Marx Train pictures

Robert, thanks for the interesting prototype photos.  Some of my stuff had been used as demonstrator items, but no prototypes, and was bought from Jim and Debby Flynn.  The authoritative thread you referenced was great, too.  Nothing like getting the facts from the source.

Don, yes I too was disappointed when production stopped.  I hadn't accumulated nearly enough of their output!  I thought the designs were attractive, their construction, like I think Jim Flynn said,  was pretty much  as if Louis Marx had never ceased manufacturing, and the cars rolled so easily that even a Commodore Vanderbilt could haul plenty of them.

@RamblerDon posted:

I've always wondered why the New Marx boxcars were different proportions to the originals boxcars. The 3/16 scale style boxcars to be specific. The flatcars are the same size.

I'm sure it was just a mater of economics. This was still a small mom & pop type business. There is not a real big difference in size between the 7" and scale cars. Making another set of tooling would have been very expensive. Keep in mind in the real world there are different length cars. Orig Marx and Flynn era cars look good together.

Steve

Here's a good sample of the styles and colors the Flynn's produced.

Steve

https://youtu.be/XRLS3zIrjFE

FWIW:

I am not into collecting "new" Marx. I will say that their litho work and craftsmanship appears to have been excellent.

Had I have been interested in owning postwar Marx during the era the "new" Marx was being produced, I likely would have passed because of the "Hi-Cube" look of the boxcars. Given they rode on a really nice pair of 4-wheel trucks, for my eyes to be fully pleased, the cars would have needed to match closer in height to the postwar 3/16" boxcars I'm more familiar with to have seriously piqued my interest. Still, for those so inclined, they are great looking cars.

Andre

@Steve "Papa" Eastman posted:

I'm sure it was just a mater of economics. This was still a small mom & pop type business. There is not a real big difference in size between the 7" and scale cars. Making another set of tooling would have been very expensive. Keep in mind in the real world there are different length cars. Orig Marx and Flynn era cars look good together.

Steve

The length doesn't bother me but for some reason the height does. Typically I just run one or the other. But I am sure it was about economics as you suggest.

Here are examples of the original scale boxcar, on scale Type B trucks and high Type D trucks.  This also shows two variations, with rivet detail and without.  I have it in my feeble mind that there were even more variations of this car - maybe a gray door?  Does anyone have or know of another variation?

Here is a shot of some more custom efforts.  This is about the extent of the photos I took before selling my trains in 2016.  The collection comprised gauges Z, N, TT, HO, S, O/027, On30, G and Standard.  (I never learned to specialize - just bought what I liked within the limits of the train budget).  But if I were to get back into collecting, it would definitely be Marx only.  Thanks to TrainFam for starting this "Marx Appreciation Post" - I've enjoyed it.

Below, the Rock Island caboose was Lionel, with Marx trucks and painted roof.

The next three were all pure Marx, just redecorated.

The NYC tender was made to look good with the larger Marx steam locos, and is made from AF, Lionel and Marx parts.

The flatcar was diecast AF, with Marx trucks.  The rocket load was created from an aluminum turkey baster with a round rivet at the nose, tinplate fins, a toilet part for the exhaust, a section of Aurora race car trestle for the bracket, all held down with scale chain.

A not terribly clear image of a set of lamp posts with boxes I just picked up:  Police call box, US mail box, Fire Dept call box.  The lamp covers are all present and intact, no breaks or missing pieces.

I like these more than the plain ones (e.g. Lionel) because they add interest to a street scene.

I agree, those Marx lamp posts are a favorite of mine, as well! Those are in very nice condition, too!

Rusty

Ok Marx Fans...here is something I encountered but have really not been able to fully ID...MARX MYSTERY STATION!

I obtained this Marx (verified by Marx logo on station) "Wheaton" station and when I picked it up I thought that it might be HO but upon careful measurement it is clearly "0" gauge as at 1/4" to the foot the lithographed doors would be a normal 6+ft high x 3 1/2 ft wide clearly in scale for O and way out of scale for HO.  The station, in regards to model number or other ID has no markings what so ever except the Marx circular logo.  On the bottom it has in crayon an old price of $ 2.75 but no year.  By comparison the Marx # 2889 Battery Whistling station which has a very similar building but no roof hat was in the 1958 catalog priced at $4.00 and as I will show below the two buildings are almost the same size.  Any further information you have or if you have other examples please post...Thank you!

