Fellow VL Class A owner here. 100% agree with you on the sounds. The additional sounds just add so much to the experience. IMO it’s the finest VL model Lionel has ever put out. Phenomenal video as always Sid
Mine is too unfortunately. What happened with yours? The gearbox on mine locked up after going around one loop of track, rear trailing truck fell out, and the step on the boiler is hitting the grab irons on the front Pilot
Wow! Mine had issues with the fan not working for the stack and the marker lights not working. The whistle doesn’t sound right as well. Hope they can get the problems fixed.
I'm an N&W Steam fan to so to hear this engine sound like that is definitely incredible!!!! I left 3 rail 10 yrs ago to go 2 rail but gotta say it's a gorgeous engine. Long live Hooter whistles in the hollers.
Hi Sid, I have named 1 of my toy trucks after you. The truck is an 18 wheeler with a large sleeper cab and a large road gondola. That is what I call the trailer. And it has skirts between the trailer wheels and the rear wheels of the truck cab. The trailer also has a lot of weight on the bottom of the road gondola for stability and I can tip the road gondola until the side of the trailer is nearly on the floor and then I can let it go and it won't fall over and it will pop right back up onto all its wheels and not rock side to side at all.I'm so excited to have a trailer that is almost 100% stable! YAAAY!!!! And by the way, thank you for all of your great content. Cory Mears
Thanks, Sid, for this great review of this stunning and feature packed engine from Lionel. You've given your fans a very detailed overview and demonstration of the fantastic features this loco gives to the collector. What a thrill it will to have this in your roster. This Class A is really A class!
I own the 1210 and IMO this is one of Lionel's finest. It is one of the more popular reviews on my channel. Thanks for sharing. You are right there are a lot of details.
Great video Sid! You did a fantastic review on this locomotive. Very thorough, detailed, and informative demonstration on this beautiful Class A. Great job!
Great review! The crazy thing is that I heard mentioned in passing that the new electronics that allow for the four-digit addressing utilize bluetooth to allow for - wait for it - two-way communication between the Base 3 and the engine and the engine back to the Base 3! Now THAT is a big step forward for Lionel that opens up new horizons similar to what the DCS system allows for. Blows my mind that Lionel sees the biggest feature of the new electronics to hype as being the four-digit addressing and not the two-way communication!
Sid, as always, you did an amazing job with the descriptions as well as the camera angles! I am enjoying seeing your layout come together with each new video. As for the engine, I really did enjoy the new cab talk as well as the new features, I have always been a diehard MTH fan, but this Lionel has me second-guessing. Great video!
Hi Sid, I love that new engine. I am a very very big fan of this channel. The best engine in your collection to me is the K4 with wheel skirts. I think every engine that is unstreamlined that used to be streamlined is just ruined. So I think all streamliners should keep all of their streamlining on for ever. I like northerns more than berkshires because northerns have 4 wheels on each end instead of 2 in the front and 4 in the back. I wish the polor express was a northern like 611. I think they should be 4-8-4s, 4-6-4s, 4-4-4s, 2-8-2s, 2-6-2s 2-10-2s, 4-10-4s, 4-10-10-4s, 4-8-8-4s, or 4-6-6-4s. No 6-4-4-6s. That's not a good looking arrangement to make in my opinion. Thanks, Cory Mears
Hey Sid! I got the 1990s era Lionel 700e Scale Hudson with Railsounds 1! I also have the rare Lionel DD35 non-powered unit including the Postwar Celebration series B&O Freight set headed by B&O F3 2368 for Christmas!
Hey Sid, that Class A is an amazing model. I plan to go see my friends copy on his South Fork Railroad in Winchester. I figure since you bought yours in Manassas you might be in my area in Northern Virginia. Let me know if you want to visit my friends layout... see it here: ruclips.net/p/PLT4A0P5sMnqqRz2-HEVwIHJBC-vsJbR62
Do you have a 3 % incline to get to that elevated level spread out over how many feet up then down? I had to romove my elevated level because my many proto 1 engines had problems with no speed control so I was forced to constantly manually change speeds. Gary j
I have only a few diesel locomotives that came in train sets with PS2 with the sound effects and the controls and I hate having to argue with the computer in my train to shut itself off. This is supposed to be a nice relaxing hobby I should not have to argue with the computer in my train by train should not have a computer in it I feel like coloring the headlight read like a Terminator eyeball. You guys loved all the bells and whistles and electronics in these things and then when something goes bad you have a heart attack when you see how much it will cost to fix it. On the new motorcycles everybody loves all the technology but if the ABS goes out on your BMW is it a $2,400 repair most people simply by pass it. I know a guy with an M th Pennsylvania Q2 and all the PS1 Electronics died. It was too expensive to repair or upgrade so he just had to train guy wire it so the train runs no bells and whistles no bulshit no chatter no nothing but it runs. That's all you need. Just like a Harley you'll have to plug it into a computer to see what's wrong with it. They had an article in classic toy trains advising guys not to try to work on their fancy trainsim cells because the new one have electronics that store electricity and if you touch them they will electrocute you. Oh boy just what I want a toy train that's going to kill me. You know how much it cost to send a great big diecast Vision big boy back to Lionel for service and then have to pay to get it back because they won't let the dealer work on it. I work for toy trains my whole life I would not know where to begin with one of these complicated things. When you run multiple engines the noise becomes cacophonous and you also shut the smoke units off before they trigger the smoke alarm. I don't want to be in a train room with so much smoke it looks like a scene from Cheech and Chong. Fireman always ran steam locomotives with a clear stack because otherwise they would be wasting Cole and they would be called on the carpet accordingly. In the old days you saw signs everywhere saying save Cole. Steam locomotive did not run their lights in the daytime because of Dynamo would take Steam away from the engine. My God desync have smoke pouring from every hole and the locomotive better call megasteam and see if they start selling smoke fluid in gallon buckets.
