Finally got my hands on my Christmas present Lionel set!

[thor]

I've been on vacation in VA so when I learned that my Christmas present would be waiting for me back in NY I couldn't wait to get back home. I spent the time on the InterNet trying to figure out which Disney 'collectible' it might be and though I secretly hoped it wasn't going to have overscale Mickey Mice popping up out of boxcars I was quite prepared to like it if it was!

So what I ended up with was a W.E.Disney set Limited Edtion (of 1000) which consists of a 4-4-2 steam engine and three coaches. Two dark green, one red with a rounded end (sorry, I'm English so I dont know what their proper titles are)

If I was a newbie I'd have been a bit ticked off because the engine wouldn't run and when it did, it promptly kept derailing on curves. The first problem was caused by a dry soldered joint on the output wires from the circuit board in the controller box (which isn't much to write home about) and the second by a bent plate on the engines lead bogie which caused the front axle to be up in the air a tad so the wheel couldnt follow the track properly.

When all that was fixed, I discovered by the noise that the valve gear motion was binding due to the conrods being slightly bent at the pivots and then I figured out that the two small unmarked switches were responsible for the lack of smoke and whistle! Being an old HO pro all this was easy to rectify and actually quite enjoyable but if I was some poor innocent I think I'd have been pretty disappointed. My wife was all for sending it back to Lionel with a stiff letter because she is new to trains so my assumptions about the typical consumer reaction seem to be valid.

However, once everything was sorted the locomotive ran very well and our little girl was wide eyed and very impressed, especially with the whistle! I gave the loco a half hour in each direction at its slowest setting after which it picked up noticeably, thereby justifying my firm belief in the virtues of breaking in properly
I wish I had a length of track to do a speed test on as this thing is well and truly overscale as far as top speed goes!. Surprising really considering how small the can motor is.

Last but not least, I was very very pleased with the FastTrax, it looks great and I for one LOVE the sound it makes! Sounds even more realistic thanks to the clattering. Cant wait to get some turnouts and a few more straights an uncoupler or two, a switcher and some trucks.

[palallin]

The problem is that nobody actually expects those sets to be run. Most will languish sealed in their boxes into the foreseeable future. That being the case, assembly quality and operability are low on the priority list, unfortunately.

[pbjwilson]

Thor,
Glad you were able to make the adjustments to get your train running. Your English heritage is evident in your writing and much enjoyed. Bogie sounds much better than truck, which in England would be lorrie. Look forward to your next post and enjoy your train.

[thor]

QUOTE: Originally posted by pbjwilson

Thor,
Glad you were able to make the adjustments to get your train running. Your English heritage is evident in your writing and much enjoyed. Bogie sounds much better than truck, which in England would be lorrie. Look forward to your next post and enjoy your train.

Thanks Paul. Since English is technically a 'pidgin' language there is no right or wrong about the different terms we use. After all since a track switch points a train to a turnout off the line its on, it doesnt really matter which you use!

[thor]

QUOTE: Originally posted by palallin

The problem is that nobody actually expects those sets to be run. Most will languish sealed in their boxes into the foreseeable future. That being the case, assembly quality and operability are low on the priority list, unfortunately.

I know, talk about spoiling the ship for a ha'porth of tar! That locomotive is a nice mechanism with a lot of potential, the carriages are also beauties. Well I'll keep my eye open for some more but I'd never have paid what my kids did for this set which I suppose I'd better try and keep original. I'll have to find another 4-4-2 to Dremel spoke slots in the drivers, grind off the castings and refit with external pipes and handrails and the various other improvements I'm itching to make. That plastic control box has gotta go though I guess I can reverse engineer the basic circuitry and I want a gruntier transformer than the power brick it came with.