Any Santa Fe F3 Lionchief 2.0 sightings?

Latest email blast from Charles Ro says they are due in this week.

Anxious to see pics and video of the PRR F3's

Milwaukee Lionel Club Version delivered today. Merry Christmas

Which catalog shows the LC+ 2.0 F3s? I've got an old set of O27 FT AAs with early TMCC that might be up for replacement.

@jim911 posted:

Milwaukee Lionel Club Version delivered today. Merry Christmas

What paint scheme, postwar?

Bill

@raising4daughters posted:

Which catalog shows the LC+ 2.0 F3s? I've got an old set of O27 FT AAs with early TMCC that might be up for replacement.

The 2020 volume1 catalog. There was New York Central, Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, and Pennsylvania. The set in the original post was the 120th Anniversary Santa Fe freight set. There were also at least two uncatalogued F3 sets as well.

@NSBill posted:

The 2020 volume1 catalog. There was New York Central, Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, and Pennsylvania. The set in the original post was the 120th Anniversary Santa Fe freight set. There were also at least two uncatalogued F3 sets as well.

Thanks Bill, as typical, I didn't look closely enough and missed the LC+ 2.0 set.  Very enticing. Not particularly interested in the additional rolling stock, but could easily be enticed to replace my 2002 FTs with early TMCC with these F3s. Maybe not at $700, but if the street price comes down a bit, who knows.

Either way, would love to see them and see and hear the improvements over early TMCC.

Do you know if LC+ 2.0 makes the Railsounds specific to freight or passenger service as seems to be the case with MTH DCS engines? I know Lionel catalogued the Warbonnet scheme with both freight and passenger sets, but my understanding is that AT&SF used the Warbonnet for passenger and the blue-yellow University of Michigan scheme for freight. I've got AT&SF passenger cars, but no freight and would prefer passenger Railsounds if there's a difference.

Milwaukee Lionel Club version ??? - did I miss that ? - I know there's a Wabash prototype scheme being made

Milwaukee Lionel Club F3 Lionchief 2.0 version

@jim911 posted:

Milwaukee Lionel Club F3 Lionchief 2.0 version

Thanks for posting. Looks awesome. Enjoy 😊

@jim911 posted:

Milwaukee Lionel Club F3 Lionchief 2.0 version

Nice. I didn't see any mention of these at the Milwaukee Lionel Club website. Are they still available?

@raising4daughters posted:

Thanks Bill, as typical, I didn't look closely enough and missed the LC+ 2.0 set.  Very enticing. Not particularly interested in the additional rolling stock, but could easily be enticed to replace my 2002 FTs with early TMCC with these F3s. Maybe not at $700, but if the street price comes down a bit, who knows.

Either way, would love to see them and see and hear the improvements over early TMCC.

Do you know if LC+ 2.0 makes the Railsounds specific to freight or passenger service as seems to be the case with MTH DCS engines? I know Lionel catalogued the Warbonnet scheme with both freight and passenger sets, but my understanding is that AT&SF used the Warbonnet for passenger and the blue-yellow University of Michigan scheme for freight. I've got AT&SF passenger cars, but no freight and would prefer passenger Railsounds if there's a difference.

Good question. I don't think Lionel makes specific sounds for freight/passenger. I think it's just generic crew talking.

Bill

Will be interested in reviews and photos of that Santa Fe Lion Chief 2.0 Set with the postwar inspired rolling stock. Almost pulled the trigger on it but ended up passing. To be honest, already own all the actual PW cars anyway.

If your referring to the 120th deluxe set. I did pull the trigger but it will be a bit before I work with it as I have other projects first.

Any of the new LC+2.0 F3's turning up yet ??? - Love to see some reviews / thoughts

Thx

I received my Southern Pacific LionChief Plus 2.0 set from Charles Ro this week - earlier than Charlie had promised. The set runs great with a smooth, robust drive and well executed diesel sounds and horn. To respond to earlier comments, the crew dialogue has bee freshened and does not seem to be passenger or freight train specific. The tooling is identical to the post war model with numerous detail enhancements like lift rings and working classification lights.

Now I'm thinking about the new LionChief GG-1. Anybody get one yet?

Don, The Liochief+ 2.0 GG1s are great. I bought the single stripe version and the build quality is excellent and it has the best sounds I've ever heard on a GG1.

Thanks Gramps!

I've got a couple of MPC GG-1's that I love, but you can never have enough GG-1'S!

BTW regarding the crew dialog, while most of it is not freight train or passenger train specific, one line is: "We've got a lot of tonnage today - we'd better bunch in a lot of slack!". This doesn't sound like dialog from the front of the "Super Chief" but it is entertaining!

Hey BradFish1 - Any chance you can post a pic of the solid strips 4890 GG-1 ?

Thank You

PS - Thank you Don - They look great

@Don Winslow posted:

Thanks Gramps!

I've got a couple of MPC GG-1's that I love, but you can never have enough GG-1'S!

BTW regarding the crew dialog, while most of it is not freight train or passenger train specific, one line is: "We've got a lot of tonnage today - we'd better bunch in a lot of slack!". This doesn't sound like dialog from the front of the "Super Chief" but it is entertaining!

