Athearn (HO)

Athearn’s Ready-To-Run line grew out of the company’s transition away from traditional kits in the early 2000s. It replaced the long-running Blue Box series with factory-assembled models that kept Athearn’s focus on value and durability. The RTR line introduced improved tooling, finer details, and upgraded drives while remaining accessible to a wide range of modelers. Over time, Athearn expanded the line with modern freight cars, locomotives, and road-specific paint schemes, making RTR the brand’s core offering for dependable, contemporary HO scale models.