Lionel pw-746long stripe

746 NORFOLK & WESTERN WARHORSE J1 LOCOMOTIVE WITH LONG STRIPE TENDER

 

The Norfolk and Western railroad was in a precarious position entering the 1940's. By the end of World War II, just about all competing railroads had switched away from steam power to diesels. However, because such a large percentage of the N&W's business came from hauling coal, it remained in their best interest to keep steam locomotives around. The J1 class steam locomotive was the last of the mainline steam engines to be constructed in the United States. N&W built them all in-house at their Roanoke, Virginia shops - the last one was completed in 1950. While fuel remained cheap, the price of the component parts began to skyrocket because nobody else was building steam locos. Eventually, parts and maintenance costs became prohibitive, and the final "Warhorse" J1 was retired in 1959. #611 remains the only J1 still in existence - now housed at the Virginia Museum of Transportation - it is still in operating condition. Lionel's Post-War model of the J1 was one of its most stunning steam productions. It was available for sale from 1957 through to 1960. It was included as the engine in five sets from 1957 through to 1959 - including the 2297WS - the most expensive set Lionel sold in the 1950's ($110 MSRP). The engine is painted black, and the stripes are rubber- stamped on. The rubber stamping process did not leave a perfect line, but one with tiny "saw tooth" edges. Because this item is so rare, many people try to make counterfeit long stripe tenders. New paint processes are much more precise, and can be spotted as fakes pretty easily. The large majority of the engines produced had a "short stripe" which was about an inch shorter on each end. This long stripe version is rare. Nobody can be 100% sure of the exact build date of the long striped edition, but some speculate that they hit the market only for part of 1958. Some long stripe tenders have a half-inch section of the yellow rubber-stamped stripe on the left side that is faded from a factory defect. The 746 was definitely a premium offering. It came with Lionel's signature Pullmor motor, Magnetraction, three-position reverse unit, working headlight, and a 2046W whistling tender. The engine came in a plain corrugated box with insert some years, while in later years it appeared in the signature orange boxes. The tender always came in an orange box marked 746W. It is alleged that all long stripe tenders came in a 746W box marked with a rubber-stamped X, but VERY few of these exist. Approximately ten 746W tenders were painted pink with the correct, rubber- stamped long stripe. You can find more information about the pink 746W tender in the "ARCHIVES" section on our website!

To Research Other Lionel Items in Our Research Library,
Click Your Browser's Back Button

Return to the Train-Station.com Home Page