MPC Fan Thread

quote:

The #9600 series cars were called "O" Scale. Don't know if theres a difference and I may be wrong but if I recall these were to be closer to 1/48th scale then the previous Standard O cars

As far as I know, the Standard O cars were scale. The molds were purchased from Pola. The cars had been part of the Atlas 2 rail O gauge line.

Mint Cars -

quote:

I bought this Santa Fe GP-9 as part of a parts lot. It maybe a bit battered, but it runs great, the color is not black, but a very deep navy blue.



Ken

If that's any shade of blue, then the 8031 CN is blue too. I've tried to find a hint of blue in those ATSF geeps for 40 years and still can't see it. They were cataloged in black, and they match the black of my 8031 perfectly.

A couple of my favorites

Hi! My first post in the new forum! I can see blue in the ATSF 8250 Geeps. Maybe it's just me, though....

• Start a NEW POST or a REPLY to an existing post.
• If you are starting a NEW POST, click on "Upload Attachments."  If you are REPLYING in an existing thread, click on "Add Attachments" in the bottom left. The "File Chooser" window will open. (CLICK 1)
• Click on "Upload Files" (CLICK 2)
• Find the file you want on your computer, the click the OPEN button on that window. (CLICK 3)
• Click the button which says, "Insert all photos and videos into post body (large size)" (CLICK 4)
• Click "Finished" (CLICK 5)
• Click "Submit Reply" (CLICK 6)

Because I'm old and a slow learner I copied & pasted directions above to follow along Just wanted to see if I could post a photo.   

A MPC 2025 whistle shed..

Joe

 

 

I have heard the black ATSF Geeps came out about the time of the PC units.  Two roadnames, same base color.

The first U66B was the SCL Spirit of '76.

 

Second was the Chessie System.

 

 

 OK Lets try some pictures the new way.

 

My favorite of the 9200 boxcar series, the 9203 Union Pacific offered in '70 only.

Another interesting part of the MPC years is how the folks in Mt. Clemens (and Hillside in the early years) modified PW stock to create some new or revised designs.

 

MPC took the PW 2-6-4 "prarie" steam engine mold, used right up to the end of PW production with the 2029, and created a 4-4-2 atlantic.  This stared with the 8142 C & O, MPC further modified the mold by creating a new boiler front. I prefer the MPC boiler front as it allows the lamp to light up not only the headlight, but the marker lights as well.

 

The pictures show the 2029, the 8142, and later 8305.

The Black PC GP7 was three years later.  There was speculation that there were leftover black cabs from the ATSF run, there has been nothing to confirm this though.  There are enough of each to confirm full, planned production runs, both back when cataloged and even today.

THe 8740 Chessie U36B and 1776 Spirit of '76 U36B were both cataloged in 1974, and  described as being new engines.

My first "real" Lionel engine was the 8755 Santa Fe U36B from 1977, seen in the second photo below.

 

 

Guys,

 

I blame this thread for a new purchase earlier this week!    I just picked up a Chessie Royal Limited Set, like new condition. My first MPC-era trains! Probably not the last!

 

Pics soon.

If it was not for MPC, we might not have the trains we have now.

KRA, I was looking at the trucks on your car. I know MPC made AAR trucks for their cars in '70, but I thought they made them out of delrin (at least that is what they are made of on my two 1970 cars). Delrin is shiny, but your trucks look dull like the postwar ones--could those be leftover Postwar trucks on your car? If so, it would be an interesting transitional piece!

 

s

One of my favorite MPC items to collect are the small Scout /double door boxcars. Often they had limited production and came in promotional starter sets. During the MPC era there were several of these made a year for different companies. Then they just stopped in 1992 and that mold was not used again until the current Scout Add On set and the new Airfix Lures car.

My favorite series of these is the Toys R Us group of cars. These had a similar look to them and make a cool looking unit train of white cars with black and orange printing. With a few years missing there are about a different car a year from 1974 through the late 80's. I run mine with a very lonely Kay Bee Toy and Hobby boxcar that was the only car Lionel made for them.

My Dad got this for me at birthday in!1976 or 77 this videois of the mpc Lionel   the light on L&N car is MTH the L&n  car came with set

t

 

A few of my  MPC cars w/ AAR trucks have a flat & fuzzy finish & not the shiny one. 

for Johnstrains. Be very careful how you lift your Chessie U36 and also loosening/tightening the nose and rear screws. The shell cracks very easily! When you pick up the loco, use the frame, not the cab. The stress on the screw holes, from lifting with the cab, is enough to crack around the screw holes.

Jeff:

 

Your recommendation is good.  For ALL toy/model trains.  Even better, I pick up stuf by the TRUCKS, if possible.

Here's a few.  I just picked up this PC GP-7.  The Penn Central used to run behind my old neighborhood in Schererville, In.

 

 

 

Jeff,

 

Many thanks for this!     I would have had no idea.  Hoping to post some pics here shortly.

Some shots of my new Chessie Royal Limited Set. Love that crane car! 

MPC did love Chessie!

my chessie crane out of royal limited set

It did not seem as much of a sacrilege to repaint MPC. Here's a Tobacco Road boxcar that I made into DSS&A back in the 1980's. Interestingly, LIONEL would later make a car with the same road name. I also made LS&I and C&NW.

The CN is a repaint I did in the early 80's

I run an ABA F3 Amtrak units with various "2400" passenger cars.  Mostly they are from the 1977 Lake shore Ltd. set.  Makes a nice train!

 

Or I run the Preamble Express F3 instead, with the Amtrak "trailers".  UP used PE 951 on some Amtrak trains to keep the San francisco Zephyr OT in the 1970's!

I've started trying to put together some MPC sets, one piece at a time. I think this is fun way to approach it and, in most cases, seems like I'll be able to do it more cheaply than buying a whole set at once. And there are plenty of excellent and very good condition locos and rolling stock out there.

 

First up for me is the Minneapolis & St. Louis SS set. 

 

Two down, four to go.

 

 

The MPC trucks wrere based on Dresser Gould XL70 trucks, NOT Allied Full Cushion.
Pic of an Allied Full Cushion truck:
The XL-70 is so obscure that the only image I could find was that of an MPC truck, NOT a prototype. They were advertised in Railway Age magazine. If I find an ad, I'll scan it in.

This is out of set my  1976

 

 

You are correct. It's pretty fun to try & put together sets & w/ MPC stuff, it's usually pretty cheap to do so. Although, if you look around, sometimes it's cheaper to buy the whole set

 

 

Here's the boxcar - 

Agreed. Hit or miss depending on the set. The other issue for me is I'm going to run these trains and am not in it from the collector's side of things so am not overly picky about condition.  Having said that,  finding locos and rolling stock in very good condition doesn't seem to be a problem at all. 

you shouldn't have any problem finding MPC stuff in excellent shape.  I usually have found stuff in L/N shape w/ the box for dirt cheap.  I plan on running them too, so I'm not super picky about the condition, but it's always cool to get something new in the box

The 1978 M&SL set is a great looking set.  Except for the EL boxcar, and M&SL bay cabooseall of the other cars were MPC versions of nice PW cars and locos.