Choo choo! Here comes the 4.5v nostalgia train!

Wow, that's true! Interesting that right and left rails are separate parts. It looks like the engine's wheels are rubberized too -- good thinkin' Lego. I haven't had a Lego train in decades, I assume they no longer do this?

@Frobozz:
They got smarter about it. Normal driver wheels have a thin clear band that’s permanently attached (it is removable, but there’s so little elasticity that it’s clearly not designed to be removed and reattached even once). Steam drivers use a standard Technic band, which you do have to install…but which can be easily replaced when it breaks.

I hadn't realized they'd been using that mail logo that long.

To me, it looks like those couplings were way too complicated/elaborate for no good reason at all. I have 182 (minus the box) but I recall that the box was similar to this and very useful to store the train when not in use. While it is no Emerald Night 10194, I believe 182 aged relatively well.

Back when everyday 2x8 plates were used as sleepers, before those grey ones with the ridges. Now they make tracks with both rails and sleepers as one piece, which I find harder to store.

@HOBBES:
Took me a while to figure it out. There’s a hook that drops through a hole on the mating coupler. When you lift up the hook high enough to hit 90°, the odd shape of the hole allows it to slot downward on the base, which locks it into the 90° position. Not only does this keep the coupler from dragging its knuckles on the tracks, but it keeps the hook raised so it’s ready to drop onto the next coupler.

@axeleng said:
"Did this actually come pre-assembled, or was it just a box insert for storing it after having built it?"
It was highly unlikely to have been pre-assembled. Would have rather defeated the object, and added a lot of pointless production line time. Much more likely that the moulded insert was for storing convenience, as you said.

Also, on the box it says, 'This Lego set contains 360 pieces' and 'Children can build the train illustrated'

It would have almost definitely mentioned being pre-assembled if it had been, as this would have been a highly unusual feature!

Pre-built...what is this: DUPLO?!?!?...Seriously though, looking up the parts; this thing's a old-mine. I especially wish TLG would make an equivalence of those 1x3x4 doors (the red ones on the freight car) in a variety of colors...esp. that red. They were 'ahead of their time' as they even scaled well with minifigs.

@VintageDude said:
" @Frobozz said:
"Wow, that's true! Interesting that right and left rails are separate parts. It looks like the engine's wheels are rubberized too -- good thinkin' Lego. I haven't had a Lego train in decades, I assume they no longer do this?"

55 years later, trains look like this:
60337"

I remember when this came out. I was... just a future twinkle in my father's eye.

@sjr60 said:
" @axeleng said:
"Did this actually come pre-assembled, or was it just a box insert for storing it after having built it?"
It was highly unlikely to have been pre-assembled. Would have rather defeated the object, and added a lot of pointless production line time. Much more likely that the moulded insert was for storing convenience, as you said.

Also, on the box it says, 'This Lego set contains 360 pieces' and 'Children can build the train illustrated'

It would have almost definitely mentioned being pre-assembled if it had been, as this would have been a highly unusual feature! "

Actually I had 182 , and I can confirm that set did indeed come pre-assembled. Or at least the engine did. I can't remember whether the coaches and wagon did, but definitely the engine was pre-built.

@8lackmagic said:
"Actually I had 182 , and I can confirm that set did indeed come pre-assembled. Or at least the engine did. I can't remember whether the coaches and wagon did, but definitely the engine was pre-built."
Yes, I can understand 182 having at least the engine pre-built as it had a bit of extra gadgetry to get wrong compared to this simpler set from 8 years before.

@brick_r said:
"Pre-built...what is this: DUPLO?!?!?...Seriously though, looking up the parts; this thing's a old-mine. I especially wish TLG would make an equivalence of those 1x3x4 doors (the red ones on the freight car) in a variety of colors...esp. that red. They were 'ahead of their time' as they even scaled well with minifigs. "

I pieced mine together and can confirm that the red doors were a nuisance to source. Also I think there are multiple variations of the instructions depending on the motor height. (Mine currently avoids the question of which is more authentic by having a 9v motor).

Funny to see a pre-built Lego set....I have joked a few times that Lego should start doing that instead of dumbing down the instructions and use of weird colors, because apparently every Lego set has to be be considered an absolute entry level set. Wasn't aware they already did that in the past. I guess there were also lazy kids back then?

One more thing I noticed: those postal logos are prints....over multiple parts! with different placement on each side, so 4 unique printed pieces in total. Printed all the way to the edge and perfectly aligned. Why can't they do that anymore? I recently built the Singapore skyline set, and the alignment of the prints in that set was all over the place...

