|
|
 Posted - November 29 2012 : 11:08:25 PM
|
Hello all.
Well, I see lots of discussion on older, cheaper HO on these forums, as well as some of the larger toy trains such as S & O gauges. However, I haven't seen much in the way of cheap G gauge (yes, such a thing exists!) So, if this isn't too off topic, I'd like to show y'all some of my collection of cheap large scale toy trains.
Cheap large scale toy trains have been around for awhile, I think mostly because of Christmas. With model trains being too expensive for people who "just want a train underneath the Christmas tree", these cheaper trains have appeared. Some of the oldest ones from the "Echo Classic Rail" line are actually on the verge of becoming vintage and collectible. A variety of trains were made by New Bright in the 90's, and they still make some today. The most expensive of the cheapies are the EZ-TEC/ Scientific Toys line, which are bigger than the New Bright trains, but still MUCH smaller than entry-level G gauge models, such as the Bachmann Big Haulers. These ones can still be found at Toys R Us.
Nearly all of these trains are battery powered, only have two speeds (On and Off), and run on plastic track. The hard parts about collecting these trains is that 1). They are often painted very gaudily, 2). There isn't much in the way of spare parts for these trains (you basically have to pull parts from other broken cars), and 3). They're, well, cheap. They have small motors with lots of gears, can only pull a few cars, are a bit noisy, etc.
Still, I find these trains to be quite fun, and I actually have a loop of that plastic track running around the borders of my college dorm room right now. I'm working on repainting and relettering some of the equipment to make it look more realistic. Of course, there is a good mix of American and British equipment mixed into the same sets out there, but hey, "trains are fun", right?
So, where do you find these sets? I usually find my equipment at the Goodwill Outlet store in the toy sections. If you've never been to a Goodwill outlet, you've got to go to one. Everything is loaded up in bins and is priced by the pound! This is the merchandise's last hope before the recycling plant or the landfill.
Just so you know, a lot of these cheap trains also come in O gauge, as well as few other custom gauges. I've got some O gauge cheapos at home, but right now I'm focusing on my G gauge collection.
I've linked to some photos of the trains here: https://skydrive.live.com/redir?resid=435D8EBE69DC9A06!4227&authkey=!ALLWrKpnwMskHqw
If you've got any of these cheapies, share some photos of them here!
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
|
Country:  USA ~
Posts: 189 ~
Member Since: March 07 2012 ~
Last Visit: March 13 2024
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - November 29 2012 : 11:50:24 PM
|
Neat collection you have! Buried deep beneath my layout there is a Christmas train that looks very similar to your New Bright trains. I'll try and remember to get some pictures next time I'm at home 
Goodwills are great, aren't they?  . I'm within walking distance of a Goodwill, Salvation Army, Bibles for Missions, and a Value Village. I'm quite fortunate :)
|
Country:  Canada ~
Posts: 3412 ~
Member Since: September 22 2006 ~
Last Visit: April 10 2025
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - November 29 2012 : 11:50:35 PM
|
Funny you mention that. I have a set of cheap-o plastic trains that I had gotten 8 years ago to replace the set I had beaten to death outside. The previous unit had died an honoralbe death, having carried hundreds of green army men many thousands of miles over poorly laid track, through minefields, over spindly posicle trestles, and past dams that had this odd tendency of being washed away.
The replacement set was hardly used, and gotten from my great uncle's hoarding, so it likely hasn't seen day in years. If you are ever near Long Island, message me and it's yours.
My number one source of used anything on rails is the flea market in Bellmore, every Sunday during good weather at the train station parking lot. I've seen quite a few cheap G and sub-G sets, with some plastic ones even down below HO scale. My favorite was the Anastasia set from the Disney Movie that they sold at Burger. I have 3 of these, and I've brought them to scout camps to say that "I am the only scout with a model railroad in their tent". I remember to put the tender in the correct position, unlike in this picture:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Burger-King-Anastasia-Train-/251152985560
It may be cheap, it may not be gauge-compatable, but it's still a train.
