Lionel Vision Line Milk Cars

Agreed!!!!

I second the motion!!!  The minute they become available...my order will be placed.

Agree here too.

But not just the milk cars, but with other typical consists around the nation that cover a broad scope of railroad eras.

Two excellent choices for the Vision Line?

rattler21 posted:

NYC and REA milk cars are readily available on secondary markets, usually for less than $55 per car.  John in Lansing, ILL

I am aware... https://youtu.be/Zt7U3thVeds ... I have 2+ of every road number they made.

The same can be said about the PFE reefers and look at how successful the Visionline PFE reefers were! They made 2 runs and the first run still sells well above sticker price. 

Why not also lobby Lionel for a decent string of baggage cars since the Niagaras were often seen pulling mail & express trains at 80 mph during their last years.  I have the original Lionel 6-31716 Century Niagara milk car set with caboose. 

Make'em and I'll buy'em.

How would the Vision Line milk cars differ from the original NYC milk cars?  John in Lansing, ILL

rattler21 posted:

How would the Vision Line milk cars differ from the original NYC milk cars?  John in Lansing, ILL

Maybe they will utter moooooing sounds?  Then again, just what sort of sloshing sounds would milk make within the tanks built into those milk cars?

Hot water posted.."Maybe they will utter moooooing sounds? "

God, I hope not. Any kind of sound would be ridiculous. 

rattler21 posted:

How would the Vision Line milk cars differ from the original NYC milk cars?  John in Lansing, ILL

The same way the Vision Line PFE reefers differ from the regular ones... Sounds and command control; Bumping, clanking, grinding when they run around the track, and brake sounds when the train brake is applied. I imagine they would come up with some loading sounds too (I'm not big on the loading sounds but I'm sure many would enjoy them).

My main concern is being able to program multiple milk cars with sound into a train behind the Niagara so when I apply the train brake, the entire consist plays brake sounds. I do it with the VL PFE refers and my UP FEF all the time. It's one of my favorite features because it sounds like a real train stoping.

I'm all for vision line milk cars! How bout VL pacemaker boxcars and a VL RPO with Railway post office dialog for a mail express.

It makes perfect sense. Lionel steel sided  reefers and milk cars are two of their best in the detail dept.

The only drawback this time will be the hideous thumb tack couplers.

Probably a good guess vl milk cars will be in the next catalog to go with the niagara.

 On a side note. Did real Niagaras even pull milk trains? I thought that was a fantasy idea for the CCII version. Just curious.

I heard the newest Lionel sound box cars at the york train layout. They were great. Really added something new instead of the same old Diesel engines sound. 

Great Idea!!!!

RickO posted:

It makes perfect sense. Lionel steel sided  reefers and milk cars are two of their best in the detail dept.

The only drawback this time will be the hideous thumb tack couplers.

Probably a good guess vl milk cars will be in the next catalog to go with the niagara.

 On a side note. Did real Niagaras even pull milk trains? I thought that was a fantasy idea for the CCII version. Just curious.

 

That is a good question.  I've seen some pictures showing Niagaras pulling M&E trains but never an entire string of those "milk" cars.  Often there would be an express reefer at the head end of a passenger train yet who would know what it was carrying?  I've posed this very question to an NYC expert and am awaiting his answer. 

RickO posted:

 On a side note. Did real Niagaras even pull milk trains? I thought that was a fantasy idea for the CCII version. Just curious.

I'd like to find that out myself. Some books I read said, on certain situations, Hudsons would pull milk and mail trains, but usually it was a rare decision.

I'd imagine the more appropriate locomotives to head an NYC milk train would be a Mikado or Ten-Wheeler. Correct me if I'm wrong, of course.