Steve :  I have exactly the same Ives cars only my "set" came with 2 "Parlor" cars and the baggage but no engine.  I could see the information sheet you posted with the data 1914-1918 and the notation IVES 3200 set.  I wondered is that the "set" number or just the number of the locomotive?   Could the original set have had 2 Parlor cars or do you think  my  group just had an extra car?  Sorry for the questions, but I don't have much data on early Ives. 

My set was purchased in a little "mom and pop" hobby store (remember those) in Warminster, Pa (a suburb of Philadelphia) in about 2010-2011.  The store is gone now, lost to being torn down and replaced with a CVS!! 

Anyway thanks for posting, this is the first I have seen these cars anywhere else but my bookcase (LOL)

Respectfully

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

Steve :  I have exactly the same Ives cars only my "set" came with 2 "Parlor" cars and the baggage but no engine.  I could see the information sheet you posted with the data 1914-1918 and the notation IVES 3200 set.  I wondered is that the "set" number or just the number of the locomotive?   Could the original set have had 2 Parlor cars or do you think  my  group just had an extra car?  Sorry for the questions, but I don't have much data on early Ives.

My set was purchased in a little "mom and pop" hobby store (remember those) in Warminster, Pa (a suburb of Philadelphia) in about 2010-2011.  The store is gone now, lost to being torn down and replaced with a CVS!!

Anyway thanks for posting, this is the first I have seen these cars anywhere else but my bookcase (LOL)

Respectfully

Don

Don, you should visit the Ives site, https://www.ivestrains.org/CD/O_Gauge/index.htm

Here is a picture of a boxed set like mine, 1105X

Steve

Last week I showed you my new JEP station.  Today we'll see the Mistral past the station.

Enjoy.

Lew Schneider

Steve:  Thank you for the information and the link, wow what a great source.  Its learning things like this that really make this forum powerful.

Thanks again

Don

@Nation Wide Lines posted:

The Flyer water tank may look like the Bing tank at first glance, but when compared side by side, the construction is completely different. See link, as this has been covered here before.

https://ogrforum.com/...-tank-set-variations

Wow I just read through that whole thread about the water tower variations ...I thought my head was going to explode from all the information lol.  Very impressive presentation NWL.

@Don McErlean posted:

...My set was purchased in a little "mom and pop" hobby store (remember those) in Warminster, Pa (a suburb of Philadelphia) in about 2010-2011.  The store is gone now, lost to being torn down and replaced with a CVS!!

Don

I knew a gentleman by the name of Bill Kelly who lived on Nemoral Street in  Warminster.  As a teenager he worked  for Bill Hurst the speed equipment manufacturer but spent the rest of his career as a machinist at the Budd Railcar Company Red Lion Plant.  He helped develop the tooling they used to pleat the long sheets of stainless on the sides of passenger cars. He's gone now but he was a neat guy. I ended up with his old '32 Ford hot rod coupe, seen here parked in the back of Lev's Drug store , Summerdale Ave, PA in the late 40's. .. but that's a story for another time and place.

Gman24. Neat car!!  I worked for the Navy as an engineer. It was the Naval Air Development Center. Gone now it used to occupy the old Brewster aircraft plant

Don

A couple of finds this week ... a rake of Distler from the early 50's ... this set was paired usually with their rather unusual A/C 3-phase motor locomotives , most noteably their gorgeous Krokodile ( which I dont have .... yet lol )I would like to add Distler 3-phase to the collection but having to have a dedicated track just for them makes little sense at the moment what with currently Gauge1,O,OO and 28mm  in two and 2 rail there just has to be a moment went you say .. whoaaaaa lol

Set photo with Krokodile stolen from Historytoy

And also a couple of cute tippers ... one is def a Keim and the other is also German but I havent searched hard enough today to put a name to it ...

And kinda sorta tinplate related I put in a stoopid low bid for an Australian version of Mecanno .. Buz Builder ...

And it came to me for $2 .. but the kicker is it actually has a fairly rare Australian build DC motor packaged with it ...

SCORE!!!!!

@Fatman posted:

A couple of finds this week ... a rake of Distler from the early 50's ... this set was paired usually with their rather unusual A/C 3-phase motor locomotives , most noteably their gorgeous Krokodile ( which I dont have .... yet lol )I would like to add Distler 3-phase to the collection but having to have a dedicated track just for them makes little sense at the moment what with currently Gauge1,O,OO and 28mm  in two and 2 rail there just has to be a moment went you say .. whoaaaaa lol

...

And kinda sorta tinplate related I put in a stoopid low bid for an Australian version of Mecanno .. Buz Builder ...

And it came to me for $2 .. but the kicker is it actually has a fairly rare Australian build DC motor packaged with it ...

SCORE!!!!!

Great find on the Meccano set!  Wow!

A thought re the dedicated wiring...  While I'm not familiar with Distler specifically, if the trains will run on a type of track you already have, you could insert a DPDT switch between the power source and the track - 2 output wires go to the track, and each input goes to a different power source - just toggle to the input you want to use.  DPDT toggle switches are available for about $5 at home centers around here - your mileage may vary on your side of the planet.

@Mallard4468  One could faff about , but in reality the Distler requires all 3 rails to be isolated from each other as EACH rail supplies 1 phase to the motor ... requires a unique power supply as well ... one day if I do get a 3-phase Krokodile then it shall have to have a small track all of its own but for now I will be happy with just the carriages

Here is a Photo of the 3-phase Distler that recently passed thru DutchBoys! hands

A very good concept in all reality ... infinitely variable stable speed between stopped and flat out  and easy reversing ... If it caught on lives would have been a lot simpler for modellers lol

You can see more @Binns Rd http://www.binnsroad.co.uk/rai...s/distler/index.html  Scroll to the bottom 20%

@Fatman posted:

@Mallard4468  One could faff about , but in reality the Distler requires all 3 rails to be isolated from each other as EACH rail supplies 1 phase to the motor ... requires a unique power supply as well ... one day if I do get a 3-phase Krokodile then it shall have to have a small track all of its own but for now I will be happy with just the carriages

Here is a Photo of the 3-phase Distler that recently passed thru DutchBoys! hands

A very good concept in all reality ... infinitely variable stable speed between stopped and flat out  and easy reversing ... If it caught on lives would have been a lot simpler for modellers lol

You can see more @Binns Rd http://www.binnsroad.co.uk/rai...s/distler/index.html  Scroll to the bottom 20%

Amazing that one small manufacturer would do something so completely different.  I'm guessing that the track is hard to find these days, and retrofitting standard 3-rail track would be tedious.

