My mom worked a ladies dept store and she was always in charge of the toy section during the holidays. After Christmas in 1948 the demo Lional train set came to our house. The steam locomotive is a 2.6.4 with a whistle fender. I always set it up for Christmas and pop built a table 4x8 and ran the train in our basement for a few weeks. Mom passed it on to me because I had the first grandson. Right now it is all boxed in the original boxes just waiting for me to set it up again. Have to make room for the tables and it will come to life again.
This is history. Not everyone had the opportunity to see these trains and so many details and moving devices. Actually, we must congratulate the creators of these trains and accessories, considering the time when they devised and built them. I congratulate the creators and those who still retain these jewels of model trains. Thanks for showing them.
Wow! Great way to make an old man cry! LOL My father had all of the trains you showed, with the exception of diesel locomotives. He was a steam man. I mean I'm feeling very emotional right now with memories of my Dad and I in the basement working on his layout, fixing wheels he got replacements of, working on making the trains run smoothly, while I sat on a large stool lightly dusting off the layout. We'd be talking and he would reminisce about his days in Brooklyn, taking the train into town, the "L" through the Bronx, etc. God, if only I could go back in time, just for one night to be sitting on that stool spending time with my Dad and his extensive Lionel collection. If only......
That clickity clack of the rails is one of the most relaxing sounds in the world for me. When life gets burdensome, grab a beverage and enjoy your trains going round and round.
Incredible ! I recall marveling about many of these accessories as a kid. By today's standards they all look almost "Rube Goldberg", but as a child they were the height of technical genius. We must remember that the product engineers who designed these accessories used a slide rule, not a computer. Despite the inefficiencies of these accessories and rolling stock the nostalgia overwhelms me. Yes, those were the days when a kids imagination ruled !
In the mid 50's my father brought me home a used Lionel train with oval tracks and 6 cars - all black , and the black engine has little white pellets that made smoke when you put one in the stack ! I loved it ! So simple , yet just enough to be remembered 67 years ago ! He brough the set home in a large used paper bag , but I didn't care !
People and children today do not have memories of trains that those of us who actually rode them for transportation do. The train whistle has a haunting sound to some of is. And, of course, there were the trains set up around the base of the Christmas tree with complete villages and even sometimes even miniature people. No one is ever too old to outgrow the magic of playing with trains
I used to love watching this video, and I still do. Been watching it every year for about 6 years straight. This video proves that you don't need to have a realistic layout to have fun!
Thank very much for getting back to me. You have very very nice layout and you have work very hard at it. Myself I have built 3 different layouts when things were going great guns. Thank you for being very kind you have a great blessed day. John
@@johnblythe6284 thank you John. The layout that you see In one of my older is actually my grandfather's. He used to setup his table every Christmas for all of the kids to play with. We have since moved and now I have my own Marx layouy
Today I boxed up my 1956 train layout I had placed around the Christmas tree. Taking it down brought tears to my eyes! My father got me the work train set in 1956 when I was only 1, but it was my favorite toy until the late 1960s. Seeing videos like this are inspiring, and I have begun buying all the Lionel things on E-Bay I could never afford as a child. Lionel trains and accessories were the best toy a boy could ever have! All that action before the age of computers! The submarine car was the absolute best. The submarine came off the car to take to the swimming pool. You wound up the rubber band, adjusted the diving planes, and it would travel underwater deep in the pool while we watched it with goggles! Thank you for this wonderful video! It is especially nice to see the pictures in the catalog.
I remember these trains from almost 70 years ago in the early 40s when I was 8 years old. I spoke to a collector recently and he commented - "What could you play with for 10 or 15 years, then put in the attic for more than 40 years, and now bring down and have it all work again"? They were designed well and to last. My 1666 engine, a 2-6-2 runs like a top. I set it up because my daughter who is in her 40s suddenly, out of the clear blue said "Don't sell those, we would like to have them." Sure surprised the hell out of me.
Ah, a Marx 1666! Great runners, those Marx -- and a whale of a lot cheaper than Lionel back in the day. I wish I would have collected a lot more Marx 20 years ago; the prices they fetch now has skyrocketed.
This is a terrific video and should be required viewing for anyone contemplating collecting or operating pre and post war Lionel. Thanks for the effort.
Absolutely fantastic !! Remember so many of these trains and accessories and enjoyed so very much ... THANK YOU for sharing ...FANTASTIC!!! In 50's only got to see many of these at Lionel exhibit in NY City, adjacent to Madison Park or at Dept. store layouts (now pretty extinct).. but nothing as comprehensive and complete and thoroughly enjoyable as your presentation....labor of love and it shows ... BTW did I mention ... FANTASTIC!!! Cho Cho along !!
as someone who devoted countless hours poring over the tantalizing images in those classic catalogs i am just tickled to see - not only the familiar images once again - but also the cars and accessories so depicted - in actual physical form and operation.
When I was young (late 50's early 60's) my Mom and Dad made friends with a lot of the "well to do" people in the small town I was raised in. The son of one of these well to do families had this HUGE Lionel train layout in their basement. This video takes me back to that exact period in my childhood. It was tradition in our home town for families to go see this train layout every Christmas season. They kept the layout up year round but still. I couldn't even imagine what some of these trains and accessories are worth today.
