10 Times Lionel Trains Got It Horribly Wrong!

Comments · 396

• TO

  @ToyTrainTipsAndTricks · 2 years ago · pinned

  Lionel Disney Christmas Train Set <a href="https://walmrt.us/3RuYXZS">https://walmrt.us/3RuYXZS</a> [Affiliate Link]

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• ME

  @metalheadrailfan · 2 years ago

  Here&apos;s a good turkey: The 1964 version of the 773 Hudson that came with a 736W plastic tender (and insultingly plastic trucks) and lettered PENNSYLVANIA. Like come on Lionel.

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• TR

  @trainliker100 · 2 years ago

  The Lionel &quot;Wartime Train&quot; known by many today as the Lionel &quot;Paper Train&quot; actually did do exactly what it was meant to do. &nbsp;And that was not to be a highly effective model train toy. &nbsp;But to keep the &quot;Lionel&quot; brand name getting attention and having a continued presence in the marketplace. &nbsp;It was more of a marketing gimmick to bridge during the wartime to when they could resume normal production.

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• PH

  @phil4718 · 2 years ago (edited)

  It was hard seeing the 6110 engine on the list because it was my introduction to Lionel trains. &nbsp; In my case it failed to operate after a few year&apos;s service and became a static display engine on my layout. &nbsp;Fortunately, I kept it and when I found a Greenberg collection of repair instructions decades later, I was able to disassemble, clean and reassemble it, and it runs well to this day. &nbsp;I think that&apos;s pretty impressive when you think about it.

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• BU

  @BuckeyeValleyRR · 2 years ago

  My Scout is the 1110 with a hole in its boiler, and headlight. The previous owner restored the motor which was supposedly not rebuildable. Mine has the Scout all metal tender, but with regular couplers, and runs perfectly. It’s one of my favorite small locomotives.

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• MA

  @Machia51878 · 2 years ago

  The automatic gateman was a complete success, but it’s configuration doesn’t make any sense. Turn the crossbuck to the left 90 degrees and it does.

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• TR

  @trainliker100 · 2 years ago

  The Lionel &quot;Electronic Set&quot; was an idea slightly ahead of its time and is considered by some as one of the many steps along the way to where Digital Command Control (DCC) is today. &nbsp;But it isn&apos;t quite the first step for some sort of multiple control on one track. &nbsp;That was also by Lionel with its &quot;Magic Electrol&quot; introduced in 1940. &nbsp;It was a primitive, but a novel way to - sort of - control two engines on one track. &nbsp;It allowed reversing either engine independently with track power staying on. &nbsp;Instead of the usual &quot;E unit&quot; reversing operation by cutting track power, the E unit was operated by a solenoid in one engine controlled by the DC voltage superimposed on the AC usually meant to control a whistle. &nbsp;And in the other engine with a solenoid controlled by the opposite DC voltage. &nbsp;This is probably the earliest &quot;independent&quot; control of model train engines.

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• LO

  @LordCarpenter · 2 years ago

  I can vouch for the 520 Box Cab being a turkey. &nbsp;My father&apos;s manager received the 520 Lionel set from one of their suppliers in the late 1950s to place in a Christmas display window. &nbsp;Upon opening the box and realizing there was no traditional steam engine, the manager requested that my father &quot;get rid of it.&quot; &nbsp; I still have it. &nbsp;😂

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• TR

  @trainliker100 · 2 years ago (edited)

  On the &quot;OO&quot; gauge it would not have been unusual for Lionel to have something unique and not follow the crowd. &nbsp;This is what they did with their pre-war track. &nbsp;&quot;No 2&quot; gauge of 2&quot; was common and Lionel came up with 2.125&quot; and had the nerve to call it &quot;Standard Gauge&quot; and trademark it. &nbsp;Of course, other items at the time were incompatible. &nbsp;Ives, Boucher, Dorfan, and American Flyer all ended up following Lionel&apos;s lead and using this gauge. &nbsp;Some argue that Lionel erred in reading Marklin track dimensions where Marklin measured from rail centers and not the inside edge. &nbsp;I don&apos;t believe that for a second. &nbsp;Lionel had very capable engineers and no doubt had samples of all of the products of their competitors such that they would not have made that sort of mistake. &nbsp;Lionel creating their own unique gauge certainly must have been quite deliberate. &nbsp;Also, at the time, motor size was a problem and OO made that little bit of extra room that helped a lot. &nbsp;When Lionel got around to HO finally, I believe they were selling only products made by others unlike the OO which they made themselves. &nbsp;In this sense, they were no longer leading but marketing a &quot;me too&quot; product.

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• WI

  @williamgottlieb8723 · 2 years ago

  I would have taken those Girls Train sets and resold them as Easter Train sets. Included would be a coupon for some free jellybeans to toss into the gondola and hopper cars. It just might have started an annual tradition of the family setting up their Easter train each year along with all the other decorations.

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• MR

  @MrStevesTrains · 2 years ago

  You missed Lionel’s Hot knuckle Reefer. That was a real Turkey. Cheap smoke 💨 unit always fails.

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• DE

  @dennishadley9151 · 2 years ago

  My first Lionel train had the 520 engine and I loved it.

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