Lionel 6-28227 Union Pacific SD-70MAC Diesel Engine w/TMCC

My fiance got this for me for Christmas 2005. We see these Union Pacific SD-70's in the yard behind my house all the time, and I wanted one very much. Since this particular model is a Lionel engine, it uses Lionel's TMCC (TrainMaster Command Control) digital system. My layout uses MTH's DCS (Digital Command System), but fortunately MTH was smart enough to allow their system to control TMCC engines as well as DCS units! I had to get the Lionel TMCC command base (about $80), which plugged into the DCS TIU device and then everything was ready to go. Now that I've got the TMCC command base, I will be able to add other TMCC engines in the future with no trouble at all. This being my first TMCC engine, I'm rather pleased with the performance. My only complaint is that MTH's DCS system won't allow lash-ups with TMCC engines. That being the case, I'm looking to get either an MTH or Lionel dummy unit to put behind this one.

Lionel 1-8816 Chicago & Northwestern GP-38 Diesel Locomotive

When I first started playing with my dad's set in 1990, I bought this GP-38 engine to give the old UP 2023 a break. As with many early 90's items that Lionel put out, this one was comprised of mostly plastic pieces, so it sustained a lot of damage over the years. The horn was snapped off, but I have since replaced it. I also replaced the front truck and motor assembly, as the original was damaged. It is now is good operational order, although its conventional configuration makes it pretty much useless on my modern digital layout. Though this engine is pretty darn flimsy and cheap, one good quality that it does have is that it is VERY fast. Don't' ask me how, but this thing really flies and would give any of my new locomotives a run for their money.

Lionel 8304 Steam Engine & Tender

I picked up a set from the early 70's on ebay that had this engine along with 5 cars for $32! Not bad. The e-unit on this engine was having some trouble when I got it, but I got that fixed at a local shop. The smoke stack really cranks out a ton of smoke! The tender whistle doesn't sound quite right, so I'll probably have to fix that as well...or get it fixed.

9015 Reading Hopper

Built 1-73. This car is part of a 1973 set that I picked up on ebay. They came with a 8304 steam engine. Back in 1990 when I first started getting new cars, I thought the late 80's and early 90's cars were pretty cheaply made. I now know that they were spectacular cars compared to some of the stuff that Lionel put out in the 70's. This stuff is REALLY cheaply made. Plastic everything. The only metal parts on these things are the axles wheels. Even the little rivet thing that hold the truck to the car is plastic! Thank God Lionel doesn't put out stuff like this anymore. I have since put die-cast sprung trucks on this piece, which has made all the difference.

9141 Burlington Northern Gondola

Built 1-70. Another ebay find. I think I paid about $9 for this one.

9125 N & W Trailer Train

Built 1-73. More cheap 70's stuff. I sorta like this one, though, because I don't have anything else like it.

9704 Norfolk & Western Boxcar

Picked this up for a few bucks on ebay. Made in 1972. You can't ever have too many random boxcars.

6-16244 Duluth South Shore & Atlantic Boxcar

Built 1-93. This is pretty much the same type of boxcar as my Santa Fe model. It's nothing too fancy and mostly plastic, but it looks nice on the layout.

6-16301 Wabash Gondola

This was part of a set of 6 or so cars that I picked up on ebay. The whole lot cost me $15, I think. It's just your basic plastic gondola car. Nothing too exciting, but it adds filler to the freight yard.

6-16317 Pennsylvania Railroad Barrel Ramp Car

Another car that I added in the early 90's. The thin and fragile plastic rails have broken several times over the years, but never anything super glue couldn't fix.

6-16333 Frisco Bulkhead Car

I picked this one up off of ebay for a few bucks. It's a 1991, so it had a lot of plastic on it. However, it still adds some nice character to my layout. I replaced the cheap plastic trucks with die-cast trucks, so the car has a nice weight to it.

6-16485 Copper Range Ore Car

Built in 2005. Despite being a lower end car made mostly of plastic (including the plastic trucks), this is a nice looking car. I picked it up on ebay for under $15.

6-16505 Wabash Caboose

Same story as the car above. Late 80's Lionel crap. I've started to call cars like this "filler", meaning that all they do is take up space and make my train yard look full.

6-16533 Chicago & Northwest Bay Window Caboose

This was one of the first new cars I got for the set back in the early 90's. For the time, it was a pretty nice car. It doesn't have die-cast trucks, but it's quite attractive nevertheless. It's a lighted caboose, and I have made a custom modification by placing thin paper over all of the windows. Not only does covering the windows give the illuminated car a warmer look, but it also provides a bit more realism since you are not able to look into the car and see the light assembly. I like to use this technique on a lot of my other lighted train accessories as well. The paper is attached with some Elmer's glue, so it can be easily removed at any time.

