Pre War American Flyer Pictures - An Invitation

[Southern Colorado Marx Flyer]

Thank you.

I already have another question, and I apologize if I missed this in an earlier post.

Do any of you have suggestions about a basic repair reference(s) for prewar trains?  I'm thinking of something that might have some diagrams but more importantly general information on disassembling, repairing and installing motors, drive wheels, e-units, wiring, etc. 

I have run across some that might be useful - specifically the "Complete Service Manual for American Flyer Trains" but I am not sure how much it may address prewar trains.  The other repair publications I have seen focus mainly or exclusively on more modern or specifically DC motor trains.  An internet resource - American Flyer Repair Clinics - has some good information, but again looks to be more oriented toward postwar trains.  

Thanks for any guidance you can offer.

 

Craig

 

 

 

[Southern Colorado Marx Flyer]

Thank you for the warm welcome.  I'm definitely "bitten" and well past stopping at one.  Now if my house were just a little larger . . . .

[KRM]

Southern Colorado Marx Flyer

 This thread has been a true inspiration.  Great photographs and useful information.  I'll likely have questions when I start working with the Flyer equipment that is coming my way.

 Thanks again to Northwoods Flyer and everyone on this thread.

 Craig

Northwoods,

Dido on Craig's comment.

 If it were not for you and the help you gave my when I wanted to ID my Flyer's I would of nevre known of this thread.

 I got a new to me ZW today and it was an inspiration to pull the Flyer set off of the wall and give her a good run

 Just tooo much fun.

 Tks for all you and others like you do for this forum

 Kev.

[Northwoods Flyer]

Southern Colorado Marx Flyer

Welcome to the Forum and to this thread Craig  ,

I'm glad you found your way here and that you are enjoying the reading, and finding some helpful information.  It sounds like you have dabbled with the hobby before and are returning to it as many of us have.  There are so many aspects to this hobby and a variety of ways to pursue it.  The main thing is that you enjoy your involvement with it.  Beware though, I think the train bug has bitten you.

As I have said before, I started this thread because I wanted it to be a place where other Flyer enthusiasts or those with questions could come and interact with each other.  As it has grown it has become a resource for folks who don't have the opportunity to do first hand research, or who don't have access to some of the printed resources about Flyer.  I'm pleased that those who have knowledge and access to resources have participated as well as those who are just starting their interest in gaining information.  Part of the enjoyment of this hobby for me is to be able to share information with others, and to do the research to help answer questions.  I have certainly learned a great deal by the posts of other knowledgeable collectors.

Craig, if you are looking for information about any aspect of toy trains or collecting them you will be able to locate it here on the forum.  There are so many folks who are williing to share their knowledge and experiences.  The Greenberg Guide is one of the best printed resources about PreWar O Gauge American Flyer Trains in my opinion.  If you do decide to save up your hobby money and buy a copy I would recommend that you get the Revised Edition.  There were many changes, corrections and additions made to the first edition.  There are even additional examples of variations that have been found since its printing, a few of which you will find here on the thread.  Since it is out of print it is fairly expensive on the secondary market. 

 A second goal I have developed for this thread is to make the information about PreWar Flyer trains more available to all levels of collectors.  I can post information here for free (Thank You Kalmbach), and you and others can get it for free with a little searching and effort (Thank You Again Kalmbach). Again this is one of the things I enjoy about the hobby, and being able to connect with others in the hobby.   I think that it is unlikey that we will see a reprinting of the Greenberg guides.  The PreWar guide is really of interest to a very small niche group of collectors.  As I understand it, it took a long time for the initial printing to be sold, and it is only on the secondary market that is seeing an increase in price.  While I would love to see a reprint of the Greenberg Guides and I'd love to participate in some way, it really comes down to a matter of economics.

This is getting long, but I want to say its good to have you here and the sooner that you can post some photos the better.   And by the way, to paraphrase an old advertising campaign; When it comes to collecting old trains  "No one can stop at just one."  Welcome Aboard

Enjoying the World's Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

[Stourbridge Lion]

Craig - Welcome to Trains.com!

