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 Posted - December 03 2012 : 10:30:14 PM
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Alright, so i enjoy messing around with cheap battery powered toy trains, just to see what semblance of quality they retain, and to see what I can kitbash and rebuild them into. Echo, New Bright, Scientific Toys, WowToyz, and a slew of other brands make or have made these trains in the past, with some sets from various brand names having some of the same pieces as other sets from other brands.
Now there's a new player in the battery-train field, and we may recognize this one.
LIFE-LIKE.
Introducing the "Smokestack Express"
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/433-8851
And yes, it is listed for sale on the Walthers website. Comes complete with "Transition Tracks" (um, I think they're called "switches").
It's not model railroad equipment, but it also appears to be below the grade of most of today's big-name toy trains, like Thomas, Chuggington, Brio, and Geotrax.
I'm just wondering what the intended market for this item is. And why is Life-Like of all brands selling it?
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
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Posted - December 03 2012 : 10:45:58 PM
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Pretty cool toy! Probaly trying to expand.
" Heck with counting 'em rivets, TRAINS ARE FOR FUN! Not called the Mad Scientist for nothing either!"
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Posted - December 03 2012 : 10:56:31 PM
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The tracks look a little fragile and the name is about as stupid as they come....but it doesn't look like a bad way to get kids in to model trains.
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Posted - December 03 2012 : 11:49:13 PM
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I'm starting to wonder if Walthers is trying to make miniature trains more relevant to today's kids. Honestly, I don't think kids get into scale model railroading like they used to, and with the price of good quality model trains skyrocketing, getting into the hobby can be far too expensive. Yet, standard starter sets, like what Life-Like has offered for years, are usually still rather expensive and not very well made.
I kind of wonder if the gap between toy train and model train is going to be getting wider. For years, standard toy-grade HO sets have been rather poorly constructed, flimsy, and well, maybe to the general consumer they seem dated. They come with steel track that needs to be cleaned, little tiny rail joiners that get bent or lost, engines that need to be oiled...basically, they weren't meant to be taken put, played with, and then put away repeatedly. This new set, on the other hand, may remedy those issues.
I guess we'll just have to wait and see...
My Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/weekendrailroader?blend=1&ob=video-mustangbase
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Posted - December 04 2012 : 12:02:41 AM
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I wonder if it's imported, since everything is European. The loco looks like a German BR 80.
The Tyco Depot
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Posted - December 04 2012 : 01:43:33 AM
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Throw away trains.
I remember buying similar sets at the Dollar store for under $10 for my son to play with until he was old enough to play with my HO trains without distroying them.
Ray
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Posted - December 04 2012 : 4:51:48 PM
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perfect for "around the tree"
caboose 1
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Posted - December 04 2012 : 4:56:04 PM
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yeah "throw away" trains I hate
I has some cars that are almost HO & am gonna try to put wheels & trucks on them
Looks like Life-Like is becoming cheap as Tyco was 
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Posted - December 05 2012 : 4:21:44 PM
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Actually, it looks like better quality than this sort of thing usually is. The loco looks better than a lot of the junk Lima made in HO, although a tank engine shouldn't have a tender. When I was young I had a dime store battery operated train that ran on plastic track that was real garbage. Of course it didn't cost $90, either.
The Tyco Depot
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