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Trainz has purchased the inventory of screws, bolts, springs, rivets, and fasteners from L&L Model Train Restoration Co. (Len Carparelli). The business, known as the Ted Nyerges Bolt & Screw Company, offers a line of fasteners for postwar Lionel trains. Trainz plans to increase the availability of screws, fasteners and other small parts at Trainz.com. […]
10 more helpful tips for your layout Smooth and steady steaming It’s not surprising that postwar Lionel steam locomotives are extremely underpowered. They’re single-motor locomotives that must tow a heavy tender, so you’ll seldom get them to pull more than a dozen freight cars. Keep the wheel axles, side rods, and smoke-unit mechanism properly lubricated, […]
Classic Toy Trains Senior Editor Roger Carp and Project Roar’s John Schmid open and unbox a brand-new book called Lights, Camera, Lionel Trains! This hardcover book, published by Project Roar and authored by noted toy train historian Roger Carp, showcases the importance and significance of Lionel Trains throughout the years. A Lionel train was more […]
Classic Toy Trains Senior Editor Roger Carp and Project Roar’s John Schmid open and unbox a brand-new book called Lights, Camera, Lionel Trains! This hardcover book, published by Project Roar and authored by noted toy train historian Roger Carp, showcases the importance and significance of Lionel Trains throughout the years. A Lionel train was more […]
Lionel’s Nos. 2257 and 2357 cabooses changed the line of toy trains in notable ways. The all-but-identical models, first cataloged in 1947, introduced three-rail enthusiasts to a type of caboose that looked different from what Lionel had been showcasing during the final years of the prewar period and the first two years of the postwar […]
Locomotives & rolling stock MTH, 739 Washington Blvd., Ste. 101, Elkridge, MD 21075, has FM Erie-built Diesel Locomotives as part of the Premier line. Engines will operate on O-42 curves, feature Proto-Sound 3.0, and will be available in six paint schemes (20-21852 shown). The engines will be sold as unpowered A units or as an […]
Manufacturers come and go in model railroading, and the O gauge market is no exception – 2 or 3 rail, scale or semi scale. From vast offerings to specific products, let’s find out who is producing today for the customer. If you know of a manufacturer not on this list, please contact us at editor@classictoytrains.com. […]
Howard Hitchcock, CEO of Lionel, talks about Lionel’s 125th anniversary, as interviewed by Classic Toy Trains Editor Rene Schweitzer. Howard was kind enough to give us some time to talk about their anniversary, new products, virtual events, and show us some brand-new anniversary items in this video! You don’t want to miss this exclusive video […]
The Lionel Collectors Club of America (LCCA) will be celebrating their 55th anniversary at their annual convention set for July 21-26th in the historic railroad town of Scranton, Penn. The tours will include the famous Steamtown and the Electric City Trolley Museum just to mention two. Convention activities will include multiple running train layouts, seminars, […]
In January 2022, when Lionel released the Volume 1 Big Book, a few pages beyond the Visionline Class A you’d find an old, but familiar locomotive, the A5. Tooling from K-Line became the skeleton for this small 0-4-0 switching locomotive. However, even with good bones, it took Lionel two and a half years to deliver […]
Dick Christianson, the founding editor of Classic Toy Trains and the consummate cheerleader for Lionel trains of the postwar era, was recently asked about his top locomotive. He’s owned several great steam and diesel models from the 1940s and ’50s. As editor, he observed virtually every locomotive Lionel cataloged in those decades and long after. […]
Lionel catalog volume 1 for 2024 is filled with plenty of treasures. I should know because several months ago, I spent hours studying the latest additions to the O gauge line and then shared my observations on Trains.com. It was a lot of fun, especially after hobbyists who had read my opinions replied with their […]