[Southern Colorado Marx Flyer]

I, like so many others who have commented, am really enjoying this thread.  So far I am only about half-way through, but already have gone back through pages I have read for reference.

I have had O-gauge trains for years with on-and-off interest.  This past Christmas I revived a modest (45"X50") dining room table train/tree layout that I had built many years ago.  It originally was set up for Lionel trains with several operating accessories.  I took it apart and re-assembled a simpler two separate loop layout with older tinplate trains in my mind.  Growing up in a not-so-affluent family, a tin Marx streamline train was what I had, and played with for hours on end.  So this past month I bought several Marx tin steam engines and freight cars.  The Marx passenger cars, however, did not really appeal to me.  So I have picked up a mixed consist of 6 1/2" American Flyer passenger cars.  Just recently I have purchased a couple American Flyer box cab engines for the passenger cars.  With the funds I have available, I can't afford the "good stuff" so I often find myself repairing what I can afford.  I am not really into restoring anything - rather just getting things in operating condition.  I kinda like the dents and scratches and such.

I also have been buying some tin-style accessories and the layout is filling up fast.  I really appreciate the creative and elegant simplicity of engineering of these older toy trains and accessories.

This thread has been a true inspiration.  Great photographs and useful information.  I'll likely have questions when I start working with the Flyer equipment that is coming my way.

I'll also post pictures when I have some and am allowed to do so.

Oh, I have a question right now.  I looked up "Greenberg's Guide to American Flyer Prewar 0 Gauge" and was amazed at how expensive it is.  Maybe this question has been asked before - doesn't it seem like the publisher re-printing it would be a good idea.  Maybe I am just naive about the realities of such an undertaking.  

Thanks again to Northwoods Flyer and everyone on this thread.

 

Craig

 

 

 

 

[AF53]

Northwoods - a BIG congratulations on the anniversary of this "Classic Toy Train"  thread!

Thank you and great job!

Ray

[Northwoods Flyer]

Set # 1346

The Jeffersonian

Many moons ago I had a conversation with a neighbor about toy train collecting.  He mentioned that he had an old American Flyer train that had been in his family a long time and that he remembered playing with as a child.  He invited me over to take a look at it.  I had been collecting S gauge for a long time, and had only newly started to add to the Narrow Gauge Flyer items that had been passed down in my family.  It was a passenger set and it had its original boxes.  That set stuck in the back of my mind even though I didn't remember what the actual components of the set were, and not long ago I asked him if I could borrow it and photograph it for the thread.  He was happy to let me borrow it.

The set that he has is the #1346.  That set number was used in the 1928 catalog for a set called The New Jeffersonian.  It also appears in the 1929 and the 1930 catalog for a set called "The Jeffersonian".  The copy describing the sets is almost identical and the same artwork is used in all three years.

 These are photos of the 1929 catalog page.

 

 

To be continued..........

[Northwoods Flyer]

Happy 4th Anniversary

 Its hard to believe that 4 years ago today I posted the very first entry to this thread.  Little did I know at that time that the thread would grow to the size that it is, or that it would draw so many contributors.  Let me say a sincere "Thank You" to each person who has contributed a photo, comment, or question. This thread has been a collaborative effort, and I am pleased to have so many knowledgeable folks making contributions.  I have learned a lot from you.   And let me also offer an extra large THANK YOU to all those who have spent time reading the offerings of the many folks who have posted here. 

Many, many thanks to CTT and the folks at Kalmbach for providing the forums.

 

I believe that we have just scratched the surface of information about American Flyer Pre War trains.  I'm looking forward to what will show up in the coming year.  For one thing, I know that I need to update the Index; Mersenne6 has reminded me of that several times.  I'm at least 12 pages behind, but I am working on it.  I hope that in the days ahead this thread will inspire some folks to dig out their family pieces and identify them; or post some photos here so we can help.  There have been some great entries and stories posted in the last year.   I have been amazed at the information that has been uncovered and posted by our contributors. 

  

I have plenty of ideas of things to post, and I think that I can still pull a few surprises out of boxes under the Blueboard Central.  

Let me share an example of things that lie ahead.

 

So folks, lets get started on Year #5.

