Post by: CNJRR on January 11, 2021, 02:14:59 PM
MARX PREWAR #390 FARM SCENE TUNNEL
This is the Prewar Marx #390 Farm Scene tunnel, it is a common item.
There is also a Marx #309 Camouflage tunnel this is the scarcest one to find, collectors often call this one the autumn leaves tunnel. I think because of the "camouflage" coloring it did not sell in great numbers.
Then there is a Marx #392 Mine Scene tunnel which is also quite common.
Most of these went for around $.98 cent when new. :)
All the tunnels come as two halves joined at the top by interlocking 'fingers' and at each end by either a metal clip (early versions) or a screw (later versions).
This is an earlier version.
I don't know the year, I am guessing middle to late 30's?
This was also saved from the trash/dump pile from my Bro in law.
Post by: starfire700 on January 12, 2021, 05:24:18 AM
First is Lionel's 1023 composite/felt tunnel, made for Junior trains. It is the late version made as late as 1942, as it is the brighter colors. It sold for between $1.25 and $1.50.
Next is the late 1930's to early 40's 072 curved tunnel/mountain #924 made for Model Builder's track, 072 tube and T-rail. $4.50 bought this tunnel and it came complete with trees and metal houses.
In my picture Errol Flynn is pondering the outdoor layout on the set of the Movie "Four is a Crowd". This 1938 movie should be on every train collector's favorite list as it features an elaborate outdoor layout with Flynn racing his Lionel UP City of Portland streamliner against Walter Connolly's 763E Hudson with Blue Comet cars. In the end, Flynn wins not only the race, he cheats by buttering his opponent's tracks, but also wins the affections of Olivia de Havilland. The #924 072 tunnel should be on this layout. I will have to watch the movie again to check. (Trains in movies) another good subject for someone to start. OOPS, I put the pix in the wrong order, but you get the idea.
Post by: starfire700 on January 12, 2021, 05:28:50 AM
The last example is litho on formed metal, similar in size and construction to the Marx 390 and 392 (and camo Army version).
It has no name of country of origin, has a great "snow scene". I am guessing it was made in Germany between the 1930's and 1950's.
CAN ANYONE IDENTIFY THIS TUNNEL?
Post by: CNJRR on January 12, 2021, 07:47:36 AM
I will keep my eyes open for one.
You can move the pictures around if you want.
Click modify, then copy and paste and move them to the correct order.
Thanks for adding. :)
Post by: CNJRR on January 12, 2021, 11:05:03 AM
Post by: Terry on January 12, 2021, 04:28:42 PM
Here's some interesting ones:
Lionel 915 felt tunnel for 0 gauge track made from 1932-35:
Bottom view with cut out areas for track:
Lionel 130 metal tunnel for O gauge made from 1924-33:
Comparison of 915 on left with 130 on right:
Lionel's biggest tunnel was the metal 140 made for O or Standard from 1927-32:
Comparison of 140 and the smaller 130:
And just because we like to play what is it. . .
Same construction as the lionel felt tunnels and about the same size as a metal 120 tunnel.
Post by: starfire700 on January 13, 2021, 04:55:58 AM
Post by: CNJRR on January 13, 2021, 11:45:36 AM
I am surprised so many lasted through out the years.
Post by: Terry on January 13, 2021, 02:44:11 PM
The Bing brothers lasted into the mid 1930s, and then ran to England to escape the Jewish pogrom. I think the Nazi's wouldn't even let them sell the company. Bub ended up with some of the tooling, but only made the cheaper crap.
It might be a Bub tunnel.
Is it silk screened or done with sheets like were used to decorate china? That might be a clue.
Post by: Terry on January 14, 2021, 01:58:44 AM
Here's the undersides:
The table is 30" wide at the end.
The mountain is much more difficult to find. That's the only pressed paper one I've ever had. I've had and seen many tunnels. They also made a small straight tunnel about 12 inches long. The tunnels also come in green or brown versions.
Life Like is a underappreciated accessory maker.
Post by: starfire700 on January 14, 2021, 04:57:56 AM
Post by: CNJRR on January 14, 2021, 11:15:55 AM
I noticed what looks like an artist's signature on my mystery tunnel, that I had not seen before.
You show one side in your other pictures, what is painted on the other side?
I wonder if someone took an old tunnel and repainted it?
Post by: starfire700 on January 15, 2021, 05:01:31 AM
The artist's signature is in the screen artwork, implying that art was done in a flat format then screen or litho-printed on the tunnel material before blanking and forming into the tunnel sides.
I understand the lithography process from experience in producing Marx Trains between 1991 and 2004.
Post by: Terry on January 15, 2021, 12:15:50 PM
Here's a page with pictures of much of the J. C. Schrey Production:
http://www.binnsroad.co.uk/railways/schrey/index.html (http://www.binnsroad.co.uk/railways/schrey/index.html)
It's interesting that the tunnel says JP Schrey, not JC Schrey. J. CHARLES was the son, J. PAUL was the father.
John Charles Schrey was born on month day 1919, at birth place, Pennsylvania, to John Paul Schrey and Anna Margaret Schrey (born Gruss).
John was born on June 7 1882, in Marburg, Austria.
Anna was born on July 13 1896, in Pennsylvania, United States.
See what you can find on the internet when you're trying to avoid working.
Post by: starfire700 on January 16, 2021, 11:26:46 AM
I guess that you can find almost anything if you look hard enough. Thanks for finding it.
Now I have to find the summer tunnel.
