Info needed on Postwar Lioenl Catologs

[mersenne6]

Being old enough to remember going down to the local hobby shop to get my copy of the 1957 catalog I can tell you I had never heard of an advanced catalog until I became an adult. All I ever saw was a small stack of the consumer catalogs on the shelf behind the cash register. So short answer - consumer catalog.

[3railguy]

Big brain fart here! Woa.

Advance catologs were what Lionel issued to dealers so they could place orders and give Lionel a good idea of what and how many items to produce. They were often black and white and had pictures of pre production prototypes. Depending on how large, dealers would get only one or maybe a handful of copies. They did get passed out but primarily to serious repeat customers.

Consumer catalogs are what Lionel printed once they decided what to make. This was where the money was spent on color and they were made in much larger quantities.

[Anonymous]

Nick,
I don't know what everybodies problem is, your question is clear enough to me.
Actually both catalogs were available in the hobby shops back in the 50's. The advance came out early and I'm pretty sure the quantities were limited. Sort of a teaser. Not sure if the pictures were B&W or not or if it showed the complete line of products. Later came the consumer catalog with color and showing the complete line.
If i were to pick one over the other I'd buy the consumer catalog. You'll probably pay more for the advanced copy only because of the limited amount of them still available.
Keep in mind that like alot of other things in this hobby you'll pay more the the really nice copies. Do you need "MINT"? or are you looking for pictures and information only?
Before you plunk down your hard earned greenbacks, head on over to ebay and under the Lionel section zero in on 1945-1969 and do some searching around on whats for sale, watch a few and also do a search on "completed" items to see what the market is doing.
Hope this helps.

*********Hey all you other guys- READ the message BEFORE you start typing your answer!!!

Rich NYCRR1

[Anonymous]

Thanks.

But, I have asked time and time againg about consumer and advanced. Not trains

Was it the consumer catolog that was avalible for kids to get or was it the advanced catolog that they were able to get?

Nick

[1688torpedo]

Hello Nick ! If you're looking for old Lionel Catalogs from the 50's. Charlie Siegel at Train City in Erie,Pa has a few around his place.Just go to his website.Get his Phone# and see what he has.Good Luck............Keith.

[3railguy]

Nick, that is a difficult question to answer. Local hobby stores sometimes buy old trains from people who bring them in to sell. Often times the small assortments that come in to the store will include instructions and catalogs. The old trains showing up these days are often from the 50's and 60's so these are the catalogs you would expect to see. Some dealers pick up deals at train shows to resell in their store. If old catalogs move, then it is likely he will stock them if he can find them. Catalogs of the 50's are favored by most I think so these are the years you are likely to see.

[wrmcclellan]

Nick,

You will need to ask around ( call or e-mail) some of your local stores to see who might carry some PW catalogs. Few hobby stores carry Lionel paper unless they also carry a lot of PW trains too.

If you do not care about original catalogs, there have been some nice reprints of catalogs. In 1990 to 1992, Greenburg Publishing offered books with all the Lionel catalogs reproduced. I saw on e-bay that Vol 6 - 1961-69 was going for about $85 (They originally sold at $110).

Vol I was 1902 - 1922
Vol II was 1923 - 1932
Vol III was 1933 - 1942
Vol IV was 1945 - 1954
Vol V was 1955 - 1960
Vol VI was 1961 - 1969

Regards,
Roy

[Anonymous]

Hey Ya'll

Yes I know that, but I am looking for the catologs, not articles on a certain year.

I have found consumer and advance catologs on the internet, but which could ou pick up at the local hoooby store?

Nick

[wrmcclellan]

Nick,

This is another place where all those CTTs you picked up can help. There have been several articles where a specific catalog year was highlighted. Take a look at those and it should help you decide which catalog years to select. Many say the years 1948 - 1955 are the best years of Lionel catalogs.

Regards,
Roy

[Anonymous]

Hey Ya'll

After planning our 4x8 (at weekend house, my dad got a promotion, so we bought a weekend house. He is now the Lutinenet, The 3rd highest seat in the Horry County Sherrifs department, well, the 3rd highest seat in all the county really).

We plan to build a Super "O" layout based on the L shaped layout on the 1957 catolog (We found the plan on the internet).

We have alos taken a fresh interest in postwar catologs from 1946-1969. We won't bother with the 1945 as only one set was catologed that year.

But anyway, after finding a website that has all the postwar catologs, we saw consumer and advane and the like. Which one could you pick up at your local hobby store during the postwar peiriod?

Nick