bigindoortrains.com

I don't know much about Marx, but I have a few pieces. Here's a four-wheel Pennsy hopper from somewhere:



Any info regarding vintage would be appreciated.

Paul

Paul,

I've asked a friend to take a look

- Paul

Apparently these were made for decades. Metal couplers imply prewar. According to my friend they're pretty common. To me it's pretty period.

here are three of the best sources of marx info...

http://www.toyandtrainguides.com/marxtin.htm

http://www.marxtinplatetrains.com/

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Mar ... op=eupdate

Thanks Howard!

Paul

Marx at the Woolworth's display at the National Christmas Museum in Paradise, Pa.:





Very cool...

Paul II

EDIT :: Unfortunately, the National Christmas Museum closed a couple of yeas ago. I was lucky to get a look a few months before it was shuttered.

My one example of Marx motive power, the 999. This is a postwar version, as best I can tell. Since I run it primarily with four-wheel freights, I typically pair it with the four-wheel "wedge" tender seen here. I do have an eight-wheel two-truck version which I run when towing a string of the 3/16" cars. This thing runs well, albeit a bit on the fast side. Like most Marx locos, it's prone to excessive sparking if the center-rail pickup gets dirty. It's not too difficult to clean it, but it gets dirty pretty quickly. I always thought that proportionally, the 999 was the nicest looking of the diecast Marx locos, but maybe that's just me. Interestingly, it has a kink in the loco hand-rail similar to that found on the Lionel 259/259E.

One of the 6-inch cars I run behind the 999 is this B&O 241708 gondola. I'm not sure if it's prewar or postwar. I found it in a local antique shop, seemed in reasonable shape, even included four small wooden barrels. It had plastic wheels on it, but I swapped those out for a set of tin. Plastic wheels might have been indicative of a postwar vintage...not sure.

Love all these pix!

p.s. Regarding the National Christmas Museum, it is reopening in 2021 supposedly. Will keep you posted.