What an amazing collection. The largest collection I have ever seen, by LIONEL, on film. The operating items were really cool and amazing. A really enjoyable film to watch.
An absolutely amazing array of Lionel locos, accessories, action cars. Well done video. Thanks for sharing. I remember as a kid in the 50's drooling over a lot of that stuff in the Lionel catalog. Some of it I still do.
A wonderful video for all us "old-timers" who remember the way Lionel trains and accessories looked and functioned--long before digital and computers. Thank-you so much.
My dad just pointed me to this video, he had a few of these as a kid, including the milk, cattle and trolly. Brought back happy memories for him to recognise the clicking sounds of relays. Thanks for sharing. 😊
DEFINITELY jealous of your layout! That said, just imagine how many kids (myself included) would have marveled at having even one or two of these accessories! While they didn't exactly perform as illustrated (i.e., turning milk cans into projectiles), that just added that much more to the fun, albeit in a different way. Now I marvel at the engineering that went into making these things work in the first place; no computer chips in sight! Thanks for sharing your collection (including illustrations) with us.
Thank you ever so much for the 47 minute time machine. I finally got to see all the Lionel operating accessories IN ACTION. Those were the things of dreams that many of us could only see in the catalogs or the occasional Christmas displays in the large department stores. Once again, “Thanks for the memories” .
Watching this motivated me to get out my late step-dad's Lionel set from 1950. As I go through it it seems to be complete with the 681 locomotive and coal tender, milk car, working box car, 2 depots, and lots of track sections, etc. This is the first time I've seen it and I can't believe what great condition it's in. Everything is still packed in the original boxes and I see it has a catalog and #921 maintenance kit...even the little 'quality control' paper slips are still in the individual car boxes! I'm guessing it to be a figure 8 layout as there is a 4-way track section. Now I have to figure out a place to set it up.
Very nice. Hard to imagine that so many people gave this vid a thumbs down. Too bad for them. They must be unhappy there's no detailed scenery or it's lacking prototypical operations. Whatever, it's still a fine, fine video of some classic toy trains. I, myself, prefer HO scale, but I can recognize a great collection and devoted effort when I see it! Well done, sir!
Thank you so much for sharing, great video of Lionel accessories of days gone by. Even thought they are cheesy they are the best accessories. I grew up watching my dad run his Lionel O27... Very fond memories, i now have all his trains, but packed away. I hope to get out someday soon, my youngest son which is 17 is in love with them..
I had some of this stuff back in the mid-1950's. But in a three room apartment and a family of four...I had more fun with the Lionel Catalogs that came out in October. Dreams in full color.
Stunningly brilliant! I learned tonight that two of my cars that came with my missle launching pad (that was at the bottom of a nice box of Lionel engines and cars) are actually exploding box cars without the shell. Speaking of exploding.......my Ebay watch list is about to explode! Very, very cool video........thanks for sharing!
First off I would like to thank you for sharing your video. I have 23 working sets of Lionel my self there all from my great grandfather my grandfather and my father I love them and will never part with the the best one loco I like out of all is my 2055 Hudson..
I really like how everything is more whimsical. Its toy-like but in a very mechanical, almost pinball machine way. Not overly realistic. I like the trains running way too fast. The 3 rails and how these old units are put together doesn't lend them a very "realistic" scale model look or feel. They are much more enjoyable this way. "Lets play with the trains!!".....not "Lets watch trains, but don't touch anything". Much more charming.
Lionel didn't always have the best looking locomotives, but their automated accessories were one of a kind. A moment of silence to remember the memory of the helicopter operator, who lost his life seconds after taking off from his train car launch pad.
Reminds me of the wonder, awe & excitement when I was 9, 10,11, 12 years old. Man do these toys bring back memories! We can share them now at a moments notice with the younger generations. Hopefully the older generations will do just that. Thanks for trip down memory lane!
I can't tell you how much I enjoyed watching this video -- seeing my beloved Blue Comet run the rails again after 60 years literally brought tears to my eyes! And watching once again while the coal loader threw those tiny Lionel coal lumps all over the layout, and seeing the maniac milk car guy fire his cans out like bullets, had me laughing out loud. Bless you!
Wow..You should be so proud ...you brought my childhood dreams that I never met alive..What a beautiful priceless collection so thank you for inviting me into your home Just beautiful ..... I lived my childhood dreams.... I wish only that my father could have seen this ..he loved trains... his dad was a station master at Boston's South Station Freight yard. He was poor but bought me an American Flyer set ...but not the extras as you have .... So nice of you
I never knew Lionel made stuff this intricate. It is amazing there were "fully function" buildings like these in the 50s and 60s. I've not seen anything even close to being as elaborate as some of those buildings in the modern model railroading stuff.
Absolutely incredible video. I kept saying to myself that i couldn't believe you had every item under the sun it seemed - and then you showed one more. Plus you showed the catalog images. That was priceless. Thank for a treasure.
