Thread: Christmas Trains?

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I remember my dad had the basement done up with a train garden. After I married and moved away I went back and asked him if he still had them. The answer was no - he sold them. He told me he asked me if I wanted them; I guess my Alzheimer kicked in earlier than expected. Later on I tried to create a train garden for my son, but I couldn't afford cars and trains. The cars won - sorry son.

Yep just hadn't put it out this year! Always wanted a Lionel, and 10 years ago I finally got one!

I had my old Lionel trains from when I was a kid. I found them after cleaning out my moms place. I have a good friend who collects them and figured they go to a good home. He gave me $1000 for the whole setup. They have a new home and the $$$ went into my car. But have the memories of my dad and I setting them up as kid. Can't erase them.

Our house was one of the few I remember that did not have a train set - for the tree at Christmas, and for playing with in general. My folks just were not "into" some things, electric trains being one. I have dabbled in them since I grew up, and tried to interest my kids, but they didn't seem to care much whether the train was there or not. Maybe some thing are in the genes. I do have an old American Flyer set that I saved from the dump, and some HO pieces, but nothing that is serviceable at this time.

I've still got my old HO from the 70s. Packed up.
Ran across it the other day while cleaning up the upstairs in my shop.
Mouse nest in the box.
I set up a circle around the tree several years ago, but not lately.
Ya know, a slot car track would be cool too.

Originally Posted by jefscoupe

I've still got my old HO from the 70s. Packed up.
Ran across it the other day while cleaning up the upstairs in my shop.
Mouse nest in the box.
I set up a circle around the tree several years ago, but not lately.
Ya know, a slot car track would be cool too.

Yah I thought about that too, just no one to race with! I think I'll take the train out this weekend though. Last time I set it up, the dog got too close to the track and got it's wet nose zapped!

Originally Posted by jefscoupe

I've still got my old HO from the 70s. Packed up.
Ran across it the other day while cleaning up the upstairs in my shop.
Mouse nest in the box.
I set up a circle around the tree several years ago, but not lately.
Ya know, a slot car track would be cool too.

Back when I was in the Navy I had a buddy from MN and his wife bought him a 1/32 scale slot car track from JC Penny's where she worked. We played with it a while and learned that a single car running got more power so we bought a second track, split the power feeds to run individual transformers for the two lanes, and finally took them apart and added a couple of hundred turns on the secondaries just for grins We wore all the tread off of the rear tires and had a ball messing with that track for several months. Had not thought about that slot car track for about 40 years

Back many moons ago, my brother worked with a guy that was quitting his job and moving. He and his wife were living in his wife's parent's old house.
Since the parents had passed away years before, they cleaned out the house.
Well, there was a pile of stuff they didn't want and my brother offered to haul it all away for him.
There were all kinds of stuff in that pile. From a big pile of hand woven or crocheted doilies, like you'd (or grandma would) put on the arm of a chair and couch, table runners, etc. Beautiful work.
There was an old wedding dress that my brother's girlfriend at the time eventually wore at their wedding.
And what I got were some parts and pieces of an old 1/25th scale slot car.
With a Cox hand control complete with alligator clip connectors.
Cool. I was telling a friend of mine at work about it and he gave me some track of the same era.
No tranformer but I've wanted to check it out and never have.
Still all boxed up and stored.
I found two of the four lane Aurora HO race tracks at a flea market some years before that.
If I only had a huge basement to set it all up in along with my train set.
(there, back on topic.)