My Lionel Standard O Trains


Bruette

Well-Known Member
Public Service Announcement ;) Lionel Standard O has been superseded. The new product is Scale O.

Edit: May, 2020 Lionel has reintroduced Standard O!
From the Lionel Catalog - Scale in size but simplified in detail, the return of Standard O cars offers an affordable way to build up your freight trains!
I'm not certain of the date, but I noticed them in the Lionel 2020 catalog
http://catalogs.lionel.com/2020/BB/

I had so much fun with my 4th of July thread I thought I would post a thread for my Standard O Trains. Hopefully somebody will enjoy seeing them as well.

For those HO and N modelers unfamiliar with Lionel terminology Standard O items are close to true O scale as opposed to the smaller Traditional O/O27 like Lionel post-war and most modern ready to run Lionel sets.

Lionel's Standard O Scale - Legacy - B&O CSX-Heritage AC6000 #7812 - Lionel 6-38404
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Lionel's Standard O Scale - Legacy - CSX SD60 #8707 - Lionel 6-28357
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Lionel's Standard O Scale - Non-Powered Chessie B&O SD40-2 #7618 - Lionel 6-28246
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Thank you Tony, that CSX SD60 was a real steal.

It is from the Lionel 2011 Catalog and was on display at MB Klein. I watched it drop in price a few times and I added it to my wish list, but I always found something else to spend my budget on. I try to always use my PayPal credit account at stores that accept PayPal because they give 6 months to pay with no interest for purchases over $99. When it finally made it's way to the top of my wish list I had to wait to make my next payment so I would have enough available credit to buy it. I watched every morning and evening for over 2 weeks to see if had sold because they had put it on clearance. I was so happy when the day came I could order it. That was one of the rare occasions I was in a hurry to get something and I made a special trip to go pick it up. The more I play with it the more I like it! I paid $370.99 for it including sales tax, the down side of living near MB Klein is Maryland residents have to pay sales tax. The book value is $500 and it's very rare to find a new Lionel Legacy locomotive for under $400.

Thanks for looking!
 
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This was a good thing to do because I realized a few things.

1. I should have a picture of all my inventory.

2. I have 2 more pieces of Standard O rolling stock packed away under my layout. I will pull them out ASAP, put them on the layout, take pictures of them and post them in this thread.

Thanks everybody for looking and now I am going to play with my trains!
 
Quite the collection you have there Louis! I'm particularly impressed with the Chessie I-12 caboose, I never thought Lionel would actually make a model of something that is "road specific" like that.

I you want to round out your transition-era collection, you need a set of these guys:
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Ken the trend that Lionel has been moving to is more prototypical accuracy It has been inspired by or forced on them by other manufacturers. The consumers really seem to love it going by the sales of the I-12 caboose in all schemes. The Chessie/B&O in the picture above came with a set I bought. The CSX/B&O heritage version I bought for $70 from train world 1/21/13. In the last year or so the prices have sky rocketed and availability is scarce. If you see one on eBay it will sell for a minimum of $125 and I have seen them go for over $200

Ken those F3s are very nice, but they are Traditional scale. I will buy a set sooner or later, but I am holding out for Scale, O Legacy command control, I am spoiled now.
 
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Louis, I love your stuff, it's really cool. There is no doubt where your prototype loyalties are. My only Traditional O loco is a Williams CNJ Trainmaster, which pulls a MTH CNJ freight around the Christmas tree.
 
Hey Boris!

My grandsons and I have been busy this summer, because of that I had not been on much until recently. When I did come back on I missed seeing your posts in the coffee shop. I enjoy when you share your experience with the railroads in the northeast corridor, Baltimore in particular!

Thank you, I think my trains are cool too and yes it is easy to see my first love is the B&O and Chessie/B&O, but thank God trains don't get jealous like women because I love CSX, PRR, Penn Central, Conrail, Amtrak and even the NYC, but not so much. I only saw a few of those black NYC locomotives when I was sampling coal on early Conrail trains at the piers, but I liked them. I also enjoy the Canton railroad and the Norfolk Southern is growing on me.

It's a good thing I love trains because I am surrounded by them in southeast Baltimore. If I leave my house and go in any direction I cross, go under or over railroad tracks. Coal trains to the west, piggybacks, auto racks, boxcars and passenger trains to the north and mixed freight to the east and south. Sitting in my back yard I can hear horns all around me in the distance, I love my neighborhood!

I hope this Christmas you can post a picture of your train, those Trainmasters are so cool, truly iconic locomotives. I want a B&O version.

I am impressed with Williams by Bachmann. I have a 3 car and another 4 car set of Williams by Bachmann Amtrak passengers cars I pull with my Lionel Amtrak GG1. I want to pick up a Williams by Bachmann locomotive and install a Lionel TMCC board. Train World had a Williams by Bachmann B&O 44 tonner on special but I procrastinated and missed it. They still have them so hopefully they will mark them down again.

I only have 1 MTH Chessie/B&O crane, but it is quality stuff. I did see a non-powered MTH locomotive I liked, I might get one. I don't think Proto Sound command control is compatible with Lionel's Legacy system or else I would try a powered locomotive.

I hope all is well for you and your family. I hope to see you soon in the coffee shop.

Thanks for looking at my thread.
 
While my newest piece is not Lionel standard O, but it is a full scale O locomotive. It is the new Williams by Bachmann EMD GP9 Baltimore and Ohio dummy locomotive.

I don't yet have any pictures that I have taken, but I will soon. In the mean time here is one from Train Worlds web site. I really need to post my own pictures because this picture does not do it justice, I hope I can do better.

