Does anyone know if this is MTH, McCoy, Williams.
It is from very early in the repro attempts and has a pre-war like motor.
http://i648.photobucket.com/albums/uu208/farfeched/0001835EMystery001.jpg
Lionel made that engine according to Greenberg's price guide. It is from the pre war years of 1934-39, in good shape would bring some nice money! Standard gauge 2-4-2 steamer, don't list what tender came with it, but I would guess that the tender had box and pin couplers, not knuckle couplers.
Lee F.
It's most likely Lionel as stated above.
Lionel had BIG problems with cast parts made of zink alloy from the start of there use in the early 1930s to about 1938, after that most seem to be solid. Mostly effected were frames, tenders, and wheel castings that would expand and decay.
This resulted in replacement casting being produced after WW II to save valuable trains as Standard Gauge became collectible. The shapness of lettering and frame detailed, as on the one you picture, was offen not as good as the original but saved the rest of the locomotive from being scrapped.
Just a Guess.
Don U. TCA 73-5735
This locomotive was manufactured in the early 1980's.
Note gentlemen, the phillips head screws at firebox lamp.
Also see the numbers "TH 385" cast into chassis.
This could not be a pre-war locomotive.
Heres my guess. First until you pointed it our i never saw the Phillips head screws. and to me it looked to new by your pic to be prewar so i was thinking you may have a re-manufactured frame then got looking and behold take a look at what i found http://www.mthtrains.com/search/apachesolr_search/1835E
so its either a mth and someone removed the mth symbol and left the Lionel one on it as they have both if i remember right as mth got permission to remake Lionel prewar items in an agreement with the 2 right after the law suit was finalized. So my guess is thats what you have or someone gotten a frame from one and put the Lionel shell and all on it. more pics would help us see what all it is too like a pic of it completely together. and sides and all
also there were/are companies that made some re-manurfacture parts which parts I don't know exactly but your frame could be one of them also Madison hardware had some parts made by other companies also. The TH could be a mold lettering of one of those companies. some of your older better know parts folks may be able to tell you more than most of us could.
Life's hard, even harder if your stupid John Wayne
http://rtssite.shutterfly.com/
and just a note about Phillips head screws they were made way befor 1980 actually the first company to use Phillips head screws was GM for it Cadillacs back in 1937 prewar time period. And I have seen to many train items where the screws were changed out by either a repair shop or an individual
And original 1835E where made from 1934 to 1939 so if it was an original 1835E if it was made in the later years it just might of had a phillips head screw as not sure when lionel started using some phillips head screws as lionel was know to substitute in there earlier years with parts on hand to build something.
On a pre war 385 or 1835E The firebox lamp was swaged into the chassis. No need for screws at all.
This particular manufacturer installed a precisely made flat un-printed brass sheet between the pickup rollers. The armature has the quality and balance of an early Bandai or Marusan tin toy.
well it seems you have all the answers but as stated befor more pics so we can see what we are acually looking at would of been more help but it seems from what i have seen so far its more of a game with you than someone trying to get acual facts. I say this as you give a very small pic of one part of the whole engine and its hard to see what your seeing with just that and come back with little tib bits of info
MTH first cataloged the385/1835 ten years ago, 2001 with MTH markings. By agreement wth Lionel, new production is marked "Lionel".
MTH and Williams both made these type 385 and 1835E reproductions but weren't they DC "can" type motors?
I like the Madison Hardware idea but have never heard of their building repro standard gauge Lionel.
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