lionel aquarium cars and radioactive boxcars

Paige...  one piece of advice I would offer is on the aquarium cars.... especially to someone starting out.  I have almost a dozen modern-era Lionel aquarium cars, & now that I have a couple from MTH, I will never buy Lionel's again-- until & if Lionel "ups" its game!  While Lionel charges the same amount for its aquarium cars as MTH does for its "action" cars (as it calls them), the MTH units are far better illuminated with two LEDs inside.  Lionel still uses the same, single pathetic incandescent bulb, placed mid-car, which really doesn't illuminate anything. 

Lionel's 6-26230 blue, 6-26215 yellow, 6-26271 purple and 6-26288 pink are simple 6464 style boxcars that glow in the dark.  The decoration includes the AEC logo on the left and a radiation symbol on the right.  The roof and doors are a complimentary color to the main body color.  Search AEC in O gauge on "the bay"and all of them should come up along with the tank cars and other AEC items Lionel has made over the years.

Now if you want a more special radioactive car...

You can seek out the hard to find Three Mile Island commemorative boxcar.

I modified mine a bit...  (maniacal laugh...)  Amazing what you can do with a bit of glow paint and a black light!

That Three-Mile Island car was a privately decorated venture & not an official Lionel release, just to note.

Yep.  They also bought McCoy boxcars and did them as TMI's in Standard Gauge which are harder to find.

RadioRon posted:

Paige...  one piece of advice I would offer is on the aquarium cars.... especially to someone starting out.  I have almost a dozen modern-era Lionel aquarium cars, & now that I have a couple from MTH, I will never buy Lionel's again-- until & if Lionel "ups" its game!  While Lionel charges the same amount for its aquarium cars as MTH does for its "action" cars (as it calls them), the MTH units are far better illuminated with two LEDs inside.  Lionel still uses the same, single pathetic incandescent bulb, placed mid-car, which really doesn't illuminate anything. 

I was looking at an MTH aquarium car and the description indicated that it needs an activation track to operate.  Would that be correct ?

The MTH aquarium cars I have seen, have an on/off switch underneath. The early ones had teething troubles with the belts that have the moving items printed on them, but that seems to have been improved.

Thanks Luke, but I got the impression from the description I read, that the MTH cars need an activation track also.  How would I know which cars are the early ones ?   Are there product numbers to look for ?

Dan Padova posted:

Thanks Luke, but I got the impression from the description I read, that the MTH cars need an activation track also.  How would I know which cars are the early ones ?   Are there product numbers to look for ?

Hello Dan Padova

I have one of the MTH Railking # 30-79280 blue marlin aquarium car and comes with the on/off switch to operate the car.  There is NO need for the activation track section for this type of car.  I have purchased this car almost 7 years ago and just fully serviced it this evening. This car is my best trouble free action car I have bought.  It is a very well made car.

"be kind and loving to each other. Forgive each other the same as God forgave you through Christ" Ephesians 4:32 ERV (Easy to Read version)

Tiffany

Bought my wife a Lionel penguin aquarium car and was opening it up thinking of LEDs. It has two incandescent bulbs in it not one.

Dan Padova posted:

I was looking at an MTH aquarium car and the description indicated that it needs an activation track to operate.  Would that be correct ?

Hi Dan.   No, not at all regarding that activation track.  I believe one of my MTH aquarium cars has a sticker on the outside of the box falsely indicating that an activation track is needed.  I guess that was just an error in packaging.  Nope, as others have said above, MTH cars have two LEDs, are motorized & have an on-off switch on the bottom.

Scotie posted:

Bought my wife a Lionel penguin aquarium car and was opening it up thinking of LEDs. It has two incandescent bulbs in it not one.

That is interesting, Scotie.  That one may be the only Lionel aquarium car made in the last 20 years with two lights.  All the ones I have are equipped with just one.  Is that penguin car the one they did in '98 or so with TMCC ... & has the big black undercarriage assembly for the electronics & sound effects?  That was a pretty unique offering, so I wouldn't be surprised if it may have been given two lights.      

Finally found the box, its 6-26820 made in China, two lights and a can motor. Don't know the year.