Lionel HO train set need info if you can help

[rtraincollector]

I have a lionel (HO) train set #9904 I can find no info on it no matter where I look. I have been told by collector he thinks it may be a promotional set of some type by either a dealer ship or lionel. But can't give me any more info. I will tell you what it has and the condition of all items are excellant other than original box which I would give it a 7 maybe 8 out of 10. The set contains NYC GP-9 # 0598, Rocket Fuel Tank Car #0815-60 , Turbo Missle car with 2 original turbo missles (I guess original), Exploding boxcar 0847, Mercury capsal car with 2 capsal's (again original I guess)# 0813-200, Caboose # 0841, 6 18" curve track 3 9" straight track one is for cars to go across and rerailer/uncoupler. transformer and one piece of paper work it apears it has not been run much but I did get the engine to run and I properly lubed it . I normally collect O/O27 lionel and don't go for HO but this one caught my eye and the price was right.


rtraincollector

[Big_Boy_4005]

This is funny, you are the second person in as many days asking about Lionel HO. I don't remember another request, here on the forum, in the last year. From the description you gave it sounds like a normal Lionel set from the early 60's. Lionel had a habit of shrinking many of their popular action cars from O down to HO.

There may be a Greenburg giude for Lionel HO, but I doubt it gets updated much, if it is still in print. In 25 years of serious train collecting, I don't think I've ever met anyone who collects Lionel HO, though I'm sure some people do.

The truth is that most people who are into HO dismiss Lionel's HO offerings as junk, and rightfully so. This is not to say that your trains are worthless, it is to say that you may have to look long and hard to find someone who knows about, and is interested in Lionel HO. I would venture to say, these guys are more rare than Marx collectors.

I'm not trying to be mean, but don't get your hopes up too high. The fact that you didn't pay much is a good thing.

[rtraincollector]

Thanks but what ireally want is info on when and how many sets were made as I have found out that the set is valuable (got some emails today from lionel collectoers HO scale) but no one can find out for sure if its a promotional set or not and when it was sold ( what years) I tried contacting lionel but have gotten no response and that was a week ago.

[Big_Boy_4005]

Since you collect O and 027, you probably already know that the company has changed hands 3 times since that set was produced. I suspect that trying to contact Lionel is a waste of time. They have enough on their plate as it is, and with all the ownership changes, it is highly unlikely that any archival information still exists. You might have better luck contacting the TCA. As for how many sets were made, specific numbers are generally not available for the more popular O gauge, and considerably less research has been done on the HO line.

I saw the posting over on the MR forum, and someone said it was in the 1963 catalog. That fact alone says that it was just a normal set.

Out of curiosity, what leads you to believe that this was a promotional set, and not just regular production?

[cbq9911a]

This is identical to a set sold by Sears in 1962. Page 436-437 of the Sears 1962 Christmas catalog. The train pages were reprinted as "The Toy Train Department - Electric Train Catalog Pages from the Legendary Sears Christmas Wishbooks of the 1950's and 1960's"; Windmill Press, 1996. ISBN 1-887790-00-4.

[Big_Boy_4005]

QUOTE: Originally posted by cbq9911a

This is identical to a set sold by Sears in 1962. Page 436-437 of the Sears 1962 Christmas catalog. The train pages were reprinted as "The Toy Train Department - Electric Train Catalog Pages from the Legendary Sears Christmas Wishbooks of the 1950's and 1960's"; Windmill Press, 1996. ISBN 1-887790-00-4.

That makes perfect sense. I don't have a full set of Lionel catalogs from that time period, but the ones I do have show all of the pieces seperately, just not as a set. This means that there is nothing particularly special about the trains, but if you have that set box, that might be worth something.

Lionel also made O and 027 sets for Sears, Wards, and Pennys, and once in a while they included something unusual, but mostly it was different combinations of regular production pieces.

When General Mills took over in 1970, that practice stopped for many years. Then they started making special uncataloged exclusives for for them. Mostly Pennys I think.

[rtraincollector]

From what I have been told Lionel didn't do any sets that they sold in there catalogs with the first number being a 9 it was normally (depending when in time ) either a 5 or a 14 as the first digit(s) now if the sears catalog has set # 9904 then thats it. Had one gentleman send me this info in the Lionel HO book - Greenburg's Guide to Lionel HO Vol 1 1957-66 by George Horan. copyright date is 1993 . I couldn't find anything in my 1993 book about your set number. I did find info on the individual cars thou.