My best Christmas memory is opening my Lionel 2035 steam engine when I was 5 years old. Last year Santa gave my son a Polar Express set which was well received. This year I am gifting a Lionel 364 lumber loader, operating track, and transformer to my 4 year old nephew who is getting a starter set.
Are you planning to gift any train items this year? What are you getting and who are you getting it for?
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Last year, I gave a Lionel Bluetooth set to our church fundraiser dinner. The winner turned around and handed to a family with young children. They were ecstatic.
I am doing the same this year with a Lionel Bluetooth Christmas set.
My newborn son (he will be 8 months old in December) will be receiving a new-old-stock conventional Thomas O gauge set for Christmas. He already has a battery powered Thomas Brio set, and I have many G gauge Thomas sets that he has seen, but this will be his first train set.
He's gotta start sometime...
@DMASSO posted:Last year, I gave a Lionel Bluetooth set to our church fundraiser dinner. The winner turned around and handed to a family with young children. They were ecstatic.
I am doing the same this year with a Lionel Bluetooth Christmas set.
That's a classy thing to do!
-Greg
Thank you Greg.
My six month old first grandson will be continuing a family tradition dating back to my dad’s first Christmas in 1927 - receiving a Lionel train set from Santa Claus for his first Christmas. In the immediate instance, grandpa will be subbing for Santa - just to make sure. 😉
Curt
Every year I give each of my boys the Lionel Christmas car.
My kids, of course.
Such a bargain, too. They think Lionel trains cost premium money because of the prices they see in the catalogs. What they get is new in box stuff left over from 2017 or 1995 or 1989 that I pick up in the $10-25 range. They're still too naive to know the difference.
@hokie71 posted:Ok, I hate to gripe (and apologies to the OP) but when did the word giving get replaced with gifting? give is a verb and gift is a noun. what in the blank does gifting mean? When do we start with other nouns like muffin? we could turn into muffining? I rest my case!
With all due respect, hokie, according to the Miriam Webster dictionary, gift is a noun AND a verb. Both gifting and gifted are acceptable verbs.
Since 2009, our family gave a NIB Lionel set to some lucky kid at my daughter's special needs school. He picked the name out of a hat. Good times. My daughter graduated this past May, so we won't be doing that anymore. This little tradition will be missed.
My daughter asked for a train this year. Couldn't believe it! So excited to give this to her!
My 32-year-old daughter Emily will be getting (at her request) the G gauge "Emily" from the "Thomas the Tank Engine" line.
“Giving trains for Christmas “
Probably my son when I see him in Jan. Maybe a passenger set from my roster.
Yes. Me. 
Also, my 15 month old grandson will be getting a couple of “Thomas” things, etc., plus a Little Engineer’s Cap (of course). His dad will have an LGB starter set around the Christmas tree, too.
Two Grandsons getting MTH Freight sets and the third grandson getting an MTH Barn. Holding out for a hogwarts set but who know. One grand daughter might be lucky.
I am giving my grandson (Alex 1 1/2 years) The Lionel “Candies” train set. It’s a nice Christmas set headed by a LionChief + 2.0 Docksider and includes 4 candie dump cars, a egg nog tanker and a candie caboose. Got it from Charlie Ro for what I considered a great price,
JohnB
Well I gifted two to myself, does that count? When your daughter figures out that she can't eat her new train, give me a call, I'll take that one off your hands. 
For the first year in, oh, almost 20, we're not giving either of our boys any train stuff this year. The younger one is out on his own and struggling, so he needs practical gifts this year. The older is buying himself some trains, but his tastes have gotten too expensive for our Christmas giving, Legacy engines and so forth 
He's getting some reenacting gear, some tools, and a manifold for his '47 John Deere B (SHHHH! He knows nothing about that gift!).
I am getting a train,however. Rumor, at least, has it that there will be a prewar Flyer Wide Gauge Sesquicentennial set under the tree for me. (And, yes, my wife paid considerably less for it in C6+ condition than we would pay for any Legacy engine.)
@palallin posted:Nevertheless, the use of gift as a verb is a neologism that most people don't use in colloquial conversation.
Sorry… it’s not so “neo”. Per Miriam Webster, “Gift has been used to mean ‘to present someone with a gift’ for 400 years”. Ever since I was a kid long ago, there have been legends about families regifting a fruitcake for decades 
@Apples55 posted:Sorry… it’s not so “neo”. Per Miriam Webster, “Gift has been used to mean ‘to present someone with a gift’ for 400 years”. Ever since I was a kid long ago, there have been legends about families regifting a fruitcake for decades
Your dialectical experience notwithstanding, that usage is not common in Standard American English, and its use 400 years ago was technical and specific. Only recently has it crept into general use.
