Classic Toy Trains September/October 2022

IT’S HARD TO BRING YOU THE NEWS THAT longtime railroad publisher and author Don Heimburger is gone. Although it seemed like he’d been writing columns forever for Classic Toy Trains, it was only for a little more than a year. I’d hoped it would have been for much longer. I would never claim Don and I were good friends. Friends, yes; colleagues certainly; but many others in the hobby and the industry knew him better than I did. We first met years ago when I was the young editor of Kalmbach’s trade publication, Model Retailer. Don published and distributed books to hobby stores through his company, Heimburger House. He was very friendly and welcoming to the business side of things and encouraging, too. He was an excellent source of information about how…

Editor Hal Miller hmiller@Kalmbach.com Senior Editor Roger Carp rcarp@ClassicToyTrains.com Senior Production Editor Rene Schweitzer rschweitzer@Kalmbach.com Copy Editor Steven Otte sotte@Kalmbach.com Senior Editor Cody Grivno cgrivno@ModelRailroader.com Contributing Editor Bob Keller editor@ClassicToyTrains.com TO SUBMIT AN ARTICLE and photos, email manuscripts@classictoytrains.com, or send materials to Classic Toy Trains, 21027 Crossroads Circle, P.O. Box 1612, Waukesha, WI 53186. Write the words “Manuscript Enclosed” on the envelope. Before preparing an article, contact us to determine interest. Article/photo guidelines are available at trains.com/ctt/magazine/contributor-guidelines/. Classic Toy Trains assumes letters, new product information, and other unsolicited materials are contributed gratis. We assume no responsibility for the safe return of unsolicited material.…

BACK IN THE MAY/JUNE 2022 ISSUE of Classic Toy Trains, reader Steve Gross joined the many Lionel enthusiasts who, like me, have pondered the prototype origins of the Lionel no. 1001 Scout locomotive (new in 1948). My research indicates its basic shape – the angles of the cab, the step where the boiler jacket meets the firebox, and the prominence of the air pumps – owes much to the illustration of a Southern Pacific 4-4-2 Atlantic reproduced on pages 46-47 of the 1944 edition of the Model Railroader Cyclopedia: Vol. 1, Steam Locomotives. However, the “skyline” of the 1001 – the shape and placement of the domes, bell, headlight, and generator – suggests Lionel reverted to a lower profile it had used before World War II and would retain on the…

I SUSPECT MOST, IF NOT ALL, TOY TRAIN FANS have at least some interest in real railroads. I’ve encountered collectors who accumulated prewar trains as colorful metal toys of a certain manufacturing era – not because they were trains. I’ve also chatted with hobbyists focused on the trains they had as a kid. They cared little for modern O or S gauge and had no feelings at all for “the real thing.” My own interests have been with both toy and prototype. The first trains I noted were the latter rolling through Hamilton, Ohio. In those early days the locomotive varieties were mainly Elector-Motive Division GP-style “hoods,” or the “cab” units typified by the F3. The Pennsylvania RR used mostly EMD GP7s for freight and cab units on passenger trains. I didn’t see…

BERNIE AND LYN GROSS’ O GAUGE LAYOUT The talented and devoted husband-and-wife team of Bernie and Lyn Gross have named their O gauge layout the Utopia Central RR and describe it as a place where people live amicably, work diligently, and play carefully with trains. They might have added that there’s plenty of sweetness in their imaginary world based in Herndon, Va., as shown by the MTH electric locomotive and rolling stock decorated for one of their favorite chocolate treats. Besides covering the roofs on the different Department 56 structures, a very early autumn snowfall guarantees the candy won’t be melting anytime soon. JIM BARNETT’S O GAUGE LAYOUT To say that Jim Barnett’s three-rail display is eclectic is quite an understatement. Besides areas like this one devoted to remembering the Milwaukee Road, which…

BOBBIN’ ALONG. The Nassau Lionel Operating Engineers offers this O gauge bobber caboose decorated as Long Island RR no. 22. The custom-decorated Lionel model, priced at $119.99, features light-emitting diode interior lighting, a brakeman figure, and die-cast metal trucks and couplers. Only 200 models will be produced, with delivery scheduled for this fall. Orders are on a first come, first served basis. Enrollment as an associate member of the Nassau Lionel Operating Engineers is included with the purchase. For more information on ordering, visit nloe.org, email nloestore@gmail.com, or write Nassau Lionel Operating Engineers, P.O. Box 343, Levittown, NY 11756. MODERN MUSCLE. An Electro-Motive Division SD70M-2 diesel is coming soon from Atlas O. The Premier line model is decorated for the Canadian National (Grand Trunk Western heritage scheme and with 25th anniversary…