Lionel pw-736-5 1966-68 berk

2-8-4 736 BERKSHIRE LOCOMOTIVE AND 736W WHISTLE TENDER, VERSION BUILT IN 1966 AND 1968 ONLY

 

One of Lionel's premium steam locomotive offerings, the 736 2-8-4 Berkshire was available in five different variations from 1950 through to 1968 (excluding 1952 because of the Korean United Nations conflict). This version was the last 736 that Lionel made, and was available in 1966 and 1968 (because of financial difficulties, Lionel did not produce any new trains for 1967). It is somewhat rare, with sales records indicating there is one of these for every 1000 of the other Berkshires. This version always came with a #736W eight wheel tender with Pennsylvania markings. Tender came with AAR trucks and one operating coupler. The 736W also came with Lionel Lines markings (to go with the 665 from that year), and New York Central markings (to go with the 773 of that year). Dealers sometimes interchanged the road names for a customers' request. The loco is diecast metal and is painted black. The numbers on each side of the cab and the letters on the tender are typically heat-stamped in white. However, white rubber-stamped cab numbers have been known to surface. It has an ornamental whistle and bell, as well as wire handrails running down both sides of the boiler. The front of the boiler is on hinges and can be opened to change the headlight bulb. It also has a full compliment of driving rods connecting spoked drivers. The trailing truck is made of sheet metal, and the shrouds are made of plastic. This engine features a slanted motor mounted in the cab with worm drive connected to the rear drivers, Magnetraction, three position electronic reverse unit, operating smoke unit, headlight, and a whistle in the tender. There are several small factors that changed over the years which can be used to identify the different versions. The main ones are whether the trailing truck is plastic or diecast, the method in which the numbers on the cab were applied, and the accompanying tender. The prototype Berkshires were known for their superior ability to climb mountains. The first ones were built by the Lima Locomotive works in 1924, and operated on the Boston and Albany. They were given the nickname "Berkshire" because of how well they handled that mountain range for the B&A, especially compared to the USRA 2-8-2 Mikados that were in use at the time. Subsequently, hundreds of these giants were built for dozens of railroads across the United States, the last of them hitting the rails in 1949. Some of the largest fleets of Berkshires were on the Erie railroad (105), the Chesapeake and Ohio (90), the Nickel Plate (80), and the B&A (55). Probably the most famous Berkshire is the Pere Marquette's #1225, the engine featured in the 2004 movie, "The Polar Express".

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