What are your ideas for "Vision Line Features?"

I think an engineer that moves his head out the window and pulls the throttle would be really cool. Howard Bixler scratch did that on his custom CB&Q Northern in 1991.

 

The thing is there is a lot of cool things you can do that haven't been done with steam engines, and not so much diesels and electrics. Except maybe windshield wipers that actually work or sparking wheels whenever you hit the brakes hard.

Steam locomotive wise it would be cool to have water run out the ashpan whenever you are done running it like in real life.

I Wish they would forget the gimmicks and add more detail. 

 

Ben 

The sounds of rods clanking one in every while not all the time

Box car with a moving trainman figure who has a 2-way radio. The trainman is holding on to the side of the boxcar and moving up and down the ladder or grab irons. From the boxcar we can hear the communication between the conductor, engineer, and trainman.

 

Andrew

Fun topic!

I also vote for windshield wipers, perhaps on a nice "f" series?  If Lionel can cause a tiny bell to swing (please bring that back, too), then wipers shouldn't be too hard.

This is kind of goofy, but I'd like to be able to remove side panels and see the inner workings of a Diesel engine underneath - in full detail.  No, not the model train electronics.  The real thing.  Kind of like opening those tiny side panels on my Evo Hybrid and seeing the detail within.  I love me some opening panels and doors!

And overall, not just in Visionline, but it would be a good start there, how about more audio track variety?  Maybe tens or hundreds of potential audio playback sequences?  SFX as well as voice tracks.  The same ol' same ol' repeats of the same spiels over and over is tiresome (no offense intended to those present who may provide said spoken tracks for certain manufacturers).  Maybe some random bumps and grinds here and there.  An occasional muffled curse from an engineer.  Throw a bearing once every few weeks, maybe.

My two and a half cents.

- Timbo

The only time water runs out of the ashpan is when the crew is on the ground cleaning and flushing it out with a hose.

 

Rusty

Really???????

How about passenger cars/train with "steam" escaping from the steam lines between the cars.  Steam escaping from the front of the locomotive would also add to the overall effect.

 

Tom

Water and electronic boards-----I don't think so

I vote with banelson , forget the whiz bang features and do a better job with detail. 

A 3-year coupler to coupler warrenty. Fix it in 2 weeks or your money back.

Well I don't run steam locomotives, so I maybe should have thought more on this one...  

Animated cab figures would be really COOL. Heck, even put realistic looking figures in the cabs would be an improvement over the Weeble people. 

Legacy controlled switchable class lights...green/white..

Joe

Originally posted by Paul Kallus:

Animated cab figures would be really COOL. Heck, even put realistic looking figures in the cabs would be an improvement over the Weeble people. 

Originally posted by Mikado 4501:

I think an engineer that moves his head out the window and pulls the throttle would be really cool. Howard Bixler scratch did that on his custom CB&Q Northern in 1991.

 

I second the animated engineer in both steam and diesel. I am not to crazy about windshield wiper movements. But Diesel Grounding lights lit up to scale 20 mph in the lead loco would be a neat feature too!

I would like to see a feature that would lower the pantographs on electric locos automatically when approaching a bridge or tunnel portal. Most operators do not have over head wires and are forced to run their electric locos with the pantographs down. If the previous idea using sensors is too costly or complex, perhaps there could be a selective intermediate position for the height of the pantographs.

 

Eric Hofberg

TCA, LCCA  

Going with the ashpan idea.

One that opens. Comes with a track section with flickering red LEDs.

Or the feature could be separate and slide under any track section.

Total reliability

Most people are focusing on locomotives.  I think there is tremendous opportunity for VL rolling stock.  Look at the success of the PFE reefers and the ethanol tankers. 

 

I think the market is clamoring for sounds, lights, and action in top-of-the-line rolling stock (including passenger cars).

Ok, call me simple, but I would like these items:

1) what happened to the extra flags you could put on the front of your locomotive?

2) sound in dummy units- especially in a A-B-B-A unit

3) What happened to the break down B units?

4) Add more sounds- love the clickty clack sounds of the track at speed for example.

5) keep up with the sound cars

6) Station sound diners or cars with people talking, conductor announcements seem to cycle between only one or two, be nice to have more variants, and multiple cars with sounds.

