ElectroDiva

2018 Lego Trains

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12 hours ago, sebitsena said:

I think a Creator Expert Train Station should be a stand alone building. If it was connected to other modulars, the train track would be hard to place, whether it would be in front of the train station, behind or sideway.

Well, why not make it "really" modular, with several methods of adding it into an existing layout with modulars? Doesn't matter then if you'd like your station to be left, right, front or behind another existing one... Maybe even make it in a way so it can be broken up into several smaller parts, for those who don't want to install a full-size station.

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3 hours ago, Capparezza said:

Well, why not make it "really" modular, with several methods of adding it into an existing layout with modulars? Doesn't matter then if you'd like your station to be left, right, front or behind another existing one... Maybe even make it in a way so it can be broken up into several smaller parts, for those who don't want to install a full-size station.

I like the idea of station being made up from lots of modular elements. Maybe it could consist of a single station building with waiting room, ticket office, cafe etc. The platforms could then be made up from several small sections that can be arranged and connected together in any way you like. You could make the platforms as long or short as you like. You could have a single long platform or 2 shorter ones. 

This would give a lot of possibilities and would be a good flexible approach for a station. It would work either as a terminus building as I had suggested in an earlier post or it would work equally well as a large through station.

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4 hours ago, Capparezza said:

Well, why not make it "really" modular, with several methods of adding it into an existing layout with modulars? Doesn't matter then if you'd like your station to be left, right, front or behind another existing one... Maybe even make it in a way so it can be broken up into several smaller parts, for those who don't want to install a full-size station.

Why not ;)

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On 11/1/2017 at 8:53 PM, ElectroDiva said:

I think it's high time we started a 2018 Lego Trains thread after a pretty disappointing 2017.

 

2018 has to be an improvement right?

 

Quite a few people seem to believe that there is a "pattern" to the City train releases and according to this pattern we should expect a new Passenger Train, Cargo Train and Train Station in 2018. 

 

@Duq explained the pattern very well on the 2017 Trains thread.

 

In addition to these expected releases, there is also a rumour that the next modular building could be a central train station. Personally I find that a bit hard to believe but you never know!

Now, I wish I knew more about this "pattern" there seems to be, but let me tell you, we need more non expert LEGO trains. The last one we got was an expert one in 2016, and that was for the winter seasonal line, and not the regular City line, like most of the trains are. If we do get a passenger train, they need to retail it for no more than $110 USD. (United States Dollars.) And include power functions, like most City trains. Now, with the Cargo train, if we do indeed get one, I would take it if it doesn't go over $125, again, with Power functions included. Maybe the setting around the train could be seaside, that way it's a nice change of pace. And finally, the train station. I would like to see a station related to the one we got in 2003 from World City. A nice 2 floor train station that stands out with it's unique color. Now, if it's 2 floors or more, I would be more comfortable paying around $75, although it would probably sell better at the last regular, non seasonal price of $50. Maybe even make it red this time? Now, we've only gotton 1 train shed and that was from World City, and the Bricklink prices for that thing are rediculous, so it would be nice to get one of those at some point in time.

And another thing, we are seriously lacking in trains, as World City had a TON of train related sets, with City only having a handful over 12 years, turning 13 this year, and World City only lasted a YEAR.

Edited by xxix5

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4 hours ago, xxix5 said:

Now, I wish I knew more about this "pattern" there seems to be, but let me tell you, we need more non expert LEGO trains. The last one we got was an expert one in 2016, and that was for the winter seasonal line, and not the regular City line, like most of the trains are. If we do get a passenger train, they need to retail it for no more than $110 USD. (United States Dollars.) And include power functions, like most City trains. Now, with the Cargo train, if we do indeed get one, I would take it if it doesn't go over $125, again, with Power functions included. Maybe the setting around the train could be seaside, that way it's a nice change of pace. And finally, the train station. I would like to see a station related to the one we got in 2003 from World City. A nice 2 floor train station that stands out with it's unique color. Now, if it's 2 floors or more, I would be more comfortable paying around $75, although it would probably sell better at the last regular, non seasonal price of $50. Maybe even make it red this time? Now, we've only gotton 1 train shed and that was from World City, and the Bricklink prices for that thing are rediculous, so it would be nice to get one of those at some point in time.

And another thing, we are seriously lacking in trains, as World City had a TON of train related sets, with City only having a handful over 12 years, turning 13 this year, and World City only lasted a YEAR.

