1956 Revell cars ???

[tatans]

Just got back from LHS with a couple of new?? gondolas in the original box from Revell, there was a pile in an old carton for $3,00 each, I'm going to re-vamp the gons for logging, question: these cars are from 1956, on the box are other cars and locos advertised, how serious was this company in the H.O. field? all metal wheel sets, metal bottom, and pretty good detailing. Just how good (or bad ) were these cars and engines? How extensive was the line, or were there very few made. This gon is perfect for what I want it for, should I get some more???? On the box it says "LCG" (low center of gravity) WOW!

[dknelson]

I think you will find that the Revell tooling was carried over by Con-Cor and some of the cars are still made, although i cannot swear as to the low center of gravity. I think their gon in particular is the same car. Detailing is OK, about on par with Athearn/MDC. I remember Revell having an interesting caboose that I am not sure Con-Cor has released. Revell had some very interesting buildings and Con-Cor (and IHC or AHM and others) have reissued those as well. Note that Con-Cor has a retirement sale advertised in the latest MR and some buildings are offered very cheaply.
Dave Nelson

[mcouvillion]

tatans,

I collect Revell since I had that as a kid and really liked them. There are a limited number of cars and engines and a limited number of roadnames, such that if you wanted to, you could probably find a significant amount of the manufactured products at train shows over the next few years. I have a couple of Hew Haven boxcars in the original boxes, but all the other stuff is in storage cases. I have converted about half to KayDee couplers (I know the purist collectors will cringe) but I want to run them on my railroad and despise horn-hook couplers. I have changed out the wheelsets on several trucks, after cutting off the Talgo. The sprung trucks are really neat, but keeping track of the small springs is sometimes a chore.

My favorite is the 0-6-0 tank engine shown on the side of the boxes. I acquired one a few years ago. It draws several amps when running, has a yellow headlight, smoke generator, and internal "sound" system of a small box filled with tiny bbs that is activated by a cam on the center driver. It sounds great, although the chuffs are half as often as they should be, and it gets hot as a pistol after running for a while. You just about can't pick it up, it gets so hot - just like a real steam engine! I put KayDees on it and love running it on DC, but I doubt I could ever fit a decoder in it, if I could find one that could handle the current draw!

At shows, look for rolling stock that has all of the stirrups, all doors or interior items (loads or whatever), and the paint is in good shape. Pass on damaged stuff. You may find a dealer who has a listing of everything Revell made - I did, and it has helped me realize I have most of what Revell made. Some items can be a bit pricey, but most should be in the $8.00 - $15.00 range. Engines in good shape are naturally higher.

I think they are great for the price, especially since they are near 50 years old. Yes, they don't have the detail of the newer $20.00 - $40.00 cars, but look at what you can get for an item that is that old in HO! Enjoy.

Mark C.

[tatans]

DKN:The box says C&NW gondola, also says "The ONLY freight cars engineered with LCG" the caboose advertised on this box is Union Pacific 4060. mco: how many different cars did they make------Thanks for the info.

[mcouvillion]

tatans,

The Revell stuff I have is as follows. I honestly don't remember where my list of "everything" they made is. I'll give you the car number, road name, description, then quantity that I have.

ACL 4150 Atlantic Coast Line 50' flat car 1
ATSF ???? Santa Fe F-7 Diesel (Warbonnet) 1
ATSF 3500 Santa Fe F-7 Diesel (blue) 2
ATSF 4064 Santa Fe 32' Caboose 3
C&EI 4112 Chicago & Eastern Illinois 34' 2-Bay covered hopper 1
CNW 4052 Chicago & North Western 50' Gondola 2
C&O 4040 Chesapeake & Ohio 34' 2-Bay hopper 1
Erie 4030 Erie Railroad 50' Flat car 1
FGEX 4017 Fruit Growers Express 40' Reefer 1
GN 4001 Great Northern 40' Box car 3
HNZ 4130 H. J. Heinz Co 50' Pickle Car 3 (one less pickle load)
MDT 4015 Merchants Despatch Trans Co 50' Refrigerator 3
MP 4024 Missouri Pacific 40' Stock car 1
MSTL 4005 Minneapolis & St. Louis 40' Box car 2
MW 4160 Maintenance of Way 40' Bunk car 6
MW 5000 Track Maintenance 40' Bunk car 2
NH 4003 New Haven 40' Box car 5
N&W 4042 Norfolk & Western 34' 2-Bay hopper 1
NYC 4050 New York Central 50' Gondola 5 (some with loads)
PFE 4011 Pacific Fruit Express 40' Reefer 1
PRR 4054 Pennsylvania Railroad 50' Gondola 2
SL-SF 4140 St Louis - Santa Fe 50' Flat w/ cable load 2
SOO 4032 SOO LINE 50' Flat car
SP 3571 Southern Pacific SW-7 Switcher 1
SP 4111 Southern Pacific 34' 2-Bay covered hopper 1
SRLX 4016 Swift Refrigerator Line 40' Reefer 1
UP 3600 Union Pacific 0-6-0 Saddletank Switcher 1
UP 4020 Union Pacific 40' Stock car 4
UP 4060 Union Pacific 32' Caboose 1
WM 4059 Western Maryland 50' Gondola 3 (some with load)