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 182 ~
Member Since: April 30 2011 ~
Last Visit: March 04 2023
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - November 30 2012 : 09:16:45 AM
|
neat have some I want to sell too Even some Bachmann steel track
Anastasia is NOT Disney Its a Don Bluth film released by Fox Studios
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 14894 ~
Member Since: February 23 2009 ~
Last Visit: May 01 2025
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - September 25 2013 : 02:19:40 AM
|
Well here's some work I've doing recently on Cheapo G-gauge trains. At the head-end we have a New Bright 2-6-2 with a new paint job, straight stack, and new (work-in-progress) round LED headlight.
After that comes a Scientific Toys boxcar, which was "Americanized" by removing the British-style wheelsets and installing New Bright trucks, and given a good weathering.
After that is a New Bright boxcar (the really cheap kind, the trucks are cast onto the frame! They don't swivel!), which has also been weathered.
The boxcar is followed by a British goods wagon, made by Scientific Toys. I decided to make this one into a tribute to my childhood, and turned it into a Troublesome Truck from the early Thomas The Tank Engine series.
The end of the train is marked by a Scientific Toys bobber caboose (which has also been heavily weathered) which I added plastic windows to. I'm working on a foam-core detailed interior for this caboose as well. 
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 189 ~
Member Since: March 07 2012 ~
Last Visit: March 13 2024
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - September 25 2013 : 07:04:08 AM
|
Ha, if I started collecting more stuff like cheap G gauge, I'd be in divorce court! LOL. I have enough problems finding room for all my HO and O gauge, starting a G collection would be terminal for me! Although I DO have some G, a Bachmann Big Hauler set, an Amtrak FP40 engine (somewhere ), a Playmobil set I got from Redneck here ( LGB ). I was in a Tuesday morning awhile back, and ran across a dumping hopper car by Playmobil, new they were about 50, on sale at 12. Can't say I've seen many "good" trains at the local salvage stores, I keep my eyes open for stuff, but usually it's the 3-8 age group, totally cartoonish types I run across. Nothing I'd buy to collect for anything close to realism. Anyway, here's a picture of Redneck's old Playmobil stuff circling my Garden Railway loop, with my cat Roameo looking on.
Jerry 
" When life throws you bananas...it's easy to slip up"
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 3974 ~
Member Since: January 04 2009 ~
Last Visit: January 11 2019
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
 Posted - September 25 2013 : 10:56:04 AM
|
Don't forget New Brite had these G size trains too I got a few & a passenger car from a 1998 Xmas set
I'll get a pic of it later 
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 14894 ~
Member Since: February 23 2009 ~
Last Visit: May 01 2025
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - September 25 2013 : 11:06:24 AM
|
It strikes me that this stuff could be a good starting point for some scratch building. You have wheels, track, locomotive mechanisms, etc. If the car bodies don't look good to you, it should be easy to build ones you like in that large scale. Some of the pictured engines look good with just a less flashy paint job. Again, in such a large scale, you wouldn't need to be a brain surgeon to add enough detail to give the illusion of detail.
The tinkering could be fun and, if it's time consuming, that's hobby time spent having fun. And, the price beats the hundreds shelled out in model-market large scale. Andrew, you're onto something.
Carpe Manana!
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 2405 ~
Member Since: September 17 2013 ~
Last Visit: May 01 2025
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - September 25 2013 : 5:01:58 PM
|
I've got about 70 feet of G scale track, that's Stainless Steel for outside use......AND a single Bachmann 4-6-0, that, needs a set of wheels and it will run!
Not sure, what the fate might be tho.....
~John
Many have tried to, and failed, ya just can't repair stupid...
Do NOT try to Idiot-Proof anything!!!! God, will simply create a better......IDIOT!