 

Enjoying the Worlds Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

Greg

[Otis B. Drinkwater]

I want to offer a tip to fellow operators.  I purchased this MTH Millenium Mayflower back in 2000 when it was issued and was not able to run it until 3-4 years ago when I finally set up a new layout (as I had moved in 2002 and it took a while to build the train room).

Anyway, the first time I ran the set I was very disappointed as the engine would not pull all 4 cars.  I initially thought it was a problem with the engine, until I bought a cast iron steamer and it would not pull the cars without straining either. 

I had oiled all of the wheels/axles, but that was not the problem.  Someone told me the axles/wheels had to be broken in, which not knowing a lot about the operation of standard gauge, sounded plausible.  However, running only three cars and swapping the cars out, never seemed to help.

Last evening I was speaking to a fellow collector/operator on the phone and describing the problems.  He thought about the problem and called me this morning.  He suggested I check every car for the proper operation of the wheels/axles.  Spin every wheel and make sure it spins properly and make sure that none of the axles are bent.  I had not really thought of checking the operation of the wheels/axles like this, but sure enough when I checked, I found two different cars that had bent axles and I found several wheels that did not seem to spin properly. 

Seems I should have had a bit more common sense to check the little items.  I am going to take the set out to a friend who works on standard gauge and we will tweak it and get it to run right.

 

[Otis B. Drinkwater]

Classic_Wax,

I have tried sending some private messages through this post and am not sure if they made it to you.  I would like to learn more about Jay Edmonds and what history you may know.

I can tell you that other than his name being associated with Edmonds-Metzel MFG., it is my understanding that Mr. Edmonds did not contribute to American Flyer trains.  However, I am not sure of his association with the company after 1907. 

It is my understanding that the design of the first American Flyer trains is attributed to William Hafner and that William Odgen Coleman had gained a controlling interest in the Edmonds-Metzel MFG company in the 1906-1907 era and the Coleman family controlled Edmonds-Metzel and subsequently American Flyer MFG (as the company was known after 1910) until the sale of the company to AC Gilbert in 1938.

As someone seeking knowlege about early American Flyer trains the history of the company intrigued me and I recently searched for information and posted it along with pictures of the bank.

Otis

[Classic_Wax]

I am a relative to Jay, D. Edmonds...I have the original Pat paperwork given to him from The Patens office..As long as a lot of  family history,,He did invent several different wrenches,  as well as the perpetual pedal, along with this bank, It was the the secure way of the entrance slot that made this worty of him getting a pat,, And Yes the American Flyer Trains..This is the one bought off Ebay just recently, Would you be interested in re-selling the bank..or know of where I could aquire one?

[Northwoods Flyer]

1929 - 1930 Montgomery Ward Catalog

I have to admit that I was born with a collector gene.  Once I start collecting something a switch is turned on in my brain and I find that I pursue all kinds of related information, and sometimes objects as well. The 1929 - 1930 Montgomery Ward Catalog is a good example.  It is no secret that I collect American Flyer Trains, and if you have followed this thread for any amount of time you can see just how much of my collecting energy has been focused there.

Several pages back Otis B. Drinkwater provided a scan of the 1929 catalog that illustrated the 7010 and 7011 steeple cabs on which I was doing posts.  It was a great addition to the information about other merchants that sold American Flyer.

 

Once he provided the scan that collector gene of mine kicked into high gear.  I "just had to have" a copy of that catalog in my collection.  I began a search of eBay and found a copy of the 1929 - 1930 Fall and Winter Montgomery Ward Catalog - Catalog  #111.  It wasn't long before one came up for auction and I won it.  I was really excited that I would be able to add some American Flyer documentation to my collection.

 

When it arrived I eagerly opened it. It has a great looking cover.

 

 

I quickly found the toy section, and the trains that were for sale.  I was surprised to find that the page was different than the scan that Otis had provided.

 

 

Instead of the two American Flyer trains that Otis's scan shows, there are actually four trains illustrated.

 

 

They include an American Flyer Wide Gauge set (A); an American Flyer Narrow Gauge set (B) which sounds like it is a Potomac Set with an extra car;  an O gauge set that is identified as being Ives (C); and another O gauge set identified as an Ives freight (D).

