# Lionel 259E's from Greenberg train show



## upsman55 (Jan 11, 2013)

The weather and Valentines day almost prevented me from driving the 30 plus miles to attend the Greenbergs show in Monroeville, PA this past weekend, but I'm glad I made it. I've been wanting to find an old fixer upper. Instead, I found two! :smilie_daumenpos: A couple of 259E's. One, a real basket case that has missing parts, and no sign of life, and another that went forward only on the test track, and is a complete unit with a tender. In other words, just the kind of trains I'm looking for. I believe there's a lot of life left in them both! Here's some pics.









The gray one with the tender runs. The black one is the basket case.









The black one actually has two coats of paint applied over the original color. The last coat was just sprayed thick over everything. And as noted above, it is missing the boiler front cover, and both front and back trucks. All four drivers are shot, and the motor would not turn. But the shell is actually in better shape than the one that runs. So naturally I started taking it apart right away. Couldn't wait. 


Here's a few more pics of the locomotive shell




























Here's a look after the initial tear down and slight clean up of the motor. Everything but the wiring looks pretty good. I need to clean a bit more before I bench test it.









This is what I'm dealing with as far as the drivers go. Gear teeth are torn up, and all four wheels wobble. (Shafts are on size and straight, and wheel bushings are in very good shape.)









All of the previous pics were from yesterday. Today, I took the shell apart. Looks like the original color of this locomotive was Gun Metal Gray also.









I had to score the paint with an exacto knife to break the parts free from one another.









And a couple hours later, it's all apart, all tabs intact, and no new bends or dents in the parts.









Just for good measure, I gave all the tin a bath with soap and water, even though I'll be stripping them clean in the near future.









And that's all for now. Probably more than enough with all these pictures:laugh: Now it's time to order some parts!


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Nice finds. My sort of goodies!

FYI ... you might consider drilling out the rivet that holds the weight in the steamchest out. It'll make a cleaner / easier job of priming/painting the steamchest, and you can reinstall the weight with a screw/nut.

Some (later era) 259's have a weight on the aft frame, too. Looks like yours does not.

Copper domes / smokestack?

Enjoy the fun!

TJ


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Nice breakdown so far, it actually looks to be in better shape then the first pictures suggested! Everything but the drive wheels. How are the others? Cracks or usable?


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## upsman55 (Jan 11, 2013)

TJ...Thanks for the input on the steam chest. Truth be told, I was checking out an old thread of yours where you refurbished a 258. You repainted it red. I noticed you removed its steamchest weight. That made me a little more comfortable about removing mine. 

As for the domes and smokestack, no copper or brass. Sadly, it looks like their tin. But when I was cleaning the paint off the handrails and sand pipes,I swear they had a brass cast to them. Probably just a combination of bad lighting and bad eyes!

And sjm, unfortunately, all the wheels are in bad shape. It was odd that the axles are on size and straight as an arrow, and the bushings in the motor frame are in great shape with very little wear, yet all four wheels wobbled in a way that would make you think the axles were bent. The wheels were a little loose on the axles also.


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Yea, the wheels are a bit of cash.
Tj, were some domes made of tin? Mine were plated, after that was removed from the rails and domes copper?


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

I believe domes are of:

Copper
Copper with nickel plate
Steel with black paint (usually on a 258).

TJ


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Ok, cool. So you might try to dermal or scratch the underside of one as it might reveal some nice copper!


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Or simply give it the magnet test. If it doesn't stick, it's likely copper!

TJ


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## upsman55 (Jan 11, 2013)

Ok, I just did a check with a magnet and made an interesting discovery. On th black loco that I disassembled, the smokestack, rails, and sandpipe are non-magnetic. So I guess my eyes weren't deceiving me when I thought the rails had a bronze cast. I used some scotchbrite on the stack and lo and behold, it's copper! Nice! But unfortunately, both domes are magnetic. When I buffed a spot up on them, nothing but tin. Would Lionel have mixed and matched like that? I can't imagine the domes being replacements on this particular loco.

Anyway, on the other 259E, a little scotchbrite on the domes, smokestack, bell and rails revealed all copper and brass. A good clean up will make it look pretty nice, even with all the scratches on the shell. Yeah, this was a nice discovery!


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Im guessing they could have been replaced but Lionel has also used whatever is laying around for parts, Tj might know.


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## servoguy (Jul 10, 2010)

The wheels have zinc pest or zinc disease. The zinc alloy Lionel used for the wheels absorbs water over time, and the zinc swells up and turns to powder. This is why you store your trains in a humidity controlled area.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

sjm9911 said:


> Im guessing they could have been replaced but Lionel has also used whatever is laying around for parts, Tj might know.


Yup, they often did!


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## njrailer93 (Nov 28, 2011)

ive been dying to get my hands on a 259e!


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## upsman55 (Jan 11, 2013)

That sounds like a hint nj But I don't think I ready to give one of them up yet. I've hardly gotten to know them! I'm curious though, have you been looking for a fixer upper like I have been, or something in a little better condition. I found both of these under the display tables at the train show. One of them lying on the floor! Just got lucky that day.


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## upsman55 (Jan 11, 2013)

I just wanted to post a picture of the other 259E I picked up at the train show post clean up. I should have taken a few before and after photos, because this this was a mess! It was caked with grease and grime. The shell is in need of some repair, but that's for another day. A good cleaning really worked wonders! This thing runs great!


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)




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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

njoffroader said:


> ive been dying to get my hands on a 259e!


NJ, there's a very nice looking 259 shell (no motor) listed on eBay now. Copper domes. Brass handrails. Trim all intact.


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## upsman55 (Jan 11, 2013)

*259E test run*

Here's a short video of a test run of the 259E.

http://youtu.be/43ocHa75Lug


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Ups,

The 259E runs smooth! Nice work.

Hey, I spied a Marx Mercury in the background. I love those, but have never seen one in detail. Maybe create a new thread showing off your little copper treasure a bit?!? (I don't think we've had any Mercury locos featured here on the forum.)

Thanks,

TJ


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## upsman55 (Jan 11, 2013)

I'll get on that TJ. I'll get a few pics together, and perhaps a video.


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## tjcruiser (Jan 10, 2010)

Thanks!


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## njrailer93 (Nov 28, 2011)

definately looking for a restore project. after i finish up my 604 observation ill be free for a 259e


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