Acquired a lionel empire state express century club 2 engine for just over $400. Fantastic engine, has become my favorite to run that didn't fully break the bank. Curious to hear others.
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Din't brake the bank! that's colloquial!
I think a set of three All Nation F3 units.
Andre.
Congrats on the purchase. That is a very sweet deal on a beautiful engine.
In my regards right at the moment, my MTH Premier USRA Mikado is my favorite medium priced locomotive. It's the scarce 2007 run (Proto 2 and Wireless Drawbar), but I got it for about $450, and I customized with white wall tires and cowcatcher edges. It's still awaiting new decal numbers, but it sees the most run time due to its smooth solid performance and excellent smoke.
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Hi guys & Gals
For Christmas engines , My Lionel Rs-3 in Red , North pole central ! It has a smoke unit !
From my NYC collection it is my MTH RAILKING HUDSON with Ps-1 ! I put a BCR in it ! It runs great !
Most of my trains are MTH RAILKING to keep my cost down ! I will say My Lionel LIONCHIEF PLUS NYC Mikado steam was bought at a great price ! It runs great !
This is still my favourite engine to run. The original cost for the Berk was fifty bucks but by the time the mods were finished and the tender built it I probably have closer to $300 into it.
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ALL 4 of my Williams/Samhongsa brass steam locomotives, the N&W 611 was the most expensive and that was still under $500:
I love my Seaboard stuff, but the ACL Pacific is a looker and gets a lot of use.
Just recently put this Lionel 4-8-2 on the layout after making a few mods to it:
The Vanderbilt tender is scratchbuilt brass, the Southern tender that came with the original engine is now a shelf queen. This is the new baby on the layout and so far has performed flawlessly.
Heck, none of my engines broke the bank and I enjoy running them all 
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My favorite loco is the TrackMobile with TMCC. Zipping through SuperStreets and pulling a couple of freight out of one yard into another.
Lionel scale N&W J class ( brand new old stock from 2005 ) I traded about $400. worth of passenger cars and freight cars for her. No cash outlay. Sweet deal!!!!
I'm retired they all break the bank but I want it anyway!
visionline bigboy 4014
All the great Postwar engines that I've picked up recently for great prices right now. These are my favorites, again. Most of all the newer stuff I have is boxed up.
Bob Delbridge posted:Heck, none of my engines broke the bank and I enjoy running them all
Same here. That is what budgets are for.
My favorite low cost engine would be my K-Line PRR B6 0-6-0. I got it as part of a larger buy and it worked out to about $65. Not a great runner until I added cruise, then it became my primary switcher. Really nice engine!
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My MPC NH F3's.
Roman posted:All the great Postwar engines that I've picked up recently for great prices right now. These are my favorites, again. Most of all the newer stuff I have is boxed up.
You Sound like me. lol
I bought a Williams by Bachmann SD-45 last month for $115.00 with shipping and it runs very well. I have a few other SD-45's by Williams that run very well too.
One that really was low price was the Williams Pennsy SD-45 I bought for $65.00, however I had to add weights to it because the former owner took the weights out, and install a set of metal wheels in the truck assemblies because they had metal wheels with traction tires for the axles that were powered but plastic wheels on the dummy axles, because of the traction tires I had to add an extra ground pick-up.
Lee Fritz
I have traded antiques I didn't want to an antique dealer and don't keep track of prices and "deals" but one that always comes to mind is a nice Lionel 2065. The antique dealer had just got it in, didn't know what it was(I did) and I plunked down $35 for it. I bought a set of F3s, a GG1, an M10000 and a 752 all at reasonable prices. Not all my purchases have been bargains-some at market prices.
Mine is MTH's AEM-7, it cost me about $475. I wouldn't trade or sell it for anything.
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I have over 30 Rail King PS2 & PS3 engines on my railroad, and I cannot decide which is my favorite. Most of these engines cost less than $350, and the articulated engines cost $400 each. Right now I have the Southern's Crescent 4-6-2, a Dreyfus Hudson, the N&W J 603 and the Nickle Plate's 765 Berk running trains.
Yesterday my favorites were a New Haven EP5, the CNJ's Blue Comet, the SP's Cab Forward AC12 and the Long Island's G53 Camelback 4-6-0.
phillyreading posted:I bought a Williams by Bachmann SD-45 last month for $115.00 with shipping and it runs very well. I have a few other SD-45's by Williams that run very well too.
One that really was low price was the Williams Pennsy SD-45 I bought for $65.00, however I had to add weights to it because the former owner took the weights out, and install a set of metal wheels in the truck assemblies because they had metal wheels with traction tires for the axles that were powered but plastic wheels on the dummy axles, because of the traction tires I had to add an extra ground pick-up.