6-16601 Canadian National Searchlight Car

Another one of the set of 6 cars I got on ebay for dirt cheap. Yeah, it's cheap 80's Lionel crap, but it works perfectly.

Lionel 6-16610 Track Maintenance Car

An ebay find. You gotta have a track maintenance car on your layout! Mostly plastic, but still a nice car overall.

6-16907 Flatcar w/Farm Tractors

My little 5 year old loves the little tractors. Built 1-94, purchased by me on ebay for $15 in October 2005.

6-17026 Delaware & Hudson 50 Ton Offset Hopper

These new offset hoppers that Lionel has made are simply gorgeous. In my opinion, these cars blow away just about any postwar car as far as beauty and sheer craftsmanship are concerned. These things are big, bulky, heavy as hell and oh so very detailed. I've got 2 of them so far, but I plan to get a few more before it's all said and done. Lionel has to compete for the train market now, and they have really come through with this series.

6-17027 Illinois Central 50 Ton Offset Hopper

Just like the one above, except it's Illinois Central. Man, I can't get over how gorgeous these cars are.

6-17041 Great Northern Offset Hopper #73530

You guess it, just like the 2 above. I can't get enough of these big and heavy beauties.

6-17042 Green Bay & Western Offset Hopper #418

Another one like the 3 above. I've got 4 of these hefty hopers now, and they look so good on the layout!

6-17251 BNSF 50' Modern Boxcar

A nicely done boxcar. My favorite part is the well done roof, which isn't visible in the photo. Made in 1999 and added to my set in March 2007.

6-17588 CSX Husky Stack

These EXACT cars roll through the CSX yard behind my place nonstop, night and day, so I had been wanting this one for a long time. I ended up getting as a birthday present from my dad. :) Built 2005, added to my layout in January 2006.

6-17589 TTX Trailer Train Husky Stack

Just like the Husky Stack above the real-life versions of this car go though the CSX yard behind my place all the time, so I was really happy to get this. It's a big, rugged car and is highly detailed. This car was built in 2005 and bought by me in November of the same year.

6-17900 Santa Fe Uni-Body Tank Car

This 1990 tanker is not too bad for the age in which it was made. Yes, the tank itself is cheap plastic and so is much of the rest of the car. However, the trucks are die-cast, which makes this a pretty nice car overall. I picked it up for a few bucks on ebay. I have since weathered this car. It was my second weathering attempt. I made a slight goof on the underside of the car, but otherwise I think it looks pretty good.

6-17983 GATX Tank Train 3-Pack

I ordered these at the same time I ordered the new Legacy Norfolk Southern Tank Train set. I found it funny that this expansion pack came in before that actual set that it's supposed to enhance. At any rate, these cars are wonderfully detailed and very, very beautiful. Well done, Lionel! Made in 2008, added to my set in November of 2008.

Lionel 6-18490 Union Pacific Ballast Tamper

Pretty much useless on my DCS layout for right now., but still a neat little gadget. The little tampers move up and down as the unit moves. Added to my collection in March of 2006.

Lionel 6-18497 Norfolk & Western Speeder

I was at a train store north of Atlanta with my girlfriend one day and she was just crazy for this little firecracker. I'll admit, it is a cute little thing. This things looks so neat zipping around my layout. I think in the end I will probably give this speeder a little line of its own, so that it can zip back and forth on the set without getting in the way of its big brothers. I plan to purchase the Lionel "Speeder Shed" for this thing eventually, so that it will have a cozy little home all its own.

6-19216 Santa Fe Boxcar

This is just a cheap boxcar, but it has special meaning for me. After I took possession of my dad's old Lionel set in 1990, this car was the first new car that I added to the set. Moreover, it was the first new car to run with the set in over 30 years. I think I bought this for around $30, which was a ton of money to me at the time. This is a 1990 model.

6-19216 Santa Fe Boxcar

I found this on ebay. It exactly like the one above, which makes for a nice pair of cars. Sure, they're the same car number, but who cares? Built in 1990.

6572 (6-19567) Railway Express Agency Reefer

A reissue car by Lionel. Very high quality and a beautiful car any way you look at it. I added this car to my collection in July of 2005.

6-19653 Jersey Central Tool Car

An early 90's addition to the set. It's not too fancy, but it does light up! Pretty good quality too.

6-21853 BNSF PS-2 4427 Hopper 3-Pack

These are out of Lionel's 2006 catalog. I like that Lionel has started using the trucks with the rotating bearing caps like Atlas does. It adds another level of realism. These hoppers are very nicely done. Made in 2006 and added to my set in June 2007.

