1936 American Flyer Pre-War 2-4-2 set

Hi,

I collect American Flyer O gauge and it is great that you have your father's train.  I am not sure if you know this or not, but the cars in your father's set have been repainted.  I noted immediately, that the cars are not a standard Flyer color for this type of car and was suspect over the shiny silver wheels and good condition of the gray trucks; however, when you turned the one car over to show the power pickup, I was able to confirm the repaint.  I noted that the tab going from the car bottom to the power pickup on the wheels has paint on it that is the same color of the body.  That should not be the case as when made at the factory, the cars would have been painted and then the light socket, tab to the trucks and trucks would have been put together after the painting of the body.  Another feature that is incorrect is the railing of the observation car.  That should be either brass or brass painted steel.  They were never the same color of the body, which signifies that when the observation car was repainted, the observation railing was not removed.  Additionally, although the video is not great for the details, it appeared as if there were dents and bends to the body and roofs, without associated paint loss, another sign of repainting.

The tender appears to have some restoration, as the body of the tender appears to be held on by nut and bolts and the box at the front is painted black instead of being painted gold.  It may be that only the trucks and wheels on the tender have been restored, but I cannot say for sure.

The engine appears to be repainted as well.  I noted that the trailing trucks on the engine appear to be from a post-war Lionel engine.

As for the running of the engine, it does want to run and it has plenty of power, so don't burn it out.  It may need a cleaning and lube.  Another thing to check is the brushes and armature to see if the armature is dirty or the brushes need to be replaced.

Overall, it is a great family piece and if your father had it restored, it is because it was his prized possession.

The set likely originally looked like the set below

NWL

What a great story of your family's connection with your train.  Its clear that you have a strong emotional attachment to your American Flyer train.  I enjoyed your video and look forward to seeing more.  You are fortunate to have a true family heirloom.

Nation Wide Lines has provided you with some great information.  I thought I would post a few more photos of your train as it looked in original condition.

Enjoy your train and I hope you find many more.

Northwoods Flyer

Greg

Thank you for your kind words and for the photos.  I really appreciate seeing the train in original form.  Do you know if the set goes by a name or number?

@Apple & Orange Line posted:

Thank you for your kind words and for the photos.  I really appreciate seeing the train in original form.  Do you know if the set goes by a name or number?

The set was cataloged as Set 1720 R and it was called the B & O (Baltimore & Ohio) Passenger.

The R signified the engine had reverse.  No transformer was included in the set, but the 1269 Transformer was recommended for the set.

@Nation Wide Lines posted:

The set was cataloged as Set 1720 R and it was called the B & O (Baltimore & Ohio) Passenger.

The R signified the engine had reverse.  No transformer was included in the set, but the 1269 Transformer was recommended for the set.

Thank you so much for this information!  This will help me research the set.  It definitely has reverse!  and the 1269 transformer. 

Here is the page from the 1936 American Flyer catalog where the Set 1720-R appears.

The cars do not appear in blue.  I believe the same artwork was used the previous year.  The copy does say that the cars are finished in full enamel (colors subject to change).

Northwoods Flyer

Greg

@Nation Wide Lines posted:

The set was cataloged as Set 1720 R and it was called the B & O (Baltimore & Ohio) Passenger.

The R signified the engine had reverse.  No transformer was included in the set, but the 1269 Transformer was recommended for the set.

Do you happen to know the set number and name for this setup with the sheet metal couplers? I think it is from 1939, maybe?

     Thanks,

          Jon

Here you go Jon,

Happy New Year

We are in the midst of a snow storm that is bringing an additional 4"-6" of heavy wet snow.  A good day for playing with trains.

Northwoods Flyer

Greg

@Greg J. Turinetti posted:

Here you go Jon,

Thanks, is that from the 1938 catalog? Is this the same as what is in the 1939 catalog, just with a different numbering and Link couplers?

The 1939 Set would be Set 307.

1938

Set No.7

Semi-vanderbilt tender and automatic couplers

1939

No. 307

link and pin couplers and a 421 tender with a gold step

Greg

Northwoods Flyer

@Greg J. Turinetti posted:

1939

No. 307

link and pin couplers and a 420 tender with a gold step

Greg

Northwoods Flyer

That would be a 423 locomotive with a 421 tender.

Thanks for the correction NWL.  I corrected the typo in my original post.

So far we have the set illustrated from 1936, 1938, and 1939;

I believe this is the illustration from the 1937 catalog.  I assembled a set based on the illustration in the catalog.  I think I made 3 separate purchases to complete it.

Set 1735  Baltimore and Ohio  -  Passenger

I'll have to go check my 1937 catalog that this  is page 8 from that catalog.

Northwoods Flyer

Greg

Weird, here is the set I acquired, it has all of the boxes except the observation box and it has a 4677 combo (7715 loco and 3199 tender) with it that looks to have had the stripe repainted.

@Jon Edwards posted:

Weird, here is the set I acquired, it has all of the boxes except the observation box and it has a 4677 combo (7715 loco and 3199 tender) with it that looks to have had the stripe repainted.

It is possible that you have Set #5 from 1938 that has an extra car.  Set #5 is described as having the 4677 engine combo, 2 3171 Red cars and a 3172 Red observation.  Obviously you have blue cars instead of red cars and have an extra coach than Set 5, but who knows?

Maybe the original buyer saw both sets in the store and wanted the 4677 combo with the blue cars.

Or it could be that there was a store display and the engine/tender got mixed up when repacked.  I have a boxed set from 1931, which I bought from the original owner's son.  The story related to me was that the set was a Christmas display set and was purchased after Christmas.  All I know is that it is completely boxed, but came with the wrong setbox from 1931.  I can only guess that it was packaged in the wrong box after christmas. 

NWL

@Nation Wide Lines posted:

It is possible that you have Set #5 from 1938 that has an extra car.  Set #5 is described as having the 4677 engine combo, 2 3171 Red cars and a 3172 Red observation.  Obviously you have blue cars instead of red cars and have an extra coach than Set 5, but who knows?

Maybe the original buyer saw both sets in the store and wanted the 4677 combo with the blue cars.

Or it could be that there was a store display and the engine/tender got mixed up when repacked.  I have a boxed set from 1931, which I bought from the original owner's son.  The story related to me was that the set was a Christmas display set and was purchased after Christmas.  All I know is that it is completely boxed, but came with the wrong setbox from 1931.  I can only guess that it was packaged in the wrong box after christmas.

NWL

I saw the only passenger set offered in 1938 with that engine and tender combo was the red cars you mention. The one thing I've learned about Flyer is that anything is possible.