Here is the front of the station.  All openings are just lithographed, nothing really opens.  The view through the window appears like an old B&W photo of real people.  The Spanish Tile peaked roof is a "hat" as I will show later.  The entire structure is completely sealed with no access to the insides at all without releasing the structural metal tabs.  The station clearly has either a horn or whistle inside but I have not been able to confirm which.  I will try to power it up at some point to satisfy my curiosity.

Here is the "track side" or rear of the station.  Single door is labeled "office" and the double freight doors are labeled "baggage"

Here is the station with the roof "hat" removed.  The roof hat is a single plastic molding in one color with embossed detail on the outside only.  It is a simple slip on fit and is not retained except by friction.  What I found most interesting is the the building w/o the roof is almost the same size as the #2889 series whistling stations w/o canopy.  Could the same die with different printing have been used - a common Marx method to save money.  Who knows?

Here is the power input side.  The two wires from these terminals just disappear into punched holes in the base.  The base also has 3 insulated mounting pins set in a triangular pattern that takes up the full width and length of the base.  There also are three punched "air holes" which might lead to the conclusion of an air whistle but again, the interior cannot be accessed without serious disassembly.

Here is the non power input side, slightly different lithography and the door is labeled "Telephone"

Here is the roofless building with a ruler to show scale

The Base is 8 1/4L"  X 3 1/2" W X 1/4" H

The Bldg w/o the base is 7" L X 2 1/2"W X 2 1/4" H

This makes the total height 2 1/2 " including the height of the  base.  Interestingly this is nearly the same advertised height as the #2889 Battery Whistling Station (2 5/8 " H).  The length compared to the #2889 is close 8 1/4" vs 9" although this station is much more narrow, 3 1/2 " vs 5 1/2" so it would fit in a more narrow space on the layout. 

If we put on the roof "hat" (the #2889 had no such addition) the total height of the roof peak would be 4" or 16ft in O scale. 

So Marx Train friends, there you have it.  A mystery station, no number, no pictures in any of my catalogs and no mention in any of my reference books.  Clearly 0 scale and Marx for trains...so what do you make of this???  Any help is most appreciated.

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

Ok Marx Fans...here is something I encountered but have really not been able to fully ID...MARX MYSTERY STATION!

I obtained this Marx (verified by Marx logo on station) "Wheaton" station and when I picked it up I thought that it might be HO but upon careful measurement it is clearly "0" gauge as at 1/4" to the foot the lithographed doors would be a normal 6+ft high x 3 1/2 ft wide clearly in scale for O and way out of scale for HO.  The station, in regards to model number or other ID has no markings what so ever except the Marx circular logo.  On the bottom it has in crayon an old price of $ 2.75 but no year.  By comparison the Marx # 2889 Battery Whistling station which has a very similar building but no roof hat was in the 1958 catalog priced at $4.00 and as I will show below the two buildings are almost the same size.  Any further information you have or if you have other examples please post...Thank you!

Here is the front of the station.  All openings are just lithographed, nothing really opens.  The view through the window appears like an old B&W photo of real people.  The Spanish Tile peaked roof is a "hat" as I will show later.  The entire structure is completely sealed with no access to the insides at all without releasing the structural metal tabs.  The station clearly has either a horn or whistle inside but I have not been able to confirm which.  I will try to power it up at some point to satisfy my curiosity.

Here is the "track side" or rear of the station.  Single door is labeled "office" and the double freight doors are labeled "baggage"

Here is the station with the roof "hat" removed.  The roof hat is a single plastic molding in one color with embossed detail on the outside only.  It is a simple slip on fit and is not retained except by friction.  What I found most interesting is the the building w/o the roof is almost the same size as the #2889 series whistling stations w/o canopy.  Could the same die with different printing have been used - a common Marx method to save money.  Who knows?

