I have an old train set handed down through the family. There is an old Lionel 029 Locomotive with a Tender, a Pabst car, and this Schlitz car in the picture. I am having a difficult time trying to figure out what it is worth. Any help would be appreciated.
Thank you!
You can’t post photos directly to the Forum from your hard drive. You have to post it on a photo hosting service first. Read this pinned post to find out how: https://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/t/249194.aspx
Postimages.org is an easy one to use and it’s free.
Thank you!
Here is the image: 
I don’t know of any steam locomotives Lionel produced numbered 029. There was a No. 2029 steam locomotive produced in the postwar period, with a 2-6-4 wheel arrangement. It was black, and was paired with a tender that had white Lionel Lines lettering on it- sometimes with a whistle but not always.
That Schlitz car is definitely not a Lionel product, but I don’t know who produced it.
Assigning a price to things can be tricky, and is impacted by many factors. I can say with some confidence, that in general, condition is one of the biggest determining factors in how much a train is worth. The closer something is to the condition it left the factory in, the better. But there are other factors that can impact value, such as rarity, the presence of original packaging, and how sought after a particular model is.
-Ellie
I don’t know a lot about prewar Märklin, but I know you could get several large bags of nickels for a car in that condition, which appears to be very good to excellent by the way! [:D][tup]
Oops… the tag on the bottom says Lionel 027. Should have been wearing my glasses. It has 3 wheels on each side.
That other car is a Marklin from 1906.
Thank you for your response!!
Thomas
Thank you!!!
Thomas
Are you sure this is a Marklin car from 1906? Does it say “Marklin” (and perhaps “Made in Germany”) on the bottom?
If it has “1906” stamped on it, it’s most likely the model ID number, not the year. Also, would be a bit odd in 1906 for Marklin in Germany to be making an American reefer car. I’m assuming it’s O gauge, which at that time Marklin had just invented.
Does it by chance have “MAR” with an “X” in a circle on it? That would indicate it was built by Marx in the US, probably 1938-42. Although their small 2 axle cars from that time are more well known, they did make cars with two 2 axle trucks too.
toyandtrainguides.com/marxtin/id/m-id-8whl-frame-black-ac.htm
Definitely not Marx. Bing, Carrette or Bassett Lowke maybe if not Maerklin but absolutely 100% European manufacture.
All it says on the bottom is “Made in Germany.” The bottom is black and the marking is in red.
Here is a link to the closest match I could find: https://www.antiquesandthearts.com/poppin-tabs-schlitz-beer-car-leads-paul-cole-collection-at-bertoia/
I don’t know why I didn’t think of this before. The western division of the Train Collectors Association has a fantastic online database of toy train manufacturers: http://www.tcawestern.org/manufacturers.htm
Lots of info and pictures!
Ps personally I think you’d better start looking at auction houses. This little old boxcar could buy you a shiny new automobile. Especially if the auction has a lot of European train collectors. [;)]
Wow. I’m gonna link it as soon as my head stops swimming!
Thanks Becky! I had NO idea!
Thank you! 