Anyone know is the Lionel Milwaukee Road Passenger Cars are ever going to ship?

I just started a thread the other day asking this same question. Got no response. I do remember sometime ago, hearing that they were having trouble with the dome on the one car. I don't know if that is still the problem though.

 

Bill

I remember hearing this as wel...  but 16 months worth of trouble?  Comon now...  Something must be up with this set?  Has Lionel put out any passenger cars at all lately? Or is it just this set we are waiting on?

It is kind of mind boggling why it is taking so long, especially with the roll they have been on. The only other passenger I can think of is the Zephyr made to go wth the F-units in the last catalog.

 

Bill

Assuming you're referring to the 18" aluminum cars...  The Charles Ro website still has the 2-pack available for ordering... and it's showing an ETA of 9/10/2012.  HOWEVER, I just checked the Lionel website and it's been recently updated to indicate October 2012 for these cars. 

 

Not sure how prototypical Lionel will be for the skytop observation car on this set.  They've certainly done similarly styled observation cars before, and the one in their Spirit of the Century set back around 2000 comes to mind.  So the tooling certainly exists already if they're basing the Milwaukee Road's "Cedar Rapids" skytop-style observation on that design.  However, if they're doing something unique in order to deliver something more exacting to the prototype, that could explain the continued delays.  And I'm fine with it, since my wallet could use a little break right now! 

 

There's also been some confusion surrounding the 2-pack for this set as well.  Originally, the catalog graphics depicted a regular vista dome car;  however, I've also seen newer graphics that depict a full vista dome -- which I think is more prototypical to images I've seen of the actual excursion train (check out 261.com for more info).  So hopefully, THAT's what we're gonna see delivered.

 

So for now... I guess we're all in waiting mode on this set.

 

David

Lionel did skytop observations for the Spirit set, as David notes, and also for a TCA special set, as well as for the Milwaukee Road passenger set from 1999. These were all 16" non-scale cars, however, not 18" scale cars like the forthcoming version, and most certainly the new car will be quite different from those traditional observations.

 

There have been so many issues due to the current manufacturing issues in China that it's hard to speculate as to the exact cause of delay with these cars. Probably a number of things. I'd guess the full vista is a big part of the delay. The full vista domes were prototypical on the Milwaukee, and to my knowledge Lionel has never done 18" scale full vistas before, so new tooling would have been required. Like David, I'm in no hurry - need to let the wallet come up for air first.  

 

I wonder if the upcoming Lionel MR passenger cars are going to be reissues of the K Line MR passenger cars that were made a while back.

Dan

Hopefully, there will be a sound car in the next catalog. Seems like they been blowing off the sound cars the last year or so, except for some in the new catalog.

 

The pendulum swings back and forth on this.  Sometimes Lionel will catalog the entire set in one catalog, while other years the entire set is spread out over a few years' worth of offerings.  Much easier on the wallet when they go with the latter approach, but then you just never know when that next add-on is gonna be offered. 

 

I agree though... StationSounds diners are a great addition to any series of passenger cars.  Hopefully we'll see one soon for the Milwaukee Road scale set as well as the Canadian Pacific scale set.

 

David

I think we've had enough time to save up for these.  They were originally cataloged in 2010.  Lionel can ship these for me anytime.  My S3 is getting lonely

 

Looking forward to that full dome, the only kind Milwaukee ran and hoping for a Mars light on the Cedar Rapids.

In addition to these Milwaukee Road cars I have a couple of engines on order. One MTH and one Lionel so a little breathing room plus a couple additional delays would be perfect for me!

I was really hoping I could put thes under the Christams tree last year. Now here I am again hoping I will get them under the tree again this year. Enough is enough. Its time Lionel!

Weren't these canceled?
I gave up and bought some killer K-line cars. The 18 and 21 inch cars are beautiful!

