Happi Time Trains

Sears.

From photos, that set LOOKS original and with plastic diesels and metal cars, l would consider it an uncommon and desirable set.  What is the set number on the end of the box?  Bob Whitacre's Greenberg book on Marx sets puts sets with plastic E-7's in #40000-44999, and 45800-46975.  Sears (Happi-time) sets were numbered 9500-9999. Diesel freight sets with 1095 plastic Santa Fe and 3/16 metal cars are common and two are listed in Bob's book.  With the NYC diesels it is less common but  believable.

Many thanks for the information. I will check set number tomorrow when I get home. Right now everything’s packed in car for return journey to Ontario. Thanks again. 

Mines buried, but if memory serves me right, it looks like a correct set.

Steve

I dug in the burial and came up with two sets with plastic NYC E units and 3/16 cars.  One box is faintly lettered 09624??, and the other is too faint to read.  So l am sure yours is a legit set...mine are both in Happi-Time boxes.

Happi-Time was Sears’ original house-brand name for the Marx train line. In later years, they moved to calling them “All State.” Neat stuff!

Dave Warburton,

I remember the All State Brand from Sears. It was from the late sixties and early seventies time frame. I always wondered why Sears chose that name for these trains. I seem to remember that the All State Insurance company had a kiosk set up in our local Sears store when I lived in Florence, Alabama. I guess they sold insurance products inside the store. Could there have been some connection between the two?

Thanks to everyone who replied. Sadly, I can’t find a set number on the box anywhere, but am glad to know that it’s an original set. The most surprising thing to me was the condition of the box. A few frays at bottom edges of the box lid, and slight rust on the staples holding it together, but otherwise a total brick with all interior dividers present and in excellent shape. I’ve owned (and sold) Marx sets before, but this is the best I’ve seen in terms of condition. A keeper!!

Marx packaging was brilliant.  It is amazing how many Marx sets you'll find with good components, some in beat up boxes, and some as though never used, or put back in the box and forgotten after the holidays. The set number MAY be up in one of the corners of the box TOP.  Mine was very lightly stamped.

tncentrr posted:

Dave Warburton,

I remember the All State Brand from Sears. It was from the late sixties and early seventies time frame. I always wondered why Sears chose that name for these trains. I seem to remember that the All State Insurance company had a kiosk set up in our local Sears store when I lived in Florence, Alabama. I guess they sold insurance products inside the store. Could there have been some connection between the two?

Marx transitioned to the Allstate name in the 1955-56 timeframe. My bet is it was to promote and tie in to their insurance business. I believe Lionel Trains were also sold under the Allstate name.

Steve

Steve "Papa" Eastman posted:

tncentrr posted:

Dave Warburton,

I remember the All State Brand from Sears. It was from the late sixties and early seventies time frame. I always wondered why Sears chose that name for these trains. I seem to remember that the All State Insurance company had a kiosk set up in our local Sears store when I lived in Florence, Alabama. I guess they sold insurance products inside the store. Could there have been some connection between the two?

Marx transitioned to the Allstate name in the 1955-56 timeframe. My bet is it was to promote and tie in to their insurance business. I believe Lionel Trains were also sold under the Allstate name.

Steve

I don’t recall Lionel being sold under the All State brand, but perhaps. I know that Marx made many All State marked freight cars - tank cars and gondolas mostly - but I am not aware of any Lionel cars marked for All State, at least in the postwar period. I have several of the Marx All State cars myself.

So, I examined every surface of the box I could see with no results. I decided to start unloading the contents to look at the interior. I got as far as the track section and discovered an envelope at the bottom. Nothing unusual about this except for the fact that it was from the County of Northampton prison in Easton Pennsylvania. The contents, carefully removed, were generic instruction sheets with codes at the top right. The prison still operates in Easton, but what is its connection to the set? Possibly a train collecting warden?

I unearthed mine and it is set # 09624. Made from 53-54. It is the same as set 09626 except 09626 has Santa Fe diesels and caboose. The 0 in front of the set number is important, it ties it to the Happi-Time era. Without the 0, 9624 and 9626 are a number of variations of Allstate sets.

Steve

So, Steve, is mine the 09624? With the  NYC diesels? 

Bluecomet391 posted:

So, Steve, is mine the 09624? With the  NYC diesels? 

Yes

You can take pride in the fact that the NYC sets are much less common than Santa Fe sets, which are very common in several variations, with litho tin #21 ATSF diesels and plastic ATSF #1095's.  Lionel in that period offered those two roadnames: ATSF and NYC.  Marx offered New Haven, Rock Island, and Union Pacific plastic E's as well as those two roadnames, with the UP's maybe the least conmon.

Ooops!  Omitted two variations of Marx E's:  the Western Pacifics in common green and very uncommon silver.  This gave Marx four western roadnames.