K-Line Trainmaster #52 spelled “Virginia”

John;

        I just checked my KLine Virginian TrainMaster the name has the letter 'N' on both sides.

Thanks;

idea-thinker

I think I'd see if I could find a try transfer letter in the proper color and size and fix it.

Alright guys, you seem to be missing the point.  Part of the fun of this hobby is the screw ups that the factory makes.  If it really bothers you to own one of these there are plenty of other people who would like to have it.   Don't 'fix' it.  Pass it on.

maybe thats her name

@Bill DeBrooke posted:

Alright guys, you seem to be missing the point.  Part of the fun of this hobby is the screw ups that the factory makes.  If it really bothers you to own one of these there are plenty of other people who would like to have it.   Don't 'fix' it.  Pass it on.

I think you're missing the point.  You don't get to dictate what others do with their property.  If he wants to fix it, he's 100% entitled to do so.  If he wants to sell it, that's fine too.  Maybe he'll just put is in a box and hide it.

Not all of us are eagerly looking for factory screw-ups to proudly display.

@gunrunnerjohn Ha! Or maybe I should paint over the N on one side of the caboose?

@Bill DeBrooke Never thought I’d own anything rare, but you are right that it’s fun to have something that slipped through the QC department that wasn’t a mechanical related error!

@Dave Koehler It would have to be an MTK Katy spelled Kate to not arouse suspicious looks in this household. 😉

Hey John,

Leave it as is.  Probably worth more with the mistake than if you try to fix it and screw it up.

Last month,  I found a NIB Virginian caboose in the local flea market train shop in Culpeper,   for $10.00.

It had probably been on the shelf for 20 years.  :-O

Really cheezy translucent plastic windows though.  I'm gonna remove mine,  and put a yellow LED bulb inside.

Mannyrock

@Mannyrock I think I’ll keep it as is, but not going to be a display shelf engine. It runs too well not to give it time on the high iron.

The caboose - Sounds like a Minuteman Antique find? I’ve bought many NOS cars there at very good prices.

Yep, Minuteman,

But, with the covid virus outbreak, and the retirement of a really old fellow who use to work there and buy up old train layouts around the state, there has been virtually no new or used O Gauge stuff brought into that place for the 3 years I've been going there.  :-(

Mannyrock

The real mistake (originally courtesy of Lionel) is the blue color. The actual engines were black. It is also a Train Master, NOT a Trainmaster. Why would you expect a toy to be accurate. Leave it alone and ENJOY it! If you want to be paranoid about that kind of stuff, come on over to 2 rail!

ECI

@John E K posted:

@gunrunnerjohn Ha! Or maybe I should paint over the N on one side of the caboose?

That's a plan!

I don't mean to upset anyone but to dismiss the historical value (not the dollar value) of a 'factory error' is to dismiss an important facet of this hobby.  Some people collect 'factory errors' and they are an important part of this community.  Other people are collectors and not operators.  If it were not for the collectors this hobby might not have died in the 70's but it certainly would not have had the success that exploded from the 80's through the end of the century.

If you don't believe it, how do you explain your ability to buy NIB items and 'Displayed Only' items from all the manufacturers that produced product in that era.  Most of that product is not coming from train store warehouses but from collectors that have either passed on or are preparing to.

Yes!

Some people like to collect defective things.

Take my two wives for instance! 

Mannyrock

@Mannyrock posted:

Yes!

Some people like to collect defective things.

Take my two wives for instance!

Mannyrock

I also have many trains... & two former spouses.
Dennis.

@Hartman posted:

I also have many trains... & two former spouses.
Dennis.

Maybe you have two former spouses because you have too many trains!

Just checked mine, VIGINIAN on both sides.  See it's getting more rare by the minute!

@coach joe LOL Thanks for looking! I would be shocked if there wasn’t more of these out there. Fun to have something unique though 👍

I'm looking for one of these at a decent price myself - Don't care how it's spelled either!  LOL

Not sure if you have access to the old H. Reid book on Virginian.  On page 143 there is a picture of a wood caboose with Virginian lettering done by hand, and with one of the "n"s backwards.  A possible caboose candidate for your diesel?

Sorry for the necro but as I cannot find the info online, and you are one of the few with this model number--does it (the K-Line Trainmaster) run on O-31?

Also, what choice did you end up making with this engine?

Thank you.

Yes, the K-Line Trainmaster runs on O31 curves.

Sometimes a real loco gets a repaired panel and the lettering does not get re-added, at least not at first. Santa Fe apparently did this more than most, as there are numerous photos of ATSF hood diesels with things like "Santa Fe Fe" on the long hood. I have no idea if the Virginian ever did this in real life, but you could leave it and claim that this was seen once, after dark and in the rain....

If it were me, and it's not, I'd not want to mess up the mess-up.

@D500 posted:

Sometimes a real loco gets a repaired panel and the lettering does not get re-added, at least not at first. Santa Fe apparently did this more than most, as there are numerous photos of ATSF hood diesels with things like "Santa Fe Fe" on the long hood. I have no idea if the Virginian ever did this in real life, but you could leave it and claim that this was seen once, after dark and in the rain....

If it were me, and it's not, I'd not want to mess up the mess-up.

Ditto!!!!