Bob's making some space giveaway!

OMG OMG OMG an original box! No inserts included (if there were any). I tend to throw stuff like the warranty card for a boxcar in recycling.

EXCESS TO REQUIREMENTS: First in a series

 A few weeks back, I was trying to find out whether or not I’d ever purchased a particular freight car I had seen on eBay. I had (which was fine), but I also had to take apart the basement to learn that fact. In my mind I had the New York Central rolling stock with the New York Central, Pennsy with the Pennsy, Railway Express with Railway Express, beer cars with beer cars, and the rest roughly grouped East or West of the Mississippi. 

 Wrong. 

 It was all shelved in roughly the order it might have been if it came off of a UPS truck making a delivery at Sommerfeld’s Trains … if the truck had exploded, mind you.

 A side benefit was that I discovered a lot of nice cars that really didn’t fit into my fleet any longer, and more than a few (like the Lionel balloon target car) that I asked myself “why on earth did I buy that in the first place?” Hey, this is proof that I can get caught up in the spirit of things. 

 So first up to leave the fleet is a Lionel no. 9737 Central Vermont boxcar. I bought this in the early 90s when I was getting back into the hobby. I had no memory of ever seeing a CV freight car in O gauge, and I bought it for the uncommon road name. 

Here is the car data.

I have a soft spot for the Canadian National logo and that of its subsidiaries. In particular, I like the curvy Canadian National CN, the Grand Trunk Western GT, and Central Vermont’s CV. Different railroads, but identifiable logos. There was a lot of great coverage of the GT/CV in Trains magazine back in the 70s, and I thought that a line of these rolling past a dairy farm would look pretty sharp. All New Englandy and all that.

 A few years later I learned (via the defunct Greenberg’s Roadname Guide to O Gauge Trains), that up to 1997 there had been just one CV locomotive and three freight cars made in O. This boxcar (1974-76), a reefer (1978), and a bulkhead flatcar (1994), all made by Lionel.

Door open ...

 Since I bought this in the pre-internet retail era, I can’t recall exactly where I picked this up, but I’d guess either Eastside Trains in Kirkland Washington (Hi Steve!) or perhaps the long-gone Trackside Trains in Puyallup, Washington.

 I did run the car, but the wheels look pristine.  It had been back in the box for probably 15 years until now. According to Greenberg’s Lionel Pocket Price Guide 1900-2018 the value range would be $27-34. Well, since I don’t need it anymore, and I’m not worried about recovering “my investment,” I’m going to share it with CTT’s readers.

I still think this is a very attractive livery. Simple and matching the Canadian National and Grand Trunk wiggly worm logos.

Up close, a slight distortion due to the angle of the shot.

Maybe I just parked it in my yard. ... the wheels don't show much wear at all.

 The upcoming equipment I withdraw from service is from my personal collection, is probably dusty, may have considerable wheel wear, and in a few cases, may have been taken out of the box once, looked at, and put back in the box. If a piece is missing, or there is a scratch in the paint, that’s the way it is.

 If you’d like to take a chance at winning this car, go to the CTT Facebook page and enter the “Bob’s Making Some Space” giveaway. If you aren’t on Facebook, sorry, I can’t help you there. Check if your kids or grandkids are!

Remember …

To enter, “Like” and comment on the Bob’s Making Some Space Giveaway post on Classic Toy Trains magazine's Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/ClassicToyTrains/ 

This Sweepstakes is in no way sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Facebook.

************* An the winner is Barbara Pacific of Claremont, NH. ***************