Here is the power input side.  The two wires from these terminals just disappear into punched holes in the base.  The base also has 3 insulated mounting pins set in a triangular pattern that takes up the full width and length of the base.  There also are three punched "air holes" which might lead to the conclusion of an air whistle but again, the interior cannot be accessed without serious disassembly.

Here is the non power input side, slightly different lithography and the door is labeled "Telephone"

Here is the roofless building with a ruler to show scale

The Base is 8 1/4L"  X 3 1/2" W X 1/4" H

The Bldg w/o the base is 7" L X 2 1/2"W X 2 1/4" H

This makes the total height 2 1/2 " including the height of the  base.  Interestingly this is nearly the same advertised height as the #2889 Battery Whistling Station (2 5/8 " H).  The length compared to the #2889 is close 8 1/4" vs 9" although this station is much more narrow, 3 1/2 " vs 5 1/2" so it would fit in a more narrow space on the layout. 

If we put on the roof "hat" (the #2889 had no such addition) the total height of the roof peak would be 4" or 16ft in O scale. 

So Marx Train friends, there you have it.  A mystery station, no number, no pictures in any of my catalogs and no mention in any of my reference books.  Clearly 0 scale and Marx for trains...so what do you make of this???  Any help is most appreciated.

Don

The Wheaton Station was cataloged as H 0 but used the same sheet metal as the O Union Stations

Steve

Thanks Steve...that makes sense.  The measurements make sense in O would seem overall a little large for HO but who knows these were toys.

Don

Don McErlean, that’s a really beautiful train station, very colorful, unique. Steve Papa Eastman is a great authority on Marx, a train line that I’m not familiar with yet, however I’m very interested in learning more. I’m getting closer to making my little New Haven set complete. I need a piggy back trailer. Thank you all for this unique thread, now on page 10, Wow. I have books on a Lionel, American Flyer, MTH, Is there a picture book illustrating Marx from beginning to end? Happy Railroading Everyone.

Marx Mystery Station (follow up)  Steve Eastman was correct, this station was catalogued under HO, catalogue # 6460  It was produced in 1959 and then again in 1972,  However, to me, it also seems to be perfectly useful for O gauge as all the lithographed detail is clearly O scale (door sizes, windows, lettering) and it is approximately the same size as the #2889 whistling station that was clearly catalogued in O scale.  So I am not sure why Marx put it in the HO line.  Maybe they just needed an HO station and this one was close enough in overall size.  Anyway the mystery is "solved" I found the catalogue reference.

Don

Just picked this up at a toy and game shop that doesn't deal with vintage toys or trains at all. But I guess you never know.

The sounds don't work. I'm slowly cleaning it up and will soon start diagnosing the issue. 

@RamblerDon posted:

Just picked this up at a toy and game shop that doesn't deal with vintage toys or trains at all. But I guess you never know.

The sounds don't work. I'm slowly cleaning it up and will soon start diagnosing the issue. 

The Marx SOP tender was genius for its time due to it’s simplicity. Carefully clean all remnants of the old foam that held things in place, then reassemble using some fresh soft foam. Buff all the axles and wheels to ensure good conductivity. Also clean the face of the center interrupter wheel. Oil and give it a try.

Steve

I have had a nice SOP tender for about 15 years but don't run it because it is in good shape.  I keep it squirreled away with my 3 bay window cabeese.  However, that is about to change.  I have been reworking my layout since February and have put in a big loop that I am calling the Marline that has about 84 feet of track.  

@RLH posted:

I have had a nice SOP tender for about 15 years but don't run it because it is in good shape.  I keep it squirreled away with my 3 bay window cabeese.  However, that is about to change.  I have been reworking my layout since February and have put in a big loop that I am calling the Marline that has about 84 feet of track.  

If you haven’t already, inspect the foam and replace if it has deteriorated. It causes problems in the electronics.

Steve

@Steve "Papa" Eastman posted:

If you haven’t already, inspect the foam and replace if it has deteriorated. It causes problems in the electronics.

Steve

I will do that before I energize it.  