@brick_r:
Stormtrooper disagrees with you on “scaling well with minifigs.”

@StyleCounselor:
Since girls are born with every egg already formed, a very tiny bit of you had already started growing in your maternal grandmother’s belly. Now you know…

@WizardOfOss said:
"Funny to see a pre-built Lego set...."
Unless I see it in a sealed box, I remain unconvinced!

@sjr60

https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?S=182-1&name=Train%20Set%20with%20Signal&category=%5BTrain%5D%5B4.5V%5DT=S&O={%22iconly%22:0}

Last one on the bottom: a sealed 182 with the engine "prebuilt'.

@HOBBES said:
" @sjr60

https://www.bricklink.com/v2/catalog/catalogitem.page?S=182-1&name=Train%20Set%20with%20Signal&category=%5BTrain%5D%5B4.5V%5DT=S&O={%22iconly%22:0}

Last one on the bottom: a sealed 182 with the engine "prebuilt'."
Yes, as I said, I can understand the 1975 182 having the engine pre-built as it contained various gadgets, like stop/start and auto reverse and the tender/battery box was basically a 1 piece item anyway, complete with wheels and coupling. And the carriages had the horrible pre-made 1 piece bases which had appeared by then, but at least still required the bodies to be built.
Looked good, but had definitely been dumbed down a lot.

However the subject of this article is the 1967 116-1 from when Lego was more traditional and didn't contain so many purpose made assemblies (not even 1-piece mini-wheel assemblies by then).
So I remain unconvinced that 116-1 ever came pre-built!

@PurpleDave: Well...I mean 'Stormtroopers'...and 'Doors'...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBQaLuqwtl8

@brick_r:
Jango Fett also disagrees with you.

@sjr60 said:
"Unless I see it in a sealed box, I remain unconvinced!"

See the 5th picture here: https://www.toysperiod.com/lego-set-reference/train/4.5v/lego-116-starter-train-set-with-motor/

Seems to be from a German catalog, not only does it show the train all built in the box, the text underneath even mentions that it's pre-built ("Alle Modelle sind vorgebaut.").

@WizardOfOss said:
"Seems to be from a German catalog, not only does it show the train all built in the box, the text underneath even mentions that it's pre-built ("Alle Modelle sind vorgebaut.")."
Hmm, I'm slightly more convinced then, that they tried something this ridiculous... Lucky it didn't catch on!

Of course that's assuming that the picture is from a Lego catalogue, and not a retailer with a 'clever' sales gimmick!

@WizardOfOss:
And people complain about modern sets with several thousand pieces being too easy…

@PurpleDave said:
" @Frobozz:
They got smarter about it. Normal driver wheels have a thin clear band that’s permanently attached (it is removable, but there’s so little elasticity that it’s clearly not designed to be removed and reattached even once). Steam drivers use a standard Technic band, which you do have to install…but which can be easily replaced when it breaks."

I think I recall that they weren't too hard to remove at the time (allthough there wasn't any really good reason to do it. However, by now the elastic bands will have dried out/degraded, making it hard to remove.

Without the elastic bands, the train wouldn't have much traction. The outer rails had a profile on them, so the traction would be mostly on the outer rail (for a higher effective force on the train, at the cost of a slightly lower speed).

Concerning the pre-assembly: it's a long time ago, but I think I did assemble mine (another set, but with the same type of box) when I got it at the age of four.

@PurpleDave said:
" @WizardOfOss :
And people complain about modern sets with several thousand pieces being too easy…"

I doubt this set was aimed at adults. And even when this set was pre-built, it did include instructions: only 12 pages. Just 25 steps for well over 400 pieces. Absolute madness! I hope no kid ever took this train apart, because there's no way anyone without a PhD could put it back together. And that's exactly why a set like this nowadays would have well over 100 pages of instructions, so normal folks like you and me can do it.

Very early driving wheels (in 60s train sets) have a toothed profile matching the track, but they were soon replaced with smooth wheels and rubber tyres.

It came pre-built in the polystyrene cut-outs, for shop display and to encourages browsing buyers. When disassembled there is just enough space to store all the pieces. The idea was you broke it up then built it once and could use the box to store securely in-between play or transport to the big track gatherings.

Interesting you would have to be quite quick and nimble to flip the battery box switch to off when it passed in order to stop. The later battery car with 7722 had a longer switch on the side to stop easily or you could use a few vertical bricks to stop at the station.