Design the perfect train set.

I would have a steam locomotive like a 2-8-2 or 2-8-0.I would have 1 hoppercar 4 boxcars 1 flatcar 1 refboxcar 2 tankcars 1 gon another flatcar with a lumberload and cabosse.Track would have 2 switchs 10 pices of straight track.A railroad crossing hwy flashers.A warehouse or a small factory.A 130 watt transfor.

I would offer two versions...

 

1) The "No BS, just quality, have fun and run" set. 

 

-Williams or Lionel conventional engine. Diesel or steam doesn't matter.

-Handfull of freight or passenger cars. Perhaps 3 or 4. 

-Loop of Fastrack for ease of assembly. 

-Good transformer

-A few accessories such as a small bridge, perhaps a Plasticville type station, etc .

 

2) The "Advanced" set

-LC+ or PS3 engine. Diesel or steam - doesn't matter. 

-3 or 4 freight or passenger cars. 

-Larger loop of Fastrak. Maybe some sets can have a manual switch and siding kit or something. 

-Good transformer

-Perhaps a station or other scenery items. Can switch between siding and accessories. 

Similar to Seaboard Streak's, I would have one of those steamers or possibly a

4-6-0, 2-6-0, or a 2-6-2, three freight cars (to keep the set practical and "affordable").

a hopper of coal, a box car, and a reefer, and follow that with a combine coach caboose.  This would allow freight runs and caboose only passenger runs, in other

words, get as much play value out of the set as possible.  I might even add in another

coach for that reason, giving the buyer a freight and a passenger train, like Marx used

to do, in the same set.  SS's track choice seems good, but I would include a transformer, and, again, nothing else, to control the cost.  Also to control costs,

I would offer it as conventional (with a future option for an plug-in modular upgrade at more cost).

Perhaps a small tank engine (anything from 0-4-0T to 2-6-2T), two coaches, one luggage van, and three to four generic freight cars.  The track included would allow for either a closed loop or point-to-point track plan, with a minimum of four switches to allow the loco to run around the train at each end.  The concept of this set is to break away from the stereotypical closed loop track plan.  While there is nothing wrong with closed loops, I don't think too many people outside the hobby know that there are other ways to run trains.

I think Lionel already has this covered with the Pennsylvania Flyer starter set. Only thing I would change is to use a gondola in lieu of a tank car. Kids love to haul their toys around and they can hold a lot of Legos or Hot Wheels in one.

Though it might be a little pricey, I'd like to see five car unit trains with either a Mikado, early Geep, or late EMD hood unit, where all but the late diesel would have a caboose and the late diesel an end of train device on sixth unit freight car.

 

Train could be box cars, reefers, tanks, coal hoppers, etc.

I don't think there is a perfect set, because even if I had it, I would want another, but:

 

Vision ATSF A-B-B-A F3 set.

 

Twelve Vision 18" passenger cars

 

.

Legacy Mikado in military USRA paint scheme with heavyweight troop cars, a medical heavyweight car and flats with die-cast armor loads.

 

Steve, Lady and Tex

All I know is that it would be pulled by a steamer.  The rest is pretty much irrelevant.

-Greg

For starter sets  a Gp-9 or f-7 with three freight cars plus a caboose !

a oval of track & 100watt transformer.  

 

for middle road price set- same as above plus  extra straights   plus one  turn out & uncoupling track & bumper !

 

for higher price sets  offer a steam engine in Pacific or Mikado class instead of the diesel engine  !   the engine should have a fan driven smoke unit ! the sounds should be lion chief plus or proto sound 2 quality 

 

 

 

I built and ordered mine thanks to the Lionel 2014 catalogs.  The VL Big Boy, aux tender, 9 PFE reefers (One of which is the VL sounds reefer.), matching caboose, loop of O72 FasTrack, TMCC lockon, PowerHouse 180, and Legacy 990 command set.  Hopefully I'll have it complete before summer.