Classic Toy Trains February 2020

It’s been a busy month or so since my start at Classic Toy Trains. There’s lots to talk about, nothing huge but several things worth at least a short mention. So, moving right along… THE WELCOME WAGON First, I’d like to welcome those of you who are former S Gaugian subscribers to the Classic Toy Trains family. We hope we can provide you with the American Flyer stories and photos that will make you feel at home with every issue. We also hope you enjoy everything else CTT has to offer. There are some great S gauge features this month, including our Collectible Classics entry on page 20 focusing on American Flyer’s no. 5655RH train set. It’s aptly named the New Sunshine Special, something many of us could use more of this time of…

Readers just like you provide stories featured in Classic Toy Trains. To submit an article and photos, send your work to Classic Toy Trains magazine, 21027 Crossroads Circle, P.O. Box 1612, Waukesha, WI 53187. Write the words “Manuscript Enclosed” on the envelope. Articles and photographs are paid for on acceptance. We assume no responsibility for the safe return of unsolicited material. Send email submissions to manuscripts@classictoytrains.com. Before preparing an article, contact us to determine whether we’re interested. Guidelines for writing articles and taking photographs are available from our website. If you are a manufacturer or supplier and would like to see your products in our News or Reviews columns, please email editor@classictoytrains.com, or call 262-796-8776 for more information. Classic Toy Trains assumes that letters, new product information, and other unsolicited materials are contributed gratis.…

I loved Bob Keller’s Modern Era Notes column on K-Line products (“K-Line: Jack of all trades,” November 2019 Classic Toy Trains). I have two K-Line 2-8-2 steam locomotives, one lettered for the Pennsylvania RR and the other for the Chesapeake & Ohio. I purchased both when they came onto the market. The detail and performance of these locomotives are both first class. It’s amazing how many cars they can pull! Richard Czech Linden, N.J. CHILDREN AND TRAINS This is in response to Al Padeletti’s question: “Putting the brakes on a child’s O-27 train” (Questions & Answers, November issue). A few years ago, I gave a Lionel LionChief Thomas the Tank Engine to my 4-year-old grandson, and he had no problem with the remote-control operation of the train. As he grew older, I got him the…

JIM BARRETT’S O GAUGE LAYOUT Time to see how much you know about toy trains. Take a look at the picture Mark Horne shot on Jim Barrett’s O gauge layout in Coquitlam, B.C. Now start listing all the different American toy train manufacturers represented in this part of Jim’s eclectic display. The Burlington Zephyr streamlined train in the foreground came from the American Flyer Mfg. Co. It’s running beneath a signal bridge from the Junior Bridge Co. Elsewhere are items from Department 56, Lionel, Louis Marx & Co., and who knows what else! BOB NORTHINGTON’S STANDARD GAUGE LAYOUT You hear a lot of worry and consternation from current hobbyists that the next generation won’t care about prewar or postwar toy trains. Well, Bob Northington set out to do something about that dilemma. He…

This hobby is organized fairly simply: Prewar, Postwar, and Modern eras. You know what sort of products to expect in each category. This may be getting a little dated. The Modern Era covers 50 years worth of trains. There are operators and collectors who give little attention to Prewar or Postwar trains and they would snub MPC-era gear. Why? Things have been radically changing for nearly a quarter-century. We may be living in the era of the best, most realistic, and most entertaining toy trains ever. This is where the action is. Take the LTI Commodore Vanderbilt. It was huge. The shell may have been the largest O gauge die-cast metal product of its time. It offered Lionel TrainMaster and RailSounds system and the classic Pullmor motor. It was an audacious product,…

I’M A KING BEE: The RailKing Alco C-630 diesel-electric locomotive from MTH Electric Trains features a metal frame, a pair of flywheel-equipped motors, ProtoSmoke exhaust, and ProtoCouplers at both ends. The new scale-proportioned no. 30-20664 O gauge locomotive is decorated in the Reading Lines’ “Bee Line Service” paint scheme and costs $369.95. See your MTH retailer or go to www.MTHtrains.com for more information. PLENTY OF PEOPLE: Woodland Scenics, P.O. Box 98, Linn Creek, MO 65052 has added two O scale figure sets to its Scenic Accents line. The no. A2740 Newsstand contains eight pieces (four figures and four accessories) while the no. A2722 Train Personnel comes with eight pieces (six figures and two accessories). The figure sets are priced at $24.99 each. See your local retailer or visit www.woodlandscenics.com BOXCAR BLISS: Menards…