It's actually kind of funny if the GG1s have that crewtalk too. I was able to work for a couple of years for Norfolk Southern as a conductor in Delaware. There was still a few guys around that actually ran the real GG1s. I remember one of telling me how hard it could be for them to start a train. At speed they were awesome. But anyway, they would have to reverse the engine, and listen for the clinks of the knuckles as the slack was pushed in. I think he said it would take 30 to 35 cars, and then they would bring it forward just hard enough to not break the train apart to get going.

Bill

@dorfj2 posted:

Hey BradFish1 - Any chance you can post a pic of the solid strips 4890 GG-1 ?

Thank You

Here you go. The lighting isn't great sorry about that.

@Don Winslow posted:

I received my Southern Pacific LionChief Plus 2.0 set from Charles Ro this week - earlier than Charlie had promised. The set runs great with a smooth, robust drive and well executed diesel sounds and horn. To respond to earlier comments, the crew dialogue has bee freshened and does not seem to be passenger or freight train specific. The tooling is identical to the post war model with numerous detail enhancements like lift rings and working classification lights.

Now I'm thinking about the new LionChief GG-1. Anybody get one yet?

Is the top of the "Black Widow" paint on the nose gray? That's all wrong. It should be silver. Lionel got in correct on my 20 year old SP F3s....

Got the set today and here are some photos. Overall, I'm pleased.  Nice set. Haven't tested it yet. Enjoy!

No lid type box. Everything slides out.

New type packaging for locos?

I did fix the horn after seeing the photos.

Engines have metallic type paint on sides. Silver on top and bottom.

Lou - the top of my LionChief SP "Black Widow" is gray and not the correct silver.

Overall it's still a great locomotive. Your set looks great as well!

@NVisich posted:

Got the set today and here are some photos. Overall, I'm pleased.  Nice set. Haven't tested it yet. Enjoy!

Looks great! Love the metallic look. Hi please post a quick video if/when possible. Really thinking of picking one up from the folks in Lynbrook!

Thanks for posting.  I've owned a set of Santa Fe FTs with early TMCC along with a string of O27, red-striped passenger cars. Been thinking of upgrading to a set of F3s, but the slightly larger scale versions are enough bigger than the FTs that I didn't think they'd look right as replacements for the FTs. With these being LC+2.0 AND postwar-sized, I'm finding them hard to pass up if I can find them without the freight cars. I already have 2 milk cars, 2 Sunoco dome cars, a log car, and LL cabeese. 

NVisich, thank you for posting photos of 120 Anniversary F3 Set.  It looks spectacular.  Hopefully, it runs as good as it looks.  

@Don Winslow posted:

Lou - the top of my LionChief SP "Black Widow" is gray and not the correct silver.

Overall it's still a great locomotive. Your set looks great as well!

It looked like it might be gray. Thanks for confirming. It looks like it's decorated well. Too bad they didn't get the color right.

I must say I have mixed feelings about the SF set. I’m a big fan of postwar SF F3s, particularly the 2343s and 2353s, with a 2353 ABA being the prized possession from my childhood. (Boy did I run those to death.) The new set looks spectacular, but the “2353” engine shells depart from the originals in important ways, including the addition of grab irons on the nose, the absence of black ladders on the doors, the lack of “Built by Lionel” on the rear panels, the use of wire mesh vents on the roof, and most dramatically the extension of the nose yellow up towards the windshield. I’m all for changing and improving the representation of the iconic warbonnet on Lionel engines but would not have made these changes for a model that is expressly dedicated to the postwar 2353.

Chris - there's something to be said for both the classics and the new releases as well.

BTW I still run my 2343s to death...

Love the sight of your 2343s, Don. My all-time favorites!

The set is on display at Nicholas Smith Trains - looks nice

The number boards and vents on the nose of the engines have been modified from the "original" F3 mold - not sure if the complete "profile" of the nose of the cab has been changed ??? - let us know if anyone has one of the new LC+2.0 F3's

Thank you

Joe S

PS - Not a complaint just an observation - Thx

@Chris Dunn posted:

I must say I have mixed feelings about the SF set. I’m a big fan of postwar SF F3s, particularly the 2343s and 2353s, with a 2353 ABA being the prized possession from my childhood. (Boy did I run those to death.) The new set looks spectacular, but the “2353” engine shells depart from the originals in important ways, including the addition of grab irons on the nose, the absence of black ladders on the doors, the lack of “Built by Lionel” on the rear panels, the use of wire mesh vents on the roof, and most dramatically the extension of the nose yellow up towards the windshield. I’m all for changing and improving the representation of the iconic warbonnet on Lionel engines but would not have made these changes for a model that is expressly dedicated to the postwar 2353.

I was on the fence about this set, I am glad I held off. They got the red wrong, its not glossy, its flat like the original conventional classics release.

@ZWPOWER13 posted:

I was on the fence about this set, I am glad I held off. They got the red wrong, its not glossy, its flat like the original conventional classics release.

Noticed the same thing on the red.  While the engines look nice, it seems like the set was billed as a Lionel postwar F3 tribute set, I would expect them to be glossy red. 

The text from the catalog indicates that the set is postwar "inspired".   Overall I think it honors that description.  Yes, I would preferred a glossy red finish on the F-3s but I think that overall the set is pretty awesome.

@cwp_ogr posted:

The text from the catalog indicates that the set is postwar "inspired".   Overall I think it honors that description.  Yes, I would preferred a glossy red finish on the F-3s but I think that overall the set is pretty awesome.

Agreed. It’s a very nice set...and sounds great (except for the bell). The silver finish looks cool.

I will probably pass however since I don’t love the red.