Really quite a marvelous display of classic Lionel trains! What a fabulous collection of historical treasures from the Golden Age of Model Railroading! Greetings from Arizona, Glenn
***** It is really quite a splendid collection, as most of these items are very rare and considered to be almost priceless in the history of model railroading. To collect and maintain these treasures is an honorable task. Also it is a great benefit to see everything in operation, something we do not always see for such historical gems. Glenn
***** This is likely a better archive of Lionel items than anything the company did itself!! Too bad we can't send you and your camera, through a time machine, back into the Lionel Showroom in NYC, both in 1948 and 1957, for those two showpiece layouts! I don't think, aside from a few promotional short movies that survive, that we really have any sharp, quality footage of these classic accessories actually operating; especially not in color. That's what makes this video of yours so valuable. This is as good or better than anything Tom McComas has done.
This is perhaps the best and most comprehensive video on UA-cam of vintage Lionel trains. I saw a lot of pieces that I too have in my collection, like the milk car, stockyard, gate man, lots of prewar locomotives, etc. This was when Lionel stood for quality American-made trains that were an iconic part of many people's childhood years. Now, they're just churning out a boatload of Chinese-made garbage, and it's sad. Lionel needs to get back to their roots and bring manufacturing back to America if they want quality control to improve, because I will never buy the cheaply-made crap they're making now. It's an insult to Lionel's legacy, and if they want to save their reputation from totally spiraling down the toilet, then some serious overhaul from the top down is sorely needed. Let's get back to what made Lionel great in the first place -- American-made with pride and top-notch quality!
Indeed, Lionel's best trains and sets. Heirloom quality you would be proud to hand your child and pass on the magic. Sadly, trains and hobbies as a whole have dwindled due to cheap and instant gratification like games and smartphones. I have several Lionel and Marx train sets that are over 50 years old and run to this day. You will be upgrading phones in a few years and consoles in seven years so these are a good investment that last far longer than Candy Crush.
Deathstrike I think part of the problem the model railroad hobby has in the current day is that people on average have less money (adjusted for inflation) than during the postwar era and less room for massive layouts. The minimum wage has not kept up with the productivity output of this country, so working people don’t have the money to spend on model trains. As such, these models have become very niche luxury items which can’t have the same mass appeal to younger audiences as they used too because not as many people can afford to buy trains for their kids. Especially O-Scale, which is very expensive. Don’t get me wrong, I love Lionel, but these days the focus of their product is bells and whistles on top line stock for avid modelers instead of fun accessories for youngsters.
Much of this cost an arm, leg, 40 yrs back when I was collecting. Today, you can throw in the other arm and leg! That Hiawatha set for instance. I wouldn't have had it running near that fast! Loved that oil rig, and as a kid, the 3472 milk car as well. Thanks for bringing back some great memories!
I received my Dad's 1953 scout 1130 set 3 yrs ago . Thanks to you I now have a crammed pack 4x8 layout full of accessories and locos. You brought the 1950's kid out of me!! Thank you for all of your videos.
My dad collected toy trains for over 30 years unfortunately he got rid of all of them and I remember a lot about him the GG ones the Hiawatha brings back a lot of memories I really enjoyed this video thank you
This video brings back soo many good memories with my grandfather and when i got my first lionel train set i have been doing trains since i was 5 now i am 14 what a great hobby to keep goin 👍
Hi and let me add my thanks for the care and fun of probably the most entertaining vid of our trains I've ever seen. It's a kid's layout...delightfully crowded, unburdened with adult logic.... magic!
Hard to imagine this was the high tech stuff of the era. My favorite, and one I have on my layout, is the #464 Sawmill even though the planks coming out are bigger than the logs being fed in! Great video, thanks.
This is the coolest thing I've seen in years!! I had a 027 small Lionel train set when I was a kid. What I remember most was the smell of electricity in the air. That room must be filled with it.One accessory I noticed had a price of $59.00, that would be close to $700.00 nowadays.
What a delight. One of your trains takes me back in time to the distinctive odour of 'synthetic smoke', goodness knows what was in it. Thanks very much.
Great assortment of accessories just about all Lionel produced and the sound effects really tops it all. Nice job. Like the 204 blue Diesel that was one of my first sets but with passenger cars in 1957
OMG,when that turntable switch buzzed at 8:13 I got a whiff of ozone in my nose,just like when I was a kid with my American Flyer set. It's amazing what memories can trigger. Excellent video of a very cool set-up of trains from a bygone era....
Fantastic display of classic Lionel to make every kid's eyes (no matter how old!) open wide : ) Still have my first O-27 train set from 1948. I'm doing 2-rail O nowadays but when I see these ol' classics I wonder if I made a mistake ; ) A Ride On the O Scale Ironbound RR
Growing up in the 1950's/60's I had a swell set of American Flyer trains. My mom gave them away when I entered the navy in '71. I know what those Lionel and American Flyer train sets go for now. What the hell, I still got my Stratego and Risk games. I did have Lionel trains too. Loved the submarine car with submarine I used in the bathtub with my "soap suds stickleback navy and scrubbing brush landing craft" (courtesy Squeeze).
