I purchased this engine about a week ago, finally this morning I was able to unpack it and give it a test run. I know it's been discussed already, but it's such an amazing engine I had to post some pictures and a video. The sound is fabulous, the whistle smoke is great. It also glides so smooth on the rails, the interior cab details are awesome.
Enjoy!!!!!
Alex
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Way to showcase that smoke output. Awesome locomotive. Enjoy!
Nice engine and sounds great and smokes great Alex.
Great sound,smoke,detail, these are really nice engines thanks for sharing Alex!
Wow! sweet! if only it were in daylight colors...
Awesome ! Thanks for posting.
Brad
Great looking engine Alex. it smokes and sounds great.
Got there a week too late. Sure would have liked to see this run on your layout last Saturday. Beautiful engine!!!!!!
Gee Alex, a smoke unit you won't have to repair or improve. Great looking, sounding, and smoking engine.
Now THAT is a great video for listening to the exhaust, i.e. nice and SLOW. I must admit, that this is the best video that I have seen which shows to me that the articulated exhaust sound doesn't seem to be as "staccato/off beat" as previous Lionel simple articulated models.
We may be waiting 'till November/December for the Daylight version -- according to the Lionel online shipping schedule. 
Has anyone heard/seen differently?
David
I'm in the queue there as well, so I guess it's an end-of-year expense. This will likely be my last articulated steamer purchase, as I transition to Standard Gauge. Just thought it was a nice touch to run alternately with my Lionel 18" Daylight 7-car passenger set from the mid-2000's (currently paired with the Lionel GS-2 Daylight from the same era). Tough to pass on it with Legacy AND whistle-steam!!! 
No rush to spend the $$$ right now. I've done enough damage in the Standard Gauge world this year , and the MTH Ives National Limited (Standard Gauge passenger set) is still due around year-end too. 
Gonna be an expensive Nov/Dec. Thank goodness I didn't order a Big Boy!!! 
David
I still think that Lionel has the best sound hands down! That is one great looking and sounding engine!
Good luck with it!
WOW....what a fantastic...beautiful machine!! Thanks Alex for posting the pictures and video of this wonderful locomotive on your gorgeous layout....
Alan
Alex,
What Radius track were you running this Engine on??
Can hardly wait for my DALIGHT VERSION to arrive!!
FREDSTRAINS
Hello everyone,
I thank you all for your nice comments and input!!!!!!!!
This engine was running on 072 curves, there's minimal over hang and she glides very smoothly on the rails. Absolutely beautiful engine, great work by Lionel
Thanks,
Alex
Hello everyone,
I thank you all for your nice comments and input!!!!!!!!
Absolutely beautiful engine, great work by Lionel
Alex, the smoke production on your model is great - just about on a par with Lionel's Legacy FEF-3, which uses an 8 Ohm resistor, and with many times more output than Lionel's 2005 version of the AC-12.
I can't imagine that you "tuned" or modified the smoke unit on yours but can you say which smoke fluid you used?
I ask because videos of that amount of smoke output always make me fear that I have done something wrong when my version of the same engine arrives and doesn't perform equally well! I also have the Daylight on order.
Thanks.
I can't imagine that you "tuned" or modified the smoke unit on yours but can you say which smoke fluid you used?
I ask because videos of that amount of smoke output always make me fear that I have done something wrong when my version of the same engine arrives and doesn't perform equally well! I also have the Daylight on order.
Thanks.
Smoke output depend a LOT on track voltage on many of the newer models, i.e operating in "command" with 18 volts or higher.
I can't imagine that you "tuned" or modified the smoke unit on yours but can you say which smoke fluid you used?
I ask because videos of that amount of smoke output always make me fear that I have done something wrong when my version of the same engine arrives and doesn't perform equally well! I also have the Daylight on order.
Thanks.
Smoke output depend a LOT on track voltage on many of the newer models, i.e operating in "command" with 18 volts or higher.
This smoke unit is 100 percent stock, what Hot Water said was right. Run your Lionel engines at 19 or 20 volts will net more smoke output. it will not damage your engines at all. Running at 18 volts at might net you 17 volts at the track, running at 20 volts will net you 19 at the track. Lionel electronics are very durable they can handle the voltage with no problem.
Also you must take into consideration how much smoke fluid to put in your engines.