Maybe you should just convert all of your old electrics to MTH DCS.  That would simplify things.

@Mallard4468 posted:

Maybe you should just convert all of your old electrics to MTH DCS.  That would simplify things.

What is this sorcery that thou preachest !!!   Begone Beelzebub!!!

One knows the only true power is in thine wrist

If one must invoke Satan's Lifeblood it can only be done with the holiest of holy's ...20v AC !!

Well hello all tinplate fans...my latest acquisition is not that rare but in the US it is unique for sure.  It is what they label in the UK as "Fibre Service"...I can only assume that it is carrying hay or feed for animals that has to be shipped from the fields where there crops are sown to the pasture where the cows are...at least that is my interpretation.

Here is my "new" Fibre Service Car from Hornby. Yes I am using the UK spelling of fiber which is "fibre" as that is how the car is described by Hornby.

This car, with the blue frame, was made between 1934-1938.  It had a red frame before 1934 and a black frame after 1938.  The fibre load is wood wool tied with red thread (the red color is faint but there).  There was no postwar production for this fellow .

Here he is in my "Imaginary" agricultural train with a Hornby M1 Southern RR Milk Traffic Van  from 1949-1954 and a Hornby LMS Cattle Van from the same period.  So in my world, I now have all I need for my local cattle industry.  I have a car to carry in / out my cows, a car to move the milk, and a car to provide the feed.  What else does a Texas boy need !!

Here is my agricultural train again, this time from the front, showing the Hornby M3 Tank loco from 1939-1941.  Clockwork power of course as was much of Hornby O gauge.

Well tinplaters...that is my story for this week.  Have a great week everyone!

Don

scored a major find last week when I picked this three car Ives hand-painted consist. Dave Bashline, over on the Other Tinplate Facebook page agrees they look original from 1901 or 1902, although I believe the wheels on the coach and baggage cars should also be the red cast iron wheels as seen on the tender. Seller offered the loco on a separate auction that quickly went well beyond my price range. Have also seen these same cars in red rather than green.

here is one possible boxed set they might have come from.

Another odd find was this factory defect Non Pareil gondola I picked up with a partial loco and pullman coach.

As you can see, one side was correct while the other was mis-stamped.

My Hafner red 1110 with headlight visor also arrived last week.

Now only short the blue version to complete the trio.

Jim O'C :  Great finds for certain.  I have a very small collection of Hafner, including some early passenger cars (that are very close to the American Flyer cars of the same period) and a couple of 1010 powered freights. I like Hafner although you don't see too much of it for sale or auction.  Your Ives set is amazing, just to think those have survived nearly 120 years is unbelievable.

By the way, one of the things that struck me in your set from 1902 was the design of the baggage car.  It has two end panels and an "open" passage to represent the loading door (I imagine).  What was interesting is that I have the 1915-1925 Ives #50 baggage car and although it does not resemble the early one too much what is the same is the basic design.  Two end panels and an open passage in the center.  I have not seen this design in other than Ives and here they were using the same basic design approach some 20 years later.  What works .... works I guess.

Best wishes and great finds, thanks for posting

Don

@Steve "Papa" Eastman posted:

This is supposedly a piece of shiplap from the Ives building. I suspect they are somewhat common, but I’d love to know the story behind them.
TIA

Steve

Hi Papa

Ives filed for bankruptcy in 1928 and was bought out by Lionel and American Flyer. The factory closed in 1930.  Why would the ending date be 1997? I hope for your sake the article is genuine but such a piece of lumber and tag would be easy to fake and mass produce.

But thank you for sharing your tinplate on OGR

@Tim Ring posted:

Hi Papa

Ives filed for bankruptcy in 1928 and was bought out by Lionel and American Flyer. The factory closed in 1930.  Why would the ending date be 1997? I hope for your sake the article is genuine but such a piece of lumber and tag would be easy to fake and mass produce.

But thank you for sharing your tinplate on OGR

Being as I didn’t pay anything for it, I got my money’s worth.

@Tim Ring posted:

Hi Papa

Ives filed for bankruptcy in 1928 and was bought out by Lionel and American Flyer. The factory closed in 1930.  Why would the ending date be 1997? I hope for your sake the article is genuine but such a piece of lumber and tag would be easy to fake and mass produce.

But thank you for sharing your tinplate on OGR

I'm guessing that the 1997 date refers to the demolition of the building, or the year in which the siding was removed. 

Glad that Steve didn't overpay for the item.

Ahhh but the dreams and hope that such a bit of lumber provides are indeed priceless!

Every lotto ticket is worth a million bucks until the draw proves it false !

I have a few more goodies coming from The Netherlands in the next week or three but waiting on photos lol ... so this post is about all I have to contribute today

Excellent write up Don .. I love reading them .. and great finds Jim O'C .. the very early stuff is amazing !

Fatman:  Thanks for the compliment.  I too learn so much from your descriptions and stories of manufacturers I often have never heard of...my stories come from my brain which is why they are often filled with holes !! 

Don

While looking to some cars I bought many years ago and never done anything to, I realised that i have a strange looking 813 cattle car with bogies not at the usual space.... maybe twenty years to realise this....

They make look the car shorter,  it seems all original and has never been restored or modified, so why did Lionel produced this type of car,  I saw in Mac Comas's book that it was a 1926 year produced car and is qualified as rare ... so many things today are called rare.   I would be curious to know a little more about it.

and a regular 815 that was in the same bunch of cars with a 217 caboose to compare the space between bogies.

