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1688W & 1689W Whistle Tender Oddity!!

2K views 4 replies 3 participants last post by  tjcruiser 
#1 ·
Over the past few months I have been working on trying to find all the variations to the Lionel Loewy Torpedo locomotives in the 027 gauge. Most people think that they are rather common, when in fact they are not. The basic casting was used on three different locos in the 1930's, which are the 1588 Wind Up loco, the 1688/1688E, and the 1668/1668E. The 1588 came with a 1588T 4 wheel tender. The 1688 and 1668 locos whether E designated or or not, typically came with what has been listed as 1689T or 1689W, and can be found in both Gun Metal or Black versions, with type 4 trucks and nickel journals.

Apparently the collectors and publishers of the various catalogs MISSED a unique number with the boxes. I constantly search various auction sites, looking for a version of the 1688's, and came across something that contradicts all the published material. The 1689W tender box is actually found with the markiing "1689W Bronze Gunmetal Gray" on the end tab of the box, which would be correct for the Gun Metal version.

What everyone missed with a BLACK tender, issued with any Black 1668 or 1688 had a different number. The number on the box tabs is shown as "1688W" Black Tender. Below are two photos I pulled to show the actual box tabs, as proof. So if the tender was Gun Metal the number would be 1689W, and the Black tender would be 1688W, both with whistles.

Box Packaging and labeling Carton


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#3 · (Edited)
Ed, I was surprised when I saw the actual box tabs and the number was 1688W and not the typical 1689W, that everyone knows as the norm. Another odd thing was it show "0" gauge versus "027", which one would expect.

***Further reading with the 1688W being listed as an 0 tender, it only belongs with the 289E locomotive and no other locomotive. No other 0 gauge locomotive uses the 1689/2689 style tender, and each has their own unique tenders associated with them. The 1688 locomotive would actually have a 1689T or 1689W tender.***

As far as the 1688/1688E loco variations, I have come up with (10) ten distinct variations, without taking into account the number tags as either 1688 or 1688E. If the "E" or no "E" tags were taken into account, the variations would number close to fifteen variations for just that loco. The 1588 Windup loco used the same original casting as the 1688 & 1668, which has two variations, and the 1668 has three variations.

The basic shell casting was the most produced shell during 1936 to 1941, and there were thousands produced during that time period. The various mounting holes, and slots were machined after the basic shell was cast. Sorry to say, but I have become fanatical with this loco casting.:)
 
#4 ·
I just recently discovered the use of the 1688W as a different designation from the more common 1689W tender. The “W”, obviously stands for a whistle, but there is a distinct difference for the two versions. The 1689W/T came in both Gunmetal Gray & Black, with the early series having Latch Couplers, and replaced with Box couplers toward the end of production. The 1688W only came as a whistle tender, made only in 1936, for the two locos, 1688E black made in 1936, & the 289E, with the Red streamline passenger cars; 1673, 1674, & 1675. The 1688W tender needed a “Hook Coupler”, to attach to first passenger car (1673). The Lionel outfits were #6802E & 6802W, respectively.
 
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