9v Lego Train (Old Set)

Well as some of my friends on here know my interest in Lego trains has been re-awakened of late, partly due to the Aussini range of trains, partly due to Sun (only kidding, although partly true ) so it was inevitable that sooner or later I would get hold of the older 9v kit to go with my more modern R/C ones. There is a good reason for this in that the older 9v motors are easily retro-fitted to trains that are not motorised like the christmas one, the Aussini ones etc... without a major rebuild. With the R/C ones you need to add not only the motor bogie, but also a battery box, I/R receiver etc...

Anyway this is the set I won in an eBay auction, box is a bit tatty, but the contents are in good condition apart from a couple of small parts (bricks) missing, but I will be able to source replacements if I don't have in my spares box. Best part is the original set only had an oval of track, but this one comes with extra's in that it has 26 x curves, 10 x straights and 1 each right and left hand points

nice set, nigel! great that it came with so many extras, too.

Congratulations on this wonderful purchase! I'm glad you were able to locate and buy a set that has such incredible value to it. I guarantee you shall be very proud of it once you build the thing and set it up.

However, you should keep in mind that the 9V system uses track with electric rails for power, hence why the wheels have those metal rims. Therefore, this will not run on your Power Functions (non-metal) track unless you use foil tape on the plastic rails. It is interesting how this copy includes extra track parts that wouldn't normally be there. If I ever bought LEGO trains, I would've started with a 9V set.

thanks for the link, da. have wondered if its possible to do that. might have to have a look for some of that copper tape and give it a try.

[Super]

Is there a year of release for this set Nigels? I like the character pushing the hand cart with the barrel on it.

Is there a year of release for this set Nigels? I like the character pushing the hand cart with the barrel on it.

I'll check and get back to you, but I think its early 2000's, one of the things missing is the handcart as that was stated in the listing, but I'm not too worried as I have a handcart that came with a train station I bought a few years back

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However, you should keep in mind that the 9V system uses track with electric rails for power, hence why the wheels have those metal rims. Therefore, this will not run on your Power Functions (non-metal) track unless you use foil tape on the plastic rails. It is interesting how this copy includes extra track parts that wouldn't normally be there. If I ever bought LEGO trains, I would've started with a 9V set.

Thanks for the info, but I was aware of the issue of the track as I've been discussing compatibility with Sun. The main reason I've been looking at the 9v setup is so I can retro the motor into trains such as the Aussini to motorise them. As I understand it the R/C ones are the same scale so should run on the 9v tracks as well as the wheels on those are plastic, and the motor bogie has traction tires which would further insulate it if needed.

An alternative to the copper tape may be the metalic 'track' paint you can get for repairing circuit boards such as this; Metallic Paint Pen I've been thinking of trying this or the paint you can get in pots (works out cheaper) to see if you can convert standard R/C track to 9v track.

I'm not sure how these things work but surely you could fit a 9v battery into the train and do away with the pick ups on the rails completely, standard hobby grade radiocontrolled car things should be compatible, (if you have the space to hide it)

Is there a year of release for this set Nigels? I like the character pushing the hand cart with the barrel on it.

This set is from 1991 and is called the "Load and Haul Railroad". Brickipedia and the Bricklink catalog seem to suggest that this was the first 9V train set released, with the introduction of 9V trains the same year. Hope this helps.

[Super]

Thanks Da-lag

Wow, 1991 and possibly the first 9v set, very cool, I didn't even notice that fork lift, great score Nigels.

I'm not sure how these things work but surely you could fit a 9v battery into the train and do away with the pick ups on the rails completely, standard hobby grade radiocontrolled car things should be compatible, (if you have the space to hide it)

Hi Tramp, this is effectively what the newer R/C sets do, on those the tracks are 100% plastic without the metal overlay on the top of the rail. The system then uses a 9v battery box (6 x AAA's), a seperate I/R receiver module and a motor unit with a wired connection that goes to the I/R unit. You can also add things like lights as well, its all very modular and nice, the only downside is you have to figure the I/R receiver and battery box into the build which say in the case of this years christmas train is a bit difficult. However with the 9v system you can simply remove one of the non-powered bogies and plug a 9v one on, then so long as you got the powered rails/controller/PSU you're sorted

All-in-all the old 9v system allows you to motorise a static model easily, but without the advantage of remote control etc...

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This set is from 1991 and is called the "Load and Haul Railroad". Brickipedia and the Bricklink catalog seem to suggest that this was the first 9V train set released, with the introduction of 9V trains the same year. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the info, that saves me having to find the © notice on the box/manual which can sometimes be difficult to find

Regardless it is a nice set and a good concept given the age, but modelled very much like the 'hobby' trains that use metal rails with a controller/PSU rather than the new R/C version which I suppose is more comparable to the newer Digital hobby trains that allow you to control multiple loco's on the same piece of track independently of each other