Walt Huston

In case you haven’t heard, Testors is dropping many of the paints we modelers use. Fortunately, other firms have stepped up. For example, Microscale Industries posted a reference chart to identify substitute paint colors for Testors’ Floquil paints at http://www.microscale.com/ResourceCntr_Floquil.html.

I inquired about the future of their paint products and received the following email from Testors Customer Service department:

Trends in model railroading have changed over time. Creating product for weathering and scenery has been more of the focus as train cars have moved to pre-decorated. The good news is that the same great products for weathering and scenery can be found in Testor’s CreateFX line that is available now.

We’ve made the decision to exit the following businesses within the Testor ® Brand family: Pactra®, Floquil®, PollyScale®, and ColorArtz®. This will enable The Testor Corporation to return to our foundation of success: providing premium, innovative product that inspires creativity. We will continue to accept orders and ship product for a limited time based on available quantities.

Going forward, the following brands will be critical to our success and development: Testor®, Model Master®, and Aztek®. These brands will be infused with marketing support, innovation and operational efficiencies.

Decisions such as these are never easy. We appreciate your passion for our business. We look forward to introducing you to this exciting new product line that is great for today’s modeler as well as future generations.

Best Regards,
The Testor Corporation
Consumer Affairs Department