Every Lionel engine is somewhat different. lets use this Lionel cab forward as an example This engine has whistle smoke which is tied in the the main smoke unit. In this case you can add more than 20 drops to this main stack, because it supplies both smoke units. I added at least 25 to 30 drops into this engine, if this was an engine with whistle steam separate I would only add 20 drops to the main stack, and 10 to the whistle stack.
The smoke fluid i use is Mega Steam, it's awesome. Especially the scented type
Thanks,
Alex
"This smoke unit is 100 percent stock, what Hot Water said was right. Run your Lionel engines at 19 or 20 volts will net more smoke output. it will not damage your engines at all. Running at 18 volts at might net you 17 volts at the track, running at 20 volts will net you 19 at the track. Lionel electronics are very durable they can handle the voltage with no problem.
Also you must take into consideration how much smoke fluid to put in your engines.
Every Lionel engine is somewhat different. lets use this Lionel cab forward as an example This engine has whistle smoke which is tied in the the main smoke unit. In this case you can add more than 20 drops to this main stack, because it supplies both smoke units. I added at least 25 to 30 drops into this engine, if this was an engine with whistle steam separate I would only add 20 drops to the main stack, and 10 to the whistle stack.
The smoke fluid i use is Mega Steam, it's awesome. Especially the scented type"
Excellent explanation, Alex.
WOW • GREAT CAB FOWARD
This engine looks great on the layout. it is a steam power classic.
Congratulations.........
Great video and thanks for sharing. Lionel shows the shipping schedule for the 4291 as September but apparently it has already reached the statea. I am assuming they will update the shipping schedule to better reflect this. Hopefully the daylight version is still on course for November, of course the later the better for me (need to save some $$$)! We will know soon.
Just for the heck of it I wanted to see if the cab forward would navigate 054. All thought
it has a very noticeable over hang, she took the 054 curves well.
Alex
Just for the heck of it I wanted to see if the cab forward would navigate 054. All thought
it has a very noticeable over hang, she took the 054 curves well.
Alex
Very nice, like the silver (not white:-) tender lettering!
Very nice, like the silver (not white:-) tender lettering!
Yes. That is correct for BOTH SP and UP steam power. However, maybe a little known fact about the SP cab forwards, they stopped painting that large "SOUTHERN PACIFIC" lettering on the sides of the tenders, sometime in the early 1950s.
I really like Cab Forwards. I am delighted that you guys have such a good looking model. Mine all get silver lettering - I think they moved them out of the desert in the early 1950s, so I never got to see them with black tenders.
I have heard that some shops used a lettering gray - there are a lot of white decals out there . . .
Amazingly, no.
I really like Cab Forwards. I am delighted that you guys have such a good looking model. Mine all get silver lettering - I think they moved them out of the desert in the early 1950s, so I never got to see them with black tenders.
Lots of photos out there of plane old black tenders. Try Bob Church's book "Cab Forward".
I have heard that some shops used a lettering gray - there are a lot of white decals out there . . .
I've often wondered if the SP "Lettering Gray" was what most people refer to as "silver".
BEAUTIFUL!!!
I'm waiting for the Daylight ... my layout is READY!
Wow that's impressive going around 054.
Wow that's impressive going around 054.
Wow that's impressive going around 054.
Actually it looks painful!
Definitely need to maintain a wide berth on both sides of the track with those type of curves!
I've got the 2005 version, but I never even considered that it would run on curves lower than 0-72, but then that's the minimum I use on my home layout.
Great videos & pics, Alex. And of course, always good to see yet another poster getting a cab forward in the correct paint scheme!
What I meant was, the actual locomotives I saw working all had a giant SOUTHERN PACIFIC on the tender. They moved them all to California before the tenders went black. I have two copies of Church's Cab Forward book, one of George Harlan's, and maybe a dozen other books with Cab Forwards and Back Up Mallets featured. I have worn one of Church's books completely out.
I never saw an SP steamer with the pre- 1946 lettering, but have a lot of models with that smaller style, including one giant 17/64 GS-2. Last count around here was two Lobaugh and six scratchbuilt Cab Forwards. One more AC-11 in 17/64 is sort of started.
Nice! If I didn't have so many other engines on order, I would have pulled the trigger on one of these... Probably the Daylight version. 
Andy
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