City trains will most likely return in the summer, as pictures have leaked. Unfortunately, it's basically expected that the train sets will be around $125-$200 as that's what they were the last time around (that could change of course, but given what the sets look like from the leaked pictures, I'd expect it to be the same). As for Creator trains, it seemed like there was a trend for a while, but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. Hopefully we'll get one next year, even if it's something like a re-release of the Emerald Night.

Overall, City has had more train sets (12 to WC's 8), but that's only because of how long it's been around. As for the "pattern", it seems to be 2 trains and a station, plus the occasional TRU exclusive related sets every 4 years seems to be the cycle. Part of the reason I think the number of sets per wave has decreased is because the train sets include many features that would've been a separate set 20 years ago (like the cargo station in the 2014 cargo train). Either way, it would be nice to have more train cars and other additional smaller sets.

After seeing the leaked pictures of the presumed summer passenger train, is it possible that there may be sets for additional cars? The train seems to have a sloped front on only one end, like the Horizon Express.

Edited by Bill Ding
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the 9V era had a lot of coaches and trains, as well as those trucks...nowadays, you just got a set that had a locomotive, several cars (freight or otherwise,) and various machinery. I mean, track maintenance vehicles, flatcars, cabooses/brakevans. EVEN SNOWPLOUGHS >:C (sorry, got a bit irritated there...us brits are currently in the middle of a nasty snow storm, and I'm just hoping that Network Rail gets off their backside, and uses their various snow fighting gear...Also, thought locomotives were still fitted with sandboxes...) So yeah, we need more rail accessories, whether it be on the rails or not.

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On 28/02/2018 at 11:18 PM, Bill Ding said:

City trains will most likely return in the summer, as pictures have leaked. Unfortunately, it's basically expected that the train sets will be around $125-$200 as that's what they were the last time around (that could change of course, but given what the sets look like from the leaked pictures, I'd expect it to be the same). As for Creator trains, it seemed like there was a trend for a while, but that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. Hopefully we'll get one next year, even if it's something like a re-release of the Emerald Night.

Overall, City has had more train sets (12 to WC's 8), but that's only because of how long it's been around. As for the "pattern", it seems to be 2 trains and a station, plus the occasional TRU exclusive related sets every 4 years seems to be the cycle. Part of the reason I think the number of sets per wave has decreased is because the train sets include many features that would've been a separate set 20 years ago (like the cargo station in the 2014 cargo train). Either way, it would be nice to have more train cars and other additional smaller sets.

After seeing the leaked pictures of the presumed summer passenger train, is it possible that there may be sets for additional cars? The train seems to have a sloped front on only one end, like the Horizon Express.

The horizon express had no 'extra cars' set(s), so I doubt this one will.

There has been absolutely nothing on the new station if it will happen at all, but 60195 is the Arctic Mobile Exploration Base, and 60197 the passenger train.  60198 is the cargo train, and 60196 isn't on Brickset at all, so I think it is a special set, not shown straight away, like the coastguard 'Sailboat Rescue' for example.

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On 20/02/2018 at 8:00 AM, technic70s said:

If they did bring back The Hogwarts Express at least we will get the windows with rounded corners back. 

39664857154_e98a3cbf0f_m.jpg4513548 by Stephen, on Flickr

If only we could have the packs of these like we used to...

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14 hours ago, Kalahari134 said:

If only we could have the packs of these like we used to...

They haven’t even been in a set for nine years now, I hope they’re not being phased out...

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Last used in the Knight Bus which was discontinued in 2012. Plenty of purple ones for a good price so if anyone's modelling South Africa then they're spoilt for choice when making a Premier Classe train.

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Today I was the guest of the LEGO stand at the Melbourne Toy Fair. On the stand were the cargo train and passenger train sets. Both were clearly pre-production mock ups since the new passenger nose cone was a prototype part in red and the minifigs were replaced with all white stand ins. Both boxes were marked preliminary. They match the leaked photos that we have seen.

I asked about the new receiver and other electronics, and it was confirmed it will be bluetooth, and will come with a controller but will also be able to be controlled from a phone or tablet. Unfortunately there were no more details on a new motor but it was confirmed it would be part of a whole new system.

There was no sign of a station or any other sets, just the two trains.

One interesting detail; the side of the passenger train box showed it contained 16 curves and 16 straights, though the picture was of an oval that looked to only include about 8. That whole section was marked place holder so I wouldn't be surprised if we only get 4 straights. The passenger train also had stickers on it and there were a couple on the nose sides to blend it into the carriage side colours so it doesn't look so much like a big yellow blob.

