lionel postwar 2356 questions!!

Without actually seeing them in person, they are worth between 450- 750.00 depending on condition. You can watch Ebay to see what they are going for now with this economy. There are a few shops that sell these for upwards of 3000.00(c8+ condition), although I don't know WHY people actually pay it. If it were me, I would keep them in the family and run them occassionally. All mechanical parts can be had for these. The ones you have are a bit more rare. Your hobby shop probably hopes you will buy something new to run.
Welcome to the forum. You can find the answer to just about anything train related here.
Rob

It's not mint, so running them won't really do anything to the value (others may disagree). They were made to be used, so RUN them. Just take a little more care in doing so because as you know, they are fairly rare.

If you think the kids will be rough on them, I'd think about investing in a starter set for them to play with. Otherwise, have at it.

That being said, nice looking engine.

An alternative to a starter set would be to purchase a set of MPC F units, these were made by Lionel/MPC Fundimensions in the '70's and '80's, and can be had for not a lot of money, the kids can enjoy them without worrying about damaging a vintage pair of locos. But by all means run the Southerns, that is what they were made for, all those years ago. And when you run them, think about your Grandfather running them and enjoying them. Memories are more important than things.

thanks guys for all the feedback!! starting to think i wanna add to the set with a b unit (if they made one for these) and some cars to go with them!

Keep them and run them if that's what you want to do. I'm sure they have more of sentimental than monetary value.

Paul

I'd run them!! Nothing like an old postwar engine, esp when it has ties to the family!

they did make a B unit for i, although it's a bit hard to find.

If you wanted to put together a set, the 2231W from 1954 would be a cool place to start.

Besides the B unit, all the cars should be easy to get.

They are -
6561 Flatcar w/ Cable Reels
6511 Flatcar with Pipes
3482 Operating Milk Car
6415 3 Dome Sunoco Tank Car
6417 Porthole Caboose



Lionel Catalog - 1954 - Page 26 by Christopher & AmyCate, on Flickr



Lionel Catalog - 1954 - Page 27 by Christopher & AmyCate, on Flickr

quote:

An alternative to a starter set would be to purchase a set of MPC F units, these were made by Lionel/MPC Fundimensions in the '70's and '80's, and can be had for not a lot of money, the kids can enjoy them without worrying about damaging a vintage pair of locos.

But interest in MPC is on the rise, and it's only a matter of time until MPC equipment (hard as it is for some to accept) is going to be "vintage" as well.


As to the OP's question: yes, by all means run them -- but don't abuse them, and keep small kids away from them until they're old enough to handle them responsibly. That's what starter sets are for.

I would think at 40 years for some of it, MPC has reached that status now. The MPC F3s are not that cheap & the single motor units are not the best of runners if you have them pulling a dummy B, Dummy A & cars. I've managed to swap out the motor.power trucks on my early MPC F3s to postwar ones & they run a lot better that way.

Don't forget that you can get exact copies of your units, plus B unit, from Williams for about $230.00. They will run forever.I would definately do that before buying MPC units.
Rob

quote:

Originally posted by Christopher2035:
I'd run them!! Nothing like an old postwar engine, esp when it has ties to the family!

they did make a B unit for i, although it's a bit hard to find.

If you wanted to put together a set, the 2231W from 1954 would be a cool place to start.

Besides the B unit, all the cars should be easy to get.

They are -
6561 Flatcar w/ Cable Reels
6511 Flatcar with Pipes
3482 Operating Milk Car
6415 3 Dome Sunoco Tank Car
6417 Porthole Caboose

I've always been sort of amused by how the paragraph describing this set in the 1954 catalog ends: "One of the most wonderful sets in the world." It just seems to sort of trail off--maybe the copy writer got a little wistful, wishing he could afford one himself!

Run them and enjoy them! Thats what they were made for. Their "value" evaporated after 1990 or so amd its not likely to return.

Youve got a nice set of original, fully serviced F3s, considering a copy would be a none starter for me.

I would like to know what they did for $150 also! G

quote:

Originally posted by GGG:
I would like to know what they did for $150 also! G

well first i took the powered unit in and they went through it and just tested it and cleaned up the wheels and contacts or something, i had tested it and it kept stopping and going (i had only had a little circle set up on the table)
and month later i took in the non-powered in which had battery corrosion and some wires were corroded so the cleaned up a little and fixed wires so now it works fine. I know i should have just went through them myself but at the time i knew nothing about them, but even now i am still learning and just collecting stuff to set up a layout. I have been looking and really want one of those diesels i think its gp-9 with the railsounds and crew talk and such

quote:

would like to know what they did for $150 also! G

Before I learned to fix my own I sent some out to some prominent train repair guys. The bill was always 100.00 to 140.00. So 150.00 for both is not out of line.I have seen guys quoting 125.00 on line for repairs and service.
Rob

Wow, I guess I need to raise the rates, so what is that about $75 an hr?