6-21877 Domino Sugar Unibody Tank Car 3-Pack

Very nice modern era scale tankers from Lionel. I picked this set and the one below for a discounted price from a Lioenl dealer whose website I designed and manage. From the rotating bearing caps to the many die-cast parts, these tankers are sweet. The 3 cars in this set are sequentially numbered, which is an added bonus. Made in 2007, added to my set in February of 2008.

6-21878 Procor Unibody Tank Car 3-Pack

Same type of tankers as the set above, but with Procor markings. Made in 2007 and added to my set in February of 2008.

6-26766 Priority Mail Operating Box Car

Another high quality car that Lionel has put out recently. Nice construction all around, and you can't beat the classic operating boxcar bit. The car came with a tiny little mailbag that you can attach to the mailman and he will throw it out of the car when he pops out. I had no idea the mailbox existed until I was packing the car up for the move to our new house and found it taped to the plastic liner in the box. This car was built in 2001, and I bought it in August of 2005.

6-26820 Penguin Transport Aquarium Car

Since the old 3435 aquarium cars are pretty expensive to get, I picked up this 2005 version. It's really a well made and beautiful car to have. The way that this car operates is so neat. Basically, you have clear windows on the outside, and on the inside there is a long piece of plastic with pictures of fish (or penguins in this case) on it. When electricity hits the car, little motors inside slowly roll the plastic film by and it gives the appearance that the fish/penguins are swimming around inside the car. This car is a perfect example of why I think that the postwar engineering by Lionel was so darn clever. They had to figure out ways to do it all "analog", with no help from computers or microchips or any of that stuff we take for granted now.

6-26132 Union Pacific Single Dome Tanker

I picked this up at a local train store recently. This is a beautiful die-cast car and was instantly one of my favorites. Bravo, Lionel!

6-26147 Archive Collection Diamond Chemicals Tank Car

One from Lionel's archive. The same high quality construction as the UP tanker listed above. A very nice car.

6-26781 #3540 Operating Radar Car

This is remake of the original postwar #3540 Operating Radar Car. It's really cool. I've got a soft spot for all of those 50'/60's Cold War era cars. So cool!

6-26934 Phillips Petroleum Die-Cast Tank Car

Exactly like the Union Pacific car below, except with the Phillips 66 logo. An amazingly rugged and beautiful car. I think that only piece of plastic on these tank cars are the armatures on the trucks.

6-26943 Union Pacific Oil Die-Cast Tank Car

Almost 100% die-cast metal construction, this 1998 tanker is just lovely. It's heavy as hell and has those nice sprung trucks. This beauty easily stacks up to anything that the postwar era cranked out.

6-27047 Chessie PS2 Hopper #600120

The local trainstore, Atlanta Trains, was having a 40% off sale so I snagged this car and the two cars below this one. Three brand new cars for just over $100 is a damn good deal. I'd been looking for some Chessie System stuff anyway, so it was nice to get these for a good price. I like the these hoppers have opening roof hatches. I'm going to weather both of these cars in the near future. Made in 2008, added to my set in July of 2008.

6-27048 Chessie PS2 Hopper #600125

Just like the hopper above, but a different road number. Made in 2008, added to my set in July of 2008.

6-27169 Canadian National Cylindrical Hopper #370708

When I bought this cylindrical hopper, it appeared to be dull gray color you see in the first picture here. That's the side that was facing out in the box when I bought it. When I got home and opened it up, however, I turned to car over to find a literal rainbow of color other side. Maybe this was part of CN's Gay Pride series. Hehe. In case your curious, the chemical formula on the side of the car, OCN[CH2]6NCO, is apparently the formula for "Hexamethylene diisocyanate" which is apparently a chemical used to harden paint. At least that's what Wikipedia had to say about it. This car is nicely done and is strikingly similar to Atlas' version of the cylindrical hopper. Made in 2007, added to my set in July of 2008.

6-27184 Chicago & Northwestern 3-bay Hopper #135001

I picked this up at Atlanta Trains. It's all die-cast and is incredibly well done as well a quite heavy. Built in 2007 and added to my set in January 2008.

6-27185 Chicago & Northwestern 3-bay Hopper #135002

I got this car about a week after the one above. Same car, different road number. Built in 2007 and added to my set in January 2008.

6-27235 Railbox Modern Boxcar

I picked this car up at The Roundhouse in North Hollywood while I was on a business trip in Los Angeles. It's your basic Lionel scale boxcar with an attactive paint job, die-cast sprung trucks and a metal brake wheel. If you've ever wondered why Railbox cars carry the slogan "Next Load Any Road", click here for the answer. Made in 2007, added to my collection in February of 2008.

6-27523 TTX Trailer Train Husky Stack

This car and it's matching counterpart below were the first batch to come in from my 2006 catalog orders. Amazing detail and quite lovely. Built in 2006 and added to my collection in October 2006.