My younger son is getting a Lionel Texas Special Alco PA-1 AA pair. I expect he will be pretty excited.
It's surprising to see how many amateur editors there are out there. 
Maybe you should volunteer your services to OGR magazine? 
Just kidding - all in the spirit of giving each other a hard time.
I'm happy to see many people out there gifting, giving, hoarding, and enjoying the hobby with their families. Keep them coming!
2-year-old granddaughter is getting a Harry Potter battery-powered set.
One of my daughters and a granddaughter received “Girls Sets” for Christmas last year, still looking for one more Girls Set for middle daughter. I also send a 6464 series boxcar set to a nephew’s and a niece’s children every Christmas. Nothing like getting FaceTimes from excited kids that they have more trains to play with!
This isn't necessarily gifting at Christmas but the mother of one of my oldest son's friends contacted me that his starter set transformer shelled out and he wanted to start to build his first layout over winter break and if I could recommend something she could buy to replace it. Instead of recommending something, I replaced the cord on a 1033 I had sitting around and gave it to him at Scouts last night along with a box of O27 track.
@artyoung posted:My 32-year-old daughter Emily will be getting (at her request) the G gauge "Emily" from the "Thomas the Tank Engine" line.
Has she ever seen this?
Made me love the name Emily the first time I ever heard it. Hope your daughter enjoys the gift for many happy years to come.
@DMASSO posted:Last year, I gave a Lionel Bluetooth set to our church fundraiser dinner. The winner turned around and handed to a family with young children. They were ecstatic.
I am doing the same this year with a Lionel Bluetooth Christmas set.
A wonderful example of the season, can only imagine how thrilled they were to get it. Very generous of you both. Not at your level, TrainFest didn't have either the car or book I'd been looking for so it ($$) bought dinner for a unknowing lady and her kids at the next table.
Gifting legacy sets (family owned) to the youngun's has been fun. My brothers Set #3105W with a 1666 locomotive went to his grandson (w/wife and 3 kids) two years ago. His other grandson received the Polar Express (and Dept 56) this year, and earlier this month the grandson of a deceased Colonel (I work with the Colonels daughter) received a still in the original box, Outfit #501 from 1955. Why keep them in boxes when they can run and make memories. Sis received a 264E Red Comet Set (1935) last year because she was only allowed to have the 'old junk' (a Red Comet Set beat up and gone) when we were growing up - it's on a shelf now. And again, last year we gave her son a 2340 GGI and the three Tuscan Madisons that were my fathers pride and joy after the war. Isn't it great when we go to their houses during the Holiday Season and let them make 'our memories' come alive all over again. And I don't store them any more either!
BTW - The Colonel was retired USAF, he was a veteran of the last battle of the Vietnam War (Mayageuz Incident in May 1975). His 13 year old grandson Alex is a Train man, he loves them, he has ridden the rails at Strasburg and a local (to Arlington Va) Steam Train, and he has traveled to England to ride their rails and touch the Flying Scottsman (I have the Postcard). Good kid, he is dabbling in O gauge and smaller (00 ?). No Dad though. So...we take care of our own.
Chuck242 (Navy 65-69/Army 72/95) Make sure you catch the Army Navy game this weekend! (I root for Navy in the first half, Army second half, and always leave as a winner!
@CurtisH posted:Two Grandsons getting MTH Freight sets and the third grandson getting an MTH Barn. Holding out for a hogwarts set but who know. One grand daughter might be lucky.
Current Lionel Hogwarts Express now at Costco for $299. The photos used by Costco shows older set, but it is newer BT Lionchief One.
@jlm1973 posted:This isn't necessarily gifting at Christmas but the mother of one of my oldest son's friends contacted me that his starter set transformer shelled out and he wanted to start to build his first layout over winter break and if I could recommend something she could buy to replace it. Instead of recommending something, I replaced the cord on a 1033 I had sitting around and gave it to him at Scouts last night along with a box of O27 track.
Sounds like a nice unexpected gift to me!
@AJH4 posted:Current Lionel Hogwarts Express now at Costco for $299. The photos used by Costco shows older set, but it is newer BT Lionchief One.
Looked on their site and do not see it.
I can't believe not one of our older forum members has mentioned the forum would give away dozens of sets each year around 20 years ago and did it for a few years. It took a lot of work. First the forum members would donate money - anything at all, from one dollar to hundreds. While they were collecting money, we were also finding Santas. People who knew a family that could not afford a luxury as a few hundred-dollar train set and volunteered to deliver the set come Christmas. I remember one year Tony Lash up and donated 15 MTH starter sets alone which was a great help to the cause. In later years we added accessories to the basic starter sets. I don't remember why it stopped but it was a ton of work but there were lots and lots of happy boys and girls.
