Lionel Blue Streak Freight

[Anonymous]

Is anybody here familar with an O27 Lionel train set from the early-mid 70s modeled after the New Jersey Line? It came with a blue steam locomotive and was called Blue Streak Freight. This was a Christmas gift from my dad when I was a kid. I have lots of fond memories of that train and a simple plyboard layout in my bedroom, nothing fancy but when you're only about 6 years old you have plenty of imagination to fill in the holes. We took the set down this Christmas and put it around the tree. [:)] Any info about this Lionel set or the actual train itself is appreciated.

[brianel027]

Blue Streak, your set was cataloged by Lionel in 1973-74. It was made during the period when Lionel was owned by a division of General Mills, commonly known as the Lionel MPC period. Lionel MPC gets a lot of slack from collectors for some of the cheaping that was done during the period. But MPC also did good things too. That was the last time when Lionel trains could commonly be found at department stores - not just sets - but cars, accessories and track. I can remember buying much Lionel at the time at K-Mart. The fast-angle wheels on your cars were developed by MPC and still used today, although those plastic snap-rivets used to attach the wheel sets (trucks) to the cars leave a lot to be desired and could easily be replaced with some kind of machine screw with a lock nut for much better operation. You should have 5 train cars and a caboose. The cars cataloged are: a green Burlington gondola, a blue Republic steel gondola, a yellow UP flat car, a red CN hopper and a grey EL box car... all pretty much run of the mill cars from that period.
Your engine came with a headlight and the electronic "Sound of Steam" which worked from a wire leading from the engine to the tender where there is a circuit board and a speaker. The "chugging" sound is basically electic white noice coming from motor. Marx Train actually came up with this idea around 1969. The paint job on your engine doesn't hold up well to the test of time: I've seen several with major paint chips in the dark blue. But with a little maintenance and periodic cleaning/lubrication the MPC locos run just fine. I have several from that period and they run fine, including one with the "Sound of Steam." You want to be careful with the circuit board... remove the tender shell and check the foam insulation between the metal frame and the board... you'll probably want to replace it. Just use another piece of thin foam or even a piece of cardboard. The foam included disintegrates over time. If the board makes a electrical connection with the frame, you may burn it out and replacements are not available to my knowledge. The "Sound of Steam" is certainly not like the current Lionel "Railsounds" but is still pretty cool considering the time. Your engine should also have a working smoke unit. Don't put anything in there but toy train smoke fluid. You can use the Lionel fluid, but others also work. I've used the Bachmann Smoke Fluid with good results and it's less expensive.
Your set is no collectible by anymeans. But if it's clean, cared for, with original boxes and operating, it's around worth $100 as a ballpark price. Maybe a little more to the right person. I've seen them with the box for $75, but the locos had many paint chips.
Sounds like you are going to keep the set, which I say good for you. You might want to consider the brand new Lionel FasTrack if you are just going to run the set under the tree every year. The FasTrack will work well on a carpet and comes apart/together much easier than the 027 track you got with the set. If you were going to build a layout, that's another issue. You could certainly stick with the 027 track - it's the most affordable track out there, generally about $1.00 per section, give or take. Manual Switches are around $12 give or take.
brianel

[Anonymous]

Hey, thanks for all the background on the set. Yeah, I really hadn't given much thought to selling it especially with my sentimental attachment and all. The paint on the locomotive is in surprisingly good shape with a few minor chips in the dark blue and all the original cars are there. The sound of steam effect as you've said is essentially nothing but static. Over time I added a lighted freight station, a couple of boxcars with sliding doors and a coal tower. These are all still in pretty fair condition and made a nice little scene around the tree this Christmas. Again, thanks for the reply.

[SSW9389]

Totally different train than the one I am familiar with. Great name though.

[Anonymous]

That's a lot of good information you gave, brianel! I'm not really into modern era stuff, but I've always really liked this engine because of the colour. I'm considering even getting one if find one at a good price.