 

When I discovered that the pages were different I consulted with Otis and we surmised that the trains that Wards offered must have differed regionally.  A clue comes from the cover of my catalog.

 

 

 

As you can see it clearly shows the source of the catalog is Albany.  It makes me wonder where Otis's catalog was available and how many other trains may have been available at other geographical locations.

 

In any case the pages in my catalog show a variety of train items and other wonderful toys available to be ordered and Montgomery Wards would pay the postage.  It looks as if A.C. Gilbert supplied Wards with building sets called Steel-Tech, which look suspiciously like Erector sets.

 

 

 

I can only wonder where my collector gene will lead me next.

 

Enjoying the World's Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

[Otis B. Drinkwater]

Northwoods,

My boxed Wards passenger set, is identical to the cars shown in you post.  The car roofs do not have the ventilators as shown in the artwork and the cars have steps on them, with the exception of the baggage car.  I think the catalog artist took some liberties with the artwork or may have been provided with a sample that did not match the actual set that Wards sold.  

The latest cataloged set in my collection to have the roof ventilators is the 1927 Jeffersonian set.  I also have what I believe to be an uncataloged 1928 set in my collection that comes with a green 3014 that is a factory overpaint of a red/maroon lithographed 1927 boxcab body and that set has car roofs with ventilators.  I know that by 1929 the smooth roofs were being used by flyer and all of my later Illini sets have smooth roofs. 

The latest set of Illini cars in my collection has type VIII a gray painted trucks, which would date the set to 1933 or so.  This set was pulled by an unusual two tone green 3115 boxcab electric engine.

Otis

 

[Northwoods Flyer]

1929 Montgomery Ward Passenger Set

Back on page 48 I posted a scan of the 1929 - 1930 catalog page (courtesy of Otis B. Drinkwater) that showed the American Flyer Trains that Wards was selling.

 

 

This is a close approximation of what the set would have looked like.

 

 

Wards also offered a passenger set in this catalog headed by the Motor 7011.  The picture below is again an approximation of what the set would have been like.

 

 

 

Motor 7011

 

 

Baggage

 

 

Pullman

 

 

Observation

 

 

One major difference between the catalog illustration and the cars above is that the cars in the catalog have 4 ventilator bumps on the roof while these cars are smooth.  (I have two of the passenger cars with the roofs with ventilators but I thought it would be better to show a representation of all three cars.  I am on the hunt for the third car.) The catalog cars have no steps, and the baggage car is illustrated with a curved top opening for one of the baggage doors.

 

Its a great looking set, and one day I'd love to find an actual boxed set from Wards.

 

 

Enjoying the World's Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

[Otis B. Drinkwater]

I recently acquired this interesting and unusual red 1093 boxcab locomotive.  The motor is the most interesting thing about this engine as it is a champion type steam engine motor that was first introduced in 1932 in the 915 engine and the type XVIII champion steam engines.  The Greenberg's guide to Flyer O gauge does mention this motor in variations B and C for the 1093 engine and indicates that it can also be found in the 3100 engine. 

What is unique about this motor, is that to mount it in the 1093 and 3100 engines, extra brackets were spotwelded on each side of the motor frame in order for it to mount in the cab frame.  The photos tell show the brackets, etc.

 

Now all I have to do is put new wheels on it and get it running again.

O.

[strainst]

Neat add.  I find it interesting that American Flyer used what looks like a clockwork 120 tender but added two four wheel trucks to it and  made it longer.  The locomotive that is heading up the set on the track is unlike anything American Flyer ever made that I am aware of, but the Steeple-Cab locomotive the boy is holding was just in its second year of its release.  Overall I love the charm of the add and it would make me want a American Flyer train set for Christmas.

strainst

[Otis B. Drinkwater]

Here is a holiday advertisment that was featured inside the front cover of the December 1921 Boys Life magazine.

[MomsFlyer]

Sorry it has taken a while to get pictures of The Mountain Red Ball under the tree, but here are a couple. 

