Lionel Lines Dump Cars

ABOUT LIONEL DUMP CARS

POST-WAR DUMP CARS ON THE LIONEL LINES

The Lionel concept of "play value" wasn't limited to crane cars and other accessories. Lionel also made a long list of cars that, given a little preparatory work, would mimic a railroad function of one type or another. Dump cars fell right into this category.

Dump cars operating on a simple premise, push a button while the car is positioned over a section of operating track and an action is triggered. In this case, the load is pushed upward using a plunger activated by the triggering of the operating track. With the front edge of the car hinged, the back would force whatever the load was to be dumped into a plastic tray emblazoned with the distinctive Lionel "L" logo.

While the trays weren't very realistic -- in retrospect, they look like big plastic ash trays -- they weren't necessarily designed to look real. They were designed so no matter how far off you were, the tray was big enough to catch the entire load. Considering kids didn't want to clean up that great Lionel "artificial coal" the goal was pretty much achieved, as if you missed a target that big, you needed a new hobby.

Dump cars didn't just dump coal into plastic trays however, these cars were also used for feeding the coal loading accessories of the day - the #97 and #397 loaders. You could bring a dump car around to either of these and dump the load into a receiving bin. Transport the car around to the other side, after some serious railroading of course, and you could activate these clanking, in accurate accessories to refill (at least partially) your dump car. Repeat the process until your fingers fell off.

Lionel made these models in black and green and they look great on layout. I hope to acquire a long consist of these for the Lionel Lines.



	#3461 OPERATING LUMBER CAR - How this car is still alive is a mystery for the ages. Although the round dowels that came with it have long since given up the ghost, this car still operates perfectly, despite the endless unloading I subjected it to when I was eight. This is typical robust, late 1940's Lionel construction - built to last more than a liftime. I'll cut a new load of dowels when I determine a setting for it on the Lionel Lines.

#3459 AUTOMATIC DUMP CAR - Another example of excellent early post-war workmanship. This belonged to a neighbor and I was surprised to find a number of original bags of "Lionel Coal" packed up with it, as well as a plastic dump bin. It will works as well as it did nearly 60 years ago. I also have a 3469 version.

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