The Standard Catalog Of Lionel Trains 1900-1942 is a high quality accurate catalog of Lionel Trains and accessories. It is very very valuable when determining the value of scarce variants. While a paperback, the glossy photos are excellent and the paperstock is very good (it will last). The book is well laid out and easy to use. The prices are a very accurate representation of current values. One of the aspects of this catalog is that is reflects each items relative scarcity which will extend the useful life of this guidebook. I highly recommend this book to all Lionel collectors. The sister guidebook, "Standard Catalog Of Lionel Trains 1945-1969" is also highly recommended.
David Doyle has provided the Lionel collecting community with a superb up to date reference encompassing all pre-war gauges. It is the diversity of pre-war gauges, both in antiquity and in scope, that makes this work more of a challenge in many ways than its post-war counterpart. This guide meets the challenge with its in depth coverage of all four (2 7/8, Standard, O, and OO). The chapter on 2 7/8 inch gauge is particularly well done and contains photographs of both original pieces and modern reproductions. The remaining chapters are organized both by gauge and type (locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, etc and are equally descriptive. It would have been nice if this book contained a price reference by item for restorations, however the author makes a good point in his "How To Use This Standard Catalogue" section noting that "restorations vary widely.." making it difficult to assign values without examining the piece. Overall this is a very good and very current illustrated price guide. timbuk2002Read full review
I personally liked the catalog very much. It gave me some information on the years in which certain engines and car were made. Also the style of the engines for different engine numbers. The catalog had a lot of colored pictures for identification. The descriptions were great also. I would like to see more identification of different train sets if possible. I would still recommend to buy this catalog.
Hard to find prewar Lionel info is easily available in this book. Highly recommend.
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Very well researched and lots of good photos. Invaluable resource for the collector or aficionado.
Verified purchase: Yes
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