Sometimes, I think the boxes and wrappers and stuff are every bit as fun as the items inside. Who out there has items with neat or unusual packaging that we never, ever see? Here’s one:
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Matt I have been a box, paper and packaging collector for a long time. My items are all Gilbert so I am not sure there is a lot of interest in them here. Seems to be few Gilbert or S gauge people participating on this forum.
Here is a shipping carton Gilbert used to ship sets from the factory to distributors. Very few survived, and most Gilbert collectors are still unaware of these boxes. I picked this one up when I saw it.
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Neat
Thanks Matt.
Most Gilbert collectors are well aware of Kleer-Pak cartons, finding them intact is another matter. First, they were only used in 1960 and 1961, and only for separate sale cars. Cars included in sets were either without a box or in a standard red and white individual box, depending on the design of the set box.
Then, the black end pieces tended to get lost over time, or the package was tossed. Gilbert’s marketing people thought this packaging would better show the contents on a retailers shelf and increase sales. It cost more than a standard cardboard box.
Pictured below are two Kleer-Pak’s. The NYC car is in LN condition except for the degradation of the paper decal. It is not a rare car but most were sold in sets.The 22445 BAR car is uncommon and commands a high price. This one is new in its OB, never run. Again, most were sold in cardboard boxes. I have seen this 24425 Kleer-Pak sell for $200 without the car.
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AmFlyerTom,
Don’t despair Tom. I suspect that there are plenty of folks who are interested in what you post. Some folks just aren’t active participants.
Northwoods Flyer
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Quite true. But a good way to determine the interest is to look at the “Views” column, it’ll tell you how many people have looked at the post. I’ve made posts myself where there were quite a few views but no-one cared to comment.
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I have never seen those before!
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Keep on postin’
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Never seen one of these boxes before. That’s what I’m talking about. 
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The two tone blue American Flyer label shown above by Northwoods-Flyer had a long life in American flyer packaging. The label changed to red and white, then with the Gilbert acquisition the address was changed to New Haven, Conn. The label design continued on into the postwar period and S gauge two rail trains.
Posted below is a picture of three accessory replacement light bulb boxes from the early 1950’s that use that label design. Note that the center box label has changed to show the train rendering in the upper center. Ignore the S gauge SD70ACe behind the boxes.
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It looked better without the added train
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Here are two transformer boxes with two variations of the red and white labels. The 8B was packed in a 1952 set, the #2 was packed in a 1951 set. Other common item packaging is shown. The hardest to find unopened is the simple white bag of two screws that hold down a Gilbert control button.
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I don’t think I have any rare or unusual boxes but I always liked the box my first set came in. Unfortunately it was “lost”.
And I love the photo boxes from the 70’s and 80’s.
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I don’t think they have to be rare to be “neat”. Most average folks have never even seen the common ones. They are all a fun part of the hobby IMHO. Thank you @pennytrains and everyone please keep sharing! I love these!
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I’ve saved every package of S scale rolling stock I’ve acquired since 1986 when I got involved again, but I don’t have the original packaging of my first set that Santa delivered for Christmas 1952. I think my parents threw all of that out after I discovered the packaging in the basement and asked why Santa put trains under the tree but put the boxes in the basement. That was the point I figured out the truth, but my parents made me promise to keep it a secret from my younger brothers and sisters.
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This is a Marx Mechanical Whistling Commodore Vanderbilt set, circa 1942. The set box was decorated as a building and was made so that the top could be folded to make a gable roof. This loco is a bit unusual - most pre-war whistling CV’s had a red body with black nose, but a few - like this one - were all red. Anyway, using the box to make a building was a neat idea, one that I’m surprised wasn’t utilized more on train sets:
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This thread has been quiet for a while. To bring it back here are some pictures of a 1952 Gilbert 5103WT set. The W means the engine had a whistle and the T means the set has a transformer. The set box is interesting, at least to me. The label uses old prewar artwork with the center rail eliminated and Gilbert, NH, Conn added. There are two stamps under the label. On the right is the mandatory Korean War period price control certification. On the left is Green. This is highly unusual, the set is cataloged with green passenger cars but some were made with red, so the factory added the green stamp to those with green cars. The side of the box has the box makers stamp along with the year the box was made, 1952. The B1371 is the box number assigned by Gilbert to that specific size box.
Next is all the paper. Note the two inspection slips on the upper right. The one on the right has a 52 stamp on the Date line. The one on the left has 10/51 on the slip. Not sure how that could be in a set not made until 1952.
The set included two 650 NH style coaches and a 651 baggage car. The 285 engine with an Air Chime Whistle in the tender was new in 1952. The blue boxes with yellow lettering were introduced just prior to WW2. Those boxes, and most 1946 boxes, had Tru-Model in the white block where 3/16" scale appears.
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