OT Any Lionel Train buffs out there? OT

[Chester Brzostowski]

Well after 40+ years I will be setting up the trains this Christmas for my grandson who is 2.5 years old. He loves trains and my wife & I took him on a real steam train that runs from Cumberland Maryland to the Frostburg roundtable which is still functional after about 120 years it was built in 1891. I raised two daughters who weren’t that enamored with my trains but the grandson is just crazy about them. So I guess at age 63 I will get to play with my trains again. Just thought I would share.

Oh happy days !!! Chet…

[Adam H P15 D30]

Never get too old to play with trains. I just inherited a bunch of 1920's through 1960's Lionel trains from my grandfather.... I was the only one that played with them with him until he passed. My son will be the next in line.

[garbagestate 44]

Yeah,I have tons of the stuff including the set that my father bought in 1955Over the years I have added to that quite a bit.

[greg g]

Got some American Flyer stuff. And and engine and tender and a couple of cars from Lionel from the early 50's.

[BobT-47P15]

I have some H O Guage trains that my Dad had.....some since I was

a kid in the 50s. Doubt I'll ever have a handy place to set it up, but

some things are in display/carrying cases he built.....so I can at least

look at them from time to time.

[Chester Brzostowski]

I have some H O Guage trains that my Dad had.....some since I was

a kid in the 50s. Doubt I'll ever have a handy place to set it up, but

some things are in display/carrying cases he built.....so I can at least

look at them from time to time.

Bob,

Same here my trains have been sitting on a display shelf for years. Now I have an excuse to take them down and run them again.

Greg,

American Flyer are much closer to reality then the Lionel. My brother-in-law has a whole bunch of American Flyer. There was a very interesting article in Skinned Knuckles magazine about the creator (I forgot his name). He was a Harvard Medical school graduate. He worked his way through medical school running a toy factory. Once he graduated he stayed in the toy business, held over a hundred patents. Created the Erector Set also not to mention, DC servo motors used in aircraft during WW2.

[roadworthy]

My son and I set up two O-gauge trains under the Christmas tree every year, and he has a N-gauge table to play with the rest of the time.

This year my dad set up 3 trains under his tree.

We also go to a couple model train shows a year.

[homebrewer]

I've still got the set I got for Christmas 1946. It has been put up around the Christmas tree every year since then. The grand kids love it. Especially the younger ones. The fact that it has never broken down other than minor things that could be fixed with a little oil or glue speaks volumes about the quality of the post war Lionel train sets. I still have most of the original boxes that the set came in. Several collectors have offered me some pretty good money for the set, but I guess I will just keep putting it up every Christmas till I croak and then let the heirs decide what to do with it. Same goes for the P15 I guess. Happy Holidays to all. George

[YukonJack]

I had Lionel trains and Marx trains as a kid. When I turned 16 they got sold and my interest went to cars. About 14 years ago I decided I wanted to collect the sets I had as a kid. Then, I decided to get all the stuff I wanted, but didn't have. Going to local train shows I was excited by how advanced the new trains had become. Now you have Lionel, Mikes Train House (MTH), Atlas and others, digital whistles, real train sounds, remote control operation, I was in heaven. The majority of my collection is post war Lionel, mostly 1950's. Living in Chicago most of my life I wanted any trains that were Illinois Central. Long story short, my obsessive compulsive behavior got the better of me and I have way to many trains. From time to time I sell them on Ebay. Still have a lot of sets I want to sell, and Tis The Season. Nothing better than a Lionel train running around the Christmas tree, Except driving my P15.

[Chester Brzostowski]

You guys are right it wouldn’t be Christmas without a train running around the tree. We bought an HO set years ago with snap together tracks that has been used as the standard decoration. But this year the big guns come out.

Go figure, guys with old cars have old trains. Humm..

Chet…

[JIPJOBXX]

Here is a friend of mine who has been collecting Lionel Trains since he was a kid! He has over 100 complete sets and notice there mostly up on the walls in there own little storage compartments. Oh that house it was built in 1885 and his train room is up stairs.

[Don Coatney]

My family was too poor to buy a Lionel train so I gat a Marx. My Marx engine outran all the Lionel engines at the cub scout electric train race so I was one proud puppy. The train set is long gone and I sold the booklet on the bay a few years back.

[wallytoo]

yes.

i had a modest number of freight cars and a couple steam locos. also had a coal tower, drawbridge, and a few other things.

my dad now collects them, along with mth, weaver, atlas, and a few others in o-guage/o-scale. he's got a large permanent multi-level layout in his basement, which my kids use. multiple diesel/steam locos, budd railcars, and hundreds of freightcars. most of the collection is of new england RRs, like MEC, BM, BAR, LNE, CV, Rut, and GMRC.

i'll even run them once in a while. the layout includes my old drawbridge.

