# Lionel GS-4 Daylight Locomotive



## CamaroDMD (Oct 19, 2010)

Ever since I was a young child, my dream train was the Lionel GS-4 Daylight released in 1983 (6-8307). I am the proud owner of the GS-2 released in the early 90s, but it's not the same. 

Anyway, I recently picked up a 1983 Lionel catalog because I wanted the issue with the GS-4 in it. I noticed the picture in the catalog had coal in the tender...but every example I have ever seen in person had an oil tender. Did they ever release a set with a coal tender like in the picture?

Here is the picture from the 1983 catalog:










Here is a picture of an actual tender I found online:


----------



## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

At El Campo the Southern Pacific Railway Museum I learned that most of the west coast used oil. Coal was king in the east. I am not sure, but the drawing just may be a Lionel oddity. Maybe,the tender was still in production?










Here is an old postcard. These were colored by hand or printed, and taken from real pictures. To me it's oil.


----------



## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

T-Man -- Awesome old postcard.

Camaro -- Quick wiki search turns up oil as fuel source ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Pacific_4449

Interestingly, we had a thread here on the forum a couple of months ago about a western-based class of loco (I can't remember which) that designed and built for oil, but was quickly converted to coal. Coal was a much more readily available fuel supply out west in the early 1900's. (I would have thought any fuel conversions would have gone the other way.)

Regards,

TJ


----------



## CamaroDMD (Oct 19, 2010)

tjcruiser said:


> Camaro -- Quick wiki search turns up oil as fuel source ...
> 
> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Pacific_4449
> 
> ...


I know it uses oil now, what I can't figure out is if it always did (I live in Portland, OR where the 4449 is kept so I have seen it several times). I assume it always did because of the era the real locomotive was active in. I just didn't know if Lionel ever released it with coal or if the drawing was just a mistake. I have never seen a set with coal in it.


----------



## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

It wouldn't be the first time that something depicted in a Lionel catalog was not quite reflective of how they were actually produced.


----------



## T-Man (May 16, 2008)

I did not find the 1983 reference you mentioned. Two others were mentioned the one you owned and 98 both were oil.
Back in 1983 an HO version was released by Lionel. I don't recall any coal.


----------



## CamaroDMD (Oct 19, 2010)

T-Man said:


> I did not find the 1983 reference you mentioned. Two others were mentioned the one you owned and 98 both were oil.
> Back in 1983 an HO version was released by Lionel. I don't recall any coal.


I locomotive I am referring to is O gauge, the model number is 6-8307. It was featured in the 1983 Lionel Collector Series catalog.


----------

