Sometime during the MPC era, Lionel released the RailScope allowing you to gain a perspective of the engine you are running. I think if they bought back the Railscope, they should Implement AR (Augmented Reality) functionality, allowing you to not only build your train layout, but also the world around it. We've seen this success with the Mario Kart Live Home Circuit sets. If they did that, they could sell pallets upon pallets of these.
Super. My first train sets were a Lionel HO Pacific steam freight set, and the Atlas N CPA24-5 C-Liner freight set, both at the same christmas, and why my railroad still has HO standard gauge (+On30) and HOn30/N/Lakeside park train ride/private model type of a setup going on. The fifty year old train sets survived me, and operate to this day on my railroad. Hello from the Tracy Mountain Railway in Colorado. 💙 T.E.N.
Even if the trains weren’t able to carry modern toys, something that was large in postwar era and also big during tyco was operating accessories When a set has something it can move even if it still only has an oval the operating accessories give you more to do. Because the operating accessories though aren’t “realistic” they have pretty much disappeared
You make some great points. BTW, the New York Museum MTA Museum Gallery and Store in Grand Central Terminal sells model trains -- including LIonels, and I always try to stop in each year to see the terrific operating hi-rail layout (I believe this was supplied by MTH). It's great to watch the kids watch the trains, and it's great to watch the parents buy some trains to bring some of that magic home for their kids! Other than this venue, it's very hard to find trains for sale -- proximate to a layout that properly sells them!
So what about ideas involving add-ons to kids train sets and what if kids want to incorporate passenger operations without being forced to build some prototypical historical express train right off the bat? We both know that North American railroading is radically different from the European and east Asian railways where bigger train cultures are.
The two big factors modern starter sets, including Lionel, have forgotten are compatability and play value. Those old 50s-60s-70s Lionel sets were marketed at kids as toys. They could be had as military sets, space race sets, construction site sets etc. with extra hands-on toys to play with. Trucks, cars, soldiers, planes, construction vehicles... you get the idea. Joshua Lionel Cohen himself said "a kid's going to get bored watching a train go round and round in a circle." So he had his people plan as much fun as possible into sets, rolling stock, and OPERATING ACCESSORIES. Lionel had no issue being known as a "toy train." You want kids back in your customer base, give them something fun to do. And keep the train generic enough for year round play. No one wants to ride the Polar Express in July. Or be stuck with an entertainment themed franchise train when that franchise isn't cool anymore.
I wish Hobby Lobby was still big in model trains. When I first went into one in 2008, I was like a kid in a candy store to find a whole aisle and part of the next one dedicated to model trains in HO and N scale. (I technically was still a kid at the time.) Fast forward to april when I was most recently at one. One HO scale set, one N scale set, switch tracks for both scales, and that was it. All the other Hobby Lobby stores I visited in the past decade have been hardly any better. I left there that april day having only bought some stuff animals for my nieces. As much as I like Hobby Lobby, they have really disappointed me as a railfan and an HO modeler. The only times I can get plenty of good model trains in my local area now are when model trains shows are around.
Here in the UK the model railway market is becoming popular again. I will agree though even the train sets we had in the past were better than the new sets. Some of the older sets from the 1960's up to the late 2000's had operating accessories. Hornby who are one of the main UK manufacturers tend to be good at providing sets for all, with some aimed at youngsters and some for collector's market. Recently they have also released sets which will appeal to those kids who like to use ipads or phones with a analogue Bluetooth app controlled system called HM DC or a digital system called HM7000 and some train sets for children at pre school age. They were also one of the UK manufacturers who in the past used to have operating accessories.
When I was a kid I used to drink up history so I'm certain some kids would LOVE a write up! I would say especially straight track! Points are also good to include!
Time has likely passed like the toy soldier era passion. Trains in the 30s to 70s was still a thing you saw in the common neighborhood. Even the big railyard was visible on car trips. Trains today are just on major trunks with 5 mile long occasional trains...often hidden away from the mainstream kid that travels by interstate and lives on planned communities. A carpet layout from a set was interesting for a month, but then dad was going to build you a real benchwork layout. In the 50s to early 80s Dad was often a WW2 or Korea veteran with a lot of engineers and machinists in the population. They had workshops and power tools...and experience using them. Gen X and Mel dads are likely more skilled with computers and cosmetics than with cutting wood, gluing foam or laying track. Train sets tried to combat this in the 80s and 90s with platform snap EZ track. TV shows in the 50s to 70s had lots of trains...that excited boys. That is mostly gone except for period movies. Almost no reputable company is still building simple, durable small equipment . Locos now come DCC ready with $400 prices requiring $200 to $2000 comtrol systems, then couple on $30 cars with kadee couplers. All of that is far too complex for the 8yo kid. The only mfg of such budget retro equipment is cheap Chinese knockoff stuff that has a 50:50 chance of working and lots of ill fitting parts. Most of the good low end model but good toy systems dissapeared in the late 90s.
I think that companies should have two versions of the sets like the standard would be a basic set and cost lest the deluxe that comes with more stuff like a siding or a extra car I went to a hobby shop that did that and that is where I got my first Lionel train set. They had a bundle that came with both a siding and an extra box car.
![[SFS] This is a boxcar that ruined our week.](/img/n.gif)
Sometime during the MPC era, Lionel released the RailScope allowing you to gain a perspective of the engine you are running. I think if they bought back the Railscope, they should Implement AR (Augmented Reality) functionality, allowing you to not only build your train layout, but also the world around it. We've seen this success with the Mario Kart Live Home Circuit sets. If they did that, they could sell pallets upon pallets of these.