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 2911 ~
Member Since: March 26 2012 ~
Last Visit: January 14 2014
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - February 16 2014 : 8:24:33 PM
|
Well, I spent Saturday night and most of Sunday working on the G-gauge chaepies again. I'm really having some fun with this equipment.
I live in Western Washington, where steam-powered logging used to be one of the major industries. If you've ever seen photos by Darius Kinsey or his son, Clark Kinsey, you'll know what Pacific Northwest steam logging looked like.
I've moved my focus away from the HO scale dorm layout for now and have started working on the G gauge trains again, this time with a PNW logging theme.
Today, I finished a small logging caboose that started out as an Echo Toys caboose. I swapped out the wheels, replacing the four large wheels with New Bright trucks. A weathering job was done on Sunday morning. What do you think?
I've also started work on a Rayonier-esque caboose with a long front deck and very offset cupola. The frame for this caboose is from a New Bright Christmas boxcar. Since I had the boxcar shell leftover, I sheathed it in cardboard to start its transformation into a Camp Car (which will sit on logging disconnects).
The weathered Rio Grande boxcar has now become an outfit car for the loggers, and two (soon to be three) New Bright cabooses were disassembled to become various other pieces of equipment. The caboose trucks and chassis will become log cars, and the bodies have been made into skid shacks for the loggers.
Finally, there's the big project; the 2-4-4-0 logging mallet. This beast is being kitbashed from two Scentific Toys /EZ-TEC locomotives. She's got a ways to go yet, but she's coming together.
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 189 ~
Member Since: March 07 2012 ~
Last Visit: March 13 2024
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - February 16 2014 : 8:27:27 PM
|
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
Edited by - weekendrailroader on February 16 2014 8:28:35 PM
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 189 ~
Member Since: March 07 2012 ~
Last Visit: March 13 2024
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - February 16 2014 : 8:29:15 PM
|
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 189 ~
Member Since: March 07 2012 ~
Last Visit: March 13 2024
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - February 16 2014 : 8:30:04 PM
|
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 189 ~
Member Since: March 07 2012 ~
Last Visit: March 13 2024
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - February 16 2014 : 8:30:45 PM
|
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
Edited by - weekendrailroader on February 16 2014 8:33:53 PM
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 189 ~
Member Since: March 07 2012 ~
Last Visit: March 13 2024
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - February 16 2014 : 9:45:44 PM
|
Model railroading is as expensive as you let it be.
Considering the price of top-of-the-line G scale, these resourceful modifications are pretty neat.
In that large scale, there's a lot of modification one can do without being a miniaturized watch repair man, too. I'm surprised I haven't seen more of people doing what you do.
Carpe Manana!
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 2405 ~
Member Since: September 17 2013 ~
Last Visit: May 01 2025
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - February 17 2014 : 11:07:25 PM
|
I spent part of Sunday and Monday nights painting the mallet locomotive. I'm using a flat black acrylic paint which will be sealed with a spray-on clearcoat (acrylic doesn't stick to plastic very well). The beginnings of a large spark arrestor (actually the frame for holding a small speaker cone for one of those ipod speaker thingies) was attached to the top of the smokestack. This locomotive is really coming along nicely. :)
The hope is to build a display for these trains at a small history museum I volunteer at when I'm back home. I've already built an operating model spar tree (hay-rack loader type). These trains will probably be displayed in conjunction with the spar tree. The idea is to build a small point-to-point track with the spar tree at one end, a mill pond at the other, and the logging camp in between. The kids get to load the train with logs, take the train to the mill, and unload them at the millpond. It's still in the planning phases, so we'll see what the final product ends up looking like.
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 189 ~
Member Since: March 07 2012 ~
Last Visit: March 13 2024
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - February 18 2014 : 12:56:58 AM
|
not a bad loco I likes it
LGB made a adapter coupler for New Bright trains
Never found it  
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 14894 ~
Member Since: February 23 2009 ~
Last Visit: May 01 2025
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
Home
Forums
Events Calendar
Forum Admins & Mods
Register
