Welcome

Thank you for visiting Phil's Narrow Gauge. The cars and accessories found on these pages are built in 1:20.3 scale now recognized as F scale and represent Colorado Narrow Gauge. All cars and parts are individually manufactured in my shop.

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Effective September 14, 2014 and for the Foreseeable Future

I have no kits in stock nor do I plan to manufacture any in the near future other than what's posted in the current update. Any kits produced will be of a limited run nature. No kits will be produced for the sake of having kits on the shelf for random purchases. After 16 years of doing just that, it's time for me to focus on my projects with the occasional run of a "limited run" kit. Watch for updates.

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January 21, 2024 Update

The Caboose kits are complete. Still trying to contact one buyer from Fountain Valley, California. That part of southern CA isn't affected by the fires so not sure what happened to him. If you read this, please contact me. All 19 of the other kits have been delivered.

I'm now building freight trucks to be used on the last of the 85 and 147 type boxcars and the flatcars. Will have a few extra for those wanting to build their own pieces of rolling stock. My screw machine shop in China closed during COVID. I'm searching for a new one. Stay tuned.

With ISP's doubling down on unwanted emails and spam, frequently philsnarrowgauge.com emails end up in your spam folder. If you email me and don't get a response, check your spam folder. I answer ALL emails that aren't trying to sell me swamp land. Sometimes, when I respond, the receiving ISP will return a message to me that my email has been blocked for xyz reasons. I'll try a couple of times and then move on. If you're emailing me via your work email, unless you own the company, the IT department will most likely block me.

Another important item. I can't control shipping cost. I have kept my product line sale prices close to straight line. Material cost have gone up and in some cases, I have had to increase my prices but no more than 20% over the past 24 years and only the Harpstands in the last 10 years. The small flatrate box I use for small orders has just increased from $9.45 to $10.20. FedEx Ground has also increased shipping for kits but is still the cheapest method available. Fortunately, the post office has introduced Ground Advantage as a shipping alternative which is a little cheaper than priority mail but takes a little longer to reach the destination. It does have tracking and insurance.

Another cost that is increasing is processing fees for PayPal and credit cards. I will discuss payment options with you as orders reach the shipping stage. I prefer bank transfers first and personal checks second as there is no fee attached......as of yet. I am quoting a small processing fee if you are using PayPal or a credit card. It's either that or I increase the price on all products or implement a S&H fee. Either of those increases would not be fair to those paying cash. Inflation is everywhere........ I'm trying not to be part of it.

RPO 66 Update

While I won't be working on RPO kits until all the 7/8ths parts are off my bench, a lot of manufacturing techniques have to be explored. Example, I was going to make a silicone mold of the roof end to cast all needed pieces. I did this on the shorty passenger cars. Was a major undertaking. I fussed will my 3D drawing to make it cost effective to just have them printed in 3D. Mainly hollowing it out as 3D printing cost are based on volume of the part, not detail or complexity. All the corners, car ends and door openings use the same radius quarter round. The door openings for both the baggage and postal door have metal flashings on the lower 3rd of the quarter round. I can make the quarter round in my shop far cheaper than retail or casting or 3D printing. Still working on how to press thin brass to use as flashing. Been reading how others have made 3D printed dies for their bending brakes to do this. Something I need to try. Point being, I am beginning to put some thoughts into just how I will produce the kit. Will most likely build a couple "test" models to get it correct.

I have all 50 spots signed up for an RPO kit. At present, I have 6 on the waiting list should any of the 50 change their minds. We'll see how that works out. I have almost all the brass masters I need for the RPO. I do need 1 more of the side steps laser cut in brass. Also need the time to make spin casting molds and silicon molds for the resin parts. I'm now thinking the fall of 2022 at this point. The 7/8ths project I took on is proving to be bigger than anticipated.

A change to this site is now in effect. I have moved the limited run short passenger cars from the Future Projects page to Rolling Stock > Freelance > Short Passenger. They are now fully retired. In the place of the short passenger cars is a new button for the SR&RL 7/8ths kits I'm working on.

7/8ths Update

I've added a "7/8ths SR&RL" button to the main bank of buttons at the top of this page. A few were having problems finding those kits.

Hope all are staying healthy and happy.

This page was last updated on 01/21/2025

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