Lionel Transylvania Express Halloween Train Set

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1. M. Mierzwa
   July 8, 2010 at 12:00 am | Permalink

   Spookomotive Fun for the Family! Young and Old Will Love!
   Rating:5 out of 5 stars
   Spookomotive Fun!
   
   This review is based on a pre-owned Lionel Trains 6-30056 Transylvania Express (Halloween themed) train set. My parents and nephews pitched in last year to by their Uncle Mike a train for his (mine) favorite holiday: Halloween. However, the set they bought me was used and did not come with everything that should be included in the set for sale here on amazon. The name Spookomotive is stolen from the seasonal train that the California Railroad Museum calls its spooked out Southern Sacramento ride up and down the river, but hey, you too should feel free to build your own Spookomotive.

   Set Details:
   
   This ready-to-run set should come with everything you need to run your own Lionel train: an engine, some cars, track, and a transformer. Packaged in its own nice (large) box, the train and cars can easily be stored away after a few days of play, and the track and transformer can be repacked in their own separate styrofoam container. The box has a handle and is the best way to store the train. (NOTE: my set had the track and transformer parted out.)

   The engine is a nicely painted die-cast black and orange 4-4-2 that is reminiscent of the older Lionel engines from the late 1940s through 1960s. The engine should puff smoke (mine did not come with the smoke fluid, but I will get some) and features a nice LED headlight. The coal tender supposedly has an air whistle that modern Fastrack / transformer combinations can activate. Unfortunately, I run my Spookomotive on older 3-rail track powered by a 1950s era ZW transformer, and thus can not activate the sound. The good news is that the train runs smoothly on older layouts.

   A spooky sounds box car is powered by a 9 volt battery and will howl whether the train is moving or not, as the boxcar sound is on or off. That simple. Both couplers operate, but the trucks (aka wheels) are not sprung-loaded. The car’s sound however is loud and scary enough that I ran it this Halloween while trick-or-treaters were coming by to great effect. Do not worry, my 1 and 3-year old nephews adore the train, despite evil laughter and howling.

   The gray gondola uses the mechanical movement of the wheels to move tiny Dracula and Mummy figures. Regardless of the direction of travel the two figures will quietly chase each other when the train is in motion, but once it stops they will too. The mechanical nature of the gondola conserves power and works smoothly. A black version of a similar gondola is for sale separately at many train shops.

   The train ends with a lighted “Southern Pacific” styled lighted caboose. The caboose light is warm enough to help illuminate the train in the dark (which is sort of a natural condition I like to run a Halloween train in), but not so bright as to overpower the rest of the set.

   The logo on some of the cars is a parody of the classic Pennsylvania Railroad’s “Keystone” design, as the set is labeled the “Transylvania Railroad”. The gondola is labeled the “Eerie Railroad” in a nod to the Erie (and later Erie Lackawanna) Railroads. Clever and cute names. Oh sorry, this is a Halloween set … “wicked and evil” the names are.

   Conclusion:
   
   Lionel has other Halloween themed cars and accessories from the late 1990s / early 2000s and more recent offerings that you can use to expand your set. However, the price for a solid die-cast engine and some clever cars make this an ideal purchase for any family or in my case Halloween fan.
   

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