Our gift went out three weeks ago and is already set up and running under the Christmas tree in Seattle. The set, a Lionel LionChief Harry Potter Hogwarts Express, found at a local auction had been opened but never run, the cardstock protectors still between the trucks and bottom of the car bodies, no sign of wear on the wheels (I don't think they ever touched a track). My fiancee's 30 yr old daughter, a huge Harry Potter fan, was suprised and is thrilled as is her fiance (her dog and cat maybe not so much but appear curious from the Facetine calls). Funny I tried to find this set "used" for three years at a reasonable price as the fiancee' thought $389 for a new one a bit expensive but I lucked out this year. The set in it's original box with all components cost me just under $50.00, the shipping was another story, $110+ from Virginia to the Pacific Northwest.
As for other Christmas trains my nephews (the oldest now 17), my younger brother's three boys, have each gotten a separate sale Lionel engine (NY/NJ Metro Area road names), matching K-Line smoking cabooses to start, and each year after additional rolling stock, a motorized unit, and buildings from me for Christmas. The initial rolling stock and accessories for the boys was purchased by my mother and younger sister as Christmas gifts. All three boys now have their own unique set comprised of Lionel, K-Line, and Industrial Rail boxcars, tank cars, reefers, flat cars etc. One boy, the oldest, got the NYC streamline passenger set released in the mid-2000s for Christmas the first year to compliment the NYC steam engine I bought him.
My sister, nine years younger than me, has her own set, an uncataloged Macy's one with steam engine (headlight/smoke unit/whistle tender) from 1960, I found listed in NYC's Free Press newspaper for $50 and snatched up quickly while "in the city" one day, that was one of her Christmas gifts from my mom and dad (both now deceased) in the early 2000s.
As for my fiancee' and I we added an Industrial Rail reefer and a lighted non-operating Lionel poultry dispatch car this year to our fleet for under the Christmas tree it'll be pulled by my recently serviced Lionel #2056 steam engine with reproduction Williams tender. Now to add a K-Line bubbling water tower and K-Line rotating searchlight if I can find both at a reasonable price.
@BobbyD posted:Popped up for me:
I checked again too and it was still up and available. Please note that the image is wrong on the Costco and Lionel Store site for that model. The model number is the 6-85418 and it is the newer version with the white box and only one cut out for the controller and not displaying the loco. It ships in the Lionel cardboard outer box.
My number 2 grandson will be receiving his first train set from his Pop Pop. I debated on electric or battery power. Went with battery powered Thomas set this time around. He'll be 3 next year and I'm thinking when he turns 5 we'll go to electrics.
BobbyD and AJH4
Yep I see that on Costco site but as AJH4 pointed out that is a 2016 Production. Now without belonging to Costco and being close to a store, I can not check to make sure it is the newer version, as stated by both of you. My fear is if I purchase on line and I get it that it will be what is shown! For that price if it is the newer set that is a great price but I fear if ordering online you may get what you see. In today's world there are too many people claiming false advertising hence my suspicions. You may be getting exactly what you are seeing.
@Bill Sherry posted:I can't believe not one of our older forum members has mentioned the forum would give away dozens of sets each year around 20 years ago and did it for a few years. It took a lot of work. First the forum members would donate money - anything at all, from one dollar to hundreds. While they were collecting money, we were also finding Santas. People who knew a family that could not afford a luxury as a few hundred-dollar train set and volunteered to deliver the set come Christmas. I remember one year Tony Lash up and donated 15 MTH starter sets alone which was a great help to the cause. In later years we added accessories to the basic starter sets. I don't remember why it stopped but it was a ton of work but there were lots and lots of happy boys and girls.
Wow - I completely forgot about that! I remember the Santas would post pics and write-ups of the recipients. That was a great program while it lasted.
-Greg
@Bill Sherry posted:I can't believe not one of our older forum members has mentioned the forum would give away dozens of sets each year around 20 years ago and did it for a few years. It took a lot of work. First the forum members would donate money - anything at all, from one dollar to hundreds. While they were collecting money, we were also finding Santas. People who knew a family that could not afford a luxury as a few hundred-dollar train set and volunteered to deliver the set come Christmas. I remember one year Tony Lash up and donated 15 MTH starter sets alone which was a great help to the cause. In later years we added accessories to the basic starter sets. I don't remember why it stopped but it was a ton of work but there were lots and lots of happy boys and girls.
Yes, those were fun times during the Christmas season.
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