Lee Fritz
I bought one on ebay for $37, cleaned it up and it runs great. no e unit though...
With my "bank roll" anything under $100 is fair game but the more over that, the closer I look at it. Most I have ever paid for a Lionel PW was $500, a nice 736 which is a favorite. That doesn't happen very often.
I won a K-line PRR Mikado at my LHS when I was younger, love running it! Unfortunately the tender tether burnt out, and fixing it has been a nightmare, so as for currently running, probably my postwar Lionel 2046. I bought it in a lot with a 2056 and 6 tenders. Paid like $120 for the lot, so you do the math. Sold off the extra tenders and made a fair amount back, I'll do the same to the 2056 when I get around to cleaning it up.
Anyway, I love the 2046 because my first postwar engine was an early model 2026. So when I was looking for something larger to pull O-gauge cars (the 2026 looks a little funny pulling 6464 boxcars), the 2046 was the right choice. It was a larger size, while keeping the detail of the early 2026. That extra set of drive bars really looks great in motion! Also, with the magnetraction (which the 2026 and the 2056 lack) it's an awesome puller!
Flyonel Polar Express Berkshire. It runs great, sounds good, looks good and came with track, 3 passenger cars. If it weren't for you can only run one PE Berk at a time, I would definitely purchase another set. Now I'll have to get the C&O version.
I would have to say my new Polar Express set l got off here. I had wanted one for a long time but never wanted to The price was right and I got it within my budget. It needs some work but runs good, I will be making some changes to the engine. Will be adding figures to the cab, a builders plate and might add white wall tires to make it a little different than all the other ones. I just love it 
Almost forgot! The Lionel Harry Potter set. Got that for $60 on ebay. The engine is completely unique to what I have so seeing those extra large drive wheels is pretty cool; also a decent smoker!
Paul Moore posted:phillyreading posted:I bought a Williams by Bachmann SD-45 last month for $115.00 with shipping and it runs very well. I have a few other SD-45's by Williams that run very well too.
One that really was low price was the Williams Pennsy SD-45 I bought for $65.00, however I had to add weights to it because the former owner took the weights out, and install a set of metal wheels in the truck assemblies because they had metal wheels with traction tires for the axles that were powered but plastic wheels on the dummy axles, because of the traction tires I had to add an extra ground pick-up.
Lee Fritz
I bought one on ebay for $37, cleaned it up and it runs great. no e unit though...
If no E-unit how did the engine run? Did somebody put in a bridge rectifier and remove the circuit board?
Lee Fritz
You know, this question got me thinking. Is my favorite engine the one I run the most? In my case, my favorite engine is probably the Lionel scale Zephyr, the first one, the one that really shines.
However, it is by far not the most run engine. So… if the engine I like the most is NOT the engine I run the most, then why is it my favorite?
In any case, to answer the original posters questions the engine that get the most run time is the Lionel C& NW ten wheeler. None of my engines broke the bank, but a few definitely get more run time.
The next engine that sees more than its share of track time is the Lionel GG1 from the Century Club 1 offerings. That little engine just keeps going and going.
Charlie
it would be between my tmcc missile launch loco I got for $150 or the tmcc track mobile that I also got for a similar price. Both fun in their own way and in my mind neither broke the bank.
My wife walked into the now defunct Purkey's Toy Trains with me one day, and pointed out the sale board that listed MTH B&O Mallet, 2-8-8-2 USRA Steam Engine w/Proto-Sound 2.0 - B&O Cab # 7320, . . . it was a good looker but I thought a bit big for my layout. Well, 2nd thought got me to buy it, and I haven't regretted it since
Steamer will smoke you out of the room, Best PS2 sound file I've heard, the whistle is great. looks great as it pulls a string diecast coal cars about 12 mph around the layout.
I've actually used it for awhile as pulling 37 cars around the wall shelf track with no issues.
The best engine for pulling power that I bought was a Williams Pennsy S-2 steam engine(cost me $180.00, didn't break the bank), it could pull 28 freight cars on my layout with an MTH Z-1000 for power.
Lee Fritz
hello guys and gals...........
My favorite engine would be the railking NW-2 diesel switcher that didn't make us broke. The other 2 engines ( Sunset 3rd rail S.F. 5011 $1463.00 and Williams F-3 ABA set with 2 power kits $724.00) did make us broke, mind you that this INCLUDES traveling expenses and sales tax. The railking NW-2 is 149.99 plus shipping and 22.99 BCR plus shipping as that's under $200.00 !!! This engine is my BUDGET switcher !!!!
Tiffany