I have a collection that includes some from the 30's. My father and I bought the 2020 together after Christmas I think in 1948 or 49. What impresses me is the number of Lionel trains, cars and accessories that still function flawlessly. As children non of us saw these toys as anything more than toys, but Lionel saw them as a teaching opportunity.we learned flow, electrica and planning all the time we played with them and so many still work and work well.
Growing up my Dad made a Lionl layout in our basement with tiers on it and colored cement for the mountains. I had a Santa Fe freight and passenger car set but there was a blue stripe on the passenger cars for a 1960 President Election Year Special. I am seeing trains and accessories I dreamed looking at the Lionel train catalogs each year and like seeing again what was in our layout. I saw very old Lionel at an aunt and uncle's house in the 1960s that had early Lionel when their kids were young for his layout. This must have all rubbed off on me. Although not a model railroader, I ended up from 2001-2013 riding all the AMTRAK routes west of St. Louis in 5 weekend to weekend trips. Thanks for the video. Well done layout and video.
Just to clarify, it was my mom's aunt and uncle that I saw 1930s Lionel train layout when I was a kid in the 1960s. My Dad was a handyman and used lumber to build the two tiers over a bottom level that was also mounted up and placed cement that he painted for a good mountain effect. It was really good seeing it when dark at night lit up with its lights signals and passenger cars. I like the look of your red Texas Special and remember seeing it in the Lionel train catalogs. That may have been Missouri Kansas Texas railway but can't remember for certain.
WOW! I am an ho guager myself, but its fun to watch the old Lionels run! they are like Flyer, the like to be ran. At one time, I had all of the operating accesories from the Tyco ho catalog, since then, I've gone to true HO scale
My mom worked a ladies dept store and she was always in charge of the toy section during the holidays. After Christmas in 1948 the demo Lional train set came to our house. The steam locomotive is a 2.6.4 with a whistle fender. I always set it up for Christmas and pop built a table 4x8 and ran the train in our basement for a few weeks. Mom passed it on to me because I had the first grandson. Right now it is all boxed in the original boxes just waiting for me to set it up again. Have to make room for the tables and it will come to life again.
This is history. Not everyone had the opportunity to see these trains and so many details and moving devices. Actually, we must congratulate the creators of these trains and accessories, considering the time when they devised and built them. I congratulate the creators and those who still retain these jewels of model trains. Thanks for showing them.
Wow! Great way to make an old man cry! LOL My father had all of the trains you showed, with the exception of diesel locomotives. He was a steam man. I mean I'm feeling very emotional right now with memories of my Dad and I in the basement working on his layout, fixing wheels he got replacements of, working on making the trains run smoothly, while I sat on a large stool lightly dusting off the layout. We'd be talking and he would reminisce about his days in Brooklyn, taking the train into town, the "L" through the Bronx, etc. God, if only I could go back in time, just for one night to be sitting on that stool spending time with my Dad and his extensive Lionel collection. If only......
I agree....with tears in my eyes !!!
That clickity clack of the rails is one of the most relaxing sounds in the world for me. When life gets burdensome, grab a beverage and enjoy your trains going round and round.
Incredible ! I recall marveling about many of these accessories as a kid. By today's standards they all look almost "Rube Goldberg", but as a child they were the height of technical genius. We must remember that the product engineers who designed these accessories used a slide rule, not a computer. Despite the inefficiencies of these accessories and rolling stock the nostalgia overwhelms me. Yes, those were the days when a kids imagination ruled !
I second that! 👍🚂
I thought, well there's no way I'm gonna watch 47 minutes of Lionel trains. I watched the whole thing! Amazing!
I HAD TO TAKE 3 BREAKS LOVED IT
In the mid 50's my father brought me home a used Lionel train with oval tracks and 6 cars - all black , and the black engine has little white pellets that made smoke when you put one in the stack ! I loved it ! So simple , yet just enough to be remembered 67 years ago ! He brough the set home in a large used paper bag , but I didn't care !
This is my 3 year Olds favorite video. I can't imagine what he would do if he saw it in person. Nice job!
People and children today do not have memories of trains that those of us who actually rode them for transportation do. The train whistle has a haunting sound to some of is. And, of course, there were the trains set up around the base of the Christmas tree with complete villages and even sometimes even miniature people. No one is ever too old to outgrow the magic of playing with trains
I stumbled across this video a few years ago and have re-watched it periodically. It’s awesome seeing all these old trains and accessories going.
I used to love watching this video, and I still do. Been watching it every year for about 6 years straight. This video proves that you don't need to have a realistic layout to have fun!
Thank very much for getting back to me. You have very very nice layout and you have work very hard at it. Myself I have built 3 different layouts when things were going great guns. Thank you for being very kind you have a great blessed day. John
@@johnblythe6284 thank you John. The layout that you see In one of my older is actually my grandfather's. He used to setup his table every Christmas for all of the kids to play with. We have since moved and now I have my own Marx layouy
Today I boxed up my 1956 train layout I had placed around the Christmas tree. Taking it down brought tears to my eyes! My father got me the work train set in 1956 when I was only 1, but it was my favorite toy until the late 1960s. Seeing videos like this are inspiring, and I have begun buying all the Lionel things on E-Bay I could never afford as a child. Lionel trains and accessories were the best toy a boy could ever have! All that action before the age of computers!
