Anyone Building a Christmas Train?

[jefelectric]

Now that Halloween is almost history, is anyone working on a Christmas Train?  The December issue of CTT has a nice article on making a Christmas Train.  The closest I have come to a Christmas Train is to get all my Lionel Christmas box cars off the shelf and run them over the holidays.  This year I might go a little further and decorate a loco and caboose.  Lets hear your ideas.

[dwiemer]

I will be starting off with the Polar Express, but will plan on a few runs of the new Lackawanna set.  I also have a Coney Island Trolley that will have it's own loop.  We went to Michael's and picked up a few hundred dollars worth of buildings to add to the collection.  My wife wants to have a good size layout with the Lemax village around it and also to have a considerable amount of these buildings on the main layout upstairs.  One idea that I used last year is to make a platform out of 2x4 with a 3/4 inch plywood top to put the tree on.  Ours is 2 feet square, and this will raise the base of the tree up enough to keep the lower limbs high enough to allow the trains to run under the tree.  I have the back of this elevated box open so that the power strips that the tree and village lights plug into can be hidden underneath.

Dennis

[Anonymous]

I'm not building one, but I'm sure selling a lot of them.  I used to collect Christmas trains, but kind of gave up on that when just about every manufacturer jumped aboard the Christmas train bandwagon.  Since I'm trying to gain some space in my train storage room (an all-too-crowded spare bedroom), I decided to dispose of many of my Christmas trains and just keep a few that can at least see some actual use each holiday season.

I haven't actually started on this year's Christmas layout yet, aside from having the layout foundation up and the track laid.  The next step--and the part I like best--is figuring out what I want to do with it in terms of accessories and scenery.

[fifedog]

John, from time to time I'll throw together a Christmas train. If you need inspiration, Pentrex many moons ago put out a Christmas trains video, with a segment on Burlington Northern's Christmas freight...it was spectacular!  Try to grab a K-Line #K691-7402; it is a crowd pleaser...

[Jumijo]

We have the Polar Express, which is now up to a six car consist. But I really like Lionel's 4-4-0 Christmas locomotive. I could fill a few gondolas with presents and Christmas trees, some red and green M&Ms, candy canes on a log dump car, etc. Tempting . . .

Jim

[RR Redneck]

I am goin to pull out ALL of my christmas trains. I have virtually every christmas item trainwise by Lionel, and set up some FasTrack around the tree.

[dbaker48]

Yep,
Now that our room is coming together, the first priority is a Christmas train on a diorama that will be viewable from the dinning room table.  (Of course, with the Christmas Dinner).  As far as the train goes, it will start out as a Polar Express, and then depending upon the scenery in the diorama an appropriately decorated freight set.  Will also have a LGB christmas train around the tree.

[jonadel]

John--

My wife is a Christmas decorations fanatic, it's wonderful! We will run a long Christmas train on the layout downstairs and last night we talked about reconfiguring the living room furniture so we can make room for another train around the tree. This will be our first Christmas with our new Grand Daughter so it's going to be extra special, she will be right on the verge of crawling so it could be interesting :) Then there's a small Christmas trolley running around the pencil tree in the kitchen/dining area.

Jon

[Deputy]

Yep. A Christmas train is exactly what got me back into O-Gauge this year. Will be a 4x8 plywood sheet with a big oval on it and the tree on one end of the oval. Will have LifeLike grass sheet over the wood. Train will be a Lionel New York Central Hot Box Reefer Train Set with the 6-26858  Christmas Music Boxcar. After Christmas I will move the board out to the rec room and put together a big layout. 
I just hope the dang cats don't destroy anything!

Dep

[Birds]

For Christmas trains we usually go with G scale around the tree.  We have a blue LGB street car/trolley.  We also have an Aristocraft Christmas train (LGB didn't make one that year).

Another member of the family has a Lionel G scale steamer (regular steam engine - not Christmas themed) that is used at Christmas.  It is a great running loco.

[thatboy37]

i'm going to for the first time ever set up a train around the tree, also this will be my 1st christmas in my new house. so i guess this will be the start of a new tradition for me, my wife, and my unborn daughter. what i will be running is the polar express with fastrack

[c50truck]

I have a simple loop Christmas layout planned. It will include my Dad’s Marx CP 3000 refurbished prewar engine with the New Marx Christmas cars trailing behind. Dad loved the Christmas season. It’s only fitting his engine pulls the cars while his kids and grandkids gather for eggnog and fun.