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20 hours ago, peterab said:

Today I was the guest of the LEGO stand at the Melbourne Toy Fair. On the stand were the cargo train and passenger train sets. Both were clearly pre-production mock ups since the new passenger nose cone was a prototype part in red and the minifigs were replaced with all white stand ins. Both boxes were marked preliminary. They match the leaked photos that we have seen.

I asked about the new receiver and other electronics, and it was confirmed it will be bluetooth, and will come with a controller but will also be able to be controlled from a phone or tablet. Unfortunately there were no more details on a new motor but it was confirmed it would be part of a whole new system.

There was no sign of a station or any other sets, just the two trains.

One interesting detail; the side of the passenger train box showed it contained 16 curves and 16 straights, though the picture was of an oval that looked to only include about 8. That whole section was marked place holder so I wouldn't be surprised if we only get 4 straights. The passenger train also had stickers on it and there were a couple on the nose sides to blend it into the carriage side colours so it doesn't look so much like a big yellow blob.

@peterab Can you provide any input as to the track plan included with the Cargo train?   Is there only one set of points (Left)?   Or is it similar to what was included with 60052 (20 curves, 2 points--1 each direction, and 8 straights)?

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On 6.3.2018 at 8:23 AM, peterab said:

There was no sign of a station or any other sets, just the two trains.

Either they keep something for second half of year or they really are cutting train sets down...

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On 06/03/2018 at 7:23 AM, peterab said:

I asked about the new receiver and other electronics, and it was confirmed it will be bluetooth, and will come with a controller but will also be able to be controlled from a phone or tablet. Unfortunately there were no more details on a new motor but it was confirmed it would be part of a whole new system.

 

Ooh that sounds interesting. One of the downsides with the currently available 3rd party Bluetooth controllers is that they rely on smartphones as the control interface. It will be great to get an actual physical Bluetooth controller.

 

Now I just hope the PfX guys can can support that physical controller when it comes out (I’ve got 5 of those Pfx bricks on the way..)

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I was looking around on Ideas and came across a recent train project, Barnum's Circus Train by brickster0404, Very unique idea and looks very well executed. Would love to see some kind of train set come from ideas and something so out there Lego wouldn't ever do as say a city or creator expert

Here is the link for those who want to view 

https://ideas.lego.com/projects/7be53094-d912-431d-8232-1a04bb04590b

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1 hour ago, Nexogeek said:

I was looking around on Ideas and came across a recent train project, Barnum's Circus Train by brickster0404, Very unique idea and looks very well executed. Would love to see some kind of train set come from ideas and something so out there Lego wouldn't ever do as say a city or creator expert

Here is the link for those who want to view 

https://ideas.lego.com/projects/7be53094-d912-431d-8232-1a04bb04590b

Supported.

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16 hours ago, Nexogeek said:

I was looking around on Ideas and came across a recent train project, Barnum's Circus Train by brickster0404, Very unique idea and looks very well executed. Would love to see some kind of train set come from ideas and something so out there Lego wouldn't ever do as say a city or creator expert

Here is the link for those who want to view 

https://ideas.lego.com/projects/7be53094-d912-431d-8232-1a04bb04590b

I have supported this, but the locomotive and tender are very similar to the Winter Holiday Train

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17 hours ago, Nexogeek said:

I was looking around on Ideas and came across a recent train project, Barnum's Circus Train by brickster0404, Very unique idea and looks very well executed. Would love to see some kind of train set come from ideas and something so out there Lego wouldn't ever do as say a city or creator expert

I shared this also on @LegoMonorailFan's Best Lego Ideas Projects topic only a little while ago too, as it's a most colorful and novel submission! 

You should also perhaps share it on this topic, which is somewhat similar to the one I just posted, but more specifically pertaining to train/locomotive based Ideas projects.

 

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On 3/8/2018 at 9:35 AM, Digger of Bricks said:

I shared this also on @LegoMonorailFan's Best Lego Ideas Projects topic only a little while ago too, as it's a most colorful and novel submission! 

You should also perhaps share it on this topic, which is somewhat similar to the one I just posted, but more specifically pertaining to train/locomotive based Ideas projects.

 

Ill go ahead and share it over there. Its such a colorful and fun idea for an Ideas set. 

