This week we are taking a look at a set that I have always wanted in my collection! Don’t forget to drop a comment about a train or set that you have always wanted! What do you want to add to your model Railroad collection?

I once met a girl who was very enthusiastic about railroading. We had a New Year's party at her parents house: we filled their basement floor with LGB! (-Her Dad LOVED it!) -strange how her enthusiasm began to fade after we got married...

I received the Lady Lionel as a Christmas gift back in 1957 and still have the complete set with all seven cars and the track; I do not have the boxes nor the transformer. We last ran it in 2009 and seeing your video really brought back memories! Thank you for posting.

I can remember when you couldn't give one of those away to my friends in the neighborhood who loved Lionel trains! haha

Lionel: how do we get girls into model railroading? Employee: paint a o gauge freight train in their favorite colors? Lionel: Sir, you are a GENIUS!

Could easily be made into an Easter Special if lionel felt like it

I remember seeing a original set at the Iron Horse hobby shop back in the 80s undesired is now definitely desirable . I just bought a 1953 Hudson 2055 not rare but love the 50s magnatracktion and smoke and whistle

The enthusiasm this young man demonstrates for the hobby is refreshing and fun. Thank you Chris! Well done!

Honestly Chris this was a fantastic video! Not alot of love for this set here on KZfaq and further more nobody's done a proper review on one of these sets till now! Well done!

This one was in the category of "what were they thinking?". It's history parallels that of pinball machines that didn't sell well back in the day. They didn't sell well because they were not very good games. But today, they are highly sought after due to being rare.

Big thanks for this video as the original set has a dear place in my heart. My grandfather gifted me one back in either 1958 or '59. That was so I had a Lionel to run and didn't mess with the heirloom standard gauge set he had set up at Christmas. I cherished this set and in the summer I would take it with me when my parents shipped me off to my aunt's house. I kept it there for a couple of years, saving up the nickels & dimes to buy another piece of track. Always took great care of it and put it away when it was time to go back home and to school. Until one summer and I got to my aunt's place and couldn't find the set where I put it. Searched around for a few days thinking maybe it got moved. After a while I asked about it and she told me she gave it away because someone liked it. I was never asked, nothing. To say I cried is an understatement. Sure wish I had it. The Toy Train Museum at Strasburg has an original set that's operational.

Ah, the "girls' train". "Hey little sis, wanna get into railroading?" A hilarious debacle.

I am very fascinated with the girls train right now. I recently went to a train display that was being held by a local train club in Ft Meyers Florida for a Christmas display. They had several postwar trains that they were selling for parts at $5.00 each . I figured I could make at least 1 good train to replace my broken MTH units I bought in 2002. I actually fixed all 5 of the trains and they all run perfectly!! One of those 5 had a pink underbelly and had chips out of the paint on top that revealed pink spots on the engine, tender as well. I have stripped the black paint away from the engine and it is an original pink girls train #2037. My Question to everyone is should I repaint it pink as some of the paint is chipped away or should I leave it alone?

That's a great looking set Chris it's great when they reissued it as a conventional running engine like it would have been in the 1957 👍👍

Chris - You have a Great attitude, when you do these videos. Thanks for bringing us some positives in our life.

What a fantastic set to have in your collection! A real talking point for sure!

I do have an original set. We played with it during the holidays growing up and I just recently inherited it from my father. It had been sitting in a box for 2 decades and I just set it up for Christmas because that’s what we used to do, and it fired right up.

I went to a train show in Lincoln Nebraska a couple of years ago and saw one. It ran around the layout like it was brand new. My granddaughter just adored it. Thanks for sharing your video. 👍👍

Great video Chris! Telling the history of that infamous set was very informative. I too am looking for an original 1587S Lady Lionel set as well, but I’m also on the hunt for a 2274W Lionel Congressional Set from 1956, the 2296W Canadian Pacific set from 1957, and the 2555W Father snd Son Set from 1960. I already have 2190W Super Speedliner Set from 1952, with the twin 2343 locomotives, the Large Door 2530 Railway Express Agency baggage car, and a 2343C “B” Unit to complete the set. As with Lionel train collecting, there’s always room for more. LOL

good find, even the re-issue. I bet your girls will love this one

I have the counter part boys freight set 1603WS you showed in the 1958 catalog. I also have a 1957 Diesel Alco set 1569. I got it from a woman who received it from her dad as a little girl in 1957. More proof the pink girls train didn’t work. Great job on this topic Chris!

