Lionel O gauge no. 463 nuclear reactor

I FIRST SAW a photo of a Lionel nuclear reactor years ago in Tuohy and McComas’ book Lionel: A Collector’s Guide and History, Vol. V: The Archives. The reactor prototype looked slick, but there were no clues to what it did or how it was supposed to do it. Fast forward to December 2000.

Opening the box of the Lionel nuclear reactor, I still didn’t have a clue what the stamped steel and plastic accessory it was supposed to do (beyond creating atomic energy). But darned if I cared – this was sooooo cool!

No nuclear reactor manager outside the Soviet Union would load nuclear fuel from a gondola and carry spent fuel out in another gondola. In a nutshell, however, that is what the operating reactor does.

After installing the unit next to a track on your pike, park a short train with one or two gondolas (cars are not included) next to the reactor. The first car should carry the Lionel nuclear fuel (ball bearings).
Activate the reactor’s unloader and its arm slowly moves down into the first car, looking for cargo.

A magnet at the end of the arm picks up a single ball-o-fuel from the gondola and lifts it skyward. The ball is knocked off the magnet and it rolls down a chute into the reactor. Whir, clunk; whir, clunk and Shazam – the spent glow-in-the-dark fuel (which you secretly loaded into a slot in the rear) pops through a hatch in front. You can release it into an empty gondola or let the pellets accumulate in a tray.

Did Lionel miss a beat with this one? Well, you’d think it could have come up with a basic sound chip that might emit a warning like “Reactor meltdown in progress. You have 10 minutes to get to a safe distance …,” but if you have a video of the movie Alien and a tape recorder, you have that covered!

Did I mention the disco ball? Inside the reactor you’ll find a neat array of flashing colors, simulating a nuclear reaction. This is best seen in the dark, but you can still see it in normal illumination. This feature has an on/off switch. Of 15 or so people who saw this rig in action, I believe every single one used the word “cool.”

If you run a realistic hi-rail layout, you’ll pass on this accessory. But if you are hep to a really off-the-wall accessory, then whip out a tape measure and find a 15- by 12-inch plot of empty trackside real estate. I give this O gauge baby two glowing thumbs up!