The wheels and axles are very rough. I may seek replacements. I started on the trucks already.

I keep foam handy for my Lionel Sound of Steam boards.

Hopefully it all comes together.   

Leapinlarry - Greenberg's Guides to Marx Trains, the large yellow-covered editions, not the small pocket guides,  appear frequently on eBay.  If I recall right,  a single volume having a white cover was published in the seventies; later on much more material and photos were added and the information comprised two volumes.  All three volumes are full of pictures and are very informative and entertaining.

Larry: TrainsRMe is right. The 70’s book is not as complete as later volumes but it covers the entire line (even a little on HO).  The later two volumes have more material but you need them both. All the volumes have been available on CD chichi is the least expensive way to go. 

Don

I recently ventured out to a local antique store and found these 2 boxed Marx accessories for $35 each.

@milnyc posted:

I recently ventured out to a local antique store and found these 2 boxed Marx accessories for $35 each.

Nice pickup! Did your crossing guard come with his stop sign? 

I just checked and the stop sign is there. It appears that both of these accessories are unused.

@milnyc posted:

I just checked and the stop sign is there. It appears that both of these accessories are unused.

Early influence on the Blue Man Group?

FEF

Nice British Marx silverlink loco Steve !

A glorious front end indeed !

A fellow British Marx FEF the 3978 Loco

And Side view ...

The Queen has come out for FEF.

Steve

@Steve "Papa" Eastman posted:

The Queen has come out for FEF.

Steve

Very beautiful set Steve. I always thought Marx tinplate was underrated.

                                                     Trainfam 

The illusive "Queenie."

Marx fans I just acquired something a bit "unusual" for Marx (nothing is really rare) but its not tinplate but 4 wheel plastic and CW no less.  This would have been somewhere on the lower end of the Marx lineup but due to its markings I rate it as unusual.  This is (most of) set 9513 (A) from the 1952-1954 Sears Catalog (more on this later).  It is a very inexpensive set, retailing for $5.89 all the years offered under the "Happi-Time" label.  It came with the CW train, 10 pcs of 0-27 two rail track, 2 switches, and 6 plastic RR signs all for that less than $6 price.  My issue with the listing in Robert Whitacre's book, Greenbergs Guide to Marx Trains , Vol III sets, is that it claims the set was available from 1952-1954 in the Sears "Wish Book" and I have copies of the Wish Books from those years and while the set is pictured and advertised in 1952 and 1953, it does not appear in 1954.  In 1954, there is a equivalent set at the same price but it shows the 6" lithographed cars not the 4 wheel plastic.  So a mystery perhaps.  More interesting perhaps is that the set's Caboose (Red/Silver) "Marlines" is not listed in Matzke's book on plastic freights, although it is listed in Greenberg's Marx collector's price guide. 

OK so what's so unique about this set.  It is the markings.  The tender, Gondola, Caboose and the box car it should have but mine doesn't are all labeled "Marlines" - no actual RR livery or data at all.  As best I can research, this only happened in the '52-'54 years and apparently only for Sears.  I cannot find any data that lists these cars for separate sale. 

Now the loco was also somewhat special.  Although it was a relatively common #400 CW engine, this one had a "SMOKER" feature.  it contained a rubber squeeze bulb behind the pilot which contained the "smoke".   The motor actuated a lever that pushed on the bulb as the drivers rotated.  This forced (talcum powder) the artificial smoke out of the smokestack.

Here is the set:

Here are the two freight cars, the caboose livery is hard to see in this picture but it is just the word "MARLINES" under the windows in all caps and silver paint.  Caboose does not now and likely never did have a smokestack.  Like most of the less expensive caboose cars it only has one coupler. 

Here is the #400 , smoke puffer engine and the Marlines tender.

Here is the underside of the loco.  Just aft of the pilot in the space in the forward frame, you can see the bottom of the rubber squeeze bulb (yes it is ripped from age but mostly still there).  When you wind the motor as it moves the wheels it also actuates a "pusher" which squeezes the bulb to eject talcum powder as artificial smoke.  The smokestack has a twist off removable cap to allow refilling with powder and a small hole for a nozzle.  Except for the bulb being failed due to age, this mechanism still works perfectly when the motor is wound and released.   I bet "MOM" really loved this on her carpet!

