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Railroad Boxcar

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

Railroad Boxcar

The Load N' Haul Railroad Set #4563

Growing up in the United States during the 1980s, I marveled at the 12V train sets pictured in my LEGO catalogs. That was all I could do, since purchasing a train in the U.S. typically involved tearing out the order form in the catalog and mailing it to LEGO Shop at Home in Enfield, Connecticut. Mail-order goods were still a fairly new concept then, and my parents weren't very excited by the idea of me sending off for an expensive Train Set. Instead, I spent my childhood building LEGO towns and space stations, while my train set was of the common ‘HO' variety. To my delight, the 1992 catalog introduced the 9V system in earnest and offered the ideal union of LEGO bricks with Electric Trains that picked up power from the rails just like my ‘HO' trains. Moreover, these new trains were available from local retailers. That winter, I had no problem deciding what to request at Christmas: the Load N' Haul Railroad. Also available was the fabled 4558 Metroliner2 Passenger Train, which in essence was the flagship model for the first generation of 9V trains. However, this set carried a hefty price tag ($150 USD) and required the speed regulator as a separate purchase. At $120 USD for the Complete Set, the Load N' Haul Railroad was the most affordable entry into the world of 9V trains. This price was achieved by keeping the Rolling Stock for the set small and fairly simple. All cars in the set had 2 axles, in the style of older European stock. The locomotive, reminiscent of a German diesel shunter, could be adapted to use a functional headlight even though this element was omitted, presumably to keep the cost of the set low. The locomotive's paint scheme was also reminiscent of that worn by Austrian and German units. The new generation of 9V train sets also introduced the logo used by all subsequent LEGO trains and marked the retirement of the logos of Deutsche Bahn and other national railroads. Perhaps it is a reflection of their relative popularity that the Metroliner was re-released3 as a LEGO Legend and the Load N' Haul Railroad was not. Even so, the Load N' Haul Railroad encompassed superb playability, with two containers and three different styles of cars. There were also several sets that made excellent pairings with the Load N' Haul railroad: the 4536 Blue Hopper Car and the 4543 Railroad Tractor Flatbed, as well as the 4537 Twin Tank Transport, 4544 Car Transport Wagon, and the 4549 Road and Rail Hauler, released slightly later. When combined, these additional sets compensated for the relative simplicity of the Load N' Haul Railroad's rolling stock and made it possible to build a diverse and complete Freight Train. Most freight containers of this era used the same 4-by-8 footprint, making it possible to carry containers from other sets on the Load N' Haul Railroad and vice-versa. The Load N' Haul railroad itself consisted of a locomotive, a boxcar, a blue Gondola Car, and a flatcar. The latter two cars were each capable of accepting a standard 4x8 container or pallet. The set also included two loads - a pallet of barrels and a container holding a mini-tractor, plus a rather futuristic-looking forklift to handle such loads. The set included only three mini-figures, again a testament to the selective inclusion of parts to keep costs in check. Even with these modest resources, the Load N' Haul Railroad managed to encompass superb play value and a number of rare parts. Each of the cars had some degree of functionality: engine access panels in the locomotive, sliding doors on the boxcar, folding sides on the gondola, and folding "clips" on the flatcar. Rare parts include the blue hinged panels of the gondola (found in only one other set), the sliding doors of the flatcar (found in two other sets), red 1x2x3 train windows (seen in hardly any sets since the early 1980s), and the red locomotive front and red train doors with white stripe (seen only in the 4551 Crocodile Engine Set of the same era). It was not until the introduction of the battery-powered 7898 Cargo Train that the one-piece faceted train front elements again become available, this time in green. The Load N' Haul Railroad included a track oval (two straight and 16 curved tracks) and speed regulator. An extra box of straight tracks to go with the set made an excellent investment. Several decals were included that could be used to decorate each of the Train Cars, although the train also looked quite respectable without decals. Most stickers were small and covered only one brick. One exception is the black-and-yellow safety stripes for the front and rear of the locomotive, which cover two plates. The white decals for the locomotive front never stayed on well because of being applied across an angled surface. The Load N' Haul railroad was the only complete freight train set offered until it was superseded by the similar 4564 Freight Rail Runner set in 1995. It has the smallest Diesel Locomotive of any LEGO train set except for perhaps the 7755 Diesel Locomotive set from the 12V era. Its $120 USD list price makes it the lowest-priced complete 9V freight train set released by the LEGO Company (although this may no longer be true if prices are adjusted for inflation). It was also the only 9V train set to include a forklift; later sets included trucks of various designs instead. As a unique bonus, the early LEGO train sets (4563, 4564 and 4558) included full instructions for an alternate model. The early 9V train sets were accompanied by a number of splendid sets in other themes. Contemporaries of these sets in other themes included the introduction of Blacktron II in Space, in Town, the Nautica line of boatthemed sets and the Octan-themed Gas Station sets, the first of several Paradisa sets, and the first Wolfpack sets for Castle. It was also the height of the Pirate era, and in Technic, a number of sets featured sophisticated pneumatic functions. The Load N' Haul Railroad will be remembered by many as the set which first sparked an interest in 9V trains. Designed for builders on a budget, its modest offerings still provided great enjoyment and were complemented by the availability of several other individual Freight Car sets.

About the Author

Son of 2, Brother of 1, Father of 6, Friend to all, Bother to Many. Born and raised all over the world I now reside in Southern California near my true love LEGOLAND. My wife and I operate a Lego Store in which we sell all things Lego. Stop by our store anytime and drop us a line www.BrickTrainShop.com