7) Locomotive service sounds,

8) Maybe a VL talking station

9) Add engineer talk to the fireman with signal call outs. Add a radio call out back to the caboose, with a caboose call back on the train status.

10) Add a package of scale couplers to the mix.

 

 

 

 

 

I'm in with "Hot Water", and that is alternating steam from the bottom of the steam chests, emulating a "real Locomotive" start up.

They put a slow cylinder blow down on my Legacy 2-10-4, but why they didn't go the extra mile to alternate cylinder blow emulating condensate expulsion, I don't know? Maybe didn't think about doing this, or time factor research and design, or D all the above! IMHO, this goes hand in hand with a moving bell, and quillable whistle....Brandy

Some good ideas so far. I also agree with those who want simple reliability.

 

As far as gimmicky stuff, how about the ability to "tune" the engines. Such things as:

 

• Being able to set volume levels of the various sound effects (especially turning the crew talk to zero).
• Also, being able to set the level of clanking to an engine. i.e. if you have a really weathered engine you could set the clanking effect to represent an engine ready to be shopped.
• Adjusting the tender to engine distance for a specific layout curves.
• Fixing the pilot on diesels. 
• Adding scale pilot wheels like the 1990 Hudsons
• Finally about unnumbered engines and especially rolling stock so you can buy as many as you need and number them yourself with supplied rub off lettering sheets (sold separately of course)

The more animation you get, the more problems you get. Look at all the complaints about the VL BB blow down smoke, and that's just a smoke unit. You really want a bunch of moving parts that will stop working???

 

The 1st few Vision Line products were NEW, brand new products. The last 2, re-runs of products that have been done in the past...more than once.

 

I'm tired of re-runs...whether Lionel or MTH. I'm DEFINITELY NOT going to spend $2k on another re-run, AGAIN, just because they add a couple features to a product that already exists.

 

If you really want big sales.... make something NEW! 

A cool Vision line feature for New York Central locomotives would be a water scoop that raises or lowers on the underside of the tender.

Which should be REAL INTERESTING when the first turnout is encountered whit the tender water scoop in the down position!?!

An all die-cast UP Big Blow Turbine that shoots out a flame when the turbine fires up! 

 

Talk about a HOT new feature!! 

To say nothing about that pesky third rail on the straightaways...

1)  2-RAIL capable

2)  DCC decoder integrated into the legacy, like their AF deisels.

+1!

 

There's a 'gold mine' in VL sound equipped cars.  More please.

 

Also, I want VL passenger cars to be made.

I love the features that are currently out there...

Swinging Bell, Steam Chest smoke, Dynamo Smoke, Whistle Steam, Depleting Coal, Blow Down Steam, Freight Sounds...

Features don't have to be new just put them in the locomotives I want. I'm sick of Lionel trying to find new gimmicks when they have not implemented the ones they got, which are the same ones we like and love. Lionel, Please stop screwing around and start producing. In the meantime I will take the money I was saving for a big articulated steam VL engine and hand it to MTH. I am utterly disgusted by the GG-1. Monumental FAIL!

MTH I will take 1 Erie Triplex, 1 Z-6 in Spokane Portland & Seattle livery, 1 4-12-2 road number 9011, and 3 SD60Es... which constitutes my largest MTH order ever, what I would typically hand to Lionel.

Agreeable Doug, why the heck would you buy a Vision Line GG1 just for the new features and sounds, everyone here and other members from Clubs would say the JLC version is alot better and reliable. It is time they make non Remakes.

Operating airpumps. 

To accomplish what, air pressure?

To accomplish nothing of course.

 

Let's do away with the the Vision Line. It's a joke anyways. Money grubbing Lionel!

 

When you boil it down, there is nothing different between a 224e and a 3rd Rail Super Hudson is there? Sure one may have some more wax castings hanging on it, but when you get down to brass tacks, it really is just a fancy shell on an electric motor isn't it? How dare they try to bring something new and exciting to us!

 

I know, let's squash everyone's ideas and do away with this silly hobby. This is just fantasy anyways right? No one here is worried about boiler pressure or slipping drivers, so could we, the unwashed masses, know what is good for us or not?

 

Please elighten us further with how it should be!

How about MUCH higher quality standards and reliability?

Certainly...but that shouldn't be a "feature". It should be something that ALL manufacturers should strive for. 

 

 

Waving engineer and fireman.