What was the last free thing you got for your layout or train collection?

I have given a lot of stuff away but also got lots of stuff. When I was looking for ore cars two members sent me ore car. Another time I needed of all things dirt for the new layout. Everything is red in Maui. Got all I need. I figure, give and you get. Don

Advice,lots of it here. 

My LHS gave me a piece of rolling stock in my chosen road name. That was really a great gift you got. Your friend is very generous. 

A couple of Christmas presents from my wife but other than that-NADA.

Dust and dead ladybugs.

A fellow emplyoee, maybe twenty years ago, told me about a lady in his housing area

that had a train she had inherited.  I went out to look at it, and it was a boxed Marx six inch mixed train set, freight and pass. cars, that she received when her uncle passed away. I don't collect six inch, but made an offer.  She refused the money, although I told her it was worth it, and this was not an upscale neighborhood, but she refused  repeatedly and shooed me out the door with it.

Christmas 2013 gift, my older daughter found a box of old Lionel at the thrift store for $10.  She just put wrapping paper on it and gave it to me as is.  Inside was two full post war sets and some other odds and ends, plus a ton of 027 track.  The sets were complete 2026 (the 2-6-4 probably 1953) and a 621 switcher.  Both engines run fine after some cleaning and lube.  They now sit on my 3/4 completed 12x12 family room ceiling level layout awaiting shelves on the last wall.  I will run them on the ceiling, while running my modern trains on the 4x8 layout.

Nice.

 I had sold some fishing stuff too a guy, and about a week later he brought me a PW Hudson set that belonged to his Dad, and gave it to me.

I told him I would only babysit it.

But, I don't think he is coming back

 

My first 6 locos were gifts. I recently remembered 2 more! Man o man, Mom & Pop really let me abuse the plastic ones. But I got them early on, and the die cast got a little more respect too. 2 die cast steamers survived, "ears" and all. One mine, one my brothers.(so kind of 7 from childhood, I have been given Lil' bro's train by him).

 5 locos from others after moving out.

That's 12 total, 7 alive, out of twenty.

Rolling stock would take all day as that was an "easy" gift once people knew.

How do I count the one from the garbage pile?

Had a guy at my work that was a scraper on garbage day around his neighborhood. When he found out I was in to trains he said he had some that he pulled out of peoples garbage. He gave me 4 boxes of train stuff.

Over the years I've received many items either for free or for little cost while attending train shows. 

But the best to date has to be a brand new Lionel Standard Gauge Green State set with 6 cars. 

 

 

I was given a Lionel postwar Prarie from 1946 with transformers and cars.

An MTH Railking Proto 1 FA1 ABA set of diesel locomotives, a MTH Railking B&O crain car,

A Miller Engineering Natty Bo sign, an MTH Brewery,  and a Beer Depot made by a lady up in Vermont.

 

 

I actually won a 4X8 MTH layout in a raffle, proto 2 consolidation steamer, 2 freight cars, and caboose, several buildings, curved MTH mountain, realtrax track, automatic switch, transformer, table with collapsable legs for easy set up.  Layout came fully assembled.  

 

However since I already had a 6 x 17 layout, I gave my winning layout to the kids next store, so... they are now heavily into trains.  They just rode the Western Maryland Scenic last week with H9 consolidation at the point.  They loved it!!  

Had someone attend one of our club open house events this past winter. the following week he randomly showed up at the club and I just happened to be there doing some scenery work. He gave me a box of PW Lionel which included a 2026 Engine and assorted cars which were cleaned up and will be give to an associate of my son who is retiring soon. there were also assorted Marx items including an engine and a bridge which were repackaged and sold here on the forum

 Actually the last "big" thing I forgot about.

A small "junk" layout with a "seen better days" appearance, but useable things with some mechanical love, and visual repair: American flyer talking station, no steps or needle holder, good timer(ok record)(now a timer/factory for the station on another line, but same layout.); 1033; girder bridge; accessory rail & plain uncoupling tracks; crossing gate; flagman shack in need of a roof, and pole; half a dozen, various, under-track contactors; and even more lock-ons than those.

last summer, a friend gave me this. missing the bottles and wiper.

