I recently heard that the new 2011 Lionel catalogue is available, and it can be viewed online @ Lionel.com. One of the new items, the appearance of which has been rumored for some time, is a Fastrack(TM) line of American Flyer compatible track. The first items of which appear in this new catalogue. They are a straight section, a 20" radius curved section, and a straight track power section. It appears that they will retail for about $5 to $8 a piece.
So I went out to the online catalogue and took a gander. It appears to be virtually identical to line of track that has been available from S-Helper Service for years. The rail/roadbed connections may or may not be compatible, the photos were not detailed enough to be able to tell. And of course Lionel doesn't mention what size their rail is (S-Helper is code 155), so again there is no way to tell if the two systems can be used together. Given the fact that S-Helper already has a line of turnouts, crossovers, and multiple curve radii available, I am underwhelmed.
I have figured out what is wrong with my brain! On the left side nothing works right, and on the right side there is nothing left!
I don't understand your point.
I, for one, will always try to support the S Helper folks in preference to Lionel. The folks at S Helper deliver wonderful customer service and have always gone the extra mile to help me when I needed it.
I hope that this is not an attempt by Lionel to "crush" the little guy, as we need all the product we can get in S scale, and, in the past, the manufacturer have gone out of their way to not duplicate each other.
Little Tommy
DennisB-1 I don't understand your point.
For one thing, I was puzzled by the limited offerings in a product that is, as far as I can tell, virtually identical to another manufacturers product line. Lionel only offers three very basic track pieces in their line, versus numerous and diverse items in the other line. Though we do have a vague promise of other items to come. Do they expect their brand name alone to be sufficient to trump the competition? The pieces that Lionel currently offered are about a buck cheaper per unit, if you go by MSRP. So mayvbe they are pinning their hopes that will make the difference. It just seems to me that this is a product that's too late to market, and too much like what is already out there.
I guess time will tell.
Unless S-Helper and Lionel secretly got together I would bet that they are not compatible with each other. Reason saying look at Lionel fastrack and MTH real track there not compatible only way to go from one to the other is get the transition pieces for each to O gauge track and connect that way.
Life's hard, even harder if your stupid John Wayne
http://rtssite.shutterfly.com/
I don't work for Lionel or S helper, but here's my take on it. Did S Helper introduce all their track products at once, or did they start with the basics like Lionel looks to be doing? My thought on Lionel introducing this track system is that they may be considering offering some AF starter sets in the future.
The S gauge Fastrack is the only thing in the new catalog that I recall thinking I'll be buying. I use Fastrack around the Christmas tree, and I think an oval of Flyer would be a neat addition to the "layout". I hope they come out with fractional pieces, and I'll guess that most users (though not likely me) would welcome wider radius curves. I would think that switches and crossings would come after those. I would really be interested in a crossing with one side being Flyer, and the other being O.
J White
My own take on this is that I'll buy Lionel's S track when switches for it appear. Until then, it's interesting but not terribly useful.
I have no idea what Lionel is up to with this stuff. If they so desire, this could be the seed for a new resurgence in Flyer and S in general. But right now, all you can do with this track is run trains in a circle.
At present my guess would be testing the market with curve and straight to see how it goes.
Has it been introduced into the market yet? I did see some on Trainz's eBay page.
It's been out for some time, there are a couple of other discussion threads related to this product which you might search for. Lionel has also begun production of compatible turnouts. I have purchased some of the Lionel straight sections, and discovered they can be used with S-Helper track with modifications. But generally speaking I'm sticking with S-Helper product just because of the variety of items their line offers.
When Lionel came up with the idea to make this, they must have been thinking that since they have a line of Fastrack in O gauge, they might as well make one for S gauge. I wouldn't put it past them to do this, but I think that the appearance similarity is merely a striking coincidence. Since Lionel's and S-Helper's track aren't directly compatible, I have a very hard time believing that they got together and Lionel got the rights. And I think the line is starting small because it is similar to what Lionel did in the past with it's 6464 boxcars. Not very colorful or vibrant, but sold well so Lionel expanded the line.
Besides, didn't S-Helper get bought out by MTH some time ago?
The Lehigh Valley Railroad, the Route of the Black Diamond Express, John Wilkes and Maple Leaf.
-Jake, modeling the Barclay, Towanda & Susquehanna.
Fasttrack 90 crossover issues.
Flyonel rolling stock does not pass through 90 crossover. Have to test and regauge wheelsets to function.
Lionel should provide a no cost tool to do this. Flyonel wheelsets ride up and over rail guides.
My 632,625,630 function. AC Gillbert get's it right.
Where did you get one? Online or at a train show? I've been looking ever since they announced they were producing one, as I need a 90 for my future layout.
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