# newbie with a couple questions



## jensenracing77 (Feb 26, 2013)

I got my first train set for Christmas in the early 80s. By the late 80s i was in high school and put them all away. My grandpa would get me a new box car for Christmas every year for several years. He was a HUGE collector. About 4 years ago i got my girls a small set and got me interested again. 

My Grandpa passed away and left us with his collection. Here is a picture of the first load we got home. 

As for my questions.. Several members of the family will keep a couple cars or even a set or two but most will have to be sold because we simply don't have room for this many trains. I think i will be able to get some of the track and the wireless trackmaster stuff to build a line because i am the only one with enough room to build a track big enough to make a couple of his big sets work. For the ones we will sell, Where is the best place to sell them. Part of the problem is that we don't know the values of some of them. I hate feeBay but sometimes it works good when you don't know a market value on something. I think we need to get someone to appraise them. Any thoughts would be great.


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## jensenracing77 (Feb 26, 2013)

After reading what i listed it sounds like it is my trains now but it is my moms and uncles. I just hope to be able to build a track to run some of them.


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

Nice pictures of boxes.
Welcome to the site. 

They do sell books for Lionel with values, but some say the prices are not right.

This one is an old one you can buy an up to date one for around $18 bucks.









Take the product number and watch on e bay for what they sell for.
There are auction sites to do the same thing.

You can ask here.

Beware if you go to sell them to one who wants the whole lot you will get only pennies on the dollar.

Take your time do some research and get top dollar for them.

By all means keep some of the better stuff in rememberence of Granddad.

Do you have to sell in a hurry or can you take your time?


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## tkruger (Jan 18, 2009)

Keep all of the boxes! I have seen shows where the same item in the box goes for 50% more. I do not know why but it happens. I deal in HO so that is not quite as important.


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## jensenracing77 (Feb 26, 2013)

We don't have to sell in a hurry. It is just having to store them. It is all being moved to my parents house right now But they don't have alot of room. I buy and sell Oldsmobile parts and cars and trying to reduce my inventory. When that happens i plan to build a track in the basement even if i don't get or buy any of my grandpas stuff.


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## jensenracing77 (Feb 26, 2013)

tkruger said:


> Keep all of the boxes! I have seen shows where the same item in the box goes for 50% more. I do not know why but it happens. I deal in HO so that is not quite as important.


lol, we spent MANY hours boxing them up. he saved all the boxes. Even has the boxes to his first set from the 1940s?


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

[email protected] said:


> We don't have to sell in a hurry. It is just having to store them. It is all being moved to my parents house right now But they don't have alot of room. I buy and sell Oldsmobile parts and cars and trying to reduce my inventory. When that happens i plan to build a track in the basement even if i don't get or buy any of my grandpas stuff.


If your doing all the work DAD & MOM ought to GIVE YOU SOME. 

Take your time, get a book, watch e bay ( though you never know there if a newbie wants it you might not get a true value on it.) do some homework so you don't give them away.

You can sell here but read the rules, main one is that you have to put a starting price and add best offer if you want.


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## jensenracing77 (Feb 26, 2013)

Thanks for some quick replies, My first choice of what I hoped to get was the 100th anniversary gold Hudson but my Uncle wanted it. So my next choice that i would like to buy (or get if....) would be the New York Central Streamliner set. If i have to buy it i am not sure i could afford it. That thing is HUGE! It is a little dusty and was used but is still very nice. I think it is the one my Grandpa liked to run the best so i would love to have it run in my basement like he did. The sounds from the speaker are so clear it sounds like the real thing. I am getting excited about building a track the more i talk about it.


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

I repeat,

If your doing all the work DAD & MOM ought to GIVE YOU SOME. 

Your choice! 

Sounds like you have some nice stuff, post some pictures as you go along.:thumbsup:

It sounds like you know a little about which ones are valuable too.


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## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

jensenracing77 said:


> I am getting excited about building a track the more i talk about it.


Another one with train fever!


