What was the first year for Lionel to make a Christmas box car?
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I have all of them since 1986, have not seen anything earlier than that.
Lionelbill, neat.
I have all 1990's and am considering going after the rest. The newer ones seem more expensive.
Just saw on E bay #6-7813 from 1977?
- I believe Lionelbill is right, in part. 1986 was the first offered to the public. Attending the 1986 LOTS Convention Lionel introduced the Christmas Box Car but said before that year they were only made for employees and dealers; but yet I don't believe I've ever seen others ever listed in Greenberg, etc.
Redball
Here's the rundown on Lionel Christmas boxcars.
1973-1978: Season's Greetings cars primarily for dealers only, although some employees received them.
1985, 1991-present: Employee Christmas cars. The first employee car (1985) actually predated the consumer cars the next year. This car was given to employees returning to their old jobs after the failed move to Mexico, and remains the most difficult and expensive car to date. Employees received regular Christmas cars from 1986-1990, when cars exclusively for them were produced again starting in 1991.
1986-present: Regular Christmas cars.
I hope this helps-
Todd
How are the employee cars different? Is it easy to tell which ones are employee (or dealer) cars and which ones are for the public?
Originally Posted by ricklab:
Lionelbill, neat.
I have all 1990's and am considering going after the rest. The newer ones seem more expensive.
Just saw on E bay #6-7813 from 1977?
Be patient, I've seen most of the cars from the 90's to recent go for $20 or less on the bay. Since I buy the new cars every year, as Christmas gifts from my children 
, I pay close to msrp.
Originally Posted by Gandalf97:
How are the employee cars different? Is it easy to tell which ones are employee (or dealer) cars and which ones are for the public?
With one exception, the employee cars have completely different designs and 6- product numbers than their regular counterparts. In many cases, the designs were selected from an internal design contest among Lionel employees. 1991 is the sole exception to the statement about unique designs, as Lionel took the regular production Christmas car and added an additional pad-print hit that said "Thanks to a great team!" with Richard Kughn's signature.
As for telling them apart, one way is the product label on the box which sometimes (but not always) will be labeled Lionel Employee Christmas Boxcar or some variation of those words. Otherwise, it's best to do some research as to which exact cars are the employee versions.
Regards,
Todd
