1958 AF Hudson Set

The cab number stamped on the engine was not provided. I am guessing it is 21130, not 21129. The key is the 24558 Christmas Tree car, it was only made in 1959 and 1960. There is no way it could be part of a set purchased in 1958. The contents of your set match those of set #20530, the "Night Hawk" with one exception. 20530 set was cataloged in 1959 and 1960, it had a C&O Pipe Car rather than the 25016 Lumber Unloading Car. The 1958 set had the B&M boxcar and the lumber unloader but not the 24316 Mobilgas tank car.

If the engine cab is stamped 326 or 21129 then you have a set that was sold in 1959 with some mix and match pieces. The 21129 has a rarity of 5 and is by far the most valuable Hudson.

Here's a picture of the engine and tender with their boxes. I left it full size to allow for a closer examination. Thank you for the information.

That is a 1958 Hudson! The 24558 was definitely purchased in 1959, the 100W transformer was 1958, the 1959 sets had a 50W transformer. The 1958 set had the action caboose, the 1959 set had a regular caboose. The 935 is a 1957 only, non action caboose, not unusual it could appear in a later year set. The track switches. were not part of the set.

Tom,

Thank You for all the specific information.  I sorted through the boxes this morning and found some silver tubes that I think are pipe loads for a flatcar or gondola. I don't  have a car or box for either one. With some of the missing pieces and the Christmas tree car; I'm guessing  he put the set together over a couple of years. I believe his purchase date is correct because he aligned it with his marriage date. He told me several times that he and his wife were married for barely 2 months when she told him to buy it. They ran the train exclusively at Christmas and his wife constructed a display for it to be placed around the tree.  Maybe he couldn't afford the entire set in 58, who knows? It's always a privilege for me to speak with the original owner. Don is 91 years old and is very pleased that I accepted the stewardship of his Christmas Train. One final question, you mention the Hudson is rare, should I clean and service the engine or leave it untouched as a display piece.

Regards Steve

The plastic tubes are the pipe load for the original C&O gondola. The loads are normally harder to find than the empty gondola. Sounds like you have it figured out. It is the 1958 set with some add on items. The caboose is likely original, Gilbert did substitutions like this, so the set box contents may not match the catalog exactly.

Servicing the engine is ok. Clean and relube the gears, clean the commutator, put in new brushes and springs if needed. It sounds like the engine does not have a lot of run time, just a spray of the commutator with some contact cleaner may be enough. I use a soft brush to keep the engines clean, a damp cloth wiped over the surface may also be used. Do not wipe any white stampings, the moisture will remove the ink. Surest way to damage the cab numbers, or the stampings on the tender. Hopefully the reverse unit works. It is a two position unit mounted on the rear of the motor. It is ok to carefully give it a light spray with contact cleaner. These are almost impossible to repair when they fail.

The 21129 has a plastic rather than diecast tender shell. Two different engine chassis were used, one is a solid chassis with white tires, the other is a two piece chassis with aluminum tires. Yours is the solid chassis, there is no difference in value.

You have a great set.

I recommend you get it serviced and then run it - the entire set.  That will provide it the homage it deserves and you a great deal of pleasure.  In fact, if at all possible, after that share its rejuvenation and operation with the original owner.  The sights, sounds and smell of Flyer in good tune is a very evocative and memorable experience.  I would not recommend the spray-and-pray approach, but instead a thorough overhaul by an AF technician experienced in servicing specifically that model of AF Hudson and/or its sister the 21130.  It is soon 65 years old and deserves to be disassembled, cleaned, with what's worn replaced, broken repaired, missing installed, and then reassembled, lubed, tuned, and tested on a layout with and without a train in tow.  Why?  So it can and will really run like it should and have its best chance of continuing to do so for years to come.  Unless you're that experienced person, this model is not the one to start DIY repairs with. For starters, it has a barrel-commutator motor (not flat-face) such that you must remove the chassis from the locomotive's shell in order to access it and its side-mounted brushes all the while being careful of the two-position reverse unit is attached to the back of the motor with its own idiosyncrasies and features to be aware of including fine grounding wires and the like.  The cars should also get checked out with at least their wheel sets inspected, cleaned, gauged, and side frame axle sockets lightly oiled (the effect of their original graphite impregnation are not to be solely relied on any longer).  You've got something special here in terms of postwar AF (heck aren't they all) with a terrific and personal back story that in my opinion should get experienced professional attention so as to gain a second lease on life.  

I suggest you ask the tech that might do this job how many postwar Flyer steam engines they've ever overhauled (not simply made a fix to here and there), how many 21130's (and the like) in particular, and for customers you can contact who have had their postwar locomotives serviced by them.   There are a lot of toy train repair generalists and AF repair wanna-be's out there for whom perhaps some other Flyer steam engine might be appropriate for them to gain more AF engine repair experience from, but not this one.  Also, be mindful of places with a staff of multiple AF repair people.  Their staff turns over like any place of employment.  Some techs behind the curtain have gobs of credible experience, others do not.  Ask to talk specifically to the tech who would work on your loco and ask the same questions of them.   Why?  Let's just say I've seen and serviced more than my fair share of AF engines "worked on by someone else already" (sometimes more than one shop) or "I thought I'd just do it myself", that would have been better off not meddled with.    

If you got 'em, run 'em.  They're trains, not trophies.  Enjoy.  

Dave,

Thanks for the reply. Don't worry, I have a great deal of experience with Lionel's, which include complete engine overhauls. I looked this engine over this weekend to asses the different commutator arrangement. It's certainly different from the other flyer engines I've serviced (360,312,322AC). I appreciate your advise and will be cautious.  I asked about running it because Tom said it was a rare piece. I collect all types of things and wanted to know what was acceptable in terms curating a toy train. Some times items should be left in an aged state. Although, I believe that anything mechanical should be tuned and maintained to operational standards. With that being said, this locomotive has been serviced within the last ten years (just a guess) and appears to be in excellent mechanical condition.  I'll oil the wheels, check the worm gear grease and put it on the track to see how she runs. I'll not make it a display piece but will run it easy to avoid derailments. Maybe I can find the rest of the cars in the set and set it up one more time for Christmas. I think Don would appreciate seeing his Choo-Choo, riding the rails again, under a Christmas tree.

Regards

Steve

A quick follow-up for anyone following this topic. I serviced the engine today and cleaned everything up. I'm glad it needed to be serviced because I discovered a few things. It was built in march of 1958 and had the date stamped on the insulating pad above the motor. Nothing major, just a couple of sloppy solder joints and few wires needing replaced. The worst one was on the E-unit, a broken connection and a brittle wire from the motor brush. After completing the service, I did a test run and was really impressed. The engine is very smooth at low power and accelerates extremely well. One good thing, the traction tires are in nice shape. It will be fun finding out how many cars this old baby will pull. Thanks for the comments.

Steve

Isn't it cool that Gilbert thought to put on a "birth date" like that?  🙂

Mark in Oregon

Fantastic Steve. I hope the original owner gets to se it running again.