Another awesome set and another awesome video. This set is on my list but subway sets are still my favorites.

It's a very interesting set. I'm sure back in 1957 they never realized that one day it would be very valuable one day decades later.

Amazing find, Chris! A failure that's become a winner at auctions! I was told of a man who, back in the day, couldn't find the conventional Lionel train set he wanted, but did find the 'Lady Lionel' set at a much reduced price. He didn't like the pastel colouring, so he set about repainting it to a more prototypical look. A few years before he past away, he found out the set in the original paint scheme had sold at auction for $15000 Cdn! I don't think that's what killed him, but it sure didn't help. Also, K-line marketed a girls pastel coloured train in the 90's. I remember watching a family trying to convince their young daughter to let them buy her this set, but she screamed out loud that she wanted one just like they had just gotten for her older brother! It seems it wasn't just the guys who rejected this new look!

I knew it! That set is nice! My grandfather used to have that set.

The lady lionel set is such an interesting piece of Lionel's history it's a shame that it probably won't ever get re-released. To me that is just sad because I think it would be such a interesting and different set to have in a collection. I would have to seriously consider it for my collection.

Infamous indeed! My wife's upper lip curls so much when she sees "The Girls Train" that it reaches her right eyebrow. "WHAT were they thinking!" she says, "A little girl that wants a train wants one that looks like the REAL THING, not this insult to women and girls!" So it was back in the 50's, little girls that wanted a train wanted nothing to do with the "Lady Lionel!" In a way though, American Flyer came up with a girls train kind of by accident with their "Circus Train." It had a streamlined steam engine which girls liked, cars with animals which girls liked, and done in bold primary colors (not pastels) which girls liked. There's been a number of husband-and-wife teams featured in "Classic Toy Trains" magazine where the wife states she had the AF Circus Train as little girl. By the way Chris, I noticed a ring on the third finger of your left hand. What does your wife think of the "Lady Lionel?" $49.95 for a "Lady Lionel" back in the 50's? Just to put that in perspective that was when gasolene was going for 21 cents a gallon!

The American Flyer Silver Bullet set 100%! It’s always spoken to me since I first saw one when I was 7.

My mother and her coworkers did not use the pink locomotives during their careers on the NYC & LV. They used Alco and EMD engines to pull coal hoppers and Pacemaker boxcars through Niagara Falls. I'm sure they would appreciate the rolling stock in the set!

Wow another beautiful train Take me to the 50s so I can buy 2 of these

I remember seeing this set in one of Lionel's 2000s catalogs and thinking what in the world are they doing. Nice to hear the history of this set. Crazy how it went from no one wanting it to everyone wanting it! What set am I after? Probably that Kinlet Hall you showed last time. I might even take the Albert or any other real Hall Class Lionel produced. I saw Kinlet in my local hobby shop recently, but couldn't afford it. :(

It looks as if Lionel took chewed bubble gum, and spat them in a mold.

I love this set. Thank you so much for sharing. Thumbs up.

Awesome Chris! what a great train set. I will be on the lookout for one of the remakes now.

An interesting video and your history of the sets was spot on. Having been a kid in that mid fifties era I have my thoughts on the failure of the Girls Train Set. My sister wanted one for Christmas but our parents refused to buy it for her since girls played with dolls and boys with trains back then. Pastel colors were also very much in vogue in the mid-fifties especially on some of the more expensive cars of the era so I feel that Lionel may have been trying to become more mainstream with that set. My sister did purchase a K-Line version many years later. One difference between your 8014 engine and the 1957's original 2037 engine is the addition of the eccentric rod to the valve gear.