This was an amazing find and at an even more amazing price, only $49.99!!! Lionel and MTH dummy locomotives run from $158 to $220

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Louis:

Nice GP9, in the traditional paint scheme, no less. I did notice the pricing of O stuff, was a bit steep, but you are getting a lot for it. N scale locos are at or cost more than the con parable HO price point even though they are half the size. Since it's a scale "dummy". what are you planning to run with it?
 
Hey Boris,

I really like these high hood models. Williams calls is "as delivered". I am not sure what the correct terminology would be. I have a few HO GP9M, but I like this version even better.

I think part of the reason O is so expensive is the lower volume of sales, but as you said I do get a lot for my money. I always wanted O gauge trains when I was a boy, But I could not afford them on a paper boys salary. Now that I am getting older I appreciate the size even more because I can see it and easily, well relatively easily work on them with my arthritic hands.

I know what you mean about N scale! I paid $84.94 for my Kato Black Amtrak GG1 and $102.39 for my Kato Bicentennial Conrail GG1 both in N scale. Compared to $95.34 for my HO Bachmann with Sound PRR Brunswick green 5 stripe GG1 "Black Jack". In fairness the price was one of those short lived Amazon super deals, but they only have those kinds of deals because of the high volume sales in HO. I have yet to find those kinds of deals in O or N. By the way why do they call that GG1 "Black Jack"? is it because Brunswick green is so dark?

I am not sure what I will run the Williams GP9 with. I have a Chessie/B&O GP30 and a B&O GP35 I could run it with them. From looking at old pictures of Chessie coal trains they threw just about anything together to have enough pulling power. For me it really does not matter because prototypical accuracy is low on my priority list. I also could run it with my 1974 Lionel GP7. The GP7 is not Standard O but it does match up well in size with this locomotive. I don't have a clue why Lionel choose a GP7 for the gold Chessie/B&O GM50, but I really love it. I remember drooling over it in the store when I was a boy.

6-8359 Conventional Chessie B&O GP7 GM50.jpg

I was surprised to find out that the Williams GP9 has interior lighting, headlights and marker lights. I have never seen that in a dummy before in any scale. I know headlights on a dummy locomotive would not be needed but it does give me an idea to use the GP9 as a static display when I change over my layout for Christmas. I think it would look good with my Lionel Santa's wish station. The station simulates loading a PRR Christmas merchandise car with gifts. The GP9 could be waiting for the car to be loaded.

Thanks for your interest, sharing my toys is almost as much fun as playing with them!
 
Lionel's Scale O Chessie B&O GP9 #5903 - Lionel 6-82786

The versatile and venerable GP9 certainly lived up to its "General Purpose" branding. These Geeps have poked along branch lines with a local freight, raced on the high iron with priority piggybacks, and hustled commuters off to work.
Lionel brings this classic back in new road names and paint schemes ready to take any train you give them!
  • LEGACY™ Control System equipped – able to run in LEGACY™ Control mode, in TrainMaster® Command Control mode, or in Conventional mode with a standard transformer
  • Odyssey® II Speed Control with On/Off switch
  • LEGACY RailSounds®sound system featuring:
    • CrewTalk™ dialog and TowerCom™ announcements, each with different scenarios depending on whether the locomotive is in motion or stopped
    • Six official railroad speeds with CrewTalk dialog
    • Eight diesel RPM levels
    • LEGACY™ "Real-Time Quilling Horn" control with instant response for realistic signature "quilling" and correctly timed warning signals
    • Single hit or continuous mechanical bell sounds
    • Sequence Control: plays the sound effects of an entire trip, including warning sounds and announcements, based on the movement and speed of the locomotive
    • Current speed and fuel dialog, refueling sound effects
  • IR Transmitter for SensorTrack™
  • Dual powerful maintenance-free motors with momentum flywheels
  • ElectroCouplers™ on front and rear
  • Traction tires
  • Refined Conventional Transformer Control Mode with lower starting speeds
  • Fan-driven smoke unit
  • Adjustable smoke output
  • Directional lighting including LED headlights
  • Marker lights on front and rear
  • Illuminated number boards
  • Lighted cab interior
  • Die-cast metal trucks, pilot, and fuel tank
  • Metal frame
  • High levels of separately applied metal details
  • Engineer and conductor figures



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With the purchase of this locomotive I noticed Lionel was no longer using the term "Standard O" the new terminology is "Scale O" While I have deleted other Scale O items from this thread I left this one because others have commented on it. I have also posted it in My Lionel Scale O thread.
 
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Lionel has come a long way.

Yes they have. When I was a kid, the only Lionel I was aware of was my mom's from when she was a kid. It was in poor shape, so I was not allowed to play with it. I had a S scale American Flyer. I still have mom's Lionel and still haven't played with it.

The thing i remember, even as a kid, was the difference between the scale American Flyer and the much more toy-like Lionel. When I bought my Polar Express, toy-like was a positive attribute. The train will go under the tree and grand kids will almost certainly get their hands on it. It is robust and things like hand rails are just molded into the body, not separate pieces to break off and/or fix. This is also one of the reasons, space being another, that I have never seriously considered O scale.

When I got my Polar Express, I wanted a few more track pieces. The shop didn't have any but referred me to a hobby shop that specializes in O. Going there was an eye-opening experience to say the least. I got the track and some pine scented smoke oil, but it was a bit slow, so the clerk and I talked for a while. This place had rooms (its in an old house) of O equipment, much of it was scale equipment. I had never seen O scale equipment before. The price tags on some of the engines were equally eye-opening and O is still too big for my train area, but there was some beautiful stuff there that broke down my perception that O is always toy-like rather than model-like.

Maybe i I should get mom's old train out and see if it works or what it would take to put it right. "Hey kids, this was great grandma's train when she was a kid. Want to play with it" has a nice ring to it.
 



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