Mark Boyce sent me a crossing signal.  Thanks Mark.

I recently had a friend give me a 2025 loco only that was rescued from a pile put out at the curb by one of their neighbors. It looked rather bad. But a careful cleaning and a few minor parts brought it back to life. I guess some folks would repaint it, but I rather keep it the way it is.
I wonder what else was in that pile.......

The last free thing I got was advice but Thursday I am supposed to get a nice Lionel gang car. I have one that is sort of ugly with a man missing but I accepted the freebie. If it is nicer mine might end up in a project trolley car.

Somebody was going to throw out some deciduous trees from a school project. They are mine.

One of my employees brought a Milwaukee Road Hiawatha plaque that belonged to her Dad. No one in the family wanted it. It belongs to the Skydome Observation car located in a museum in Melbourne, FL. Beautiful piece.

Our friends at Korber sent us some roof top building details and our friends at the NJ Highrailers sent us some building flats. Jim at BridgeBoss made us a new diesel service facility. It's just amazing! 

 

Thanks guys!

You're welcome, Bob!  That crossing signal was one of the odds and ends in the box my daughter gave me that I mentioned above.

I was at a train show this winter where I bought a PW banjo signal from a nice older gent.  he threw in a handful of 022/042 switch lanterns I needed, so that was nice.

 

other than that, I like to buy "lots" of items on ebay, keep what I want and sell the rest.  on a group of accessories last year I made a decent profit even after buying some parts to fix them, so counting the profit towards my "labor" (I love tinkering with PW stuff) and I ended up counting a barrel ramp, semaphore, a pair of 022 switches, and an operating track section as free

A very kind friend sent me three 'Troublesome Trucks' as an unexpected gift once. I lettered them as private-owner wagons in his name! 

As an aside, since my layouts are not historical per se, I have liked to name different places for 'forum friends.'

my uncle gave me a PW ft Santa fe #218 and the b unit to go with it. that was the only thing I have gotten free unless you count the pringles cans that are now storage tanks

I don't know the last free thing but, apart from gifts, the first free item I ever got was a Lionel 9608 BN Hi-cube boxcar:

 

 

I won it in the doorprize raffle at the very first train show I ever attended.  My Dad drove me when I was 16.

 

Steven J. Serenska

A box of Marx type B trucks from a fellow O gauger.

 

Before that was this...

 

Here are photos of the two sets my daughter found at the thrift store.  Christmas day 2013.  (Oh, and Bob's crossing signal was thrown in.)  

 

Are they on your layout, or, in your yard?

I'm not sure if gifts for specific occasions actually count for this thread, but the last layout-related item I was given was the MTH PRR hopper car, that my wife gave me for my birthday.

 

When my sons were little, they gave me some small Spongebob figures to put around my layout.

They are big kids now (College +) but the spongbob figures are still on the layout.  It helps me reminisce about when they were little and played with the trains a whole lot!

My Uncle Jim that passed a month ago left me his Postwar Lionels.Definitely mixed emotions there.

A nice bundle of sticks from Don.  

Ballast and Ground Cover.

 

The ballast in the pics below is from my street.  My neighbors think I'm a neat freak sweeping all the time.  I really just needed more ballast.  Washed and sifted twice gives me three sizes.

 

The fine grey dirt comes from my garage.  Collected, cleaned and sifted.  I have a need for a lot of ballast and did not want to spend a lot of money.  Free sounded good.

 

The other freebie was some sawdust I received from a furniture maker.  I sifted it to different sizes and dyed it.  The ground cover in the scene below is all sawdust.

 

Have Fun.

Ron

 

15+ years ago a next door neighbor was preparing to move and discovered he still had his childhood trains which he gave to me.  I didn't think much about the trains--they were w/o boxes and appeared to be common PW LIONEL--at the time I was interested in scale brass locomotives.

 

Eventually, some years later, I returned to my PW LIONEL interests and discovered that the trains he had given me were actually LIONEL's first PW 224 freight set.  They cleaned up very well and I'm glad to have a bit of LIONEL's post-war production history. 

Inspiration, and just like free advise, there's lots of it here in OGR.

Ron,

I like the couple inspecting your ballast and dirt!!