For the model railroad enthusiast, Athearn ranks among the most well known and respected names
in hobby. Athearn has a long history in the hobby and the company has seen numerous changes through the years.
For many of my other sites, documentation was scare and unavailable. Athearn has enjoyed at least two reference books, "Greenberg's
Guide to Athearn Trains" and "Standard Guide to Athearn Model Trains," and therefore has prior research and documentation
available prior to my online effort. That said, an Athearn site is among the most requested additions I receive. My interest,
coupled with the inquiries, has brought me to the creation of the following pages regarding Athearn.
My goal is not to simply recycle material and information found elsewhere, but to selection an area of Athearn interest and
focus and expand upon it. Having grown up with Athearn kits in the 1970s, it is this period of the company's production that
you'll find the focus, examination and review of my site. No information is presented here regarding Athearn's metal HO-
and O-scale kits that pre-date the injection molded plastic kits of the mid 1950s. On the other end of Athearn's history,
there is only basic information regarding Athearn's offerings beginning with the SD40-2 in 1982 and the move to scale-width
hoods and other changes. In general, the menu here is the classic wide-body locos and blue box kits that were plentiful across
hobby shop shelves from the late 1960s to the 1980s. Though I was not present in the hobby, the period of 1955 up to the
1970s is covered as it is the foundation that established Athearn's line. Just what year was the Pickle Car first released?
Which is older in Athearn's line the Baldwin S-12 or SW1500? What were the original roadnames offered on the GP35? This
and more is presented and illustrated here.
This, as with my other sites, is an on-going and growing work. New pictures and information will added as I locate and learn.
I hope you will enjoy your vist and invite you to return again in the future to see what's new.
The pages on this site follow a design that presents each car or locomotive with a picture, followed
by the name of the item, roadname, and stock number(s).
Please note, for ease and speed of browser loading I have kept the images to 500 pixels wide or smaller. A larger image for
better viewing is often available. To gain access to the larger images, you may click on the smaller image and the new big
image will open in a new window. Please remember to set your browser to accept this command, as some will flag the auto opening
of a new window and refuse the request, keeping you from seeing the large picture.
A goal of this work is to present an online color image reference for the enjoyment of hobbyists and collectors. Odd variations
and/or mistakes are not considered the focus. Additionally, special run for clubs or conventions are not covered. Nor will
you find listings and images for releases using Athearn items from companies like Bev-Bel, Rail Runner, or others. These
mentioned situations are well beyond the scope of my effort here.
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Please note that this site was created for use by those with an interest in HO-scale model trains and does not necessarily
represent the current Athearn line available today. The author is not affiliated with,
nor representing Athearn and/or Horizon Hobby in any way.
This site is intended for your enjoyment and information only.
Images and information presented on this site comes from a variety of sources including magazines, internet, catalogs, visitor
input, and the author's collection.
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