First Model Train Engine

[PRRT1MAN]

Mines was a Tyco Silver Streak!  Long gone now.  Would not go well with the PRR steam I have!  LOL

 

[hustle_muscle]

The first locomotive I ever got was a Bachmann F9 from their Challenger train set. I still have it with all of the cars it came with, and I think that they have all seen better days...

[Medina1128]

I don't remember the locomotive, but I remember the train set. My father was stationed in Phalsbourg, France while in the Air Force. For Christmas one year, he got a Marklin train set, that he mounted on a sheet of plywood. But, that trainset lit a spark that's been in me for over 50 years. Now, that I have a basement, er, train room, I have my own empire!

[Vernon/IN]

My first locomotive was a Tyco 0-4-0 Shifter and Tender, lettered for the AT&SF.  It was part of a set that a LHS helped my parents put together as a Christmas gift in 1972.  If I remember correctly, there were seven cars (including a Waycar),

I no longer have anything from that set, it was traded off a few years later for some N scale equipment.  I wish I had kept my first loco.  I do not have any photos.

At present, I'm in HO narrow gauge.

[Trynn_Allen2]

A Marklin SNCF 4-6-2.  Still runs, still pulls the doors off the house and if I trusted the kids would have it set up.  Debating for the tree when the littlest turns 4.

[Texas Zepher]

The first one I played with was a Marx F3  Rock Island Paint scheme vintage 1959 or so.   The first locomotive that was actually mine I got for Christmas 1967  it was an AHM 4-4-0 V&T Reno.  I got an MRC Ampack too.  Still have them both.

[Pantherphil]

My Dad bought this one in a set for me and my brother in 1955 which we always set up for Christmas on a plywood sheet.  We called it the MMP&R Railroad.  I ran this engine in the YMCA Indian Guides Great Locomotive Race in 1958 and it was the overall winner.  Great memories.

 

[Catt]

First decent and longest owned HO loco is this Athearn blue box SD-9.As you can see it is still a project after some 33 years.I bought her in January of 1980.My first HO loco was a TYCO C-420.It actually lasted for about 3 years,I bought that set in 1978 only thing left from it is the track.

 

 

[CPRail43]

A Bachmann CN F9 #9162. It's still in good condition, but everything inside(motor, trucks, wheels, etc) will need to get replaced. Other than the problems, its a great engine

[last mountain & eastern hogger]

Hi Gang,  

My first RR. train was a Marx wind up with three cars, a gondola, a tank car and caboose on a figure eight track.  Slid in & out of the area under my bed for several years.

Then my Father and I ventured into Lionel with I believe the same locomotive the Elmer mentioned. That took me from 1946 to 1956, and from a sheet of 4x8 to 2/3rds of our basement.  In total we had six locos. Two steamers, one was a Hudson and four diesels, an A-B Santa Fe, an SW -? Seaboard,A-B Erie built Alcos that were NYC and for the life of me I can't remember the forth. Will have  to go to the old catalog when I get home. Wish I still had it all, but it was sold to finance my first car, a 1941 Chev. coach (2dr). Then a hiatus for girls and cars.

I started scratch building HO cars in 1964 and a few years later my first purchase on my own was a set of GP-18s from IHC. I bought them at  Moon's in Rochester, Minn. Of course they were in the silver and orange livery of the WP. one powered and the other a dummy.  The powered one still runs but they are mainly Shelf Queens..... and the story continues.................Do love Atlas and Kato lokies now.

Johnboy out....................................and reminiscing..

[vsmith]

Not auspicious starts

Late 1960's: battery O gauge made in Czech POS train than ran like carp

Early 1970's: got a Tyco set, GP20 engine, ran OK then died 

Couple years later things got better, got a Marx Big Rail set, ran the wheels off that, wish I still had it.

Also got a Hot Wheels Hotline trainset, that was an awesome set and very fun to mess with.

[crhostler61]

I'd like to begin by saying that after six weeks of observing this forum I'm finally contributing.

Two model locomotives come to mind or at least the first I remember. A rubber band drive Athearn F7 and a Tyco/Mantua 2-8-2, both very early 60's.

But honestly the locomotive that launched me headfirst into model railroading was a real locomotive. In 1971 at age 9, I got to ride on a freight train on Reading RS3 #448 along the Allentown line.

