New Lionel 2550 Budd: Really a Dummy?

Mine is in transit, according to the FedEx tracking no.

 

If you're not going to open it, what difference does it make whether it's powered or a dummy?  Or even whether its really in there or not? 

X ray the box

Amazing question.  How about an X-ray? Your dentist can probably do it for a few bucks or a few beers.  I broke a little finger once, using a big right-angle drill that fetched up and attacked me, and my dentist confirmed it with his X-ray machine, saving me a trip to the ER. I made a splint out of Popsicle sticks and rubber bands and in a month it was fixed.  But I digress...

 

Or, weigh a dummy example and tell us what it weighs. Or contact the manufacturer and ask them what it should weigh.  Or make a tiny opening in one end and insert a fiber-optic inspection device.  Or keep it in the box and sell it on Ebay as a "rare factory error."  I see lots of possibilities.

 

That is about the right weight for a brick in a box.  (I'm only joking. )

Is this a case of Schrodinger's train? 

Schrodinger's train, you may have just coined a new model train phrase Nicole!

Schrodinger's Train:

A new train that while still in it's box will simultaneously both run and won't run until we open the box.

The only Schrodingers Train I can recall buying was a Thomas The Tank set about 5 years ago, didn't work right out of the box.

 

Jerry

Maybe Al Capone's "E-unit" is in the box.

 

 

Maybe it's another Budd, buddy!

Bud-Wei-Serrrrrrrr

Wow.  Nothing but derisive responses?  I said I was being nutty (though of course not opening it would be the respectful thing to do if I might return it). 

Lots of guys on this forum are helpful and supportive.  Too many are neither.  As a 10-year veteran here, I should have known better than to post.  Lesson learned.

I weighed my original postwar units in their boxes on my wife's electronic kitchen scale. Something to do on a damp Sunday and with my wife yelling that she would never use the scale again since I put my filthy dirty trains on it - it was a bit exciting.

Original postwar 2550 and 2559 came in orange and blue pulp paper boxes with coupler protection flaps. No liners and no styrofoam.

2550 and 2559 weighed 2 lbs 9 oz each in the box.

I weighed my 400 and 404. They came in brown cardboard boxes with cardboard liners.

400 weighed 4 lbs 6 oz in the box.

404 weighed 4 lbs 7 oz in the box.

From what I have seen on many modern Lionel dummy units, they use the power truck complete with gears but no motor. So the weight difference may not be all that great between a power and a dummy if Lionel did this on the new 2550.

Since your unit weighs less than 4 lbs, I am guessing it does not have a motor.

Postwar dummy Lionel Budd cars had non powered trucks with stamped steel frames and no die cast gear boxes - so postwar dummy units were much ligher than powered versions.

 

Thanks BigO; appreciate the precision.  My postwar 2559 feels much lighter, but your explanation makes sense.

Oh, what we do for the Forum!

The one big drawback to this type of construction is, the magnetraction on the

power truck causes a drag when being pulled.  On the other hand, one find a

motor and make it a power unit.

 

"Ship it On The Frisco"

I would be very interested to read about the current construction of the Budd cars. The latest ones I have are the Modern era CN 4 car set. I believe that those cars have postwar style dummy trucks. 

I have the 2 car set. I believe the difference is in the fact that the fuel tank & pilot ends are die cast on the cc versions.  on teh postwar Budd Cars/GPs, they were plastic

They put MagneTraction on non-powered trucks? 

 

In a word ...it's a dummy !   Hate to ruin everyone's fun.  If Lionel sent you a powered  RDC car by mistake, I will swap you a dummy set of guts for yours, and you will be 100% correct,   no joke !

It happened two years ago with the Canadian Pacific RS-3 set.  The Dummy engine

was the same as the power only without motors.  The Magnetraction on the 

Dummy's trucks caused a drag when being pulled.

This is why we can't have nice things.

Weird.  Has Lionel done this since?

 

As regards a magnatraction truck on a dummy engine - the answer is yes. They did this on some of the FT dummy(non-powered) diesels, the A units in particular.  As I recall the:  Santa Fe FT, The Rio Grande - SKI TRAIN, to name a couple off hand. Maybe even the  Texas Special FT.  Lionel even has Magnatraction on the powered units of the FT series that is not noted in the write-up or on the box end flap - sort of an added bonus!