Alas, full disclosure, my set is missing the Blue/White Marlines Boxcar and the two switches and the plastic signs.  The boxcar, just like the tender and caboose is the very simple 4 wheel plastic shell with simulated trucks and two axles.  The couplers on these cars, strangely enough (another mystery) instead of being plastic knuckle couplers common to these type cars are metal tab/slot couplers.  

Well that's it for my latest Marx addition.  Hope you enjoyed the post.  Have a good week

Don

Hi fellows...I note that no one has posted since my last post on 9/20 ... Please keep posting fellows as we don't want to loose this thread.  Following up on my above post concerning the "Marlines" freight from '52-54, here is another example of 1950's Marx.  You may not know but in 1950 one of Marx's competitors operating under the name of "Unique" Toys brought out the series of "Unique Lines"  trains in direct competition to Marx.  These were not scale trains, but were tin lithographed trains that were somewhat larger than the Marx 6" litho cars that Marx had been producing since the 1930's.  Marx, never one to be upstaged, rushed into production a line of 7" litho cars to compete.  These were always 4 wheel cars, all lithographed, all with Tab/slot or Plastic Knuckle couplers.  His initial engine was the Meteor or #994 long loco.  As an 0-4-0 with only simulated leading and trailing trucks, it was not the best looking loco, it being as long as the 333 and 1829 6 driver locos but had only 4 drivers and no other trucks.  Somewhat ungainly.  However, by using his long standing 4 wheel motor drive, he got the loco into production quickly. 

In the 1950's set 10500 was a 7" Steam Freight Set that was produced from about 1950 until the "late" 50's (I don't have a more specific year).  It is as pictured below except as original it used a PRR red and grey boxcar as opposed to the State of Maine RWB boxcar.  I have the original boxcar but personally like the more colorful one so tend to run it instead.  All else shown is as the set came including the (somewhat difficult to find) metal #941 NKP tender , Wabash Gondola, and NKP Caboose. 

#994 at head end of the Set 10500 Freight Consist

The long metal NKP # 941 Tender

The freight consist including the (wrong) State of Maine boxcar but the Wabash Gondola and NKP 956 caboose are correct

Action shot on the Leonardtown and Savanna, the mighty #994 pulls her consist into the mountains !

Have a good weekend fellows and let's keep posting those Marx pictures!

Don

Hi everyone trainfam here. It’s been awhile since anyone has posted some pictures so tomorrow I will post some more pictures of engines and sets. Like Don I don’t want to lose this thread so please post some pictures. 

                                                  Trainfam

Amazingly some Marx must have found its way all the way to Australia , I suspect this set was probably left here or ordered as a gift for a local family by US Servicemen , unfortunately I dont have the full story of it apart from it has been in storage for decades ...

A Prewar Marx CP set even includes the very ratty paperwork , but no box ...

( Previously posted in the tinplate thread but deserving of a place here I reckon ?)

Fatman - Good to see some classic Marx made it to Australia. 

Don/Trainfam - Thanks for keeping this going

Here's my small collection of New Marx Boxcars.

Well here I go again... you fellas showing pictures of your Marx CP’s has inspired me to repair my Marx Canadian Pacific. I have had this locomotive for some time and it runs good. However it has some issues... first off one of the wheels is missing it’s side rod:

So a new wheel will need to be purchased. Second off the compound gear has some of the teeth missing. Someone must have really played with this thing!

Third and finally the axles and whole motor need a good cleaning: 

I will be posting more photos as I progress with the locomotive.

                                                       Trainfam

Any idea where I can get this wheel for my Canadian pacific? 

Mine is missing the side rod so I need a new one. 

                                                      Trainfam 

Robert Grossman -Marx Parts may be of help if wheel is good just a new side rod can be peened back over the stud on the original wheel .

Thanks Dieseler, I will contact him tomorrow about the wheels.

                                                    Trainfam