This is why I enjoy this forum so much, the people on here are the best!
Thank you Jim,
I don't let anyone rain on my parade. I got some flak about my Lionel HO endeavor but they were just trying to help me and save me some money. They did not realize my sentimental reasons for following this. I realize I could better spend my money on new things, but I am having fun with this! Your RS-2s are a perfect example, sometimes the journey is as good as the destination.
Also thank you for the link to eBay, I placed a bid for as high as I was willing to go but I was out bid. I learned my lesson with eBay. I go as high as I think its worth, but no higher. There is always another auction coming along.
You are right about collecting, people collect the strangest things, but to each his own. If they are not hurting anyone and having fun then its all good!
Thank you Terry,
I did not know Athearn made locomotives for Lionel! I have only one printed source of information about Lionel HO in the 70s and it does not mention Athearn. I have a dozen Lionel HO GP9 locomotives and so far I have only found the Lionel American made and the Kader/Bachmann made in Hong Kong. This is fascinating, looking at the link you sent me I can see Athearn GP9 look like the exact same shell as the Lionel American made GP9. There are subtle differences between the made by Lionel and the made for Lionel Kader/Bachmann. I don't see any difference in the Athearn. I have to pull out my magnifying glass and an American made Lionel!
Thank you for the link! I love reading about my trains, its the next best thing to playing with them! The problem is, to use Lionel HO in the 70s for example, I have only found one book and it never mentioned Athearn. One source is not a definitive answer. I read Tony Cooks web page and now I see in 1958 Athearn made them for Lionel and now I understand why they look the same. Looks like Lionel used the same tooling when they came back to HO in the 70's. I like to know all the details!
I think the Athearn GP9 could be a source for parts, if nothing else the hand rails will work and it looks like the chassis will too! I could even get a B&O and a Chessie/B&O shell. Lionel's Chessie is a C&O, not for me. I have a lot more to learn, this will be fun!
I don't concern myself that everything is original. I don't have any problem with a "Frankenstein" model, I just want it to run good and look good! I am sure I will end up with at least 1 hybrid; Lionel/Athearn/Kader-Bachmann, maybe even running DCC!
Thank you both very much for your support and assistance, if I can ever return the favor please don't hesitate to ask!