[NP2626]

gandydancer19

My first was a Lionel 0-27 train set that had a 2-6-2 steam loco.  I got the train set for Christmas 1946.  I seem to remember the loco number was 1666.  I sold the engine about 10 years ago.

I read the O.P.'s original question as "First MODEL train engine".  If you where born in the 1950-60s, there is some likelihood that you received a Marx, Lionel; or, American Flyer train set at some point, as a kid.  I considered these to be "Toy Trains" and not models.  If were going to include "Toy Trains", then I received an American Flyer "Pennsy" K-4 Pacific back in the mid 1950s for Christmas.  

[dm9538]

My first HO unit was a Tyco 4 axle ALCO painted in Bi-centennial colors. Over the years it became a practice canvas for various paint schemes for my road. It's long gone. My first "real" HO loco was an Atlas GP38 in Illinois Central. I still have it and it still runs. When I was in high school it took a ride to the floor off my dad's layout damaging the shell. A couple of years later I found a replacement shell and had it repainted into ICG's orange and gray scheme that it still wears to this day.

[angelob6660]

The first model train set that I remember was 4 or 5 years old. It was battery operated G Scale locomotive built by New Bright Ind. Co. ltd. and I had remote control. Sorry to say it lasted a couple weeks my parents said I broke it, but I don't remember doing it because I loved it to much.

My first electric train set would the HO Scale Main Line that came with a GP38-2 AT&SF yellow bonnet diesel with a Chicago, Northwestern stock car, and  a santa fe Grand Canyon reefer with a caboose. Sadly that didn't last long either

[peahrens]

Very much testing the memory here.  In about 1960, my first engines were (I think) a B&O F7, maybe a Tyco??  Another of the first two was probably a Varney SW7.

The 2nd time around, around 1980, I probably had those same engines around (not sure) but definitely still had a Great Northern 4-8-4 (by PFM, I think) and a United 2-8-0 from additions in high school.

This time around (last year), and going DCC, my first engine was an Athearn Genesis GP-9.

Sorry, but no photos of the older engines.  I have no idea what happened to the first engines.  The PFM 4-8-4 and United 2-8-0 I was dumb enough to sell for a few bucks in 2005 garage sale because the motors didn't work, the foam in the boxes had stuck to them, etc.  I'm once again kicking myself, as I could at least have in this latest phase cleaned them up and put them on the shelf as nice display items.

[travon]

shayfan84325

My first was this Tyco F unit.  I still have it and it still runs.  It turns 50 this Christmas.  The rest of the train came in the same set.

Yes! Mine was the same only as a Union Pacific. Also have this one too as a second set that I bought, couldn't find a Southern Pacific at that time.

[E-L man tom]

gandydancer19

My first was a Lionel 0-27 train set that had a 2-6-2 steam loco.  I got the train set for Christmas 1946.  I seem to remember the loco number was 1666.  I sold the engine about 10 years ago.

I believe my first loco was the same as yours, Elmer! Mine got stolen (along with the set, the track and other acquisitions) by the movers in a house move in 1992.  I remember the original set had a gondola, a tank car and a hopper car, as well as a caboose. I was always disappointed that there was no boxcar in the set. a few Charismas' later my parents got me three boxcars to go with the rest of it.

My first HO locomotive? Well that's a good question. It actually was an Athearn GP35 (Chessie, B & O) that was given to my boys as a Christmas gift by my brother. But, as my boys never had an interest in trains, I inherited it. That was back in about 1993. The first locomotive I actually bought for myself may have been an Atlas Alco S2, but I'm not sure, as I acquired a number of locomotives within a short time period back in the mid-90's. have kept all of these locomotives, as I run DC. They all run well.

[NP2626]

Surprisingly, one of my first HO locomotives was the same as the O.P., however, mine was manufactured by Tyco and a part of a train set manufactured by the same.  It was a Christmas present that also came with a Varney Dockside "Little Joe" 0-4-0.  This was the set that I got that started my interest in Model Railroading and was in 1960.  Sorry, no photos exist.  These models were given to my nephew, probably late in the 1960s.  He did give me the Varney "Little Joe" locomotive back, which still runs and for it's size, pulls the best of any locomotives I have. 

I could take a photo of this loco, post it here; but, have no interest in doing so.

[liba]

Hornby. h.o 060. Beutiful runner. 