 

I couldn’t really get any stories about the trains, but I did find out that my Grandfather was working as a machinist at Baldwin Locomotive when these were purchased.  I wonder who the trains were really bought for…

[Otis B. Drinkwater]

Northwoods,

Below is the scan of the page showing the O gauge switches from the 1924 American Flyer catalog.  Note they show only the switch handle with lighting component for the lighted switch.  This artwork for the lighting component is also shown in the 1925 and 1926 catalogs, and may be shown in the earlier 1922 and 1923 catalogs (I did not look at those catalogs). 

You can see that the artwork matches the lighting component on my switches.

 

 

Merry Xmas to All. 

[Otis B. Drinkwater]

Northwoods,

These are certainly factory produced items.  They are cataloged in the c. 1924-1925 or 26 catalogs, just not shown well.  I will have to look up the page and scan it. 

 

I know of a friend asked me if I had ever seen the switches about a year ago.  He finally acquired a set about 6 to 8 months ago and I got this set last week.  One thing to note is that the non-lighted switches have a hole factory punched in the handle of the switch, which the bracket that holds the light housing is riveted by (with an additional hole also being punched/drilled for a second rivet. 

 

I am guessing that these switches are somewhat difficult to find, because the light assembly could easily be lost and I this is only the second set I have seen in over 25 years of collecting.  They came to me with a c. 1925 set, so the catalog dating that I mentioned above seems to correlate.

 

Otis

[Northwoods Flyer]

Otis B. Drinkwater

 

 

Otis,

Those are some very interesting switches.  Do you think that they were produced at the factory?  I have never seen anything else like them, have you?

Enjoying the World's Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

[Northwoods Flyer]

I have posted this on another thread as An American Flyer Tale for Christmas.  I had intended to post it here originally, but the story just kept growing, and I thought it would be nice to have the photos of the Statesman set here too.

 

Christmas Wish List 1930

 

 

Petey Menardi had only one item on his Christmas list in 1930; A Wide Gauge (2 ¼”) American Flyer Train.  It had been on his Christmas List every year since he had first seen the big beautiful trains in the 1926 catalog.  Petey had made a request for a train to Santa every year, both by letter and by visiting one of Santa’s helpers at the big department store downtown.  Somehow the jolly old elf never seemed to bring a train for Petey.  Instead he got underwear, socks and pajamas.  There had been some other great items along the way, like the baseball glove and the Flexible Flyer sled.  Santa must have mis-heard him that year.  At least he got the Flyer part right.  Then last year he had gotten his fishing pole.

 

This Christmas Petey decided to take matters into his own hands.  He had been hatching a plan for 2 years.  When no train appeared under the tree in 1928 he began saving to buy an American Flyer train with his own money.  He had saved every penny that he could from his allowance and odd jobs.  He delivered papers, mowed lawns and cut grass.  He even saved most of the money that he got for his birthdays with the goal of owning one of the gleaming beauties in the catalog.  Now he had enough.  He probably could have had the money sooner if he hadn’t been tempted time and again to stop at the soda fountain in Henricksen’s Drug Store for one of their fabulous root beer floats.

 

Petey knew that Saxon’s Paint and Hardware carried trains during the Christmas season and he planned to make his purchase there.  Saxon’s had catalogs from several toy companies available long before the actual merchandise arrived.  He had gotten his copy of the American Flyer catalog there every year.  Sometime in September Petey began making daily trips to Saxon’s to inquire if the catalogs had arrived yet. It required walking several blocks out of his way on his journey home from school, but his excitement made the walk go by quickly.  Each day he would glance at the big plate glass display windows, open the door to the paint and hardware store and hear the jingle of the bell above the door.  One of the clerks would look up from where they were working and call out to him “Nothing yet Petey.”  He would walk back out of the door and head for the milk and cookies or fresh bread with butter that his mother had waiting for him as a snack.  As he walked along he would say to himself “Golly, its got to be there tomorrow.”

 

Day after day Petey walked through the door to the jingle of the bell and day after day he heard the same greeting “Nothing yet Petey.”  Then one day as Petey pushed open the door he stood face to face with Mr. Saxon himself.  With a big smile on his face he greeted Petey with two words “Its here.”  He handed Petey the 1930 American Flyer Catalog.