No... these have not been cancelled.  They're still on Lionel's shipping schedule for October 2012.  And some of the larger dealers are still accepting orders.  Charles Ro was accepting orders only on a "standby" basis for awhile, but they've recently been accepting regular orders for the 2-pack again.  Whether this is because some folks have gotten tired of waiting and cancelled... or whether it's because they got word of increased inventory becoming available when these ship, I don't know.

 

Bottom line... I expect these to be a fine addition to the Milwaukee Road S3 locomotive, which has hands-down been Lionel's best price/performance steamer in quite some time.

 

David

Well the Lionel shipping schedule now has delivery of these sharp-looking passenger cars scheduled for DECEMBER 2012.  Perhaps they'll arrive in Santa's sleigh!!!  We can still hope, right???  

 

David

a little more time to save for them

Looking forward to these shipping. Hope to see them this year.

Typical From Lionel.  Couple days away from the shipping month and they push it back another 2 months.  Been going on for  a year and a half now.  Was in the same spot last year hoping they would arrive in time for Christmas. Only problem this yea is that I am really tight on money, and if they do come in time for Christmas I may not have the cash for them anyway.  But I am not that concerned. I doubt they will be ready then anyway.  I do wish we knew what the big hold up on these is though.

 

John, I've still got to go to work tomorrow even though the schools are off.     Lots of watches still need fixing.  

Short answer to the delays -----China were at the mercy of there manufacturing schedule.

 

wonder what other countries thought back in the day when the USA was a manufacturing giant.

 

just my opinion.

 

MichRR714,  you could run some freight behind it for now. I myself had purchased a set of MTH Milwaukee passenger cars so my S-3 is very happy.

hope you all get your cars soon.

$oo

This discussion makes me glad that I decided to run my 261 with period cars and not bother with the excursion train. 

Go back and check some of the many recent Forum threads discussing the current problems with Chinese production, including commentary from some of the train importers/manufacturers themselves. All the companies are currently being adversely affected. Among other probelms, Bachmann bought one of the major manufacturers, and everyone else was booted out, and most of the other Chinese companies are small/have problems/have gone broke, so it's a difficult situation for all the train companies right now, Lionel among them.

I have 3 engines coming over the next year.... My next lawaway is the Lionel BNSF Northern Pacific SD70 Ace. Then I have the MTH Nickel Plate Road ES44 and Milwaukee Road F7. Plus I'm nervous that the new catalogs might have something that is just a must have... You know a Northern Pacific SD45, U25B, U30C, etc.. or a Milwaukee Road GP30, GP40, or SD40-2.  If they delay the Milwaukee Road passenger cars I'm okay with that...it gives me time. :-)

May 2013

Please try and get these shipped soon Lionel. My passengers are getting a bit fed up with having to squeeze themselves into O-27 Polar Express coaches all of the time, even though they are being pulled by the beautiful Legacy Milwaukee F7s. (The California Zephyr passengers have an even tighter squeeze, as they have only 3 O-27 pullman cars )  I keep explaining to them that the new coaches are on order, and that soon they will be able to relax in streamlined comfort, but tempers, and nerves, are getting frayed by the endless delays. At least two passengers have jumped off of the platform in recent weeks.

As a short term measure, I've just ordered a set of Williams 72' coaches to help ease the strain as the Polar express coaches are needed for Christmas duties. 

 

I wonder if these will be Lionel smooth side cars or K-line cars?
I like the glass on the K-line cars better. However the interiors are better on the Lionel version. Anyone know?

Honestly, I doubt anyone at Lionel even knows the answer to that question anymore.  They, like us, are at the mercy of what comes off the overseas production line these days.  And scale passenger cars don't seem too high on the priority list right now.  

 

David

i just hope and pray lionel doesn't cancel production. my s3 and i have been waiting on order over a year.

Check my latest shipping updates

Don't worry, guys...your trains will be delivered. Here's a little video of happy workers marching to the factory to make them. 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A9e1hlv1ro

 

Charlie, don't scare us like that!!!  You had me going for a second.  Unless those Milwaukee Road passenger cars are written in invisible ink (and you know something we don't), they don't seem to be on that list.    Some things just have to wait, I guess.

 

David