Fantastic! I kind of want the blue caboose now. The set looks fantastic rolling next to the Lego. As far as what I’m looking for, other than one of every single piece Lionel ever made, I’d really like to find a pristine prewar 226e passenger set. Great video Chris 👍

Beautiful set chris!

It’s like your looking back in time with this thing

To me, it looks like flamingo pink & I am reminded of Florida. The pastel blue & yellow remind me of Miami. A Flamingo Special may be an interesting concept for a custom train paint job.

I own the undecorated Lionchief Lionel 0-8-0 #99 from the Personalization set. Will be having it customized for my Eeriee Railway along with a host of freight cars. I recommend you take a look at finding one of these engines as they are great.

I have most of my Dad’s set that is the regular ‘57 issue train of this engine with the Boston & Maine boxcar and the Baby Ruth Candy bar boxcar. 2 of the cars are missing, but it’s very special.

Another great video. Awesome as always

I am lucky enough to have my mom's original lady Lionel set, given to her by her grandmother. My mom passed in 2000 of breast cancer when I was 11. As a child I remember it being brought out a Christmas, and only at Christmas. It's been well loved, so the paint on the engine isn't in perfect condition. The other cars could stand to be cleaned, but all the original cars and parts are still there. I still have the original box for everything, too. I think the original transformer has gotten a bit weak. But maybe the train needs some maintenance at this point. I couldn't care what the value of this set is. My mom cherished this train set, and I do as well. I'll keep it forever, bring it out at Christmas when I can, and if I have kids, I'll pass it down to them.

i bought the NYC set from this same catalog year, uses the same engine though in black. I believe it was my first new production O Gauge set. I was just a pup at the time

Enjoyed it very much. One to watch.

Nice find. Excellent video. Set looks amazing. Take care. Tim

The set was unusual(besides being pink and pastel) in that the engine and tender was medium priced while the cars are top of the line. Two 6464 boxcars, a full sized gondola, a full sized hopper, and an N5C porthole caboose

Another great video ! Keep up the good work

I think I Love Toy Trains described this set perfectly: "Turns out, if a girl wanted a train, she wanted a train that looked like a real train. Not some silly looking train painted in easter egg colors" Not sure why that stuck with me after so many years, but im glad to see it running again As for what I'm looking for, that would be an HO Broadway Limited RF-16 Sharknose. Apparently i missed that mark by a few years and I cannot find one anywhere, except for very pricey on Ebay

I need to find my old Lionel set because I’m pretty sure I’ve got a “regular” model of that exact train and tender. It was passed to me by my grandpa. I haven’t set it up in a hot minute because I don’t have a dedicated room. I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s not even remotely similar because of how long it’s been since I saw it, but still. I gotta open it all up again and reminisce

I showed a photo of that train to my mom and she liked it

It fascinates me how a big reason why it failed was because girls that were into model trains wanted the same realistically-colored model trains marketed at boys. The girls wanted black steam locomotives, not pastel pink ones! And I'm not surprised it's now a sought-after collectors' item.

Hey Chris, I didn’t realize how good the Lego sets look with O gauge Trains. I actually have the Lego Diner, Corner Garage, and the Book store I built. I have room on my layout and I’m going to try these for looks on my layout minus the mini figures. You always can get ideas from KZfaq videos 😊👍🏻

Thanks for another rare and unusual train set funny how things that didn’t sell are worth so much

Another amazing video Chris! Such an amazing set with a interesting history behind it. Lionel did make a Boys Train with a blue engine just to counter the Girls Train but only 4 of those exist. Hmmm if it's one set I would love to have in my collection, it is a big split between a 785 Hudson and Madison cars or a Prewar 226E with a freight or passenger set. Or the FARR 5 with the PRR Turbine. Just too many trains I would love to get!

Nice job Chris!

That’s a sweet set! They had the girls K-Line GG1 at Kenilworth Mall (Towson) a few years back for their Christmas layout.