Daniel

Daniel :  According to my reference material : Greenbergs Guide to Lionel Trains, O gauge, Volume 1: 1915-1928 the 810-820 series cars did at first have a short wheelbase  In 1926 they were made with a distance of 4 7/8 " from truck center to truck center and in 1927 through 1934 this was changed to 5 1/2 ".  Both frames were flat on the bottom.  The reference does not provide any reason for the change.  So this does confirm your finding that this variation was indeed produced by Lionel for the 1926 year.  The Greenberg reference lists the same value, Good $30 and Excellent $100 for both the 1926 short wheelbase version and the 1927 -30 long wheelbase version.  Obviously since the short wheelbase version was only produced for one year, it would be more scarce.

Best wishes...great find

Don

@Fatman posted:

Here is a Photo of the 3-phase Distler that recently passed thru DutchBoys! hands

A very good concept in all reality ... infinitely variable stable speed between stopped and flat out  and easy reversing ... If it caught on lives would have been a lot simpler for modellers lol

You can see more @Binns Rd http://www.binnsroad.co.uk/rai...s/distler/index.html  Scroll to the bottom 20%

Just when I thought I had seen it all. I was reading through the link you posted and those little 3-phase motors and transformers are really neat.

@Don McErlean posted:

This car, with the blue frame, was made between 1934-1938.  It had a red frame before 1934 and a black frame after 1938.  The fibre load is wood wool tied with red thread (the red color is faint but there).  There was no postwar production for this fellow .

Here he is in my "Imaginary" agricultural train with a Hornby M1 Southern RR Milk Traffic Van  from 1949-1954 and a Hornby LMS Cattle Van from the same period.  So in my world, I now have all I need for my local cattle industry.  I have a car to carry in / out my cows, a car to move the milk, and a car to provide the feed.  What else does a Texas boy need !!

Don

Don that Ag train with the old hay wagon is great. Amazing to find it completely intact including the fine thread binding.

The standard gage train I ran as a kid threw so many sparks that thing would have burst into flames on the first loop !

Don, Many Thanks.  Interesting  car and 95 years old so may be there is no real explanation to the fact that the wheel base  has been made shorter.

You have a nice "agricultural train" the original fibre loads are not an easy find. Hornby has also produced one for the french Market, this one is from 1930 and is the first model.

All my best wishes, Daniel

Trains and Pizza day in the backyard
Steve

https://youtu.be/rrjM1ldcAn4

  Looks like a terrific afternoon @ the Eastman ranch

Just in , some photos of the next little lot to come South from the Netherlands ...

A beautiful clockwork Bub Dutch Railways NS1101 set with both blue and green carriage sets ... one green is missing wheels ... but we have spares here in Aussieland waiting for her

Keeping the Bub from being lonely , a nice Distler set  is coming with him

And lastly Locally comes the weird-arse finds you are all coming to expect from me ( lol )

Seller here in Aus listed this on ePay as a "Car or Train Height Changer" and funnily enough in his round about way he got it 100% right  !

Its actually from a Johann Hoefler train set ... where the trolleybus runs around an inclined broken oval , hooning up the incline into the curve, into the above pictured elevator , where it halts and descends under its own weight , to drive off and head round again

I currently have him looking for the track bits as its an estate sale he is clearing out , but even if they dont turn up it shouldnt be hard to find some track to fit ( 26-28mm if memory is correct , smaller than O )

Stolen web pic of complete set

I love these kinds of quirky value added things

@Fatman posted:

  Looks like a terrific afternoon @ the Eastman ranch

Just in , some photos of the next little lot to come South from the Netherlands ...

A beautiful clockwork Bub Dutch Railways NS1101 set with both blue and green carriage sets ... one green is missing wheels ... but we have spares here in Aussieland waiting for her

Keeping the Bub from being lonely , a nice Distler set  is coming with him

And lastly Locally comes the weird-arse finds you are all coming to expect from me ( lol )

Seller here in Aus listed this on ePay as a "Car or Train Height Changer" and funnily enough in his round about way he got it 100% right  !

Its actually from a Johann Hoefler train set ... where the trolleybus runs around an inclined broken oval , hooning up the incline into the curve, into the above pictured elevator , where it halts and descends under its own weight , to drive off and head round again

I currently have him looking for the track bits as its an estate sale he is clearing out , but even if they dont turn up it shouldnt be hard to find some track to fit ( 26-28mm if memory is correct , smaller than O )

I love these kinds of quirky value added things

Wow, he shots, he scores, goooooooooooooaaaalll!  Love all those find!!!

Steve:  Your outdoor day looks like great fun...the Standard Gauge is gorgeous, maybe an outside loop will give me a chance to run mine.  I have been unable due to space to run any of it inside in quite a few years.

Gerry, you commented on the sparks from your std gauge set setting my "hay wagon" on fire...reminded me of the first time I put Std Gauge around the Christmas tree many years ago and the sparks shot out under the driver wheels (as per usual) and it so scared my two boys (5 and 7 in those days) that they refused to run the train!!   (PS they got over it !).

Fatman you are amazing, the finds you come up with are just beyond belief.  The Hofler elevator train was fabulous.  I had to call my entire family over to the lap top to watch the "You Tube" video.  What a hoot!!  The two clockwork electric engines and carriages from your Dutch contact are equally fantastic.  I have been trying to locate one of those "B-B" electric engines by Hornby for awhile but the ones I see are so expensive, plus shipping from UK nearly doubles the price...oh well its the hunt that counts right!.

Best wishes everyone

Don

@Fatman posted:

Seller here in Aus listed this on ePay as a "Car or Train Height Changer" and funnily enough in his round about way he got it 100% right  !

Its actually from a Johann Hoefler train set ... where the trolleybus runs around an inclined broken oval , hooning up the incline into the curve, into the above pictured elevator , where it halts and descends under its own weight , to drive off and head round again

I currently have him looking for the track bits as its an estate sale he is clearing out , but even if they dont turn up it shouldnt be hard to find some track to fit ( 26-28mm if memory is correct , smaller than O )

Stolen web pic of complete set

Odd that a passenger set in such good condition would be missing its wheels.

