A glut of postwar Lionel?

Classic Toy Trains Forum
1

To say that Lionel made an “absolute ton” of postwar equipment would be the understatement of the milennium. The period from 1945 to about 1959 contained Lionel’s true glory days. We all know what has happened to prices for postwar Lionel in just about any condition, whether you’re a mint collector, an “excellent” collector, a “repair type person” or an operator, and we all know that people have virtually “come out of the woodwork” with these types of equipment for sale over the years.

Is it just me, or have many of you postwar Lionel enthusiasts noticed the large number of collections coming up for sale through the various well-known auction sites. Are more people losing interest in their collections, or do they think the value has peaked, and the time to sell is now. It seems to me that the market is still very hot, even after the traditional Christmas/winter rush, judging by the large numbers of items up for electronic auction. In my neck of the woods, train meets have pretty much gone the way of the dinosaur; very few, if any, for sale ads ever show up in the newspapers, and hobby shops carrying model trains have evaporated. I know this has been somewhat discussed in previous threads. I just wonder if there is still a lot of stuff out there, hidden in attics or basements of people who don’t have a computer to post them on what now appears to be the sales vehicle of choice.

I’m just musing with all this commentary, but would like other people’s thoughts. Thanks.

2

I have a hard time understanding folks that are into toy trains for financial investments. I have never bought any train for financial investment. Selling a toy train, for me, would be unthinkable.

Earl

3

Aging out of the postwar generation. The grim reaper is persistant and always gets his way.

New toys provide more entertainment for the $.

If you like postwar expect prices to be attractive.

4

The stereotypical postwar collector (someone who had Lionel as a boy in the forties and who builds a large collection as a middle aged man) is getting rather advanced in age. For instance, if one was 10 in 1946 one would be 72 this year. When people reach that age they sometimes move into smaller retirement homes that might lack the room for a large layout and/or collection. They often try to rid themselves of “stuff” as well. Perhaps that is an explanation?

5

Greetings from Erskine, Minnesota… If you look on a US map, Erskine can be pinpointed up at the northwest corner of the state at the junction of US highways #2 and #59… We have a weekly newspaper, The Erskine Echo, which is published once a week, and covers the area news for our little town of 430 people… There are also a couple weekly area “shoppers” that cover a 100 mile radius at best…Well, you maybe get the picture…

If I decided to sell my collection of postwar trains, and advertised “locally”, you would have a small chance of ever knowing about the sale… unless I listed them on eBay…Then, thousands of people, from around the world, who are actually “interested” in trains, would see my ad and bid accordingly…

If a wanted to buy anouther locomotive tomorrow, I know of one old Lionel scout in a hobby shop in Moorhead, Mn…Moorhead is 90 miles from my place…If I look at eBay, I have endless choices…from not only the whole USA, but around the world.

Long story short…The internet is one of the proven leaders in connecting buyers and sellers…We have never had it so good for finding or selling used train stuff, as we do now.

Last week, I bid on five eBay auctions, and won three… I didn’t even as much as start a car last week,With gasoline around Three bucks a gallon,Well , I considered myself a double winner, The gas savings alone paid for two of the auctions… …And as a bonus, this gives me more time to sit back and enjoy my Feb. Classic Toy Trains, and a Kalmbach DCC guide, which I purchased from my “local” hobby shop, in Moorhead, on my last visit…

6

CTT contributor John Grams often notes that “All the trains in our collections are our very favorite ever, until we see something we want more, then we sell some trains to buy some new trains, that then become our very favorite, ever.”

While there are a fair number of folks who are liquidating collections or downsizing their collections, we still receive many calls every week from people who aren’t in the hobby but who have just rediscovered their old trains, or have been given grandpas old trains, or they find old trains in their attic … and they have no interest in the trains, and just want a high-dollar quick sale.

7

Looking at it from another angle, I wonder how much the reproduction market affects the postwar market. I have a Lionel 2343 set that my Dad gave me for Christmas back in the 80’s. It’s a little beat-up, a little noisy, and takes a fair amount of amperage to run. A couple years ago I purchased a Williams reproduction of the 2343. I was in awe when I first took it out of the box. So this is what they looked like new, I thought to myself. It’s a smooth runner, horn, bell, quiet reverse unit, low amperage draw, etc. etc… If not for the nostalgia of the postwar version, I would have e-bayed it the day after the Williams arrived.

Between new Lionel, MTH, and Williams, a lot of postwar reproductions are out there, with more bells and whistles on them than the original, and in mint condition with box, so out goes the postwar versions, to make way for the newer versions.

Another factor is scale vs. semi-scale. Many of the die-hard train guys are moving to scale items. out goes the little postwar reefer to make way for the new scale one that looks just like the real thing.

I don’t think the “glut” is just caused by old guys getting rid of their stuff, or people cleaning out the attic finding a train set, and selling it on-line. I think a lot of it has to do with people upgrading, downgrading, selling older items to make room for newer ones. A lot of my “collection” is not permanent. I sell items I’ve had for awhile to make room for other items, and I think a lot of others are doing the same.

8

I love that Grams quote. There is still a strong, persistent view from the ‘general public’ I know that old ‘Lionel’ trains = big, easy money. I enjoy browsing ‘yard sales’ in the warmer months and am regularly amused by the dilapidated MPC-era cars and rusty 3 rail track priced ridiculously high - ‘but it’s Lionel!’ – I also get that reaction from visitors to the layout - ‘oh my, how much this must be worth…’