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## Dave Farquhar (Feb 20, 2013)

Agreed, the best thing to do is get a price guide, and keep in mind the values in them are averages and extrapolations. Definitely do what you can to keep the stuff with the most sentimental value in the family.

My Dad's Lionels (he didn't have nearly that many) sat in my Mom's basement, then my closet, then my basement, for nearly 10 years before I set them back up again. (I don't remember if he boxed them up before he died, or if I did it--I have no memory of that week.) I'm glad I held on to them. When I run his old Lionels, it's not like having him back, but it's a connection. And when my sons get older, I can explain to them how they work, the same way he explained them to me when I was 12.

Back to the subject of selling... Online auction prices are all over the map, so keep that in mind. If something sells for well above book value, there's probably an explanation, so you'll need to figure out whether you see a case where the book is wrong, or someone got auction fever.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Looks like you'll be busy for some time with that load of stuff!

What you'll need to sell them in most any venue is details on each piece or set, so I'd start by doing that. Detailed pictures, the more the better, are key in maximizing the value.

If you post some, many folks here can help you determine what you have and general price ranges.

Sad to say, eBay will probably be the best venue to sell much of the stuff, it's just that you have a very large audience there.


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## Nuttin But Flyer (Dec 19, 2011)

Perhaps if you take a strong interest in the items, you might get the whole lot for yourself??

Be sure to store the items in a temperature-controlled area, moisture-free. Those things don't like extreme temperature changes or water. By all means, keep and care for the boxes and use them to store the items. I've seen just an original empty box go for more $$ than some items sell for -- it's a crazy world out there.


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## jensenracing77 (Feb 26, 2013)

They are in a nice dry basement with a dehumidifier in the summers to keep it dry down there. They will be the same way at my house if they ever come here. Sunday my uncle give me the 100th anniversary gold Hudson. I was very excited about it. I will keep it in the display my grandfather had for it and put it on the mantel above the fireplace. I am not sure what will happen with the others, that is up to them. I think it will be a while before we can do anything any why because of the estate stuff they have to go through. I don't even know when i will get to bring home mine. I will post pictures as I (or we) go through them. It may be a while but the storage is what the problem is right now. Between mine that i already had, the ones my dad has and now my grandfathers... We just can't keep them all. Maybe my uncle will add on to his house, lol.


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## jensenracing77 (Feb 26, 2013)

My uncle has a guy that is going to buy everything that we are not going to keep. I am sorting out what I want and have a couple questions. I am keeping a NYC heavyweight set, numbers
6-19080
6-19081
6-19082
6-19083
6-29005
6-29040
My questions are one, Do these cars belong together? two, are there any other cars that belong to these.. What engine should pull this or did it have a particular engine? He always pulled these with a Union Pacific Big Boy 4-8-8-4 and I am keeping that one. There are NYC locomotives and tenders there but not sure if one would be best for these cars or what one would belong to these cars. 

Thanks for any help you have for me.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

They are the same style and size, so there's no reason not to run them together. Obviously, these would most likely be pulled by a NYC locomotive,


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## jensenracing77 (Feb 26, 2013)

I almost hate to ask this because I am sure it is asked all the time. What is the best way to clean this up. I can take care of the mechanics of it but is there a easy way to clean the exterior? This was used more than most of his others and sit out all the time. The NYC cars are this dirty also. Anything more than the obvious to do or not to do? What do shops charge to clean and service something this dirty? 

Friday I will be getting some more. I will be getting many Christmas cars and at least one NYC Locomotive. Many years ago he would get me a new Christmas car every year. After he stopped he continued to get them but give me cash and not the cars. Now I am going to get the others that he collected. Between his and mine I likely will have around 25 years of them.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I'd start with a soft brush and get as much as you can off, then use a damp terrycloth to wipe away the remainder. I wouldn't use any cleaning products until you can't proceed with the simple stuff. Q-Tips are good for corners and small spaces.


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## Gordon the big engine (Aug 31, 2013)

I frequently catch the train fever!


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