And re the level-changer, thanks for showing me yet another thing I'd never seen before.

Well tinplate fans I cannot come up with anything close to the postings of Fatman today, but I am going back to a subject that I posted on before...signals.  Today, I have two Marx No. 312 Manual Semaphore's.  These boys are right out of the F.W.Woolworth "Timely Table of Railroad Accessories" from 1938.  This store catalog covered most of the Marx line including trains and accessories.  The price of this semaphore in 1938 was $0.10 or 10 cents.  It is all sheet steel (no plastic) and is operated via a link from the base.  It stands about 7" high from base to tip.  Not too realistic I suppose but I love the "pre-war" look of them and the Marx simplicity.

One nice thing, this was taken with my new phone camera and it is a much more clear picture than my old phone camera, so I suppose that is an improvement.  My photo skills started when I earned my Boy Scout merit badge with my Kodak Brownie, 620 film camera in about 1953...have not improved much since. 

Best Wishes

Don

@Fatman posted:

And lastly Locally comes the weird-arse finds you are all coming to expect from me ( lol )

Its actually from a Johann Hoefler train set ... where the trolleybus runs around an inclined broken oval , hooning up the incline into the curve, into the above pictured elevator , where it halts and descends under its own weight , to drive off and head round again

That little toy is really neat what a clever mechanism the way it holds the car in place until it reaches bottom. The guy that thought of that was a genius.

The old crinkle finish paint looks to be in superb condition. Great addition to your collection.

Daniel, thank you for the picture of your fibre wagon from French Hornby.  As you said the red frame was the first version followed by my blue one and then the black.  I had not seen a red one before so thanks for posting.

Best Regards

Don

Marx litho animal flats.

Steve

@Steve "Papa" Eastman posted:

Marx litho animal flats.

Steve

Yet another item I'd never seen...

Not a lot of meat on those guys, though.

@Mallard4468 posted:

Yet another item I'd never seen...

Not a lot of meat on those guys, though.

Talk about lean steaks!

A video from last night;

Scott Smith

Just one little  Streamliner for the O gauge collection so far this week ( courtesy of DutchBoy!)

Thinking its a Karl Bub but am having the devil of a time confirming it ...

But the real excitement for me was a tip off ( Thanks Gavin! ) to a OO Distler Tischbahn set here in Australia !

Sadly missing the locomotive ( but I have a few Bings until I find a Distler to match) but with box ( part?) , and 4 carriages and track all at a price not to be argued with ! It took me all of 0.3 seconds to commit to buying this lot !

Such a blatant copy of Bing lol ..... but then all the manufacturers were soon fighting for the "Miniature" Railway market ... Bing, Bub, Distler, Mignon, Paya(Rico) .... Although the true collection will always be O , for some wonderful reason I really like these OO's of the 20's/30's ... the technical leap to make these in such times was truly a revolution IMHO. ( A bit like CD vs Casette tapes lol )

Hi Tinplate fans...Fatman, as usual what a great find.  Candidly I never realized that the 00 market was so competitive in the 1930's although I do know that Lionel tried to get a foothold in the late 1939's with a fabulous model of the NYC J-3 Hudson (which today costs far more than I can spend so it will remain on the desired list).  Steve- what a find...the Marx animals just illustrates the genius of Mr. Marx and his toy company.  Never saw them before but they are just great!

Speaking of Marx, today I have a small sampling of some of the variations of what was a quite common car. The 551 NYC type wagon top tender, often called the Commodore Vanderbilt type tender.  It came in many styles and my reference shows 20 different type of varieties starting in 1934 and extending to 1956.  

Here are two of the more scarce configurations.  The 1950-53 Red Stripe variation and the 1939-41 copper / black stripe variation.

Here are some close ups.

Best wishes

Don

Blue Comet, Freight Division:

Don,

Did the NY red striped tender come as part of a set with a big red steamer that looks somewhat like a Commodore?

Mannyrock

@Mannyrock posted:

Don,

Did the NY red striped tender come as part of a set with a big red steamer that looks somewhat like a Commodore?

Mannyrock

The red tender with the orange stripe actually came in one of the very low end Marx sets, #5610.

Steve

I'll cross post this topic here if it helps any of you to see the benefits of a 3-D printer for hard to find toy train parts...

Anyone Ever Cast Their Own Headlight Lens? | O Gauge Railroading On Line Forum (ogaugerr.com)

Tom

Greetings friends  With the acquisition of my latest Kibri 52-43 I think I've come to the end of adding new major buildings to my layout.  The 52-43 was made in 1935 only, the year I was born.  I think it is a wonderful piece and hope you will agree. I'm also enclosing a photo of the new look towards the East showing the Kibri 52-3, 52-15, 52-43 , the Marklin 2012B, and the Cabo 718-21.

OK its been a BIG week at Casa Fatmanos ... ( nothing to match the splediforous, amazing , not an inch to spare @lewrail layout tho ! Wonderful Lew !)

And I am apologising in advance for crappy photos lol .. why O why cant sellers take good photos?!

Anyhoo first up is one I have wanted for quite a while a fairly early Hornby "Long Splasher"  nut and bolt engined No1 locomotive from C1921-27

Not pristine by any means but it fits my " tiny arms deep pockets " budget

I have to research this a little more to 100% date it , but I am thinking it is an early 1924-5 season loco due to the 5 banding boiler lines and the lined splasher , but as it retains the nut and bolt motor I feel fairly safe in saying its an early 1924 model

I also went out on a limb and collected two more early OO clockwork locos to the stable ... one is easy to identify as it is clearly a JRA ( Allard ) from France late 40's-50's  and correct wagon for it

The next one is an UBER mystery and it was bought from the same French seller as the Allard but he has no clue as to what it is listing it as Bing/Marklin? whatever LOL! .. but both of them were small enough to fit in the same postage cost so it for sure was coming to pay me a visit ... he guessed it was 40's to 50's but part of me is thinking perhaps earlier ... it kinda made the hair stick up on the back of my neck and really the Allard was the KNOWN factor , but it was the following loco I HAD to have ...

