Bob Keller
The new Lionel and K-Line catalogs were delivered to L&J Hobbies this afternoon.
I stopped by just before closing to pick up copies of the catalogs.
Worth noting for anyone who likes Modern Eastern Railroads. In the K-Line O Gauge Classic Freight Cars on Page 25 there is a Norfolk and Western Boxcar in the 1970's scheme. This NW scheme is on a lot of Freight Cars even 25 to 35 years later. If you grew up with NW or still see the NW cars, do not miss this O Gauge bargin.
The 57' Mechanical Refrigerator Cars are finally represented by painted models. This is good news. I might request that LIONEL produce the 1980's BN Western Fruit Express or Cryogenic Car schemes on the 57' Mechanical Refrigerator Cars. The 1970's and 1980's Santa Fe schemes would be good.
No models for viewing of the SD70ACe Diesel-Electric Locomotives. When Lionel produces the UP 1995 Chicago & North Western and UP 1992 Denver & Rio Grande Western they have to come out with matching sets of Bathtub Coal Gondolas with Rotary Couplers. CNW and D&RGW moved a lot of coal and the coal traffic is still heavy on those lines today.
Andrew
Watch my videos on-line at https://www.youtube.com/user/AndrewNeilFalconer
One great development for the O-27 crowd is the TrainStage on pages 200-201. It is a fast way to set up a starter layout with scenery. The roll-up mat is pre-wired. It is perfect for fun operating at special gatherings and events.
I wonder if a Winter-Christmas version will be produced for the next Christmas Catalog?
Doug Murphy 'We few, we happy few, we band of brothers...' Henry V.
cnw1995 wrote:I'm intrigued by the Standard Gauge summer trolley...
Ditto! Nice to see Lionel testing the Standard gauge waters again. I just wish it was a reasonably-priced Standard gauge train set instead. Not sure how much interest there will be in a trolley. We'll see...
Thanks for the info, Bob!
- Clint
YAWN!
I'm sure there are some items that will interest some. I still think they've got a ways to go to attain the very things Jerry Calabrese talked about in such detail in the OGR interview. Not much in the Lionel Vol. 2 catalog for the budget 027 traditional operator.
The K-Line by Lionel Vol. 2 catalog has much more. Glad to see the S-2 back, but will probably end up getting one from RMT since they'll probably make one in a current road name long before Lionel ever will. The K-Lionel Erie S-2 is new but the Burlington one is a reissue, as are many of the new K-Lionel train cars, although nice to see more offerings. There are a few new never before made cars, like the Ill. Central Depressed Center Flat. Then I get annoyed when I turn the page and see the scale Conrail flat with the NS trailer... when will these companies realize some of us 027 operators are actually getting VERY TIRED of the NYC and PRR. Even Penn Central would be a welcomed improvement!!
I agree with Andrew, the only car that has my attention is the Nofolk Western box car. That one really is new, and I have never been able to find decals for that one to make my own. That one has been on my list.
And I still can't understand why Lionel continues with the DUMB K-Line move of putting former MARX tooled 027 cars with SCALE couplers in the Porter sets? There's ZERO logic to that move. Most scale operators don't want those 027 MARX cars.
On the other hand, us 027 guys DO WANT those cars but NOT with SCALE couplers. C'mon Lionel... don't do the same dumb things K-Line did. Put scale cars with the Porter and make those 027 cars with 027 trucks for us 027 guys!!!
Oh well, a very easy year for at least my wallet. Hardly any temptation outside of the K-Lionel NW box car.
brianel, Agent 027
"Praise the Lord. I may not have everything I desire, but the Lord has come through for what I need."
Lots of temptation here, Brian. Harry Potter set, Lionel Lines Hudson, Polar Express Trainsounds tender, P&LE boxcar for John, trolley barn for Doug, great K-Line building kits at reasonable prices, love the circus cars.
And wouldn't you know it - no sooner do I repaint a K-Line Pacific as B&M 3713, Lionel comes out with one with the same road name and number! Doh!
Jim
Modeling the Baltimore waterfront in HO scale
Good to see that the cup half empty crowd is still working hard at being dissatisfied. There are hundreds of thousands of needs that a company is trying to address in any one catalog. No one gets exactly what they want. Gives additional ammunition to those who believe you cannot please some people no matter what you do .
Personally, I'm happy if I find somewhere between one and five items I'd definitely like to buy. Anything more seems like greed at this stage of life and with the available space at home :).
Love the UP 4-8-4 in black with those elephant ears.
laz57
In K-Line the NYC Empire State express.
Good morning all,
There is certainly a lot of intriguing items. The track mats have me a little curious as to how the "pre-wiring" works. I really like the standard gauge trolleys as I think they are the same as what MTH made for them in the late 1980s. The GN 4-4-2 might show up on my list somewhere as I have several GN pieces of rolling stock and no loco to pull them. I think the Hogwarts set might be a good seller, and it is good to see a continued expansion of the Polar Express line.
Keep on training,
Mike C. from Indiana
brianel027 wrote: YAWN!