Super. My first train sets were a Lionel HO Pacific steam freight set, and the Atlas N CPA24-5 C-Liner freight set, both at the same christmas, and why my railroad still has HO standard gauge (+On30) and HOn30/N/Lakeside park train ride/private model type of a setup going on. The fifty year old train sets survived me, and operate to this day on my railroad. Hello from the Tracy Mountain Railway in Colorado. 💙 T.E.N.
Even if the trains weren’t able to carry modern toys, something that was large in postwar era and also big during tyco was operating accessories
When a set has something it can move even if it still only has an oval the operating accessories give you more to do.
Because the operating accessories though aren’t “realistic” they have pretty much disappeared
I have that script written.
You make some great points. BTW, the New York Museum MTA Museum Gallery and Store in Grand Central Terminal sells model trains -- including LIonels, and I always try to stop in each year to see the terrific operating hi-rail layout (I believe this was supplied by MTH). It's great to watch the kids watch the trains, and it's great to watch the parents buy some trains to bring some of that magic home for their kids! Other than this venue, it's very hard to find trains for sale -- proximate to a layout that properly sells them!
So what about ideas involving add-ons to kids train sets and what if kids want to incorporate passenger operations without being forced to build some prototypical historical express train right off the bat? We both know that North American railroading is radically different from the European and east Asian railways where bigger train cultures are.
I guess an RDC would work.
The two big factors modern starter sets, including Lionel, have forgotten are compatability and play value. Those old 50s-60s-70s Lionel sets were marketed at kids as toys. They could be had as military sets, space race sets, construction site sets etc. with extra hands-on toys to play with. Trucks, cars, soldiers, planes, construction vehicles... you get the idea. Joshua Lionel Cohen himself said "a kid's going to get bored watching a train go round and round in a circle." So he had his people plan as much fun as possible into sets, rolling stock, and OPERATING ACCESSORIES. Lionel had no issue being known as a "toy train." You want kids back in your customer base, give them something fun to do. And keep the train generic enough for year round play. No one wants to ride the Polar Express in July. Or be stuck with an entertainment themed franchise train when that franchise isn't cool anymore.
I found my first train set in a Hobby Lobby. They’re literally everywhere. My local railroad museum sells tons of the Bachmann Chattanooga train sets.
I wish Hobby Lobby was still big in model trains. When I first went into one in 2008, I was like a kid in a candy store to find a whole aisle and part of the next one dedicated to model trains in HO and N scale. (I technically was still a kid at the time.) Fast forward to april when I was most recently at one. One HO scale set, one N scale set, switch tracks for both scales, and that was it. All the other Hobby Lobby stores I visited in the past decade have been hardly any better. I left there that april day having only bought some stuff animals for my nieces. As much as I like Hobby Lobby, they have really disappointed me as a railfan and an HO modeler. The only times I can get plenty of good model trains in my local area now are when model trains shows are around.
Here in the UK the model railway market is becoming popular again. I will agree though even the train sets we had in the past were better than the new sets. Some of the older sets from the 1960's up to the late 2000's had operating accessories.
Hornby who are one of the main UK manufacturers tend to be good at providing sets for all, with some aimed at youngsters and some for collector's market. Recently they have also released sets which will appeal to those kids who like to use ipads or phones with a analogue Bluetooth app controlled system called HM DC or a digital system called HM7000 and some train sets for children at pre school age. They were also one of the UK manufacturers who in the past used to have operating accessories.
One of the coolest things I know is a running stock original tyco Chattanooga choo choo
When I was a kid I used to drink up history so I'm certain some kids would LOVE a write up!
I would say especially straight track! Points are also good to include!
Time has likely passed like the toy soldier era passion. Trains in the 30s to 70s was still a thing you saw in the common neighborhood. Even the big railyard was visible on car trips. Trains today are just on major trunks with 5 mile long occasional trains...often hidden away from the mainstream kid that travels by interstate and lives on planned communities.
A carpet layout from a set was interesting for a month, but then dad was going to build you a real benchwork layout. In the 50s to early 80s Dad was often a WW2 or Korea veteran with a lot of engineers and machinists in the population. They had workshops and power tools...and experience using them.
Gen X and Mel dads are likely more skilled with computers and cosmetics than with cutting wood, gluing foam or laying track. Train sets tried to combat this in the 80s and 90s with platform snap EZ track.
TV shows in the 50s to 70s had lots of trains...that excited boys. That is mostly gone except for period movies.
Almost no reputable company is still building simple, durable small equipment . Locos now come DCC ready with $400 prices requiring $200 to $2000 comtrol systems, then couple on $30 cars with kadee couplers.
All of that is far too complex for the 8yo kid. The only mfg of such budget retro equipment is cheap Chinese knockoff stuff that has a 50:50 chance of working and lots of ill fitting parts.
Most of the good low end model but good toy systems dissapeared in the late 90s.
The dude falling on the other guy was so funny
My first set was a Lionel 4-4-2 loco# 8632
I think that companies should have two versions of the sets like the standard would be a basic set and cost lest the deluxe that comes with more stuff like a siding or a extra car I went to a hobby shop that did that and that is where I got my first Lionel train set. They had a bundle that came with both a siding and an extra box car.
Where’d you get the clips?