The submarine car was the absolute best. The submarine came off the car to take to the swimming pool. You wound up the rubber band, adjusted the diving planes, and it would travel underwater deep in the pool while we watched it with goggles!
Thank you for this wonderful video! It is especially nice to see the pictures in the catalog.
You can watch the submarine in my video Classic Lionel trains - water action. It is on my channel.
I love the smell of Lionel track ozone in the morning.
Yes. Brings back a lot of good memories!😊😊😊
I love these trains
G
Ný
Better clean out that commutator ;)
I remember these trains from almost 70 years ago in the early 40s when I was 8 years old. I spoke to a collector recently and he commented - "What could you play with for 10 or 15 years, then put in the attic for more than 40 years, and now bring down and have it all work again"? They were designed well and to last. My 1666 engine, a 2-6-2 runs like a top. I set it up because my daughter who is in her 40s suddenly, out of the clear blue said "Don't sell those, we would like to have them." Sure surprised the hell out of me.
Ah, a Marx 1666! Great runners, those Marx -- and a whale of a lot cheaper than Lionel back in the day. I wish I would have collected a lot more Marx 20 years ago; the prices they fetch now has skyrocketed.
This is a terrific video and should be required viewing for anyone contemplating collecting or operating pre and post war Lionel. Thanks for the effort.
What an extraordinary collection and all in working order - some close to a century old ! Magnificent !!!!
Absolutely fantastic !! Remember so many of these trains and accessories and enjoyed so very much ... THANK YOU for sharing ...FANTASTIC!!! In 50's only got to see many of these at Lionel exhibit in NY City, adjacent to Madison Park or at Dept. store layouts (now pretty extinct).. but nothing as comprehensive and complete and thoroughly enjoyable as your presentation....labor of love and it shows ... BTW did I mention ... FANTASTIC!!! Cho Cho along !!
as someone who devoted countless hours
poring over the tantalizing images in those classic catalogs
i am just tickled to see - not only the familiar images once again -
but also the cars and accessories so depicted -
in actual physical form and operation.
When I was young (late 50's early 60's) my Mom and Dad made friends with a lot of the "well to do" people in the small town I was raised in. The son of one of these well to do families had this HUGE Lionel train layout in their basement. This video takes me back to that exact period in my childhood. It was tradition in our home town for families to go see this train layout every Christmas season. They kept the layout up year round but still. I couldn't even imagine what some of these trains and accessories are worth today.
What an amazing collection. The largest collection I have ever seen, by LIONEL, on film. The operating items were really cool and amazing. A really enjoyable film to watch.
If you remember watching this, you deserve a gold star.
That was fun seeing all the old Lionel stuff.
An absolutely amazing array of Lionel locos, accessories, action cars. Well done video. Thanks for sharing. I remember as a kid in the 50's drooling over a lot of that stuff in the Lionel catalog. Some of it I still do.
This video is pure joy.
3 track may not be "prototypical" but it always put a smile on people's faces.
A wonderful video for all us "old-timers" who remember the way Lionel trains and accessories looked and functioned--long before digital and computers. Thank-you so much.
My dad just pointed me to this video, he had a few of these as a kid, including the milk, cattle and trolly. Brought back happy memories for him to recognise the clicking sounds of relays. Thanks for sharing. 😊
DEFINITELY jealous of your layout! That said, just imagine how many kids (myself included) would have marveled at having even one or two of these accessories! While they didn't exactly perform as illustrated (i.e., turning milk cans into projectiles), that just added that much more to the fun, albeit in a different way. Now I marvel at the engineering that went into making these things work in the first place; no computer chips in sight! Thanks for sharing your collection (including illustrations) with us.
Thank you ever so much for the 47 minute time machine. I finally got to see all the Lionel operating accessories IN ACTION. Those were the things of dreams that many of us could only see in the catalogs or the occasional Christmas displays in the large department stores. Once again, “Thanks for the memories” .
Who could not like this? This film is a treasure. So great to see all these trains and accessories in order and working. Well done!
"This is what dreams are made of". I still have a few cars I got in 1959 but this video is beyond belief! I had the super O track.
Watching this motivated me to get out my late step-dad's Lionel set from 1950. As I go through it it seems to be complete with the 681 locomotive and coal tender, milk car, working box car, 2 depots, and lots of track sections, etc. This is the first time I've seen it and I can't believe what great condition it's in. Everything is still packed in the original boxes and I see it has a catalog and #921 maintenance kit...even the little 'quality control' paper slips are still in the individual car boxes! I'm guessing it to be a figure 8 layout as there is a 4-way track section. Now I have to figure out a place to set it up.
Very nice. Hard to imagine that so many people gave this vid a thumbs down. Too bad for them. They must be unhappy there's no detailed scenery or it's lacking prototypical operations. Whatever, it's still a fine, fine video of some classic toy trains. I, myself, prefer HO scale, but I can recognize a great collection and devoted effort when I see it! Well done, sir!
Thank you so much for sharing, great video of Lionel accessories of days gone by. Even thought they are cheesy they are the best accessories. I grew up watching my dad run his Lionel O27... Very fond memories, i now have all his trains, but packed away. I hope to get out someday soon, my youngest son which is 17 is in love with them..