It's one of those frustrating locos where you think it has the name in the litho, but Noooooo its random gobbledygook to throw you off when you zoom in on it ..

Again apologies for the photo quality , but its all I got at the moment !

I am hoping maybe the KEY will reveal all as it has "Something" embossed on it but even with the crappy photos the litho smacks of quality to me with the intricate stamping and lining .. all in OO scale remember ?

The Mech is not the fanciest , tho nor is it crappy ,with decent cut gears  but the wheels are a solid nice casting too

It just kinda screams quality to me , but I have been wrong before ... any ideas @Arne or @FRENCHTRAINS

I will mail pics to Fred and see what he thinks but you guys always get first looksies lol

Edit .. should point out the mystery loco and the JRA were both sourced in France ...

@Fatman your collection never ceases to amaze.

@lewrail That layout is just off the charts amazing!

@Fatman posted:

The next one is an UBER mystery and it was bought from the same French seller as the Allard but he has no clue as to what it is listing it as Bing/Marklin? whatever LOL! .. but both of them were small enough to fit in the same postage cost so it for sure was coming to pay me a visit ... he guessed it was 40's to 50's but part of me is thinking perhaps earlier ... it kinda made the hair stick up on the back of my neck and really the Allard was the KNOWN factor , but it was the following loco I HAD to have ...

It's one of those frustrating locos where you think it has the name in the litho, but Noooooo its random gobbledygook to throw you off when you zoom in on it ..

Again apologies for the photo quality , but its all I got at the moment !

Hello Fatman,

no problem, that´s easy.

Made by Karl Bub only 1938-1939.

Here a picture from Catalog 1939

Arne

@Arne  I could kiss you !!! ( but you are very glad I cannot ! )

Thank you so much your Knowledge and resources are so, so, SO appreciated .. I would buy you a beer if you were close my friend

I even searched many  tischbahn sites and that reference never showed ... Thank God for Arne !

( For those interested there is a page I found now that @Arne  provided the KB ... https://www.altemodellbahnen.d...usweichbahn-von.html  )

Edit adding ... http://shanghaidelberg.de/karl...0/body_karlbub00.htm

and

https://translate.google.com/t...niatur-uhrwerkbahnen

( I think I am a little in love with this one , even tho I am yet to see it ...  )

Last week on Ebay, 4 cheap locomotives as "buy it now". Many had looked at the offer, but I think, no one had recognized the green locomotive below.

This locomotive belongs to the rare Issmayer boot train from 1908

There is a picture in the Gamages London catalog

Arrived yesterday

I had a matching tender, but in wrong color and a matching coach.

Arne

Thats a hella good score @Arne ... nicely spotted !

A bub a marx and a JdeP as well .. a very sweet package indeed an eclectic mix for sure  ... why did I not see this LOL!

Thank you Fatman for the kind words about my layout.  Today for the first time in over 15 months I had a couple of vaccinated friends over to see the trains.  Hope all of the O Gauge Forum guys survived the Covid year without too much physical or psychological damage.

Lew Schneider

L

A video from Tuesday evening from the Roanoke Valley Model Railroad Club.

Scott Smith

Very nice Hornby loco @Fatman

I would say 1926-27 period.  Here is an original set from end of 1926 to 1927. same loco but in green, this set was also available in LMS livery as yours.  The black one was intended to be used with freight cars.

Arne is always on the hunt and always find interesting pieces, I would also have enjoy to find that neglected green loco...

Finally @Fatman if one day you have the opportunity to visit Lew's collection you will see something great, a great selection of rare Hornby models in great condition and so many other things, I had the privilege to visit Lew some years ago and I have been impressed with his display cabinets and layouts, Lew and his wife where very nice to meet.

Have a great weekend,  Daniel

@mannyrock - I am sorry that I did not catch your question from last week.  Thank goodness for Steve Eastman's expertise and information about set #5610.  Candidly without an example to see, my set reference would have been of little help because while it lists the 551 with a lithographed top it does not specify color.  I do know that the red 551 NYC "band type" marking in an orange band was made from 1950-1953.  Thanks Steve for the help on answering this question and for providing me with the information as well.

Best Regards

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

@mannyrock - I am sorry that I did not catch your question from last week.  Thank goodness for Steve Eastman's expertise and information about set #5610.  Candidly without an example to see, my set reference would have been of little help because while it lists the 551 with a lithographed top it does not specify color.  I do know that the red 551 NYC "band type" marking in an orange band was made from 1950-1953.  Thanks Steve for the help on answering this question and for providing me with the information as well.

Best Regards

Don

I have seen that set with the black tender also.

Steve

@Fatman postedK its been a BIG week at Casa Fatmanos ...

Interesting group of trains. Looking forward to some proper pictures of the details once you lay hands on them.

@Arne posted:

This locomotive belongs to the rare Issmayer boot train from 1908

There is a picture in the Gamages London catalog

Arrived yesterday

Arne

Amazing find and amazing condition for a 1908 train . I'm curious about that metal sphere in the cab is that the on/off lever for the clockwork mechanism ?

Ahhh Daniel @FRENCHTRAINS, I fear if I ever paid Lew @lewrail a visit , he might have an unwanted house guest for MONTHS and MONTHS !!!   Even longer if Mrs Lew is a great cook LOL!

The dating on the No2 Hornby does worry me a little .. I went earlier because of the motor having the nut and bolt sideplates but after looking again at Graebe I see examples as late as 1928 as having the nut bolt motor , LMS livery was introduced to the No2 range in 1924-5 , and 25-26 marked the slightly larger cut-outs for the siderods in the main chassis valance ... so looking again at mine with all the above considered its def in the 1925-27 range

The defining characteristic when it arrives in hand will be if the brass boiler dome is 2 lug or 4 lug attaching it ...I cant 100% see in the pics .. the painting of the chassis and boiler the same colour also dates it as 1925 on

However it pales in comparison to your wonderful boxed set Daniel ... what a treasure !