Really nice looking train..👍

I Remember where I saw this: In the Intro to I Love Toy Trains 4.

Awesome ❤❤❤❤❤🙂💙💙💙

Not a set I am after but easily my pride and joy as far as I'm aware I have a complete Alaska Rail Road set.

I have a cobbled together version of the "girls train" that has a custom painted (poorly by me) blue 2055 locomotive, pale purple 3562 barrel loader (modern add-on car), pale green 6356 NYC livestock car (add-on car), 6464-510 NYC boxcar (from 6464 reproduction set), 6464-515 MKT boxcar (from 6464 reproduction set), green 6446 N&W hopper, yellow 6462 NYC gondola, and pink 6417 PRR caboose. The 6446 hopper, 6462 gondola, and 6417 caboose came as a set of three that Lionel gave the number 6-27792. I chose the 2055 because it's a bigger engine than the 2037 and the cars in the set are all large freight cars and i painted it light blue because the original set had a pink locomotive and a blue caboose and the one that I put together had a pink caboose so the engine needed to be blue. The set was a marketing failure for Lionel when it first came out, but it's a very cool piece of history now. There certainly weren't any feminists working in the Lionel marketing department at the time.

I've got my Gramps' old 1429WS set from 1948. It's got the 2026 with the 6466WX, 6454 Boxcar, 2465 tank car, 3451 Log dump car, and the 2357 Caboose. I'm trying to get into more of the action cars of the Post War era. The lumber mill, log dump cars, searchlight cars, coal dump cars, coal loaders, are for certain the ones I enjoy. I think a few of the 60s action cars like the Minuteman boxcar, radar car, helicopter flatcar, target cars, and turbo missile cars look fun indeed. But they aren't on the top of the list.

The classic locomotive I am searching for is the 1950 #773 Hudson. I have a 1937 (casting detail reveals the year) #700E, a 1937 gunmetal 763E and a 1941 black #763E. If I ever get lucky enough, I'd like to find the prewar gunmetal 763E with the coal tender. As you probably already know, this is the rarest of all Hudson locomotives.

Great set for sure.

Whaaaaaaaat??? This channel makes me wish I had grown up with trains…:-)

I’ve been chasing the Century Club Berkshire for years now. It’s been within reach a few times but always manages to slip away

Chris can you tell me if this engine has Magnetraction or traction tires. The descriptions I have seen says it has both.

Could you get the k - line Florida east coast pacific #147? It was in a set called the "Florida Limited" And also a Williams(bachmann) o gauge semi scale pacific for o-31 curves

Great video Chris. I had this set back in 1991 but got in a pinch and needed cash fast so I sold it. I never opened mine and have always wondered because it said it had both Magne-traction and traction tires. Can you clarify that for me please? I have a line on another one locally. Thanks, Glenn

Lionel could rebrand that, as the "Pepto Bismol set." Was one of those things in old days, 'toys for girls' had to be that pink color.

Great show, Chris! Love Lionel trains! Had them myself when growing up. Now I'm doing On30. But we want to know -- What do the initials, RBP, stand for?

Pretty cool

Thara a great video. I am looking for the maple leaf limited edition set, and some of the fallen flag sets. Maybe a few of the FARR sets. All great note worthy sets in Lionel history.

I found a MISB 1991 reissue at a hobby shop in Connecticut last year for $500 and I absolutely kick myself for not buying it. We had just started a fairly expensive addition on our house and my ever practical wife talked me out of buying it. 😢

Question - why did the lady set not come with the whistle tender?