As you can probably tell, cars numbered xx 401x are reefers, xx 400x are box cars, xx 405x are 50' gondolas, and xx 402x are stock cars. There are others I don't have, but I have the most common and a few of the lesser common ones. Most are in very good shape. None are for sale or trade. I'm not really sure what else is out there, but I usually take my entire inventory list with me to the major train shows so that I can compare before I buy anything else. If I think it is too pricey, I pass. If it's not in very good shape, I pass. If I already have a handful, I usually pass.

You being in a different part of the country will probably see a slightly different distribution of the available rolling stock, but probably not as much as with later manufacturers. Back in the late 50s and early 60s, people bought what was available, not just the roadname they preferred.

Let me know if I can be of any further help.

Mark C.

[tatans]

Great stuff, thanks ever so much-so they did have a fairly extensive lin of cars, very interesting. It IS a 50' C7Nw gon. thanks again

[dknelson]

I have that same C&NW gondola and I too converted mine to Kadee couplers. I got mine at a swap meet for a buck or two. I also bought a Con-Cor gon and it seems pretty clear it is the same casting.
I can't help you much after seeing Mark's excellent list but I do intend to look for that Soo Line flat car and C&EI covered hopper. Those should be perfect for my 1969 era model railroad. Somewhere I might have the pickle car too (I am not as organized as our friend Mark!).
Again, don't ignore the Revell buildings.
Dave Nelson

[Leon Silverman]

The "L.C.G." claim from Revell was due to their use of a die cast metal underframe to give their cars some weight. This compares to today's construction that utilizes plastic underframes and details. Weight is provided by a flat sheet of steel which is incorporated into the floor of the rolling stock. In doing so, the center of gravity is now slightly higher than it would be with an all metal underframe.

[trainboyH16-44]

I have 2 revell cars in operation on my RR, a SOO flat and a PRR Gondola, and I made them better by trimming off the coupler boxes with rail nippers(Bad idea) and glueing Kadee coupler boxes to the bottoms, and they've been working great since!
Matthew Hicks

[mcouvillion]

When I converted the cars to KayDee couplers, I took the trucks off and used a cutting wheel (dental drill with cutting disks, similar to a Dremel) and removed the Talgo for the horn-hook coupler. I then positioned a KayDee plastic box on the underside of the carbody and found that the line between the (I believe) 3rd and 4th molded planks on the car underside was exactly where the screw was needed for mounting the KayDee coupler box. I would take an Xacto Knife and make a tiny perpendicular line in the center of the car at these planks. Then, I would drill and tap for a 2-56 screw. I would cut the screws so that they were flush with the top side of the floor, then mount the KayDee couplers in their boxes and replace the trucks. Perfect height.

If I change out the wheelsets on the trucks, I would carefully remove the springs from one side of the truck and place them in a small container. (This is actually best done inside a large plastic storage bag, as these things have a tendency to want to disappear rather often!) The entire truck is conductive, so the axle needs to be insulated, or just replace the entire truck. I think many of mine still have the original wheels. Not the best quality, but work OK. I still have quite a few with horn-hooks, since changing them can turn into a major enterprise.

Since I don't intend to sell them, but rather run them for my enjoyment, I don't mind that they are not "original". I still have a few in the original boxes with all parts and packaging. I probably won't change these.

Mark C.

[mcouvillion]

Speaking of buildings, I have the engine service facility (it is really nice, but the automated doors don't work reliably), two stations (one from 1960 that went through a lot when I was a kid), I've had two track crew speeder houses, and a third as yet unbuilt. I love the detail on the orange speeder and trailer, but they are so delicate that I may not assemble the latest kit. The others have befallen terrible fates. I have had the 2-story farm house with one-car garage and chicken house (again, roughed up when I was small), but I have seen ones recently that are fully intact and make a fairly nice model, and I had the outhouse with the moon on the door. It is still floating around somewhere. I knew Con-Cor bought the dies, but I haven't seen the models come out, especially the building kits.

Buying Revell is a bit of nostalgia, but it is fun, and for the price, some fairly nice models. And there are still quite a few available.

Mark C.