Manufacturers should always have a conventional version of every locomotive that they make. I hear Mike train house is coming out with a railking big boy for $700 that is more affordable than $2,700. I don't need all the bells and whistles. Electronics have a very short life, if you use them they go bad if you don't use them they have a tendency to delaminate. When they go out they are ridiculously expensive to replace. I run 4 train at once on my layout I don't need to listen to all of them making noise and smoke. Of course if I had a garden layout I would use the smoke fluid with citronella in it to ward off mosquitoes.
Fellow VL Class A owner here. 100% agree with you on the sounds. The additional sounds just add so much to the experience. IMO it’s the finest VL model Lionel has ever put out. Phenomenal video as always Sid
Glad yours didn’t have any issues! Mine is on its way back to Lionel for repair.
Mine is too unfortunately. What happened with yours? The gearbox on mine locked up after going around one loop of track, rear trailing truck fell out, and the step on the boiler is hitting the grab irons on the front Pilot
Wow! Mine had issues with the fan not working for the stack and the marker lights not working. The whistle doesn’t sound right as well. Hope they can get the problems fixed.
Hey Sid! Thanks for Sharing! Have a good day!
I'm an N&W Steam fan to so to hear this engine sound like that is definitely incredible!!!! I left 3 rail 10 yrs ago to go 2 rail but gotta say it's a gorgeous engine. Long live Hooter whistles in the hollers.
Hi Sid, I have named 1 of my toy trucks after you. The truck is an 18 wheeler with a large sleeper cab and a large road gondola. That is what I call the trailer. And it has skirts between the trailer wheels and the rear wheels of the truck cab. The trailer also has a lot of weight on the bottom of the road gondola for stability and I can tip the road gondola until the side of the trailer is nearly on the floor and then I can let it go and it won't fall over and it will pop right back up onto all its wheels and not rock side to side at all.I'm so excited to have a trailer that is almost 100% stable! YAAAY!!!! And by the way, thank you for all of your great content. Cory Mears
What a great model! Lionel really overhyped the 4 digits feature.
Thanks, Sid, for this great review of this stunning and feature packed engine from Lionel. You've given your fans a very detailed overview and demonstration of the fantastic features this loco gives to the collector. What a thrill it will to have this in your roster. This Class A is really A class!
Thanks Tom!!!
I own the 1210 and IMO this is one of Lionel's finest. It is one of the more popular reviews on my channel. Thanks for sharing. You are right there are a lot of details.
Great video Sid! You did a fantastic review on this locomotive. Very thorough, detailed, and informative demonstration on this beautiful Class A. Great job!
Thanks!!
A terrific presentation Sid. Your films are always informative and enjoyable. Keep'em Rolling !
Thanks Jim!!
Great review! The crazy thing is that I heard mentioned in passing that the new electronics that allow for the four-digit addressing utilize bluetooth to allow for - wait for it - two-way communication between the Base 3 and the engine and the engine back to the Base 3! Now THAT is a big step forward for Lionel that opens up new horizons similar to what the DCS system allows for.
Blows my mind that Lionel sees the biggest feature of the new electronics to hype as being the four-digit addressing and not the two-way communication!
We just got ours and we love it but I’m surprised that no one else I’ve seen on RUclips got the 1211 like us. I guess we’re on of a kind
Wow!
Excellent video, very happy for you to have this $1900 engine
Sid, as always, you did an amazing job with the descriptions as well as the camera angles! I am enjoying seeing your layout come together with each new video. As for the engine, I really did enjoy the new cab talk as well as the new features, I have always been a diehard MTH fan, but this Lionel has me second-guessing. Great video!
Thanks Dan!!!
Cool! I want an A Class too! 1218 for me.
Fanstastic Video,great addition to your roster,one of these days i shall pick one up, brings back memories of Twilight Of Steam
I’ve see the real 1218 at the Virginia Museum of Transportation.
Happy New Year Sid.
Congratulations on an excellent addition to your collection!
AWESOME locomotive Sid! Congrats!
Thanks Bill!!
Yes it is very cool.