Unfortunately, not much has changed from the previous catalog, except the new Harry Potter train, a couple new very expensive steam locomotives, a couple new or improved train sets, but that's about it.
One thing that I notice right away is that Lionel seems to mostly avoid trains of the midwest/west, besides the Santa Fe and Union Pacific offerings, which even they are not much. BNSF, for instance. The only BNSF item featured in any 2007 catalog was the mechanical reefer, though it's not real noticable - remove the "SF" off the end of the reporting mark and you'll have a Burlington Northern reefer, basically. BNSF is the second largest railroad in the country - their system coveres almost two thirds of the United States - where are the new engines? I don't think they've had a BNSF locomotive in their catalog for at least 3 or maybe even five years.
But the biggest thing that bugs me is that there is, once again, absolutely NO Amtrak offerings of ANY KIND, besides the "Amtrak Shelter". Who wants that? I think it strange that Lionel offers an Amtrak station but, year after year, never has any actual Amtrak trains in their catalog - not even one! It doesn't have be a "modern" Amtrak train, but an F40PH with a few AmFleet cars would be fine. But not only has Lionel never made an F40PH (probably the most known Amtrak locomotive of all time), they have never made a Genesis locomotive, the most known Amtrak locomotive of modern times!
I have to say, though, that I was sort of impressed by the MTA offerings in the 2008 preview section. Not only do they provide an affordable train, they also have different stations and other accessories. I think that Lionel's on to something there. Now what they should do is come out with a different commuter train in each catalog, with different railroad names from around the country, and offer matching accessories.
But - once again, Lionel is focussing on something that most people in the east only would want. I still think that something "universal", like Amtrak, would work much better, and it would, too. If you make an Amtrak set, with a scale Genesis with RailSounds and a few Am-Fleets behind it, there you go - a set that everyone would like to have, myself included. The last thing Lionel came out with that was Amtrak, the Acela, was too expensive for most of us...and, once again, though it is an Amtrak train, it is something you'd only see in the east.
The SD70ACe's are neat, but why offer them just in Union Pacific colors? How about BNSF? (hint hint) or Norfolk Southern (SD70M-2)?? Or something? Actually, I like the Union Pacific Heritage schemes, but I already know what the real locomotives look like...what about the models? Will we ever see an actual photograph of the Lionel models, or will it always be just a real-train photograph or a drawing? (remember the Acela - we never saw an actual picture of it in the catalogs)
Obviously Lionel has much to improve before I get really excited about their new catalogs. There are neat things in this new one, don't get me wrong, but not anything that I would go bonkers about. The sad thing is that I like Lionel - they build the most reliable and durable locomotives - yet, they never come out with stuff I really want. I guess I'll have to wait until February....again.
fifedog wrote:Let's review --->224 pages of product--->absolutely something for everyone--->huge line of steam engines in lots of wheel configurations--->if you can't be happy with this catalog, increase your dosage...
I'm impressed 224 pages !!! Can you believe what it takes to put this out? And I havn't gone through K-Line yet!!! I think they did well serving their market. My inconsequential CONGRADULATIONS !! Well done !!!!
Don
Hey gang, don't misread me. Lionel makes a big deal about the new catalog with the countdown. As a "new" catalog, as Bob Keller pointed out, there isn't all that much that is new. but if you consider the new catalog an extension of what is already offered in Vol. One, it's a different story.
For the first time in many years, I bought a new Lionel car (which came out when Lionel said it would come out on time!), the starter Reading box car and I like it. There are no decals currently made for that scheme Reading box car in 0 scale and I like the car. And I'll look forward to a couple of breakups from the CP train set and add-on pack. But those items were in Vol. One.
The push towards enticing newer younger customers is on and though I might not be excited about Polar Express and Hogwarts, these are good product ideas that go towards doing what needs to be done. But as Calabrese said, he'd rather double the sales of rolling stock by offering more low cost add-on packs then by offering more high end items that are low production runs. That to me is an acknowledgement that the bulk of sales (and potential growth) in the hobby is from the starter low end products. And to that end, Lionel still has a ways to go.
Lionel has also been very inconsistant about product specs when it comes to starter diesels. Lionel catalogs them with a single motor, but some come with dual and some exactly as the catalog said. There seems to be no logic on that move. Lionel made a Conrail U36B that came with the advertised single motor, but the next two U36B's came with dual motors. So as much as the new Vol. One Conrail GP-20 should be on my list, I'll wait to see what exactly comes in the box. I might have pre-ordered one if I could have the same confidence it would come with dual motors as others did, though they were cataloged with single motors.
I'm not being negative here. It's simple honesty in advertising, and I won't buy single truck mounted DC can motored diesels because they're terrible pullers. The question is, does Lionel want my money? Roads I have no interest in come with dual motors... let's see if one I do want will also come the same way.
