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Lionel no. 6817 black flatcar and earth mover with Allis-Chalmers unit, $3,360. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.

Weiss Auctions’ Toys & Trains sale makes $200K

Wyatt Barrett
Wyatt Barrett
Lionel no. 6817 black flatcar and earth mover with Allis-Chalmers unit, $3,360. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.
Lionel no. 6817 black flatcar and earth mover with Allis-Chalmers unit, $3,360. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.

LYNBROOK, N.Y. – Weiss Auctions’ first toy & train event for 2021 was held online Feb. 24, 2021, exceeding all expectations, especially toy trains — 96 percent of the 500 lots found new owners in a sale that grossed around $200,000. It has inspired owner Philip Weiss to plan up to eight additional train sales this year.“We’re getting in huge collections and we want to promote a category that’s obviously red hot right now,” Weiss said. “For the February sale, we had nearly 1,500 active bidders. We’re always looking for new consignments, and I feel confident more great collections will come our way this year.”

The February auction featured the extensive American Flyer S gauge collection of Frank Pisani. A key lot, the exceedingly scarce, large-format American Flyer dealer poster (95 inches by 42 inches) from 1955, sold for $5,100. All prices in this article include buyer’s premium.

The February 24 event also included more items from the Neil Padron estate, with many high-grade American Flyer S gauge items such as factory prototypes, production samples, errors and separate-sale items.

The sale also included Padron’s extensive Plasticville collection was offered as one lot and turned out to the auction’s top achiever, finishing at $8,100. The 680 kits were mostly boxed, with several blister-card and with peg-board variations, graphic and component variations. There were kits in the collection that Weiss Auctions had never seen before, and no two were alike.

Two other lots topped the $5,000 mark. One was an American Flyer S gauge smoke-in-tender Northern no. 332 steam locomotive (1946-47) with a bronze brake tank and a unique tender chassis ($5,400).

American Flyer S gauge smoke-in-tender Northern 332 steam locomotive (1946-47) with a bronze brake tank and a unique tender chassis, $5,400. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.
American Flyer S gauge smoke-in-tender Northern 332 steam locomotive (1946-47), $5,400. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.

The other was a boxed Lionel no. 2296W Canadian Pacific set from 1957, including the no. 2373 Canadian Pacific F3A and F3B set ($5,100).

Lionel no. 2296W Canadian Pacific set from 1957, including the super 2373 CP F3 AB Diesel, all cars shiny and with original decals, $5,100. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.
Lionel no. 2296W Canadian Pacific set from 1957, including the super 2373 CP F3 AB Diesel, all cars shiny and with original decals, $5,100. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.

Four other lots managed to reach $3,000 or better – all of them Lionel:

  • A boxed 1950 Lionel anniversary set no. 1464W, including no. 2023 Union Pacific Alco diesels, nos. 2481 and 2482 coaches, and no. 2483 observation for $4,080.
  • A “black” Lionel no. 2332 GG1 boasting a beautiful satin patina, for $3,960.
  • A like-new boxed Lionel no. 6817 black flatcar with a beautiful Allis-Chalmers earth mover, for $3,360.
  • A scarce boxed Lionel Sears set no. 2347 Chesapeake & Ohio GP7 from 1965, made for Sears set 12885-500, with intact shell, original chassis and a good battery compartment, for $3,120.

A circa-1958 American Flyer S gauge no. 24519 reel car showing only light playwear sold for $1,680. In addition, a like-new boxed Lionel no. 6500 Beechcraft Bonanza – the hardest of all the airplane flatcar loads to find – including the unnumbered flat with the white-over-red variation plane, all original and with a nice picture box, sold for $1,620.

Two early Lionel catalogs were sold in this event:

  • A Lionel 1916 consumer catalog and envelope – the first Weiss Auctions has ever seen — complete with color center spread of the 42-passenger set over a bridge, went for $1,800.
  • A two-color 1913 Lionel consumer catalog showing classic early Lionel items like trolleys and more, fetched $1,500.
1913 Lionel consumer catalog, $1,500. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.
1913 Lionel consumer catalog, $1,500. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.

A boxed Lionel 6357-50 Father & Son caboose, one of the harder cabooses to find (and the accompanying box even scarcer), produced only in 1960 for the Father & Son set, garnered $1,650. Also, a boxed Lionel 158 station set, a nice original owner item with a late 136 station and two #156 station platforms, plus wrapping paper, boxes and platform inserts, hit $1,440.

A boxed American Flyer S gauge no. 274 freight station — the very rare green-window version with black roof — sold for $600. Also, a like-new and boxed American Flyer S gauge no. 162 Mysto-Magic Factory made $576.

Rare boxed American Flyer no. 274 freight station, very rare green window version with black roof, $600. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.
Rare boxed American Flyer no. 274 freight station, $600. Image courtesy Weiss Auctions and Live Auctioneers.

For more information about Weiss Auctions and the firm’s calendar of upcoming auctions, visit www.WeissAuctions.com.

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