I did a high speed scan of the Flyer stuff in the catalog and have a couple of observations/questions (beyond not finding anything I am desperate to buy - though I think there is Berk somewhere in my future). First, speaking of locos, I note that for both the Berks and the SD70s, the minimum track curve is "S36" while for the GP7s its "R20" (except for the Pennsy work train GP7, where its "S36"...!). I think I know what "R20" means (Fastrack seems to come in two flavors, R20 and R27 - which is the same as the old Flyer track radii) - so, I'll bite - what's "S36" (I've seen that designation before, so its not new to this catalog).
Does anyone know what the mapping is for FlyerChief or (Flyer) Legacy to Lionchief or the Legacy offered for O-scale? The second-to-last page of the catalog (inside back cover) has a table of control systems - LionChief, LionChief plus, LionChief plus 2.0 and Legacy - and their various features. There is no explicit mention of the Flyer control systems - is FlyerChief equivalent to LC plus or LC plus 2.0 or ??. I note that the bluetooth feature is checked for all four of these systems - so does that mean, for example, that one can use BT to control the legacy equipped (Flyer) SD70s? The BT logo is shown on all the Flyer pages advertising the various locos (and train sets) EXCEPT for the SD70... It appears - one has to read the descriptions carefully - that the FC controllers are included with the Berks and for the two trains sets - Polar Express and the Pennsy work train - they say so explicitly but for the GP7s it isn't clear at all.
It would certainly seem that Lionel is migrating toward BT and their control app for iOS and Android, which probably makes sense since one can 'easily' build-in a lot of control features/buttons, etc. in Silico that are more difficult on a 'mechanical' controller. Besides, even us - uh - old farts are finding that its hard to not have your smart phone within reach - even if its to settle arguments like who first performed 'Fever' (not Peggy Lee).
Lastly, speaking of tables - you will see that for a mere $900, you can have an official, 86 x 58 inch Lionel train table (p. 253) - man, that's a lotta plywood or foam core ...
- Rich