I have the Pullmans in the collection but no 2711 tender sadly ... and they are not cheap if/when you find them lol so it might have to put up with a later cousin until I find one I can afford

Fatman and all other O Gauge Forum members.  If you should find yourself coming to Boston, please let me know so we can arrange a visit to my collection.  We have just lifted the Covid restriction. If you've had your vaccination shots we'd love to see you.  I know that some of you were able to come by on the TCA convention trip a couple of years ago.  It was very crowded then and there were time constraints, so you might want to make another trip.

New photos.  I now have another Carette GWR coach to join one which came from the late Mike Cann's collection . Mike's had a good roof, but terrible sides.  My new one hd a repainted roof and pretty good sides. Swap roofs and here's what I ended up with. The two Carettes are pulled by my Bing late 4-4-0.

Lew Schneider

@G-Man24 posted:

Amazing find and amazing condition for a 1908 train . I'm curious about that metal sphere in the cab is that the on/off lever for the clockwork mechanism ?

when the train has entered the ship, the wire is pushed under the locomotive and this metal sphere is raised. The brake is then applied.

When the ship arrives on the other side, the wire below is released and the metal sphere falls down under its own weight and the train continues.

Arne

Those looking at my messages recently have seen that almost all of the fotos focus on the operating layout.  But, in a second room is my "office museum".  From time to time I've posted the "Wall of Trains" and the Fireplace Display from this room.  Today I'd like to share with you the North Wall Display which now includes from the right -- 3 Bing and 1 Cabo station, my collection of Minic buses and railway vans, and in the upper left corner my Western Hobbycraft trolleys.  You might also note the relatively rare Minic blue and cream double decker and the custom flags I had made for the Bing 10/236 sandstone station.

Lew Schneider

@Arne posted:

when the train has entered the ship, the wire is pushed under the locomotive and this metal sphere is raised. The brake is then applied.

When the ship arrives on the other side, the wire below is released and the metal sphere falls down under its own weight and the train continues.

ArneFantastic bit of mechanical ingenuity. I wonder if any of those layouts with the water survived.

Fantastic bit of mechanical ingenuity.  I wonder if any of those layouts with the ship have survived...

@G-Man24 posted:

Fantastic bit of mechanical ingenuity.  I wonder if any of those layouts with the ship have survived...

Hello Gerry,

yes one of them is in the Issmayer book from Michael Bowes. You can see a complete previev of the book at Blurb.

The boat train is on the pages 134/135

Issmayer trains

Arne

Wow, tinplate folks what a week.  Arnie...I have a small book on Issmayer and it does mention the "boat train" but only shows the illustration you had in your post, candidly I never thought I would ever see any part of it in real life.  What a find, thank you for posting. Fatman - great Hornby long splasher loco with nut and bolt motor and the two clockwork 00 engines especially the box cab were just fantastic. Daniel your green long spasher in the box with the matching coaches - wow!  And Lewrail - what a fantastic layout. Super!  Thanks again to all for the pictures.

My contribution today is almost trivial by comparison, however it does extend a little sequence I have been on lately to gather up some pre-war (?) signals and signs.  This one is an official MYSTERY as it contains no indication of its maker.  It is most likely pre-war (no electronics, no plastics, manually operated) but it is not marked with either a country of origin or its maker.

I suspect it to be American Flyer (Chicago Flyer) due to a comparison of the base with some other pre-war Flyer signals  posted on this thread a few weeks ago.  The diameter and rise of the "dish" at the bottom of the stalk is identical.  The color is also very similar but color changes with age so I doubt that means much.  ANYONE  (NWL, GregTunitti,etc ) who has added signals and information on these things to my earlier posts please comment if you have seen this before.

It is a very simplistic (but cute! ) RR crossing sign.  In the first picture the "lights" are not lit and so it would be a "go".  In the second picture, the red lights are "lit" and it would be a stop.  The change from open to red is affected by a red painted screen or flat piece of sheet metal that is slid, via quite an arrangement of levers in the rear, down to block the holes and show through. The center top of the staff was painted red (now worn off) and did not appear to have any lettering and the identification "Railroad Crossing" is lettered below the cross bar.

Any and all help in identifying this Warning Sign (Crossing Sign) would be most appreciated.

Best wishes for a great week

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

Wow, tinplate folks what a week.  Arnie...I have a small book on Issmayer and it does mention the "boat train" but only shows the illustration you had in your post, candidly I never thought I would ever see any part of it in real life.  What a find, thank you for posting. Fatman - great Hornby long splasher loco with nut and bolt motor and the two clockwork 00 engines especially the box cab were just fantastic. Daniel your green long spasher in the box with the matching coaches - wow!  And Lewrail - what a fantastic layout. Super!  Thanks again to all for the pictures.

My contribution today is almost trivial by comparison, however it does extend a little sequence I have been on lately to gather up some pre-war (?) signals and signs.  This one is an official MYSTERY as it contains no indication of its maker.  It is most likely pre-war (no electronics, no plastics, manually operated) but it is not marked with either a country of origin or its maker.

I suspect it to be American Flyer (Chicago Flyer) due to a comparison of the base with some other pre-war Flyer signals  posted on this thread a few weeks ago.  The diameter and rise of the "dish" at the bottom of the stalk is identical.  The color is also very similar but color changes with age so I doubt that means much.  ANYONE  (NWL, GregTunitti,etc ) who has added signals and information on these things to my earlier posts please comment if you have seen this before.

It is a very simplistic (but cute! ) RR crossing sign.  In the first picture the "lights" are not lit and so it would be a "go".  In the second picture, the red lights are "lit" and it would be a stop.  The change from open to red is affected by a red painted screen or flat piece of sheet metal that is slid, via quite an arrangement of levers in the rear, down to block the holes and show through. The center top of the staff was painted red (now worn off) and did not appear to have any lettering and the identification "Railroad Crossing" is lettered below the cross bar.

Any and all help in identifying this Warning Sign (Crossing Sign) would be most appreciated.

Best wishes for a great week

Don

Flyer, but don’t recall the model number.

