- 0-8-0 locomotive and tender, boxcar, 3-dome tank car, caboose, eight curved FasTrack sections, three straight FasTrack sections, one FasTrack terminal section, PowerMax transformer, smoke fluid, billboard with two images, ten telephone poles
- Transformer controlled forward, neutral and reverse operation
- Realistic air whistle in tender, puffing smoke unit and operating headlight
- Powerful maintenance-free motor and traction tires
- Die-cast metal locomotive body with metal trucks
Some of the differences are notable:
The Engine is very nice, similar to our Santa Fe engine all metal, heavy in the hands feels very solid (which is why you get an O-gauge set in the first place in my opinion This is probably the first electric toy a kid will get that (if properly cared for) will last long enough to be passed down to their kids Wheel configuration is 0-8-0, meaning no front or back guide wheels, just 8 powered wheels in the center. As a plus it has someone driving the train inside! and another odd-plus is a working-coupler in the front (you kids who watched "Thomas The Tank Engine" on TV will know what to do with this part!)
The Coal-Car has the same whistle mechanism as our much louder Santa-Fe, and it sounds when you hit the whistle button on the controller and, yes it does whistle, but at a low, kind of far-away tone.
There is a 3-dome tanker car again, nice feel to it looks really great with authentic looking markings and steel wire wrap-around -seems very solid.
A very nice Box car w/ sliding doors -compares favorably with our circa 1997 boxcar, feels a bit more solid even.
Caboose More solid than our older caboose, with a better light/connecting wheel beneath stays lit with a steady light as it goes around the track.
The Track: FasTrack is almost a revelation for people who were used to the older 0-27 and 0-36 all metal track. Note: It does take some considerable force to connect it, so your kids might need some help with this part. On the plus side it works great on floors and carpets and it looks authentic with a gravel track-bed. On the minus side, it is a bit harder to connect and I found it to be noisier than our other 100+ year old track design (O-36 the number means the size of the circle in inches that you can make when only using the round sections.
Also note You may want to consider ordering some extra track sections. This set doesn't come with an X-Cross-over and only has 4 total straight sections (1 is the powered FasTrack terminal section) Amazon and affiliates have it for $6.75 + tax and/or s/h per section, but 2 of our local hobby shops in Queens have them for $4 each (TIP: Shop locally for the tracks!) The included sections only allow for a rather small 40" x 60" layout, which might not be enough to make it around the Christmas tree AND accommodate presents.
Nice touches: 1 billboard and 10 telephone poles (TIP: use Fun-tak to adhere these to the floor for non-permanent Christmas-tree type setups or they will be falling down all over the place)
0.5 Fl Oz of smoke fluid is included. (Hobby shops have a big 4-6 oz bottle for about $6 each when this runs dry) go very light on this stuff as it can flood the engine Use 1-4 drops at a time.
The controller is where this set really comes together It feels much better than the older one and the connections are very high quality. The train can run at full speed (which would cause a de-railment on our older set) which will is certain to delight young and old alike.
One bummer the button on the controller for the bell needs an extra car with a bell function in order to work. (Mommy, Daddy, can we get one? Please!?)
Also: Our older set had more extras (and it also cost more) like a working log roller, button-operated de-coupler, and a working crossing gate. These things and others can be added to this set, but again, for the money ($137 as of mid-Dec. 2011) this is a *realy* good deal.
So to sum up: Excellent build quality, high speed fun with nice touches for a bargain price. Some adult help to assemble is advised (go easy on that smoke fluid! -tell 'em only 2-4 drops per hour) Get More track as 40"x60" sounds big but is pretty small for a train of this caliber from a local hobby shop @ $4 per/track (and maybe an accessory or two) -and you will make this a full 5-star experience!
Buy Lionel Pennsylvania Flyer Freight Train Set Now
I bought this as an identical replacement for one that my oldest brother gave to me when I was 4 and very sick.Now that he is terminally sick, I wanted to give back to him the same hope he gave me by giving me his train.This train is identical to the one he gave to me 46 years ago except with some technology changes.It has lifted his spirits and he has a new viewpoint towards his illness!He's not giving up like he once was.What more can a product do but give back hope to someone who is very ill.Thanks!Read Best Reviews of Lionel Pennsylvania Flyer Freight Train Set Here
I received the Penn Flyer Lionel Trainset on Tuesday December 6, 2011.Good early impression of the train.Trainset was purchased to go under the christmas tree.The engine feels real solid and the cars seem fine.The coupling mechanism are plastic though and seem that they could be a bit more fragile that I would have thought.There is no bell on this trainset but there is a horn.So far so good.Also, though the price was reasonable ($159).Lionel Pennsylvania Flyer Freight Train Set
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This is a great train set.The engine is heavy and the cars are pretty durable.The engine smokes as it runs.My toddlers love operating the train.My two yr old learned to operate the controller though he only understands the fastest setting (sigh).The tracks stay together and are very durable.This train is great for "under the Christmas tree" and everyday use.The set is described as with an "air whistle" and the controller has a button for the whistle, however, either the whistle does not work or the train does not have one.Still a great set!Update Dec 8, 2012:
Brought this set out of the attic and setup under my Christmas tree for this year.NO glitches, NO hassles, and this time, the whistle worked...I really like this set!I mean, my toddlers really love the set.Ordered more tracks, again.This time because this train is going around a 12' Christmas tree...
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This was a great gift for the kids to go around the tree. Works great.Had to buy a few more straight track though to go all around the tree.Track costs a lot ($5 a piece).I plan on buying more next year.
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