Questions About A PW 623 and a Pre War 259E

[MickeyDemian]

Hello All:

  Recently aquired a PW 623 from a show and the body looks exceptionaly good for its age.  In looking at pictures on line I observed that there is a GM decal on some units on the side of the engine body, lower left corner.  Was this standard on all engines, because some units on ebay do not have this decal?  My engine has the 10 siderail attachment points instead of the 3 that later year models had.  Thus, mine might be a 1952 version, or another words an early model.  My question is if  the GM decal is standard on all PW 623's or not, because my unit has no such decal?  I'm trying to determine if mine is a repainted unit or not?

  Also, I'm looking at purchasing a Pre War 259E from a friend.  There is no e-unit on this engine, just a forward and reverse switch that one has access to from inside the back of the cab.  There is a vertical slot inside the back of the cab wall and there is a metal handle through this slot that one can manually change the direction of the engine.  On the top of the engine there also is a slot for a standard e- unit handle to exit from, but of course none present.  My question is if these engines all came with a functional e- unit and this particular engine is a rebuild without an e- unit, or were some produced without an e unit, just a forward reverse switch?   Again, I'm trying to determine if this is an original engine or a reworked one without original standard parts?

  Thanks for your expertise and sharing it.

                     Mickey

[phillyreading]

The pre war 259E should have the silver lever type switch mounted on the shell either behind the smoke stack or near the roof of the cab. I have not seen all the Lionel variations but the one you describe is one I would have to see in person to be sure it is an original or re-built by owner, but sounds more like a rebuilt by owner. The way you describe the 259E it sounds like an American Flyer reverse unit installed inside a Lionel engine, but again I am no Lionel expert on all the possibilities.

[teledoc]

HI Mickey,

To answer your question about the 623, you have the 1952-1954 issue having the 10 attachment points for the railing.  Above the railing should be A T & S F heat stamped in white, and according to "Standard Catalog of Lionel Trains by David Doyle" the GM decal was standard on all 623's. Considering the age (ie 1952), the decal may have just disintegrated over time.  Replacement decals are readily available if you want it to look original as issued.

Jerry

[MickeyDemian]

Thank you both for your informative response--I apperciate it.

 

                        Mickey