[Chester Brzostowski]

Here is a friend of mine who has been collecting Lionel Trains since he was a kid! He has over 100 complete sets and notice there mostly up on the walls in there own little storage compartments. Oh that house it was built in 1885 and his train room is up stairs.

Talk about excessive compulsive behavior. I love it !!! Anyway in his retirement years he can sell them off for gas money. Got to be worth a small fortune. Now I don't feel bad about buying another Burlington engine, some track, and two additional passenger cars.

Like my wife says.., “ The only difference between men & boys..., is the price of their toys.”

Chet…

[Rodney Bullock]

Ah Chet, You bring back bad memories of my childhood:( My Dad had those blasted trains and every year he would set them up under the tree. It had all these little indians and army men. It had trees and props, it even had a tunnel. The engine had smoke that came out the chimney. Oh look at the engine go round, watch it stop at the railroad crossing! "HEY Don't touch it" It was the only time I ever got yelled at, "HEY get off the track":mad: I mean darn how do you play with something that just goes round and round. My Dad loved those trains, I was so glad to see them taken up So I could play with my cars and roll them across the floor....Stupid trains They are all gone now and good:cool: Stupid

Can you see me in my pajamas with feet made on to them. Running from my dad with cow mover in my hand, Thank god for my dear mom;)

[Chester Brzostowski]

Ah Chet, You bring back bad memories of my childhood:( My Dad had those blasted trains and every year he would set them up under the tree. It had all these little indians and army men. It had trees and props, it even had a tunnel. The engine had smoke that came out the chimney. Oh look at the engine go round, watch it stop at the railroad crossing! "HEY Don't touch it" It was the only time I ever got yelled at, "HEY get off the track":mad: I mean darn how do you play with something that just goes round and round. My Dad loved those trains, I was so glad to see them taken up So I could play with my cars and roll them across the floor....Stupid trains They are all gone now and good:cool: Stupid

Can you see me in my pajamas with feet made on to them. Running from my dad with cow mover in my hand, Thank god for my dear mom;)

Wow, Rodney that was an interesting perspective. To me and maybe to your dad the sound of a train whistle was a call to adventure and the promise of distant lands, and interesting new things. Maybe your dad always wanted to travel but spent his life providing for his family. It’s like Jimmy Stewart in the movie “It’s a wonderful life” always wanting to get out of Bedford Falls but some how never finding the passageway. To you, maybe your cars represented the same freedom that the trains provided to your dad. I have a friend in work whose dad was an antique car guy and his son, my friend, hates the hobby. Probably for the same reason you don’t care for the trains. ( Don’t touch and keep sanding) To me.., after years of travel I would just rather stay home.

Chet…

Edited November 30, 2011 by Chester Brzostowski

[Rodney Bullock]

Chet, I must confess. After thinking about it I did step on the track and one year I put stuff on the track to derail it. All those cartoons with dudly do right and nell. I secretly wanted to be Simon bar senister. He would tie Nell up and put her on the tracks. I know warp little mind. I was a kid:confused: I think I wanted attention and those trains took it away. I was an only child for 10 years. All this discovery I would have paid a Doctor thosand of dollars. I could buy me another car with my savings right:D

[Dan Hiebert]

When my brother and I were kids we'd spend our summers at our grandparent's places in Illinois. My mom's side lived just a couple hundred yards or so from the mainline of the Missouri Pacific along the Mississippi in Jackson County. We'd fight over the upstairs bedroom that overlooked the tracks, and I can remember the distant thrum of the trains as they approached, the mars light approaching off in the distance, the crossing bells ringing, and the distant thunder of the trains as they passed. No matter where we were on the farm we'd always run to where we could watch the trains when we heard them coming. We'd walk for hours on the tracks, and would occasionally have to jump off when a train approached - usually into a patch of poison ivy! Once I settled down, I dabbled in model railroading, it was fun, but it wasn't quite the same. Then I got my first old car - and that was all she wrote. Still fascinated by trains, tho. Got to visit the Lionel factory in Michigan when I worked in Detroit.

