they have it. I bought an F40 from them and the plow was so low it dragged on straight and level track.
This was certainly not their best example. I've had enough issues that I'm reluctant to buy more. I do have a couple models on pre order from them, so we'll see how those turn out. I'm hoping for the best. Thanks for watching!
Love your channel, thanks for the response!@@DanielCortopassi
Those foam bulkheads are absolutely terrible and the packaging is just awful
Yeah, I don't think the foam pieces did what they were supposed to do. A regular box that just left some space around the bulkheads would have probably been better. Thanks for watching!
👎🏻 for the worst Rapido’s HO product ever.
It's certainly the one that's fallen apart the most, at least of the models I've had. Thanks for watching!
@@DanielCortopassiYou're welcome.
Fail.
Yes. These were pretty bad. Thanks for watching!
Great review, accurate and to the point.
I'm glad you found the review informative. Thanks for watching!