I found this manuscript from the late John Grams in our manuscript files. There was no date on the envelope but it’s likely from the early 1990s. The article discusses 12 Lionel products that, while great inventions, were fraught with problems or didn’t work exactly as advertised. He included the following disclaimer: Lionel trains were […]
O gauge enthusiast Bruce Baron typically shares with us here at Classic Toy Trains photos of steam engines on his layout. So it came as a surprise – and a very pleasant one – to receive this slick picture of a diesel pulling covered hoppers into the big city on his layout in Munson Township, […]
I saw the obituary on Don Shaw’s passing in the Fall 2025 CTT. It brought back fond memories. I first met Don in the summer of 1975. I had just married that July and lived in Morris Plains, N.J., only a few miles from The Train Station store in Mountain Lakes. At the time, the […]
The worst time of the pandemic left Robert Soderstrom trapped in the basement of his home in Grand Blanc, Mich. He figured there was nothing else to do except expand his O gauge railroad and take lots of pictures of trains. Frankly, we at Classic Toy Trains are pleased. Robert sent us this shot of […]
Light snow started falling in the middle of the afternoon and finally let up after everyone dwelling on Will Rothfuss’ compact O gauge layout went to sleep. Now with the sun about to rise over Stroudsburg, Pa., a newsboy prepares to sell copies of the morning express to travelers. The solitary man impatiently waiting for […]
Lionel Trains continued celebrating their 125th anniversary with the release of their Volume 2 catalog in mid July. First, an interesting note: the second Lionel catalog has typically been called Volume 2. This one was called “July Release.” I wonder if there will be another catalog release before the end of the year? Stay […]
Tru-Vue was a stereoscopic viewing system and line of films first marketed in the 1930s. Two simultaneous exposures of the same object or scene were made from slightly different angles. When seen through a special viewer, the paired photos combined to form a three-dimensional image. Although stereoscopic photo cards and viewers had been around since […]
Donald Haney shares video of the overhead layout he built for his infant son. Get instructions and a diagram in the Fall 2025 issue of Classic Toy Trains! […]
[…]
I found this manuscript from the late John Grams in our manuscript files. There was no date on the envelope but it’s likely from the early 1990s. The article discusses 12 Lionel products that, while great inventions, were fraught with problems or didn’t work exactly as advertised. He included the following disclaimer: Lionel trains were […]
After a long day of track maintenance or repairing rolling stock, a rail employee needs a place to sit down and catch up on paperwork or perhaps schedule tomorrow’s activities. The Cripple Creek & Western crew can now do just that — Menards has released the Cripple Creek Rail Maintenance Office (No. 275-9491). The ready-to-use […]
Lionel Trains has released a 2025 Volume II catalog. The 44-page book includes new items in the Legacy, LionChief, Star Wars, and Accessory lines. Highlights include a Santa Fe Super Chief set (No. 2622020), which includes two F3A locomotives, two F3Bs (one unpowered), baggage car, Pullman sleeper car, dome car, diner, three sleeping cars, and […]