Steve

Steve:  Thank you for responding!  I searched my Lionel, Mike Bowes books on UK trains, Hornby, Marx and Ives reference material and could not find it.  Thus my suspicion it was Chicago Flyer...this is the one "hole" I have in my reference material, almost no data on early Flyer accessories (cars, locos, etc but not accessories).  Thank you for the information.

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

Wow, tinplate folks what a week.  Arnie...I have a small book on Issmayer and it does mention the "boat train" but only shows the illustration you had in your post, candidly I never thought I would ever see any part of it in real life.  What a find, thank you for posting. Fatman - great Hornby long splasher loco with nut and bolt motor and the two clockwork 00 engines especially the box cab were just fantastic. Daniel your green long spasher in the box with the matching coaches - wow!  And Lewrail - what a fantastic layout. Super!  Thanks again to all for the pictures.

My contribution today is almost trivial by comparison, however it does extend a little sequence I have been on lately to gather up some pre-war (?) signals and signs.  This one is an official MYSTERY as it contains no indication of its maker.  It is most likely pre-war (no electronics, no plastics, manually operated) but it is not marked with either a country of origin or its maker.

I suspect it to be American Flyer (Chicago Flyer) due to a comparison of the base with some other pre-war Flyer signals  posted on this thread a few weeks ago.  The diameter and rise of the "dish" at the bottom of the stalk is identical.  The color is also very similar but color changes with age so I doubt that means much.  ANYONE  (NWL, GregTunitti,etc ) who has added signals and information on these things to my earlier posts please comment if you have seen this before.

It is a very simplistic (but cute! ) RR crossing sign.  In the first picture the "lights" are not lit and so it would be a "go".  In the second picture, the red lights are "lit" and it would be a stop.  The change from open to red is affected by a red painted screen or flat piece of sheet metal that is slid, via quite an arrangement of levers in the rear, down to block the holes and show through. The center top of the staff was painted red (now worn off) and did not appear to have any lettering and the identification "Railroad Crossing" is lettered below the cross bar.

Any and all help in identifying this Warning Sign (Crossing Sign) would be most appreciated.

Best wishes for a great week

Don

Don,

You are correct, it is an American Flyer, the number of which escapes me at the moment.  You have the earlier version which has the rod to move the hidden red parts.  The later ones do not have the moveable rod. 

NWL

@Nation Wide Lines posted:

Don,

You are correct, it is an American Flyer, the number of which escapes me at the moment.  You have the earlier version which has the rod to move the hidden red parts.  The later ones do not have the moveable rod.

NWL

Model 223 in the 1932 catalog.

Steve

#223 it is:

And it comes in two colors:

Sorry for the fuzzy photo

And the green version comes with and without the activating rods.

Northwoods Flyer

Greg

Greg, NWL, Steve : Fantastic - what a response, THANK YOU!  I now know that its #223, American Flyer, comes in green and blue, and the top where mine is long faded and gone once said "Danger" and its the earlier version with the rod to activate.  WOW due entirely to you three, my knowledge of this little guy has really gone up. 

Thank you all again for your response

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

Greg, NWL, Steve : Fantastic - what a response, THANK YOU!  I now know that its #223, American Flyer, comes in green and blue, and the top where mine is long faded and gone once said "Danger" and its the earlier version with the rod to activate.  WOW due entirely to you three, my knowledge of this little guy has really gone up.

Thank you all again for your response

Don

Actually, per Greg's catalog image, I see that I was wrong in saying that it is the earlier version.  There are two descriptions in that image, one is the 223 which has the operating lever and the other, which is described as "same as above, but without operating lever" is the 203.

Oh, and the color does not have anything to do with it being a 203 or 223.  I have both the 203 and 223 in green. 

NWL

NWL: Thank you for pointing that out...my mental computer is "updating" as we speak

Don

sure miss doing bigger shows. So many happy faces.
https://youtu.be/HwuhJ_xdFvs

Steve

Anybody know anything about the blimp hanger in "Papa's" video?

Charlie

@CPC posted:

Anybody know anything about the blimp hanger in "Papa's" video?

Charlie

It’s by Tucher & Walter. This one is actually a locomotive shed, but repurposed. They did make a blimp hanger with a different name on it.

Steve

Great to see the clockwork get a run Steve !!!   even some Technofix

I love the Blimp Hanger as well

However I feel I have let the team down this week ... with NOTHING new at Casa Fatmanos ( its a sad sad time )

Here have a sad lonely Schuco Clockwork mouse as a compensatory post

He's in remakable nick for his age and the abuse most suffered .....

A few news in the collection.

Beckh train indicator from around 1940.

Bing for USA, 4-4-0 loco with clockwork.

Arne

@Arne posted:

A few news in the collection.

Beckh train indicator from around 1940.

Arne

Great piece. Love the corrugated roof and other details in it and the fact that it has a lamp to illuminate the map/schedule.

Like our friend FM I have nothing new to offer this week . However, I was moving some "stuff" around to store it for the summer months and it struck me how well these two items play well together.

The Lionel mountain backdrops you see were not sold with the Scenic Park (1932-33)  in the foreground they actually belong to the earlier Scenic Railway layout (1924-1928) but it would have made a nice combination for someone looking for "right- out-of-the-box" landscaping. Lay some Standard Gage track around it and you were ready to go !

Could this be considered early "kit bashing"  ?  :-)

Arne. Just acquired a Carette tunnel like yours. It was advertised as Rock and Graner. Pictures will come later.  Wish it was in the same condition as yours.  Today's post is titled

THE CHEAPO EXPRESS. 

This train consists of prewar tinplate cars acquired during the  last hour of several train meets--all at bargain prices.  We see Dorfan, American Flyer, and Lionel.  Enjoy. Lew

Scientific toys always have a special appeal for collectors, here is one made by EDOBAUD in France around 1935.  It is called "automotrice" and is made on the base of a passenger car with a motorized bogie in three rail O gauge.  The front just had a light to figure it and the back is closed.  It represent the type of rail cars used in the country on secondary lines, a sort of doodlebug for you.  Luckily I just had the opportunity to buy an original box recently, always a plus for the collection...