Brandon, I have the PRR GP-9 with TMCC and RS if your interested. This is the Diecast fuel tank and pilot version. G

I am not running a busness here so I fixed a few for people charging only for parts. One little boy would never have gotten his train fixed if it were not for that and the part I found with the help of Chuck Sartor. The boys parents got a 75.00 quote from a local hobby shop. The part was 21.00. It is a starter engine. They were hoping the parents would just buy him a new one. I pay it forward because of the people who helped me along the way.
Rob

Some comments

What would make these engines very valuable are the original boxes and liners and having a niced boxed set could be cause to set them aside. That said, it seems like this set is meant to be run.

When the MPC reissue of F-3s were available, Madison hardware and perhaps others were equipping these units with a second powered truck for a price.

With respect to the 3482 operating milk car that was included in the 1954 set, the car is somewhat unusual in that the Car Bodies had a 3472 number stamped on them. This version I believe was found only in this set.

Brandon, my friend Dave has a B-unit (2356C) for sale on his web site. It's www.davestrains.com.

Tony Sincius
TCA# 97-45101

quote:

Originally posted by GGG:
Wow, I guess I need to raise the rates, so what is that about $75 an hr?


Brandon, I have the PRR GP-9 with TMCC and RS if your interested. This is the Diecast fuel tank and pilot version. G

i would be very interested, whats the asking $ on it

A careful part of operating them is not to get your fingers on painted parts. The acid/oil can slowly eat into the finish. Try to only pick them up by the trucks. I wear cotton gloves (el cheapo on eBay) when I do touch painted parts. If servicing an oily or greasy part wear latex gloves that you can throw out and leave your fingers clean (for your sake and the train's).
I run all of my old trains regardless of value. I have a friend that likes to collect trains in their factory sealed boxes. To each their own.
Don't forget to enjoy the smell of the old open frame motor after it's run for a while. Think back to when your grandfather smelled the same smell that you're experiencing.
Alan

quote:

Originally posted by ajzend:
A careful part of operating them is not to get your fingers on painted parts. The acid/oil can slowly eat into the finish. Try to only pick them up by the trucks. I wear cotton gloves (el cheapo on eBay) when I do touch painted parts. If servicing an oily or greasy part wear latex gloves that you can throw out and leave your fingers clean (for your sake and the train's).
I run all of my old trains regardless of value. I have a friend that likes to collect trains in their factory sealed boxes. To each their own.
Don't forget to enjoy the smell of the old open frame motor after it's run for a while. Think back to when your grandfather smelled the same smell that you're experiencing.
Alan

thanks for the advice, good to see some local guys on here!

yes on mine as well there are some rub marks which show grey through the green paint, and there is a train show coming up in less than 2 weeks that i cant wait to attend, i also have seen the passenger cars you refere to and like those way more than the original ones. which cars are they exactly i would like to find some and i want to find a dash9

Which passenger cars are they? These here - 6-39119 Southern Aluminum Passenger Car 4-Pack (15" Cars) and 6-39157 Southern Aluminum Passenger Car 2-Pack (15" Cars). Six in all. No dome cars. The "Tennessean" lacked dome cars. They are polished shiny aluminum and built in the exact same style as Lionel's PW series passenger cars. There's a name for that style, "2500" or something. The names are Memphis (observation car), Grand Junction (baggage car) and Chattanooga, Johnson City, Charlottesville and Roanoke. The last named are coaches except one is the dining car.

The deal on the grey shell is, there are such things as fakes and re-paints out there, so it's important to know the color of the original shell. There's an excellent book on the subject btw of Lionel's '50s F units which I'd very much recommend to your reading. It will GREATLY add to your knowledge, understanding and appreciation of this and others of its kind. It's Joe Algozzini's "Lionel's Postwar F3's". It's a very important work.

$150 to clean & lubricate it? Wow! That's not bad for a 30 min. job! "Service" facilities like that give greed a bad name! (Maybe the guy should aim higher & run for Congress?) DK

quote:

Originally posted by brandonhm1:
so about 2 months ago my grandmother gave me a bunch of old lionel train stuff including a 2356 southern AA set (powered and non-powered) which kinda got me interested in model railroading for me and the kids. i had taken the trains to a local hobby shop and had their train guy go threw them for cleanup and make sure they were in good running order. And after $150 for their time and work on them (not sure what they did to them but they work great) i was told would be better not to run them to just package them up and stick them in the closet and hold on to them because of their value. But i'm not really getting into trains to collect at the moment but to play with them. So my question is does anyone know what the value of these trains may be, like an average and maybe some feedback as to if i really should hold on to them or let them go to buy some other trains, kinda up in the air, thanks,

Brandon Thornton
mcrawlinslow@aol.com or
brandonhm1@aol.com
425-971-9921