I had some of this stuff back in the mid-1950's. But in a three room apartment and a family of four...I had more fun with the Lionel Catalogs that came out in October. Dreams in full color.
I had a nice Lionel set in 1968, but never had any of the extras. A lot of these items were way ahead of their time. This is a very cool video.
Stunningly brilliant! I learned tonight that two of my cars that came with my missle launching pad (that was at the bottom of a nice box of Lionel engines and cars) are actually exploding box cars without the shell. Speaking of exploding.......my Ebay watch list is about to explode! Very, very cool video........thanks for sharing!
Log sheet for accessories:
0:00 - 334 Dispatching Station
1:08 - 3472 Milk Car
2:09 - 3656 Cattle Car
3:10 - 164 Log Loader
4:30 - 364 Lumber Loader
6:37 - 460 Piggyback Unloader
7:47 - 3356 Horse Car & Corral
8:01 - 375 Turntable
9:04 - 464 Sawmill
10:29 - 128 Newstand
11:00 - 356 Operating Freight Station
11:44 - 455 Oil Derrick
12:00 - 362 Barrel Loader & 3562 Car
14:56 - 352 Ice Depot
16:50 - 494 Rotary Beacon
17:47 - 264 Fork Lift Platform
19:27 - 55 Electric Airplane (prewar)
20:07 - 445 Operating Switch Tower
20:20 - 45 Gateman (prewar)
20:30 - 1045 Operating Watchman (prewar)
20:41 - 1047 Operating Switchman
21:48 - 415 Diesel Fueling Station
22:32 - 97 Coal Elevator (prewar)
23:26 - 313 Bascule Bridge
24:09 - 497 Coaling Station & 3459 Dump Car
25:40 - 456 Coal Ramp
26:07 - 397 Coal Loader
26:54 - 175 Rocket Launcher
28:20 - 282 Gantry Crane
29:10 - 182 Gantry Crane (prewar)
30:01 - 345 Culvert Unloader
30:44 - 342 Culvert Loader
36:03 - 419 Heliport
36:44 - 192 Operating Control Tower
37:16 - Missile Launching Platform & 943 Ammo Dump
39:10 - 197 Rotating Radar Antenna
40:43 - 350 Transfer Table
41:52 - 299 Code Transmitter Set
45:39 - 840 Industrial Power Station (prewar)
45:55 - 300 Hellgate Bridge (prewar)
46:04 - 112 Station (prewar)
First off I would like to thank you for sharing your video. I have 23 working sets of Lionel my self there all from my great grandfather my grandfather and my father I love them and will never part with the the best one loco I like out of all is my 2055 Hudson..
What a wonderful show. You made me seem eight years old again for a while!
I really like how everything is more whimsical. Its toy-like but in a very mechanical, almost pinball machine way. Not overly realistic. I like the trains running way too fast. The 3 rails and how these old units are put together doesn't lend them a very "realistic" scale model look or feel. They are much more enjoyable this way. "Lets play with the trains!!".....not "Lets watch trains, but don't touch anything". Much more charming.
You are 100%.
Lionel didn't always have the best looking locomotives, but their automated accessories were one of a kind. A moment of silence to remember the memory of the helicopter operator, who lost his life seconds after taking off from his train car launch pad.
Thanks for sharing. Brings back memories of me and my Dad setting up our layout every Christmas.
I love how all of these old Lionel accessories buzz and vibrate wildly when you use them
O.M.G! This has became my all time favorite video! I'm turning 59 years young, this weekend & I'm proud to say, " I STILL PLAY WITH TRAINS!! 😍🚂👍💖
I'm only 4 years behind you, and and just as passionate about Trains!!!
@phuck ewe Lol! The only way I can manage to pull a train, is to be up in the engineer's seat! Sigh. One can only dream! 😊💖
Man...some of these older accessories are better than the current stuff
Reminds me of the wonder, awe & excitement when I was 9, 10,11, 12 years old. Man do these toys bring back memories! We can share them now at a moments notice with the younger generations. Hopefully the older generations will do just that. Thanks for trip down memory lane!
Brings back memories.
I had American Flyer as a kid but remember the stores all had the train displays at Christmas.
AMERICAN FLR FOREVER
@@jeromegrzelak8236 YES!
I can't tell you how much I enjoyed watching this video -- seeing my beloved Blue Comet run the rails again after 60 years literally brought tears to my eyes! And watching once again while the coal loader threw those tiny Lionel coal lumps all over the layout, and seeing the maniac milk car guy fire his cans out like bullets, had me laughing out loud. Bless you!
I can't even begin to imagine the value of this layout!
@RIDIN’ HIGH 5150 Yeah, and imagine its value today!
Wow..You should be so proud ...you brought my childhood dreams that I never met alive..What a beautiful priceless collection so thank you for inviting me into your home
Just beautiful ..... I lived my childhood dreams.... I wish only that my father could have seen this ..he loved trains... his dad was a station master at Boston's South Station Freight yard. He was poor but bought me an American Flyer set ...but not the extras as you have .... So nice of you
I never knew Lionel made stuff this intricate. It is amazing there were "fully function" buildings like these in the 50s and 60s. I've not seen anything even close to being as elaborate as some of those buildings in the modern model railroading stuff.