Such a beautiful locomotive. Makes me sad I didn't order one. Great video and review Sid
Lets play a game ... Take a shot for everytime he says details haha ,
Great video though loved the details 👌
Hi Sid, I love that new engine. I am a very very big fan of this channel. The best engine in your collection to me is the K4 with wheel skirts. I think every engine that is unstreamlined that used to be streamlined is just ruined. So I think all streamliners should keep all of their streamlining on for ever. I like northerns more than berkshires because northerns have 4 wheels on each end instead of 2 in the front and 4 in the back. I wish the polor express was a northern like 611. I think they should be 4-8-4s, 4-6-4s, 4-4-4s, 2-8-2s, 2-6-2s 2-10-2s, 4-10-4s, 4-10-10-4s, 4-8-8-4s, or 4-6-6-4s. No 6-4-4-6s. That's not a good looking arrangement to make in my opinion. Thanks, Cory Mears
Hey Sid! I got the 1990s era Lionel 700e Scale Hudson with Railsounds 1! I also have the rare Lionel DD35 non-powered unit including the Postwar Celebration series B&O Freight set headed by B&O F3 2368 for Christmas!
Very nice train Sid, It looks great 👍
The engine is amazing! Has Lionel improved their smoke unit? I love the smoke release on the whistle.
great video sid. up did a great job with this video.
Thanks Zac!!
Great Video Sid!!! 👍🚂
Great job Sid!!!
The horn on that thing is terrifying, lol.
You can never have too much BIG STEAM.
Imagine if you double headed your new Class A leading your Y6B. I bet they can pull up to over 100+ coal cars.
This has got me interested in O gauge despite the 3rd rail look. Why did you choose #1239?
Hey Sid, that Class A is an amazing model. I plan to go see my friends copy on his South Fork Railroad in Winchester. I figure since you bought yours in Manassas you might be in my area in Northern Virginia. Let me know if you want to visit my friends layout... see it here: ruclips.net/p/PLT4A0P5sMnqqRz2-HEVwIHJBC-vsJbR62
Syd do you know what date Lionel is coming out with their 2023 volume 1 catalog?
Nice Review Sid , you I’m inspired me to get one , The restoration Version (:
Great video Sid. Did you by any chance check out my Right of Way tribute?
Do you have a 3 % incline to get to that elevated level spread out over how many feet up then down? I had to romove my elevated level because my many proto 1 engines had problems with no speed control so I was forced to constantly manually change speeds. Gary j
I have only a few diesel locomotives that came in train sets with PS2 with the sound effects and the controls and I hate having to argue with the computer in my train to shut itself off. This is supposed to be a nice relaxing hobby I should not have to argue with the computer in my train by train should not have a computer in it I feel like coloring the headlight read like a Terminator eyeball. You guys loved all the bells and whistles and electronics in these things and then when something goes bad you have a heart attack when you see how much it will cost to fix it. On the new motorcycles everybody loves all the technology but if the ABS goes out on your BMW is it a $2,400 repair most people simply by pass it. I know a guy with an M th Pennsylvania Q2 and all the PS1 Electronics died. It was too expensive to repair or upgrade so he just had to train guy wire it so the train runs no bells and whistles no bulshit no chatter no nothing but it runs. That's all you need. Just like a Harley you'll have to plug it into a computer to see what's wrong with it. They had an article in classic toy trains advising guys not to try to work on their fancy trainsim cells because the new one have electronics that store electricity and if you touch them they will electrocute you. Oh boy just what I want a toy train that's going to kill me. You know how much it cost to send a great big diecast Vision big boy back to Lionel for service and then have to pay to get it back because they won't let the dealer work on it. I work for toy trains my whole life I would not know where to begin with one of these complicated things. When you run multiple engines the noise becomes cacophonous and you also shut the smoke units off before they trigger the smoke alarm. I don't want to be in a train room with so much smoke it looks like a scene from Cheech and Chong. Fireman always ran steam locomotives with a clear stack because otherwise they would be wasting Cole and they would be called on the carpet accordingly. In the old days you saw signs everywhere saying save Cole. Steam locomotive did not run their lights in the daytime because of Dynamo would take Steam away from the engine. My God desync have smoke pouring from every hole and the locomotive better call megasteam and see if they start selling smoke fluid in gallon buckets.
Hey Sid, is there a way I can get in touch with you privately? I have a few questions.
Sid what curve gauge are you running this engine on?
0-72
💯👍
I see when you did the drawbar thing, the locomotive jumped forward on it's self, why is that sid?
Manufacturers should always have a conventional version of every locomotive that they make. I hear Mike train house is coming out with a railking big boy for $700 that is more affordable than $2,700. I don't need all the bells and whistles. Electronics have a very short life, if you use them they go bad if you don't use them they have a tendency to delaminate. When they go out they are ridiculously expensive to replace. I run 4 train at once on my layout I don't need to listen to all of them making noise and smoke. Of course if I had a garden layout I would use the smoke fluid with citronella in it to ward off mosquitoes.
How in the heck did you afford it?
How much would an engine cost if it did not have Lionel on the box?
This is a very nice Class A steam locomotive, but i am not going to pay 3000.00 dollars for it brand new at all, that is a down-payment for a new suv.
A LOCOMOTIVE is not a "train"...
4000.00 plus dollars, na, I'll pass.