 

Petey stood staring at the cover for what seemed like an hour.  Then he remembered his manners and looked up at Mr. Saxon and with a gasp said “Thank You, oh Thank You so much.”  He turned and rushed out the door.  He could hear Mr. Saxon’s deep hearty laugh as he made a run for home with his precious catalog in his hand.

 

When he got to his house he bolted up the stairs to the back porch and through the kitchen door.  His mother was there in the kitchen and he panted out to her “Its here mom, its here!”  Then he flew up the stairs to his bedroom.  His mother smiled and set his glass of milk back into the ice box.  She knew it would be a while, but eventually he would be back for his snack.  It was the same every year when the American Flyer catalog arrived.

 

In his room Petey poured over the catalog, devouring each color drawing, savoring the descriptions and then imagining each item on the parlor floor.  Maybe he could keep them there even after the Christmas tree had been taken down.

 

It took Petey several days to make his decision.  After studying the illustrations, reading the copy again and again, and counting his money several times he made his decision.  It would be THE STATESMAN, Train Set #1473 with the #4654 locomotive.

 

Now he just had to wait until the stock came in at Saxon’s. He went back to making daily visits to the hardware store, checking the window displays for the big gift and toy display that always appeared there during the Christmas season.  Somewhere around Thanksgiving the display magically appeared.  There traveling around an oval of track in the window was an American Flyer Wide Gauge train set.  It wasn’t THE STATESMAN. 

It was a smaller set; THE NEW EAGLE, set #1472.

  

It looked great.  Petey decided to gather up his money and go down to the hardware store later in the week and inquire about buying THE STATESMAN.

 

It was several days before Petey could get back to Saxon’s.  Mom and Dad had errands for him to run and chores to do.  Finally he emptied out his marble bag into a big glass jar, stuffed his savings into the leather drawstring bag and headed to the hardware store to claim his prize.

 

He paused at Saxon’s big plate glass window and was a bit surprised to see that THE NEW EAGLE set was no longer there.  He pushed open the door to the sound of the familiar jingle and spotted Mr. Saxon half way back in the store.  He politely told Mr. Saxon that he wanted to buy The American Flyer Wide Gauge STATESMAN set.  “You mean that train set that was in the front window?”  Petey shook his head and showed him the illustration of THE STATESMAN set #1473 from the catalog.  Mr. Saxon had a distressed look on his face. “Petey” he said with a calm voice, “We only order a few sets every year, and we didn’t order that one this year.  And someone came in this morning and bought the set in the window for the mayor’s children.”

 

 At that moment a huge lump grew in Petey’s throat.  The merchandise on the shelves began to blur into blotches of color.  Mr. Saxon’s facial features seemed to flow together as tears began to fill Petey’s eyes.  How could this be?  Surely Saxon’s carried all of the items in the catalog.  Didn’t they?

 

Mr. Saxon looked at Petey intently.  Suddenly his eyes narrowed and he snapped his fingers.  “Petey all of those bigger trains are gone, but I think we had one left over from last year that was put in the storage room.  I didn’t remember it until just now.  Let me send Dutch up to the storage room to get it.”

 

Petey stood in the aisle with small drawers of screws, nuts, bolts and washers on either side of him.  He shifted back and forth on his feet nervously.  It seemed like an eternity but finally he could see Dutch descending the big wooden staircase at the back of the store.  He was carrying a large box in his arms.  Petey’s heart began to race.  Dutch carried the box over to Mr. Saxon and they had a brief conversation.  Mr. Saxon took the box from Dutch and walked over to Petey.  He had a smile on his face; “Petey its not set #1473, its set #1483.  Will it do?”  Petey recognized the set number.  It was the same set as THE STATESMAN set but it had the better 4684 electric engine.  There was no illustration of it in the catalog, but it had a remote control reverse unit, and it was more expensive.  Petey stood looking at Mr. Saxon, “It would be fine sir, but the catalog says it costs more than I have saved.”  Mr. Saxon wrinkled his brow.  Then he winked his eye.  “Well Petey, it is last year’s stock.  If you want it, you can have it for a 25% discount.  At that moment someone opened the front door and the bell jingled.  To Petey it sounded like the ringing of the bells in the steeple of St. Marks just down the block.