Looking at this stuff never fails to make me feel good, it always gets me into the zone
Absolutely incredible video. I kept saying to myself that i couldn't believe you had every item under the sun it seemed - and then you showed one more. Plus you showed the catalog images. That was priceless. Thank for a treasure.
Great review of Lionel trains and accessories pre and postwar. Great collection!!
Really quite a marvelous display of classic Lionel trains! What a fabulous collection of historical treasures from the Golden Age of Model Railroading!
Greetings from Arizona,
Glenn
***** It is really quite a splendid collection, as most of these items are very rare and considered to be almost priceless in the history of model railroading. To collect and maintain these treasures is an honorable task. Also it is a great benefit to see everything in operation, something we do not always see for such historical gems.
Glenn
***** This is likely a better archive of Lionel items than anything the company did itself!! Too bad we can't send you and your camera, through a time machine, back into the Lionel Showroom in NYC, both in 1948 and 1957, for those two showpiece layouts! I don't think, aside from a few promotional short movies that survive, that we really have any sharp, quality footage of these classic accessories actually operating; especially not in color. That's what makes this video of yours so valuable. This is as good or better than anything Tom McComas has done.
Something about toy trains that just make me feel happy and make me wanna smile.
This is perhaps the best and most comprehensive video on UA-cam of vintage Lionel trains. I saw a lot of pieces that I too have in my collection, like the milk car, stockyard, gate man, lots of prewar locomotives, etc. This was when Lionel stood for quality American-made trains that were an iconic part of many people's childhood years. Now, they're just churning out a boatload of Chinese-made garbage, and it's sad. Lionel needs to get back to their roots and bring manufacturing back to America if they want quality control to improve, because I will never buy the cheaply-made crap they're making now. It's an insult to Lionel's legacy, and if they want to save their reputation from totally spiraling down the toilet, then some serious overhaul from the top down is sorely needed. Let's get back to what made Lionel great in the first place -- American-made with pride and top-notch quality!
I agree and same with hornby companies should start production where it used to be. Lionel in the us and hornby in the uk
RJC 72 Those days are gone forever.
Literally millions of dollars worth of classic trains on screen. And what looks like The Sydney Harbour Bridge
Indeed, Lionel's best trains and sets. Heirloom quality you would be proud to hand your child and pass on the magic.
Sadly, trains and hobbies as a whole have dwindled due to cheap and instant gratification like games and smartphones. I have several Lionel and Marx train sets that are over 50 years old and run to this day. You will be upgrading phones in a few years and consoles in seven years so these are a good investment that last far longer than Candy Crush.
Deathstrike I think part of the problem the model railroad hobby has in the current day is that people on average have less money (adjusted for inflation) than during the postwar era and less room for massive layouts. The minimum wage has not kept up with the productivity output of this country, so working people don’t have the money to spend on model trains. As such, these models have become very niche luxury items which can’t have the same mass appeal to younger audiences as they used too because not as many people can afford to buy trains for their kids. Especially O-Scale, which is very expensive.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Lionel, but these days the focus of their product is bells and whistles on top line stock for avid modelers instead of fun accessories for youngsters.
That is a replica of the Hell Gate Bridge in New York City.
oh....didn't expect to see you here Leo.....
Thanks for sharing your layout.The best operating layout i have ever seen. Thanks again from Lancaster P.A.
Much of this cost an arm, leg, 40 yrs back when I was collecting. Today, you can throw in the other arm and leg! That Hiawatha set for instance. I wouldn't have had it running near that fast! Loved that oil rig, and as a kid, the 3472 milk car as well. Thanks for bringing back some great memories!
That's a seriously impressive collection of accessories!!!
Very nice layout . Takes a lot of us back a few years. Lionel Trains are the best.
I received my Dad's 1953 scout 1130 set 3 yrs ago . Thanks to you I now have a crammed pack 4x8 layout full of accessories and locos. You brought the 1950's kid out of me!! Thank you for all of your videos.
This is one of the best Lionel accessory and train videos I've seen. Well Done!
My dad collected toy trains for over 30 years unfortunately he got rid of all of them and I remember a lot about him the GG ones the Hiawatha brings back a lot of memories I really enjoyed this video thank you
Thanks for a very wonderful video. It brings back all the great Lionel Trains,Operating Systems,and Accessories throughout the Decades.Mmmmmmmm
Just an amazing collection of trains and accessories. I've never seen one more complete. Thanks for taking the time to video and post it all.
Lionel trains are so different. They're fast, loud, bright and beautiful. Toy trains at their best. Lionel is a different breed. It's amazing.
They don't have to be fast. They are controlled by a throttle. Amazes me why owners ALWAYS run them fast. So unrealistic.
This video brings back soo many good memories with my grandfather and when i got my first lionel train set i have been doing trains since i was 5 now i am 14 what a great hobby to keep goin 👍
I have been doing trains from five as well and I am seventy-five and still at it.
