I have what is suppose to be a 1936 with no number and a 1938 420. They look identical but the 1936 has the reverse on the left side over the rear driver while the 38 is in the cab. Am I right on the years?
What is the wheel configuration on these locos?
Rich
Both are 2-4-2
According to information that I found on another forum, the 420 is a 1939 engine. The 1939 catalog shows them as 422 but many were stamped 420. The engines do not have a cab number stamp in the illustration. The text description states they are 422’s but many were stamped 420.
The 420 was made from American Flyer tooling moved from Chicago to New Haven in 1938 with the acquisition by A. C. Gilbert. By 1941 all this original AF tooling was scrapped in favor of new engine designs in 3/16" scale.
So, the originals were 3-rail O gauge.
Rich
On a different forum, I see references to the prewar narrow gauge 2-4-2 being produced in 1936, 1938, and 1939.
Rich
The American Flyer catalogs are online at Catalogs. The Gilbert catalogs beginning with 1938 are online at www.myflyertrains.net.
The 422 engine is shown on p19 of the 1939 Gilbert catalog. You can page through the AF 1936 catalog and see if there is an engine that matches yours, the cab number will be different.
Form what I have read on other forums, some pre-war locos from AF did not have cab numbers.
Rich