October 30th, 2007 · 3 Comments
I’m sorry I haven’t posted in a while. I’ve been locked deep in the Top Secret Underground Laboratory, wearing my big goggles while stirring large vats of bubbling green goo. I’ve finally emerged, and beyond the crazed look in my eyes you might notice a bit of a sparkle, because I’ve got something good for you Geotrax fans.
Yup, easy add-on couplers. Has anyone else noticed that fewer and fewer Geotrax vehicles can be hooked together? What really got me going was the Friendliest Team–twin trolleys, Chatty and Chirpy, that are so friendly they can’t couple to each other or anyone else. No hooks, no loops, nothing. What does that mean to my 3-year-old? The trolleys sit off to the side, because playing with them means it’s hard to play with anything else. No trains, no long lines of every-car-we-own consists. For a kid who loves trains, that’s what it’s all about. So I decided to do something about it.
What I’ve ended up with are molded plastic couplers that can be attached to any Geotrax vehicle. (Or anything else in the world, for that matter, though I’m not sure why you would, but hey–you buy, I’ll sell, whether you stick them on your Geotrax or on your pink plastic flamingo. No difference to me.) Since the Geotrax line has a wide variety of “bumpers” where there should be couplers, I’ve made them with a mounting surface that fits as many as possible. Over time, I might make a few different varieties to fit a few specific vehicles that are problematic, but don’t hold your breath… this generic version fits almost everything.
I should have pictures and more detailed information up by tomorrow, along with pricing and ordering info. My goal is not to get rich off of these; they won’t be outrageous. Stay tuned!
Tags: Train Toys
October 6th, 2007 · 1 Comment
Today our little guy, Jonathan, turned three years old. The biggest adventure centered around “Day Out With Thomas” at the North Carolina Transportation Museum. This event hosted the “real” Thomas — the live steam Porter-conversion brought in from the Strassburg (In case you don’t know, the majority of these events use non-powered versions that rely on local power). I’ve not planned on participating in one of these events, because the price is crazy for something that you don’t even really get to experience. I mean, if you could actually ride on Thomas himself, that would be something special; but riding in a passenger car behind Thomas is no different than riding in the same car behind any other locomotive. And doing it with 400 other screaming toddlers isn’t exactly my idea of a “day out” — a day out of my mind, more like it. In any case, a loving uncle bought tickets, so there we were.
The ride was about what I expected; Jonathan enjoyed it, though, and I’m glad we had the opportunity. We got much more excitement out of watching Thomas drive. If you go to one of these events, I recommend asking right up front where the best viewing location is to see Thomas start up. That’s the exciting moment, as he belches smoke and steam and the driving wheels slip. We also watched him from above, standing on a bridge. He tooted his tinny English whistle once as he went under, his engineer leaning out the window and waving.
One of the things Jonathan enjoyed most was the Norfolk-Southern engine on a side track. They allowed visitors into the cab, let them sit in the driver’s seat and handle the controls. With the engine running, it was a great experience to push the throttle and hear the diesel roar. And it’s always a delight to blow the horn!
Other highlights included rides on a “caboose train” and a large HO-scale model railroad set up by a local club.
Finally, Jonathan received a GeoTrax Grand Central Station set as a birthday gift. This is the “expanded set” with extra cars and a DVD. JB was so excited he just didn’t know how to express it. Aero is his new favorite — he asked if he could sleep with Aero tonight.
Lots to talk about over the next few days… notes on Thomas and Geotrax and TrackMaster and more. Stay tuned!
Tags: Destinations · Train Toys
I’m getting a lot of interest in getting Trackmaster and Geotrax trains and track to work together. Without any modifications, here’s how they work:
- Geotrax trains run easily on both the old blue track and the new brown. They don’t have a traction surface (track top), however, so they can’t pull much.
- The wheels on Trackmaster cars will fit between the rails on Geotrax track, although they have a very bumpy ride.
- Unfortunately, the drive wheels on Trackmaster engines are a tiny bit too wide to fit between Geotrax rails. That means you can’t run Trackmaster engines on Geotrax.
I assume that’s the sticky wicket; I think people are wanting to run Thomas on Geotrax, not the other way around.