Yes, I DO have the 1991 "Girl's Set"!!!!! I used to buy my Marklin items from a little 'hole-in-the-wall' store called "Tony's Train Town" in Cedar Grove, NJ. Al's best sellers were Lionel & Marklin. In 1991, Al knew I had just had a baby girl. He asked me if I wanted a "Girl's Set" for her. I procrastinated for about 6 months, but finally gave in. I believe I paid $495.00 for it. The set came out at Christmas & was run for about 4 or 5 years under our tree. My daughter was intrigued & loved to watch it go around its oval of track. I did put in smoke fluid & my wife thought the Christmas tree was burning! Yeah, it really puffed!! Around 6 years later, Al asked me if I wanted to sell the set. He was prepared to give me $1200.00 if the boxes & original outer box was still intact. (He told me a customer was giving him $1500.00 if he could find a set). I thought about it, then told him that my daughter would disown me if I sold it. My daughter is now 30 years old. The set has remained packed away since the early 2000s. I asked her recently if she minded that I sold the set. I'm not going to mention what part of my anatomy she would hang me by if I ever brought up selling HER set again. Hence, the set remains in its box in my cellar with all the Marklin stuff!

Thanks for reviewing the lady lionel set. I have always wanted an original postwar set. They had a complete one with boxes at york last month. It was five thousand dollars in the blue hall. Did you see it?

The original loco for that set was as you know a 2037. Good engines but they only had side and main rods. This one has the whole compliment of driving hardware. Looks great but still no whistle. :-)

I have been wondering what the purpose of that middle rail is for a while. Is it there to allow one to run On30 trains as well? If so, that would be a great feature. I have a fondness for narrow gauge and am building an HOn30/OO9 set myself. Would you ever run On30 trains on your layout if it is possible?

That is certainly a fun train! Thanx for that video. I think my next set is also a fun one: the Scooby Doo set LOL

I would love to have the Lionel 1950s southern pacific FM prototype

He shoots, he scores!!!!

Train moves very smooth. Did you change it’s motor? It drive like it is produced yesterday

Your collection of vintage Lionel trains has me curious. Have you collected any of the old accessories Lionel and American Flyer made back in the day? Excellent video as always though. You quickly became my favourite train youtuber!

Were there different pastel colored gondola and hopper cars? I was only aware there was this one set of cars in colors as you show, though I'm no expert in this set by any means.

such a wired yet cool set I'm looking for the lionel gg1 Amtrak

It was my granddaughters who got me back into trains, no "girls" trains, just a Penn Flier 0-8-0!

i'D LIKE A NEW YORK CENTRAL A_B_A with 5 or 6 original Madison cars!

A dealers would repaint them. When they became super stupid collectible people will all of a sudden would have tons of Lady Lionel train sets that would smell of fresh paint. Money-grubbing at its finest. That's one thing I used to love about h o gauge trains No Nonsense about anything being collectible you ran everything that you had as long as it would fit the radius of your layout. Now if you collected brass locomotives and it's play case that was something different. But you certainly didn't buy them add an investment to make money you bought them because they were a model of your favorite locomotive detailed out the wazoo.

I think k my dad got this set for my mom and I'm pretty sure I still have it. Have to check

Good 👍 👍👍

Someone should paint a real locomotive and cars like that

it is so different then the rest that you have. if i had only that locomotive, i would say it's ugly with the color. but in a collection it stands out and it looks nice. crazy how different that is. how's the top 5 going that i suggested a while back?

Not really after sets, but the following locomotives are my most sought after. I could easily get em, but money and adult responsibilities keep getting in the way. 783 MPC Hudson 784 B&A Hudson 2367 Wabash F3 2245 Texas Special F3 746 N&W Class J 2348 M&St.L GP9

Right now I am looking for the 1995 Boston and Albany Hudson as well as trying to scrape together money to get a Lionchief Plus 2.0 K4 pacific.

Great video Chris. I was wondering if the “girls” train was such a flop and had become a hot collectible. What about the fate of the “boys” train in the sky blue color for the loc, red hopper, yellow gondola, blue boxcar, and yellow caboose. Is it just as collectible? Would you consider adding it to your collection. I sure would. Be safe 👍🙂

Could you possibly do a video on how you maintain the layout

I would like to see the 1958 new haven merchants limited (original) I have the 209FA set(no passenger cars) and would like to see the original set on your layout

Girls and trains do as a matter of fact mix ; )