Locomotive man8444 I'm 13 soon to be 14 and to collect lionel
Hi and let me add my thanks for the care and fun of probably the most entertaining vid of our trains I've ever seen.
It's a kid's layout...delightfully crowded, unburdened with adult logic.... magic!
Oh, how nice to see so many postwar/prewar locos, cars and accessories in action! Thanks much for posting!
My neck hurts from watching. Gotta love Magna-traction.
3:32 Boy, that sound brings back a lot of Christmas memories. Great video.
Just think of all the wonderful creativity that went into all those accessories.
Man some of those (expensive!) trains were really moving! Even over the trestles.😯
Great video presentation of Lionel in the 50’s. It’s a valuable resource for the Lionel collector and operator. Thank you!
I've been watching this since 2016? It's awesome.
Hard to imagine this was the high tech stuff of the era. My favorite, and one I have on my layout, is the #464 Sawmill even though the planks coming out are bigger than the logs being fed in!
Great video, thanks.
Just an amazing layout. One day I have to take my boxes out of the closet. I see many cars that I know I I have.
This is one of the best layouts I have ever seen! Great mix of pre and postwar. Lots of action. Thank you for sharing.
The most comprehensive Lionel accessory video I have ever seen. Thank you for the massive effort. Made my day much brighter.
Classic layouts never go out of style! Great video.
Amazing the variety of RR accessories Lionel made and how well they all worked. Really a unique story that will probably never be repeated.
Wish I had the space and the funds for these classics. Thanks for the video.
So cool. My Dad wanted for us to have a pike one day. He would have loved this. Thank you for posting it.
This is the coolest thing I've seen in years!! I had a 027 small Lionel train set when I was a kid. What I remember most was the smell of electricity in the air. That room must be filled with it.One accessory I noticed had a price of $59.00, that would be close to $700.00 nowadays.
What a delight. One of your trains takes me back in time to the distinctive odour of 'synthetic smoke', goodness knows what was in it. Thanks very much.
Great assortment of accessories just about all Lionel produced and the sound effects really tops it all. Nice job. Like the 204 blue Diesel that was one of my first sets but with passenger cars in 1957
As a young boy, I remember all of these! Thanks for the ride down memory lane!
that room must smell amazing....fantastic layout
OMG,when that turntable switch buzzed at 8:13 I got a whiff of ozone in my nose,just like when I was a kid with my American Flyer set. It's amazing what memories can trigger. Excellent video of a very cool set-up of trains from a bygone era....
This looks like a layout straight out of those I love toy train VHS tapes
UnendingRideCo
I know right!? Classic
Fantastic display of classic Lionel to make every kid's eyes (no matter how old!) open wide : ) Still have my first O-27 train set from 1948. I'm doing 2-rail O nowadays but when I see these ol' classics I wonder if I made a mistake ; )
A Ride On the O Scale Ironbound RR
Growing up in the 1950's/60's I had a swell set of American Flyer trains. My mom gave them away when I entered the navy in '71. I know what those Lionel and American Flyer train sets go for now. What the hell, I still got my Stratego and Risk games. I did have Lionel trains too. Loved the submarine car with submarine I used in the bathtub with my "soap suds stickleback navy and scrubbing brush landing craft" (courtesy Squeeze).
I have a collection that includes some from the 30's. My father and I bought the 2020 together after Christmas I think in 1948 or 49. What impresses me is the number of Lionel trains, cars and accessories that still function flawlessly. As children non of us saw these toys as anything more than toys, but Lionel saw them as a teaching opportunity.we learned flow, electrica and planning all the time we played with them and so many still work and work well.
Wow what a layout
Ah postwar Lionel trains. Beautiful
For me the best part is between min 42 and min 43. Where you show how to video as if you were the engineer. Brilliant!
Growing up my Dad made a Lionl layout in our basement with tiers on it and colored cement for the mountains. I had a Santa Fe freight and passenger car set but there was a blue stripe on the passenger cars for a 1960 President Election Year Special. I am seeing trains and accessories I dreamed looking at the Lionel train catalogs each year and like seeing again what was in our layout. I saw very old Lionel at an aunt and uncle's house in the 1960s that had early Lionel when their kids were young for his layout. This must have all rubbed off on me. Although not a model railroader, I ended up from 2001-2013 riding all the AMTRAK routes west of St. Louis in 5 weekend to weekend trips. Thanks for the video. Well done layout and video.
Just to clarify, it was my mom's aunt and uncle that I saw 1930s Lionel train layout when I was a kid in the 1960s. My Dad was a handyman and used lumber to build the two tiers over a bottom level that was also mounted up and placed cement that he painted for a good mountain effect. It was really good seeing it when dark at night lit up with its lights signals and passenger cars. I like the look of your red Texas Special and remember seeing it in the Lionel train catalogs. That may have been Missouri Kansas Texas railway but can't remember for certain.
Just looked it up. The Texas Special was jointly support by the MKT and the Frisco.
WOW! I am an ho guager myself, but its fun to watch the old Lionels run! they are like Flyer, the like to be ran. At one time, I had all of the operating accesories from the Tyco ho catalog, since then, I've gone to true HO scale
Fantastic! Thanks for taking the time to create such an in-depth look at the world of Lionel!