All about the community of model railroading and rail enthusiasm
April 29, 2025
By TOM MARSH/Cowcatcher Magazine
Updated from the May/June 2025 Cowcatcher Magazine.
Unless you haven’t crawled out from under your benchwork in a while, you know about the sweeping tariffs being imposed on goods imported into the United States. Model railroading and other hobbies will cost more as a result.
How much more is unknown.
In February the U.S. applied a 10 percent tariff on goods imported from its North American neighbors and China. While a 90-day pause has cooled tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada, levies on imports from China, which produces the bulk of model railroad products, have ballooned to 145 percent.
Model train manufacturers are mobilizing to express their concerns over the short- and long-term impacts of tariffs on model railroad products. Some have been vocal in the media about the potential threat to the industry.
In the meantime, suppliers – including Athearn, InterMountain Railway Co., Broadway Limited, Rapido Trains and ScaleTrains – have put dealers and customers on notice that prices will increase as tariffs are implemented. Some tariffs began affecting shipments in mid-March.
Athearn, a fixture in the model railroading industry for more than 75 years, implemented a preliminary price bump March 24. The adjustment covers all current open preorders, items in the company’s April 2025 and later preorder announcements, and in-stock items shipping from Athearn’s parent company, hobby distributor Horizon Hobby.
In a statement, the company said it has absorbed increases in raw materials and shipping without significant changes in pricing for more than 20 years. “However, recent tariffs imposed on all imports from China have created new challenges. Unlike previous increases, these tariffs have had a substantial impact, and unfortunately, we are no longer able to absorb the added costs.
“Our hope is that this is a temporary measure. Athearn and Horizon Hobby will continue to closely monitor the situation and make adjustments as necessary.”
Athearn, followed by postponing all new product announcements, including its May release April 25, because of “import tariffs increasing to 145 percent and ongoing uncertainty about future rates.”
InterMountain Railway Co. executive vice president Frank Angstead said in a note to retailers and consumers that the recently delivered HO-scale Procor Pressure Flow Hopper cars were tagged with tariffs, but that the company absorbed the added fees. “But for future product, we may be forced to adjust the pricing. We are now being charged for all goods coming from off shore.
“At this time we have no idea as to how much the tariffs will be in the future or how long they will last,” Angstead said. “We will update you on any information we have.”
Bob Grubba, president and CEO of Broadway Limited Imports, told customers that they will deal with tariffs as they unfold, saying customers will be notified of the final MSRP shortly before shipping.
“While it is something we wish we did not have to do, the reality is that this price increase is necessary for us to continue providing high-quality products to our customers,” he said. “We understand this may be challenging, but we are hopeful that you, our incredible customers, will continue to support us as we navigate these difficult circumstances.”
ScaleTrains is taking a wait-and-see approach, according to its April newsletter, and will assess any price changes when its next shipment arrives later in the month.
Rapido Trains, the Canadian supplier of highly detailed scale model trains for the North American and British hobby markets, says in a note to dealers that it had no choice but to tack on tariff charges to dealer invoices.
“If we don’t charge you the tariff, the courier companies will bill you and they will add a hefty brokerage charge,” Rapido president Jason Shron told dealers. “By paying the tariff on your behalf, we remove the brokerage and other handling costs, and we (hopefully!) reduce any tariff-related delays. The full amount that we charge is remitted to the U.S. government, because the tariff is charged on the invoice amount entering the United States.”
Rapido opened a warehouse in Buffalo, NY, in April to receive shipments from China and avert the tariff on Canadian imports into the U.S. The move seeks to minimize price increases for its U.S. customers, who represent about 70 percent of Rapido’s revenues.
“This will reduce the tariff that we have to pay, because the tariff will be applied on the cost of goods from China. At that time we will be able to reduce − but not remove − the tariff charge to (customers).”
Rapido’s new Berlin Mills boxcars were expected to be the first shipment to arrive in Buffalo in late April or early May.
“Of course, if the tariffs are removed we will stop charging them immediately,” Shron said.
Shron has been airing his opinions not only to dealers and customers, but to the wider public through The Globe and Mail, Canada’s most widely read newspaper.
“Most businesses cannot change their entire business model on three months’ notice. More importantly, many don’t want to,” he wrote in a late January letter to the newspaper. “Our American employees and customers mean something to us. We want to keep making American trains because we love American trains.”
In a March letter to customers, he urged them to continue placing preorders with Rapido and other model train manufacturers with the hope that tariffs will be resolved before new products arrive.
Rapido said it is absorbing some of the tariffs and calculates that for every 10 percent tax on Chinese goods imposed by the government, the company will pass along 4.8 percent to consumers.
Shron said Rapido’s expansion in Buffalo will not be a short-term action. Administration of the U.S. company will remain in Ontario, but inventory of U.S. prototype models will primarily be held at the U.S. warehouse.
“We sincerely hope that this volatile financial situation is short-lived and we can get back to normal business operation again,” he said. “But we’re staying in Buffalo for the long haul, as we believe that’s a smart business move, tariffs or no tariffs.”
The model railroad and toy industries endured tariff issues in 2019 but they were ultimately resolved.