Rod LaFrance

[jefelectric]

We have the Polar Express, which is now up to a six car consist. But I really like Lionel's 4-4-0 Christmas locomotive. I could fill a few gondolas with presents and Christmas trees, some red and green M&Ms, candy canes on a log dump car, etc. Tempting . . .

Jim

Jim, That is something like I had in mind. I have an MTH 4-4-0 (not Christmas themed) that I think I will decorate with removable decorations, have a couple of colorful hoppers and gons to put some decorations in, add a couple of Christmas box cars, and then decorate a caboose. This will run on my normal layout as don’t have the space for a layout around the tree. We do a mantle setup with houses and lights every year & this year I am adding one of the 0n30 trolley cars to that.

And guys, don't forget to post pictures of these trains and layouts.

[Jumijo]

John,
Don't YOU forget to post pictures! Your train sounds like a winter winner to me.

Jim

[jefelectric]

John,
Don't YOU forget to post pictures! Your train sounds like a winter winner to me.

Jim

Jim, I'll try, but my photo efforts have been anythng but great.  Put up track lighting but that hasn't been the answer.  Going to get a couple of clip on reflectors and see if that works.  It is probably just the photographer.

[dougdagrump]

Mine will more than likely be much the same as last year but I did like that layout in the Dec. CTT, the one that mimics the Polar Express mountain scene. Although 6&1/2'  square is a good sized footprint. 

[Dr. John]

Yes, I am planning one, just not sure where it will go yet.

[laz 57]

JOHN,

   I have a simple oval with a WILLIAMS GP38 or GP 9  (what ever the wife likes that year) pulling all her MACYs car that she likes.  And also she has claimed the coca cola bears that K line cane out with years ago on the inside track.

  I have NO SAY in the Christmas tree decorations only in getting the tree.

laz57

[anjdevil2]

I'll be trying my first "O" guage set up.  I'll be using a 4X8 plywood with

with white foam isulation on top (for sound and looks like SNOW!!)

Initially, I'll try an oval with my wife's buildings, one of my Dept 56 Fire

Houses and my Lionel Fire Rescue set(circa 2002).   After all, Santa comes by

Fire Truck dosen't he?

 I'm considering a raised base for the creche (front & center of the tree) and

the train will travel under it (like a tunnel).

[mitchelr]

JOHN,

   I have a simple oval with a WILLIAMS GP38 or GP 9  (what ever the wife likes that year) pulling all her MACYs car that she likes.  And also she has claimed the coca cola bears that K line cane out with years ago on the inside track.

  I have NO SAY in the Christmas tree decorations only in getting the tree.

laz57

LAZ - I bought a Williams GP 9 at York but the Grinch Who Owns Christmas won't let me even test run it.  How do you like yours?  Did you just pick it up? 

Mitch

[3railguy]

My XMAS train is a 2245 Texas Special F3 and AMT streamline coaches. The white striped red F3 with white star on the nose spells XMAS all over it. The mirror like coach roofs reflect the tree lights and decorations. That along with being lit up make quite a sight as the train flashes around the tree.

[RR Redneck]

I have staked my claim to the real estate round the tree till the presents come.

[tmcc man]

Yes, I am. The addition that was added onto the house a few years ago houses a large Christmas layout. On the outside, my Large Scale will be running, while the O gauge will be running on the inside. I am going to try to decorate the trains in a Christmas theme.

[halifaxcn]

Yep, I am planning one. The Lemax village will be up on the kitchen/family room shelf with a Xmas trolley going back & forth.

Under the tree in the family room will be my original 1962 Texas Special Alco F, Airex Box car, Blue Gondola and the ever present red lionel caboose.

Santa will be dropping off a Polar Express set with an add on Hot Chocolate coach for my 5 y.o son.

Regards

 

 

 

 

 

 

[RR Redneck]

Change in plans, I am setting up a temporary operating layout on the air hockey table I have a loop of fastrack, a loop of 0-27 tubular track and a loop of N scale life like power lock track set up.

[cmrj]

I take up an 8x8  area around the tree every year. I have a Lionel Ornament Express around the outside edge, and an HO Cresent Limited in the middle. Thinking about takeing out the HO and adding O to the middle and running my son's Polar Express. My Wife and I have collected a lot of LeMax & Dept. 56 buildings and accessories, along with thing's our parent's had under the tree when we were kid's.
       Mike

[jefelectric]

A lot of interesting ideas here guys.  Never expected this thread to get 25 replies.