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On 06.03.2018 at 10:23 AM, peterab said:

I asked about the new receiver and other electronics, and it was confirmed it will be bluetooth, and will come with a controller but will also be able to be controlled from a phone or tablet. Unfortunately there were no more details on a new motor but it was confirmed it would be part of a whole new system.

Really cool news! Thanks!

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On 3/6/2018 at 1:23 AM, peterab said:

I asked about the new receiver and other electronics, and it was confirmed it will be bluetooth, and will come with a controller but will also be able to be controlled from a phone or tablet.

Best news so far! I'm very excited to hear it will have it's own controller. Bluetooth and smartphones won't exist in 20, 30 maybe 50 years and having a toy that relies on obsolete technology like that really had me worried. The stand alone controller is a great idea as those will essentially future proof these sets. Way to go Lego!

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Another question which may be hard to answer but it's been asked like it's been a while since there's been a Creator Expert Train, not counting the Holiday Train.
Can you shed a light? You won't say yes or no but I mean; people seem to like the Expert Trains.
The problem we the trains is that people don't like them that much. When we make our product line for the year we can only do four, maybe sometimes five, products in that year and then we look at what are going to be the most popular things. That's what we want to do. And every time we've done a train we always hear that people are really excited. But then every train that we've made will never perform as well as the other models that we make.

And so it seems like there are two explanations. Either trains aren't as popular as people say they are or we just haven't been able to figure out how to make the right train. I think that it's more the second one that we haven't figured it out. I think the challenge with trains is that they're very kind of regional. There's very few world famous trains. Whereas with cars, everyone knows the Volkswagen Beetle and probably everyone has even driven one. But when you talk about trains; if you're from France you want a TGV. If you're from Denmark you want the Danish train. If you're from the US you want probably the Santa Fe. It's hard to pick what is the one that will have that universal appeal. We can definitely make a train. We can make a train that will be popular in France. We can make a train that will be popular in the US. We struggled to find what is an icon of a train that has universal appeal. And surprisingly the Winter Village train, that one has been quite a hit. So I think we can learn from that to figure out how could we do a train in the future.

Do you think it could be option 3 that people won't buy a train because they think; well I don't have a train set. I don't have the tracks, so it's useless to me?
That could be an option yeah. Generally when someone's buying an Expert model they've already bought a lot of other LEGO. So if they're buying an Expert train they probably already have tracks from other City trains that they bought. But it's a fair comment to say. I mean to your point, our holiday train, it does include track.

And I think from my personal opinion the Winter Holiday Train is something you will buy because you collect the Winter Village sets. We will buy it. Not because we like trains that much or we want the tracks. 
So the thing is figuring out how can you get people, other than train fans, to get excited about this and that's what works at the Winter Holiday Train. You get everyone that's into the Winter Holiday sets and into trains, so maybe some train people will buy it. And everyone that's buying the Winter Holiday sets they will also be interested in that. So maybe we need a Modular Building with a train.

Train Station maybe? *laughs*

 

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^Exactly, great interview. We should be happy LEGO still makes trains as they clearly don't sell. Even designers have said that in the past. The reason we most likely aren't getting a train station is the last one didn't sell. I got the last passenger train for $90USD and the cargo one was $120, that's 40% off. It wasn't difficult, it was at Target. (EDIT-And not on clearance.)

I would love if through it LEGO would make train sets that fit into the police/fire theme. Have the criminals on a train car, have a fire knock over a tree onto the train tracks and the firemen have to put it out. That way it might increase sales or at least let people know there are LEGO trains.

I actually like what I've seen from the new passenger train, I like having an engine and two cars instead of two engines and a car.

Edited by Maple

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Just now, Maple said:

I would love if through it LEGO would make train sets that fit into the police/fire theme. Have the criminals on a train car, have a fire knock over a tree onto the train tracks and the firemen have to put it out. That way it might increase sales or at least let people know there are LEGO trains.

Ohhh, a train heist! :excited:

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Exactly! A train heist. A set with only a train cargo container that the criminals are jumping on to escape the 'Wild West' Police (because LEGO will run out of locations for police soon. :laugh:). I'd suggest a runaway train that needs people being rescued, but being an American that might not sell with all the preventable train crashes we have been having. A coal train car that could go along with the mining theme. None would be that expensive but if you add a helicopter might sell to children.

Releasing 2-5 sets every 4 years won't get kids attention but if they mix in a set or two every year that might. I don't think the solution is making the sets it's own theme, but making them more engraved into the City theme.

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