Lionel AC-12 old vs. new

The new one costs 70% more. Are the features worth that? Most of my locomotive roster is previous models, sold cheap because someone wanted the latest and greatest. But they only stay the latest and greatest until the next model comes out.

I just found another older one but new in box at a different hobby shop for $1299, supposedly it is too late to get on the order list, according to the shop I just called.

Call Patrick's Trains in Morgantown, WV. They're a forum sponsor and their banner will be at the top of the page-if not, keep refreshing it and it'll appear.

other sponsors may be able to help also. Calling around can save you money.

I have the older AC12 and it is just fine for the money, $1300. NIB, eight years ago.  

When the new ones come out, there will be some of the old ones available on the secondary market. Keep an eye on eBay and the buy/sell section of this forum. If you have some patience, you can get a nice older model for probably a lot less than the prices you are seeing now.

The price of the new ones will probably start to spike right about now and stay high until several months after they start coming out. Lots of folks are asking themselves the same questions; should I try to find a new one, even if I have to pay a premium? Real or not, that perceived shortage drives the price up.

There should still be some new legacy ones available online (for around 1300) if you look hard enough. I would not recommending paying $1000 plus for the old TMCC one when you can buy the legacy one for a few hundred more.

Most people will try and say that it isn't worth the extra money for legacy but I would dissagree. I have sold off all my old tmcc engines and replaced them with their newer legacy counterparts and am very happy I did so. IMO it's worth it simply for the extra speed steps which means much smoother running in addition to the many other features that the newest legacy engines have.

That being said, the tmcc one is a very nice engine and it does have the RS 5.0 sound set. I sold my old tmcc one for $750 to another forum member and if you can find one around that price I would say that is reasonable for what you are getting. Otherwise I would say hold off till you find a legacy one.

I had the older version and have the new one. Get the new one for $1300 !! Whistle steam and improved sound are worth $300 more ! Try Nicholas Smith in PA.

I saw a couple of the Legacy versions at York last April. 1200 to 1500. My colleague bought one but I opted out. I was tapped out honestly, and it was not on the hit list... maybe  next year. 

Its feast or famine for these... there will be plenty of time to find one.

IMO buy the legacy version if your spending more than a "buck" for it.

Chiming in here a bit late but I have both TMCC and Legacy AC-12 versions and an opinion on the basic issue of which to opt for.

The bodywork and exterior detailing are pretty much identical and is of a very high standard; you would not be disappointed in either.

The TMCC version has Railsounds 5, which I find in some respects (meaning engine-specific crewtalk) better than Legacy. The real difference is that the Legacy version has prototypical air compressor sounds, if that matters to you.

Obviously the TMCC version has pre-Legacy smoke and controls, including a smoke unit with the fiber-wrapped resistor that results in limited smoke output. I had to open up mine and get rid of that wrapping, which improved the output but not quite up to Legacy standards. The Legacy whistle smoke is a very nice feature too although the fact that the whistle outlet is right next to the main stack means it's hard to distinguish the two especially when the engine is moving at any real speed.

Deciding factor: As the TMCC issue is now 11 years old, the electronics are not what they are under Legacy and I'd be worried about the availability of spare parts in the future. Result: Opt for the newer version if you plan to run this engine a lot - the extra initial cost may save you repair/updating bills and effort in the future.

How do you mean "order" one? These were build to order locos that shipped sometime early last year. I got lucky and found one at Nicholas smith last month for 1300 and swooped it up. I havent run it yet cuz I'm in the middle of rewiring the layout. but if you find a legacy version for less than full retail snatch it up, theyve become hard to find