 

Mr. Saxon wrote up the sale himself.  Petey carried his prize home and took it into the parlor where he began to unpack it.  The cars looked different than the illustration in the catalog.  They had green roofs and each car was emblazoned with the name STATESMAN in two places on each side.  But most importantly, they were his.

 

 

 

 

Enjoying the World's Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

 

[Otis B. Drinkwater]

I am not normally a collector of track or transformers and such, but the photos below are of some unique switches made by American Flyer c. 1925 or so.  The early catalogs include "Manual lighted switches" but I don't recall that they show the complete switches in the catalog.  These came to me recently with a set I purchased, so I thought I would photograph them and post them here, as they are in fact more interesting than the set.  The actual light holder appears to be a regular bulb holder from other accessories that just slides into the bracket and makes contact with the copper contact. 

 

 

I have also seen slightly later manual lighted switches that feature a diecast base, and of course the later manual lighted switches that feature the die cast light covers.

O.

[Northwoods Flyer]

strainst,

That is a very generous offer.  I believe that there is only one size of the Type X coupler and it was used on both 9 1/2 and 6 1/2 inch cars.  Here are some photos.

 

 

 

 

Sorry for the poor focus on this last shot.

 

 

Let me quote from Greenburg's guide.

 

"The shank is a long strip of bright metal with three slotted holes; one of the slots near the coupler end engages a tab on the truck bolster, and one of the other slotted holes lines up with the center hole of the truck bolster; a rivet retains it to the car floor.  The coupler head is riveted to the shank and is free to swivel from side to side; stops on the shank limit the sway."

I'm not sure how much of the coupler is missing on MomsFlyer's tender, but I would bet its the actual sheet metal knuckle riveted to the shank.

 

Enjoying the World's Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

[strainst]

Hi Northwoods Flyer and MomsFlyer

Northwoods Flyer, if you can post picture of the underneath side of the tender showing how the curly-que coupler is attached and give a length of the coupler, I may have one that MomsFlyer can have to fix his tender.  MomsFlyer can email his address directly and I will mail it to him.  Do you know if the curly-que couplers used on freight and passenger cars are the same size as the one used on the tender?

strainst

[AF53]

MomsFlyer - to the forum. You are very fortunate to have this keepsake! Good luck with it and enjoy it.

Ray

[Northwoods Flyer]

MomsFlyer,

You are very welcome.  It was my pleasure.

In my opinion; if the twist tie works keep using it.  I am not aware of any reproduction parts for this type of coupler.  I think that your best bet is to watch eBay.  Parts do come up for sale on occasion and I have seen sheet metal couplers for sale.  You might also consider watching eBay for another complete tender.  They show up for sale regularly. In fact there is one for sale right now, although it is priced higher than I would pay for it, and I don't think the condition is as nice as yours.  Engines and tenders are frequently sold seperately, and it appears that far more tenders have survived the years than engines.  So if you are patient you could probably find a whole replacement tender for a reasonable price.

Besides, now that you have one operating set of pre war American Flyer trains you may find yourself tempted to have more, and then you could always use another tender.  .

 

Please post a photo of the set under your tree if you have a chance.

 

Enjoying the World's Greatest Hobby

Northwoods Flyer

[MomsFlyer]

Northwoods Flyer,

 

I am completely blown away -- Thank you so much for the information! 

 

I never considered it was a double header.  While photographing it last night, I did notice the dummy locomotive didn't have an engine.  I was figuring it was the original locomotive with the set, it had stopped working and they attempted to fix it, but ultimately they got a replacement.  Now I'm very excited to run the entire set together, except the tender is missing the curly cue coupling.  Although that now explains why it had a twist tie on it.

 

Any suggestions for a replacement, or another way of connecting them... besides twist ties ;-)?

Thanks again!

Steve

[balidas]

WOW! A factory double header set! That is an amazing and beautiful set!