[Chester Brzostowski]

Chet, I must confess. After thinking about it I did step on the track and one year I put stuff on the track to derail it. All those cartoons with dudly do right and nell. I secretly wanted to be Simon bar senister. He would tie Nell up and put her on the tracks. I know warp little mind. I was a kid:confused: I think I wanted attention and those trains took it away. I was an only child for 10 years. All this discovery I would have paid a Doctor thosand of dollars. I could buy me another car with my savings right:D

So I guess what you are saying is that you don’t want to stop by to play with the trains. I hear ya… Maybe PunkiN ChunkiN in Delaware next November.

See link:

http://www.atbeach.com/punkinchunkin/

Chet…

[Paul Beard]

Chet I only have 3 "o" guage lionel locomotives all three are limited edition with only 2000 of each made. Plenty of "HO" guage including some Lionel and Amereican Flyer bought at train shows. I was amazed by American Flyer "HO"

bought at train show took them home and halfway around trak they smoke starterd to come out of smokestack.

[kbuhagiar]

I've been a train nut forever.

Started out with American Flyer when I was little - Dad bought two sets, one for me and one for my brother. We combined them onto one layout which, of course, would only come out at Christmas. When we got older Dad sold the American Flyer and bought a bunch of Tyco HO gauge stuff, still Christmas only. Dad gave the Tyco stuff away after I moved out of the house.

After I got married I didn't have much room for a layout so I decided to give N gauge a try. I put together a couple of layouts, but after a few years I lost interest and sold everything.

I still love anything having to do with trains and railroads.

Occasionally I will pull over to the side of the road to watch a 5-engine consist roll by (there isn't much freight activity here on the San Francisco Peninsula, so when we travel I relish the opportunities). My wife thinks I'm nuts but is used to it now.

Who knows, maybe after retirement I'll dive back into it.

[Chester Brzostowski]

When my brother and I were kids we'd spend our summers at our grandparent's places in Illinois. My mom's side lived just a couple hundred yards or so from the mainline of the Missouri Pacific along the Mississippi in Jackson County. We'd fight over the upstairs bedroom that overlooked the tracks, and I can remember the distant thrum of the trains as they approached, the mars light approaching off in the distance, the crossing bells ringing, and the distant thunder of the trains as they passed. No matter where we were on the farm we'd always run to where we could watch the trains when we heard them coming. We'd walk for hours on the tracks, and would occasionally have to jump off when a train approached - usually into a patch of poison ivy! Once I settled down, I dabbled in model railroading, it was fun, but it wasn't quite the same. Then I got my first old car - and that was all she wrote. Still fascinated by trains, tho. Got to visit the Lionel factory in Michigan when I worked in Detroit.

Dan,

You hit the nail right on the head. There is nothing like the real thing. Most people get annoyed if they get caught at a RR crossing. The wife & I get a kick out of sitting there and watching the train go by. Never got board watching, riding, or chasing the real thing.

Chet…

[Plymouthy Adams]

Rodney..I believe Snidley Whiplash was always after our girl Nell and was Dudley's arch enemy and Simon Bar Sinister was the rival to Underdog and Sweet Polly was the squeeze in question...trains are ok and we played with them for hours as a kid..but don't interest me any more..lots of things that I used to take pleasure in over the course of my life mean nothing today..you move on and braoden your horizons or as some just sit back and relax and take life as it comes..depends on each person, not sure there is a wrong or right way to spend your free time.

[Dennis_MN]

My farmer friend retired to a lake home in Northern Minnesota and built a 8 car garage. On the far end of the garage he took two stalls and made a train room out of it. I was searching e-mails for his latest improvements, a drive-in movie and a lake with a couple of guys fishing. The drive-in is one of those photo frame deals. Didn't find the pictures, sorry.

Another thing that he did was to build a track around the ceiling of his rec room in the house. That has another of couple of trains running on it all controlled by a remote control slightly larger than a tv remote. It can control two or three trains at once on the same track.

I keep telling him that now he needs a web cam so that I can show off his layout on line to the car folks.

Nice thread, Chet. I wonder if all retired guys move into their second childhood.

[Rodney Bullock]

Tim, my memory is not what it was, you are right. My father did get it after a while and bought me a H.o. racing car set. They later became TYCO I have about 7 track sets and I use to play with them until the bushes got so bad that I need to replace them. There are no hobby shops around here that have them. I also got alot of the hot wheel stuff. I still have the hot wheel "WHEEL" it holds alot of cars. I also have the two hot wheel houses that pushed the cars though to make them go continuously. My mom and dad really tried with me however I was very flippy as a kid what ever was the new thing that's what I wanted. The only thing I miss is that Western flyer bike with the streamers and the light on the front, black and white with the chrome fenders and reflector. man that was xmas:)