Post by: CNJRR on January 16, 2021, 04:22:13 PM
Jim's White tunnel was made by zthe J. C. Schrey company of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and sold under the brand S&G Novelties. They made the same tunnel in a green summer scene, and also made fences.
Here's a page with pictures of much of the J. C. Schrey Production:
http://www.binnsroad.co.uk/railways/schrey/index.html (http://www.binnsroad.co.uk/railways/schrey/index.html)
It's interesting that the tunnel says JP Schrey, not JC Schrey. J. CHARLES was the son, J. PAUL was the father.
John Charles Schrey was born on month day 1919, at birth place, Pennsylvania, to John Paul Schrey and Anna Margaret Schrey (born Gruss).
John was born on June 7 1882, in Marburg, Austria.
Anna was born on July 13 1896, in Pennsylvania, United States.
See what you can find on the internet when you're trying to avoid working.
Good internet sleuthing. :)
Mystery solved.
Post by: starfire700 on January 18, 2021, 04:34:18 AM
Post by: CNJRR on January 18, 2021, 11:34:15 AM
Train show, garage sale, Craig's list, In a magazine, internet, I don't know. ::)
I will keep my eye open for them, and check for a signature if I see one in person.
But with these viruses going around, I won't be going out looking anytime soon. :)
Post by: starfire700 on January 19, 2021, 05:47:41 AM
Not being sarcastic, just mellow........now if an item comes my way and I like it, I buy it. Age will do that to you.
Maybe by the end of 2021 we will be able to gather at meets and conventions again. Who knows what the future will bring. Meanwhile, I will hunker-down in my basement and play with trains.
Post by: pjdog350 on January 19, 2021, 02:23:53 PM
Post by: starfire700 on January 20, 2021, 04:51:46 AM
Post by: Terry on January 20, 2021, 10:31:27 AM
I was walking the dog and a man opened his garage door. I looked inside and thought to myself how nice it would be to have a big garage like his.
Half a block down the road I realized the house and the garage was the same as mine, just not full of crap.
I've been going out to the garage every Friday afternoon for at least six months, and grabbing some crap to put on eBay. It mostly doesn't bring much money, but I like the feeling of cleaning it out. Still a mess, but I'm making good progress.
Post by: pjdog350 on January 20, 2021, 10:50:52 AM
Post by: Terry on January 20, 2021, 11:22:11 AM
I have dealer cases of NEW Lionel 0 track. 072, 054, 042 not a lot of that maybe none, and 031 curve. There's a bunch of long straights with ties spaced like regular 10" sections and loose 10" and half sections. I have RCS, UCS, and O22 switches for repair.
I have good used O27 Super O trackand including repairable switches and remote sections.
I also have New Standard gauge track in 42" and 72" curves along with new long straights with widely spaced ties.
I have NO Fastrack or MTH Realtrax.
The private message and email buttons are under my name to the left of this text.
Post by: CNJRR on January 20, 2021, 03:23:41 PM
Speaking of garages. . .
I was walking the dog and a man opened his garage door. I looked inside and thought to myself how nice it would be to have a big garage like his.
Half a block down the road I realized the house and the garage was the same as mine, just not full of crap.
I've been going out to the garage every Friday afternoon for at least six months, and grabbing some crap to put on eBay. It mostly doesn't bring much money, but I like the feeling of cleaning it out. Still a mess, but I'm making good progress.
I have a 2 car garage with a loft that has only seen one car in it since 1996, one time to wax a car in the winter.
Otherwise it is filled with a whole lot of stuff, I should have painted it when I moved in in 1996.
It was all bare sheetrock since it was built in 1968 I think it was.
This summer I got to paint it but it was a pain in the you know what.
I had to move a ton of stuff to paint it. It went slow but kept me busy most of the summer.
But as I went along I organized a lot of things and tossed some and sold things.
When the warmer weather comes I will continue. I hate burning my propane to heat it up.
Post by: starfire700 on January 23, 2021, 01:54:32 PM
Post by: Terry on January 23, 2021, 05:48:01 PM
Post by: starfire700 on January 25, 2021, 04:08:52 AM
Post by: Pre-WarGuy on February 15, 2021, 09:19:21 AM
My photo won't post because it is too large of a file??
Post by: pjdog350 on February 15, 2021, 09:40:58 AM
Click it. Open your picture with image sizer. Reduce it to about 622 to 650. Then save it. I call mine. Something with small in the saved name.
That will load into the forum
Some where on this forum there is a tread that tells you how to do it but I can’t find It. Terry or Jim will be along soon and they know where the tread is?
Post by: starfire700 on February 15, 2021, 03:04:22 PM
It is easy to use, once you get used to it.
Once the program is downloaded, click to open it, click open in top left find the picture in your file, double-click to import the photo into image resize.
There is a sliding scale at the top that displays the percentage as the photo shrinks. When you first import it it will be so big that you will only see a small portion of the photo.
You will have to experiment to see what % takes you to less than 180 KB. Phones are different and so is each photo, more complex means more pixels.
I usually have to take a photo to between 8 and 10% of original size.
When you save the resized photo, add something like resize or small to the title, so you can find the right photo to modify.
I also have had bad luck resizing photos that are already resized. I always go back to the original, if I have not resized it properly the first time.
Post by: Terry on February 15, 2021, 04:58:33 PM
I think it's an early Life-Like. It's pressed cardboard or pulp.
Post by: starfire700 on February 16, 2021, 04:52:56 AM
Post by: early0electric on May 27, 2021, 07:35:22 PM
Post by: starfire700 on May 28, 2021, 04:36:21 AM