["JaBear"]

zstripe

I'm curious!!!! Did you have a,wind up TV??LOL..

Come on Frank, surely you've heard of "steam driven".

Cheers, the Bear. 

[zstripe]

cjcrescent

Yeah, I helped my Dad invent electricity at that time, as it was too hard to watch TV by candlelight!

CAREY,

I'm curious!!!! Did you have a,wind up TV??LOL..

Cheers,

Frank

[cjcrescent]

kbkchooch

So Carey, If I am reading this correctly, electric trains were developed somewhere between your 4th and 5th birthdays??   

Yeah, I helped my Dad invent electricity at that time, as it was too hard to watch TV by candlelight!

Karl, I like those Lionel locos. IIRC, the bodies came from Rivarossi, and the mechanisms were from Athearn.

Again IIRC, Lionel from that time was made by both Athearn and the AHM conglomerate. At the time, it was the only way to get Athearn cars RTR, even though they were stamped "Lionel". The diesels were "hybrids", but the offered steamers were strictly Athearn. There were only 2 offered, the 0-4-2 "Little Monster", and a Pacific, that looked a lot like a B&M pacific.

[kbkchooch]

cjcrescent

Well since no one "set the rules" that it had to be electrically powered, my first engine was a Marx 0-27 windup 0-4-0, with 4 cars that were also 4 wheeled. I got it on my 4th birthday. It came with enough track to make a figure 8. IIRC, the train would make 3 trips or so before it ran down. I got my first electrical loco, again a Marx 0-4-0, with 2 cars and a circle of track, for Christmas, at age 5.

So Carey, If I am reading this correctly, electric trains were developed somewhere between your 4th and 5th birthdays??   

Me? Well I still have my 1st loco, Lionel HO 0566 Texas Special loco. I've grown tired of the rubber band drive, so I replaced it with a Walthers FA chassis, then added another matching engine and chassis!

 

Since then I've also added a powered "B" unit too!

[CSX_road_slug]

All of my childhood trains disappeared in the storm of my parents' divorce, never saved any photos of them.

However, I do have a pic of a Front Range GP9 that I bought on the first Saturday of February 1988, the day I returned to this great Hobby after a 15-year 'sabbatical'.  This was my very first loco in my 2nd mrr life.  

It's supposed to look beat-up, the prototype slide was shot in July 1972 and it was very weather-faded with uneven paint on the sill stripe.  I tried to replicate the 'look', but my digi-cam did too much light compensating.

[cjcrescent]

Well since no one "set the rules" that it had to be electrically powered, my first engine was a Marx 0-27 windup 0-4-0, with 4 cars that were also 4 wheeled. I got it on my 4th birthday. It came with enough track to make a figure 8. IIRC, the train would make 3 trips or so before it ran down. I got my first electrical loco, again a Marx 0-4-0, with 2 cars and a circle of track, for Christmas, at age 5.

Been playing wit' dat trains since! AF at age 6-8, and then HO at age 8. First car I ever built, I still have.

[Santa Fe all the way!]

My first locomotive was a UP 4-8-4 that came with Bachmanns Overland set. Still have it, but its in sad shape. After it quit working, I used it for painting practice. First"real" non train set loco was an Athearn BB BN U28.Still have it, looks good, runs ok

[twhite]

My first HO scale locomotive was an Athearn rubber-band drive GP-7 in SP Black Widow colors, long gone, but not forgotten (had a FEARSOME top speed, lol!).  

But my first really serioius HO scale loco, and the one that really got me into the hobby was an Akane Yellowstone 2-8-8-4 that I got as a birthday present in 1964.  That did it.  I was into model railroading in a Big Way.  Over the years, I've acquired a couple of sisters for the original gal, and they're kinda/sorta the backbone of my large articulated fleet.  Here they are.  The original 1964 birthday present is the lady in the middle with the engineer just about to climb aboard.

Tom

[mobilman44]

Hi!

Good question, one we can all relate to - and not get into spirited discussions over either!

My first loco was the Marx "streamlined steamer" of the early 50s.   That was followed by two Lionel locos - an 0-4-0 and a Burlington GP 7/9.

My initiation into HO came in the late '50s, with a couple of rubber band Athearn F units - CB&Q and ATSF (of course).  

Yikes, this means I'll have been playing with trains for 60 years !!!