 

          One can only speculate as to why they did this; perhaps, it was one of those manufacturers decisions that were made without consulting Lionel first.  Maybe the vendor felt that it was cheaper for him to use one truck assembly rather than make a totally different frame and dummy truck parts.  Who knows what goes on in the minds of the Chinese - Lionel certainly doesn't know. I guess it is our gain or they might have charged us more for the feature!

 

          So check your non-powered units that use gutted power trucks and see what extra things you may have on them!   Dennis M.

 

How hard would it be to power one of these geared dummy units?

I just checked my Texas Special FT dummy unit from the Texas set that came out about 2 years ago. The dummy unit trucks were the full power truck casting. Each with roller pick up. The wheels were geared but there were no idler gears between the wheel sets. There were no traction tires, but the wheels had full power magne-traction. I looked inside the cab by removing the top cover and saw that they used the motor mounting piece to hold the truck in the frame. I did not have a good enough angle to see if there was a worm wheel installed on the axel. My B&O FT from the 1990's has all the gears on the dummy unit's trucks including the worm gear.

I received my car today from Ro: It is heavier than the PW version; there is magne-traction and it causes a slight drag (but nothing fatal). I do not have personal knowledge, but my impression is that the piece may have been cobbled together from leftover materials, thereby cleaning the shelves and earning money, b/c a 2550 would have appeal. Note the latest catalog: Some of the comments were that Lionel was cleaning up stock. Why else would Lionel pick out a single piece and sell it for a notably reduced FMV price? Perhaps Lionel is going Bachmann, that is, cleaning out old stock to make way for something new. Time will tell.

 

barrister2u

How does the Budd car look / packaging / etc

Picking mine up at York

Thx

Joe S  

OK

 

Not a photo guy-but here's some pics of 2550 CC

Picked it up at Mt. Lakes NJ store. It got a lot of interest.

This is a  preorder. I have other CC type

engines and know what to expect. Yes, it is a diecast fuel tank.

Do not see geared axles. /trucks appear to be diecast.

ready for a speaker. I'll pull it around layout with an RMT Budd.

Hey,---family doesn't care. Although grandson may zing me.

I'm pleased that I bought it. There were

many 1:1 Budds running here in Jersey.

Hope this helps.

 

floyd

 

Looks fine.

Thx barrister2u

 

Will be getting my 2550 at York

Photos above look great

 

Thx again  

 

dorfj2

 

Google--8765 Budd Baggage Car dummy and compare.

 

The Lionel catalog doesn't do this new 2550 car justice.

 

Not right to compare to original PW cars. Too much technology change

and sentiment. I'd define the 2013 issue--- as an excellent rendition though.

 

Enjoy York.

 

Floyd

While the photos are very good; I for one, would have liked to see they other truck that is supposed to have the magnatraction in it. The truck showed was of the typical dummy truck, and that never had magnatraction. I also would like to have seen the insides of the unit, really, it's only two (2) screws to remove the shell and you are not going to void any important warranty by doing so.  Dennis M.

 

Dennis,

 

Both trucks look the exact same. Both appear to be dummies. ie: no magnetism there

I took the cover off. No surprises (to me) . see pics.

Wheels/axles seem to be dry though. Lucky you mentioned opening it.

 

Floyd

FloydS:  "Thanks" for the pics of the other trucks and the insides; most defintely a dummy unit. I guess the extra weight of it can be attributed to the die-cast trucksides, pilot and, and the underbody fuel tank  Dennis M.

 

Hey guys, kind of a slow Sunday? Don

Floyd, thanks for the photos and info. 

 

Don, some of us are interested.  Why belittle that?

Nice, detailed pictures from FloydS. Now I have to remind myself that I have enough Budd cars

Don,

 

Actually not too slow on Sunday. Posted these pics between breaks in the Sunday sport games. Actually trying to relax from Son's morning bird hunting trials and we finished clearing the lake shore line.

 

How's your train station project going?

 

Floyd

I'm late as usual - got to stay on the Forum more, I guess, but I have 

an old but never opened Schrodinger's (see Nicole's post, above) PS1 Greenbrier that I now do not have to open.

 

It both runs and doesn't run, but no matter - the weight is right, or the weight of the

bricks is right. A thing doesn't need to exist until it is needed, and if I never need to run

a C&O train, I'm golden.