I’ve been pondering this for a while, and I don’t have a good solution. There is a cheap Thomas (the $6 Pull-Back) that is approximately the same size and proportions as Geotrax trains, but it’s not a simple conversion to mount the shell on a Geo engine. As Geotrax trains get bigger, due to adding the gear complexities of reverse and the ability to fit little people inside, those pull-back shells seem smaller each day. The trains in the Mail Delivery set have similarly-sized shells: just a bit too small to make an easy conversion. Does anyone know of a Thomas toy that is a little bigger than the pull-backs? For example, how large is the whistle-and-go Thomas?
You can always put a Trackmaster Thomas on the back of a Geotrax gondola, then tell the kids that Thomas broke down and Geo has to save him!
Any thoughts? I’d love to develop a simple and inexpensive conversion that people could easily do themselves.
Tags: Train Toys
My son saw a photo of the Rope ‘N Ride Ranch
and immediately said, “where’s the smokestack?”
Quick to be helpful, I answered, “It’s right over h… uh… where’s the smokestack?”
That’s right. Geotrax, well known for their great detail (check out the horseshoe prints on the hill), forgot to put a smokestack on this steamer.
This is an engine reminiscent of the classic 4–4-0 American. But it doesn’t have a tender, either; that only leaves three options.
- Maybe it’s a saddle tanker (just being obvious here, since it has saddle tanks on the sides). But a saddle tanker needs a smokestack, so this really isn’t an option after all.
- Maybe it’s a “fireless.” That’s the only kind of steam engine without a smokestack; it’s just a big tank that would be charged with steam. But then it doesn’t need the saddle tanks, so what’s up?
- Maybe it’s a fake — a gas or diesel or electric engine that just has a steam-like facade built around it. We frequently take rides on a similar “steam engine” locally. Unlikely, though, since they are placing this in the era of the Old West. The great irony of this possibility, of course, is that it really is an electric engine made to look like a steam engine.
While I’m whining about picky little things, I might as well give you one more: the Amazon page linked above lists the engine’s name as “Rusty the Steam Engine.” Not quite right: Fisher-Price named it “Old Rust” and even trademarked the name.
Tags: Train Toys
September 26th, 2007 · No Comments
The Norfolk Southern Corporation is offering a free coloring book to anyone who asks. All you have to do is send an e-mail requesting one to contactus@nscorp.com. You can see the offer on their web page.
Toby the Train talks about trains and tracks arrives in an official-looking manila envelope with the NS logo. That’s a pretty exciting thing in itself! Toby the train takes you through pretty standard railroad PR:
- We do very important work
- Our workers are the best
- Stay safe around trains and tracks
- Don’t play on tracks
- Stop at crossings
- We’re a green company
But our three-year-old is oblivious to all that — he just knows it has pictures of trains, and crossing gates… excitement on every page!
While you are the Norfolk Southern site, it might be worth checking their company store. They have a good bit of NS-branded merchandise at very reasonable prices, such as a child’s engineer hat for $4.75.
Tags: Train Toys
September 17th, 2007 · 2 Comments
With “grandparents” written all over it, the Thomas Track Rider
set and accessories are about the best toys a Thomas fan could get. The ride-on battery-powered toy comes with a 6-foot circle of track. Of course, if you have $250 to spare for the train, you might as well spend a little extra to get things like the track expansion set
, Annie and Clarabel add-on car
, and the bridge and crossing expansion set
. Oh, and another site sells a tunnel and track expansion set. Your little engineer drives the train by pushing a button — a problem for children that are too little, since it only drives as long as you hold it in. It also can’t hold up to very wiggly children, since they can tip it over or make it jump the tracks. I think it’s ideal for ages 3–5.
Not a big Thomas fan? That’s okay! The manufacturer, Peg Perego, has made a John Deere train
— and it’s much cheaper, to boot — as well as a Santa Fe Express
and another Santa Fe Express with caboose
. These sets also have a figure-8 expansion track set
available.
If that’s all too rich for your blood, you can always step back to the Thomas Pop-Up with Annie and Clarabel
for $45 or, if that’s too pricey, just the Thomas Pop-Up
by itself for $19.72.
Tags: Train Toys