6-27524 TTX Trailer Train Husky Stack

The counterpart to the husky stack above.

6-27546 GBRX Husky Stack

Nice die-cast construction on the car body.

6-28409 Conrail Rail Bonder

I picked this up on ebay for $32. Apparently, a rail bonder welds the rails on the roads. At any rate, it's nice little piece and will help add realism on the layout. This was made in 2006 and added to my collection in January of 2007.

6-29203 Maine Central Boxcar

I love this little gem. It's nothing fancy, but the yellow body adds some nice character to my set. Very solid construction with die-cast sprung trucks. Built January of 1997, bought by me Sept. of 2005.

6-29603 Comet Single Done Tank Car

My girlfriend thought this car was cute, so I picked it up. It's very high quality, like most of the other tank cars that Lionel has been putting out. Built 2005, added to my collection in October 2005.

6-29717 Norfolk Southern Extended Vision Caboose

Since the use of the caboose is almost nonexistent on modern railroads (there are a few exceptions here and there), I'm usually not a big caboose fan. However, when I saw this one, I instantly knew it would make a perfect companion to my MTH Norfolk Southern Dash-9. This is a nicely built unit with die cast trucks, interior illumination and a smoke unit as well. Since this picture was taken, I have attached translucent paper to the windows of the cupola (upper windows) so that the interior bulb is not so obvious. It seems to me to it'd be more realistic for Lionel to frost all of the windows at the factory, but oh well. Built in 2005, and bought by me in November of 2005.

6-36029 Southern Pacific Auto Carrier

A fine addition to my growing auto carrier fleet. I see these things all day behind my place, so it's a real treat when I find them on ebay or elsewhere. Built 1999, bought by me on ebay in November 2005.

6-36262 Central of Georgia Box Car

Even though Lionel has been making more high quality stuff since the mid 1990's, they still crank out some low end cheap stuff. Even with it's plastic trucks and couplers, it still looks nice. I mainly got this car because I've lived in Georgia all my life and wanted something having to do with Georgia railroads on my layout. One funny thing that I noted about this car is that the brake wheel is made of metal. On Lionel's higher end cars that use more die-cast metal, this is usually no surprise. However, the lower end cars with plastic trucks and couplers usually have plastic brake wheels. I guess it's a sign that even in the cheaper cars, Lionel has improved quality. This car was built in 2004 and bought by me in October 2005.

6-36727 WeyerHaeuser "Moe and Joe" Operating Lumber Car

Built in 2003 and bought by me in September of 2005, this is a great high quality car. When activated by a control track, the two men (Moe and Joe) unload sheets of wood into the dump bin (included with Car) one sheet at a time. It came with about 5 or 6 sheets of wood that get unloaded. A real beauty of a car to adorn my layout! watch quicktime video

3469 (6-36740) Lionel Lines Coal Dump Car

Part of Lionel's "Celebration Series", this is an exact replica of the original 3469 dump car. I actually have an original 3469 in my postwar collection, and the two cars look fantastic side by side.

6-36766 Erie Chase Gondola

The classic animated gondola with the cop chasing the hobo. I actually found it pretty hard to find the classic cop and hobo scenario. These days, most of the animated gondola's depict something silly like the Simpson's chasing each other or santa and his reindeer. Not that those are bad, I just like the original idea better. Built in 2004, bought by me in October of 2005.

6-36780 Sea-Monkeys Aquarium Car

Still on an aquarium car kick after I got the Penguin Transport car above, I picked up this little number. I remember seeing ads for Sea-Monkeys when I was growing up, so this car gives me a good chuckle every time I look at it. Definitely a unique car, and very good quality to boot! Built 2004.

6-39204 #6464 Series X New Haven Boxcar

Just like the classic postwar version, except with sprung trucks! Made in the USA in 2001, bought by me on ebay in Sept. of 2005.

6-39248 Erie (Lackawanna) Double Door Box Car

Built in 2003 and bought by me in October 2005. This is a solidly built box car with die-cast sprung trucks. Opening the doors on this car reveals a hobo with a guitar sitting on the floor. The livery on the side of the car reads "The Route of Phoebe Snow". If you're like me and have no clue who the hell Phoebe Snow was, click here for the Wikipedia.org explanation. Without Wikipedia, I'd be so clueless on railroad trivia.

6-39406 Republic Steel Hot Metal Car #101

Simply gorgeous! This 2004 model is almost 100% die-cast, weighs about a ton and would certainly elicit some very colorful language if you dropped it on your foot. In fact, it's so heavy that it has 6 wheels on each truck. When the track is energized, the hot molten load of metal inside the car glows! I bought this in August of 2005.

6-16068 Union Pacific "Romeo" Baggage Car (6068)

I bought this set of 5 cars in the early 90's. They are great looking and well built.