Have a nice weekend,  Daniel

@G-Man24 posted:

Like our friend FM I have nothing new to offer this week . However, I was moving some "stuff" around to store it for the summer months and it struck me how well these two items play well together.

The Lionel mountain backdrops you see were not sold with the Scenic Park (1932-33)  in the foreground they actually belong to the earlier Scenic Railway layout (1924-1928) but it would have made a nice combination for someone looking for "right- out-of-the-box" landscaping. Lay some Standard Gage track around it and you were ready to go !

Could this be considered early "kit bashing"  ?  :-)

G-Man24 that is a great match ! I have always loved the early artwork used as backdrops for the Standard Gauge trains.  I’m still looking forward to seeing any new progress on your layout .  

@FRENCHTRAINS posted:

.

Have a nice weekend,  Daniel

Nice. I like the "Leatherette" covered box with the embossed artwork . Also that power hookup made from a wooden sleeper and the little porcelain insulators is really neat.

Daniel - that "toy" is fantastic.  It reminds me that in the early days, toy trains were marketed to parents (never kids) as "educational toys" where they could learn skills for career building.  What impresses me is the level of sophistication.  In 1935 Marx in the US was just beginning to market their 6" 4 wheel cars , what a difference!  lewrail  - just to let you know you are not alone in hunting train show bargains, I have the same loco and 3 of the 5 cars in the consist, all "found" by searching UNDER the tables back when we had train shows and bargaining to folks that by selling to me they would not have to it up for the trip home (LOL)!

Well like Fatman, I have no strictly RR tinplate acquisitions for today.  But you like this Craigstan (Japan) mobile pet shop truck from the golden age of Japanese lithographed tinplate the 1960's.  It is about 0 scale although I suppose not very realistic, however I could not resist the elaborate lithographed design. Originally, it came with a few plastic "pets" that you could carry in the truck.  Alas in the last 60 or so years they have all "run away".

Best wishes for a great Holiday weekend.

Don

Well.... how the worm turns !

Yesterday nada!!! Today Mucho ! lol ...

While not a huge collector of reproductions I relaxed the rules a little for a 1980's Paya re-issue of their cute little mining train .

In the early 1980's the Paya family turned over the struggling toy plant to the employees in a last ditch attempt to keep their history alive . The company then decided to reproduce a small range of their original toys in limited numbers rather than bear the expense of retooling for new products . one of these re-issues was the 837 mining train ... now you will see PLENTY of these cute little locos singly on ebay and in stores , but beware because most of them are NOT made in Alicante in Spain , but were cloned by the chinese... and because there is no Paya Hermanos these days to dispute the trademark , the clones bear both Paya and the PH logo!

The Chinese clones are also a bit smaller than the re-issues I believe ?

So is it a reproduction when a toy is made by the same company, using employees of that company who's father and grandfathers worked there in an unbroken tradition , using the same tooling, and traditions as the original ??? Its a curly question lol ....Which is why I am happier with the term of Re-Issue for the Allicante made toys , and reproduction/fake for the chinese ones ... The Chinese ones also have a shockingly cheap mecanism and plastic axle keepers on the front axle , while the Paya Originals and re-issues have brass ones

But enough of politics and semantics and to the crux of the matter ...

Set # 556

Annnnnd it didnt stop there .. same seller also had a not too bad Marx 999 ... so it had to come to me as well

Single reduction motor with plain rivet front . Yet to do any real research/dating , those in the know feel free

Aware it should have the tinplate tender yes? but hey it was cheep enuff

Video from last night:

Scott Smith

Lionel Classics 1318

American Flyer Crossing Gate in the box

Some video of playing trains at my buddy Bob’s last month.

Steve

https://youtu.be/16WHbjAgBFw

Another video from Bob’s. This one from this past Sunday. A few unusual pieces being run.

Steve

https://youtu.be/WRtMvfXRA3o

A classic French Hornby set from 1936-37, the Golden Arrow.  The passenger cars are a French deco of the British ones, not realistics but a nice train to enjoy. The white roof is a repaint on a car, the original set just had two of them.

Have a nice weekend, Daniel

New this week, a Karl Bub LNWR train from the 20s.

Arne

Hello tinplate fans...what a great selection in your posts this week.  Trainlover160, what a find the AF crossing gate in the box!  Arne the Karl Bub set is really wonderful, thanks for posting as I doubt I would get to see it otherwise.  Daniel ... WOW...first on 5/14 you post a 26-27 French Hornby set in the box and then the just fabulous Hornby Golden Arrow...just marvelous

I am afraid my offering today is much more humble.  A simple Hornby M-2 set from the post war period, roughly 1950's. Here are the trains with their circle (oval really) of track and the box of track clips.  This set still has the paperwork intact as well.

The box cover, with its highly exaggerated picture of the trains inside!

Here is the paperwork inside, including a packing slip with the inspector's stamp and an application to join the Hornby Railway Company.

Best wishes to all.

Don

@Don McErlean posted:

...

...

Great find - beautiful.  But it's always sad to see such a wonderful toy that was never enjoyed by its recipient.

@Arne, @FRENCHTRAINS, those both look amazing! And @Don McErlean, you already know I am a sucker for a nice Hornby!

Arne,

those cars were also sold by Carette in the 1911 catalog with an appropriate 4-4-0.

Roland

@Arne posted:

New this week, a Karl Bub LNWR train from the 20s.

Arne

Looks like the First Class passengers got the middle seats !  And the guard had a car all to himself, wondering what he was guarding ?

@Don McErlean posted:

=

Don that set is in amazing condition and very complete. Looks like new old stock.

Mallard 4468, G-Man24, AND jhz563 thank your for your compliments.  Mallard, I agree its too bad that a set like the one I posted never found its way to some lucky young person.  How it arrived in the US is another interesting thought, although Hornby did export its trains.  G-man it might be new old stock as I purchased it in the 1980's from a local hobby shop in Beavercreek , Ohio, a suburb of Dayton (where we lived at the time) .  It does seem like new, the cardboard under the cars is hardly wrinkled from removing them from the box.  The engine had been removed - likely to test it.

Best wishes for a great week everyone.

Don