It's good to see the K-Lionel expanded line too. There's probably more exansion on the new Vol. Two K-Lionel catalog that there was with the new Lionel Vol. Two. But the truth is many of the rolling stock items were formerly made and cataloged by K-Line, so Lionel is just utilizing the formerly made paint masks - with albeit minor alterations. The list prices are sure more attractive on these K-Lionel products though. SuperStreets is a good thing as the new K-Lionel operating accessories. And if you go back and read my comments and the K-Lionel Vol. One catalog, I said many good things including the inclusion of the former K-Line building kits. The circus items were very popular for the original K-Line and should also be the same now. Some of the more collectible original K-Line items include the R&BB circus items.
As far as scale couplers on MARX origin 027 cars, I stand by what I said. There were extensive threads in the past on other fourms that also overwhelmingly said others thought this was a dumb idea. Scale operators don't want 027 cars.... that's not negative, it's just obvious. There is a market for those MARX origin cars (at the right price), but not with scale couplers.
brianel027,
Lionel currently has a Reading boxcar out on the market, just bought one about a month ago at a local hobby store, I think the number is 25025, road number RDG 106502. Also bought a new Reading caboose road number 36502 at a train show in March.
Lee F.
hey, a Fort Collins Birney!
Where's the trolley barn?
Has anybody noticed the higher prices? One I noticed is that FasTrack switches went up.
And, the manual 036 switches now include the 1/4 curved section witch completes a full 036 curve.
I myself agree with Brian. They should make more rolling stock and motive power for a 027 or non scale operator. I dont really like the Standard O stuff, to expensive and, for me, to big. The detail I like, but as far as what I actually need, traditional is fine.
I also noticed that the reissued some of my favorites, the operating gateman and rotating beacon, as well as the saw mill and flood light tower. They should make more accessories in my view, and either relax or do away on the Christmas stuff. I understand kids like it, but having a whole extra catalog on it is too much. Another thing I would like to see them do is lower the prices on starter sets. To get people in the hobby, seeing a $250 pricetag isnt very appealing to most people.
And finally, the #1 thing I want Lionel to do, is to make a TMCC equiped traditional locomotive. The only way you can get them is in expensive sets, they should make some sold seperately like they sell Standard O.
Grayson
"Lionel trains are the standard of the world" - Jousha Lionel Cowen
cnw1995 wrote: Where's the trolley barn?
Buried in the back of the K-line catalog, next to last page, where all that trolley junk belongs.
"IT's GOOD TO BE THE KING",by Mel Brooks
Charter Member- Tardis Train Crew (TTC) - Detroit3railers- Detroit Historical society Glancy Modular trains- Charter member BTTS
While I'll have top agree therereally isn't alot of new age diesel stuff there, I surprised that there is a K4 PRR available. I may spring for that. The MTA stuff sounds good (I only looked on line, I'll get my cat on Saturday...). I've already pre-ordered my Harry Potter set, have all the Polar Express stuff pre-ordered or ordered. The one thing that concerns me is the PE TrainSounds tender. If this thing sounds like my NYC Flyer or the Lionel Lines tender, I'm gonna flip out!!! This thing sounds more like a diesel than a steamer and I paid the $90 for the Lionel Lines tender and it just like the NYC!!! That's my only complaint. The high line stuff is just that...high line. I can't buy it...yet. But there seems to be more "affordable" things in both catalogs, so, I'm pretty pleased so far. And that CNJ diesel box cab...to die for, with a $80 price tag, I think I'm in...
Just my
I am the monster in your head...And I thought you'd learn by now, It seems you haven't yet.I am the venom in your skin --- Breaking Benjamin
Flying Yankee that runs on O-31! Price? Well it does include passenger cars with the engine.
I found a number of things things in both catalogues that were nice to see.
I am especially glad to see that Lionel is offering O-27 passenger car sets with metal trucks and couplers for a reasonable price.
Chris
anjdevil2 wrote: ...The one thing that concerns me is the PE TrainSounds tender. If this thing sounds like my NYC Flyer or the Lionel Lines tender, I'm gonna flip out!!! This thing sounds more like a diesel than a steamer and I paid the $90 for the Lionel Lines tender and it just like the NYC!!! That's my only complaint. ...Just my
...The one thing that concerns me is the PE TrainSounds tender. If this thing sounds like my NYC Flyer or the Lionel Lines tender, I'm gonna flip out!!! This thing sounds more like a diesel than a steamer and I paid the $90 for the Lionel Lines tender and it just like the NYC!!! That's my only complaint. ...
The Chief and I were in North East Trains back in June. We saw and heard a starter set NYC Trainsounds tender and both of us were very impessed. The one we heard sounded nothing like a deisel. It had a great, deep, strong steam whistle, a bell, brake squeal, and chuffing. I was amazed at how great it sounded.
I dunno, Jim. This thing sounds like a diesel to me......My rescue train has a better sounding whistle than the NYC. But then, the set was $350 over the NYC $200.
I just that it would sound different than the NYC.
And now, back to Rescue Me.....
RIP Chewy - best dog I ever had.
If there are not enough new items for some people, look at it this way, you will not go overbudget on LIONEL items in the last half of 2007. You can save your money for 2008.
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