Polar Express Train Sets

You will find Polar Express train sets on this web page offered by some of the top suppliers of train sets and loads of information to help you come to a decision about which one is best for your requirements, because there are lots of Polar Express train sets ranging from the great to the rubbish.

Polar Express Train Sets

Polar Express train sets are an off-shoot from the book "The Polar Express", which is a 1985 children's book written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg. It was adapted as an Oscar-nominated motion-capture film in 2004.

The book starts on the night of Christmas Eve with a boy lying in bed waiting to hear the sound of Santa's sleigh bells. Suddenly, he hears loud rumbling outside as a magical train called The Polar Express pulls up outside his house.

The boy goes outside and is invited by the train conductor to go to the North Pole. The train is filled with children dressed in their pajamas, drinking hot chocolate as rich as melted chocolate bars then the train rumbles on.

Polar Express train sets are intended for the younger age group. The Polar Express train set is not usually motorized and are made from plastic or wood. As with other train sets, the top end of the market is dominated by Lionel train sets in the United States. Many younger children like to receive a Polar Express train set for Christmas.

The better Polar Express train sets for the younger age group are made of wood and will put up with a great deal of rough play. One of these wooden Lionel Polar Express train sets is made by Imaginarium and sold through the ToysRus chain of stores.

I read twelve reviews and they were all positive. This particular polar express train set comes with track, a village with inhabitants that you assemble yourself and a bell. The complete set sells for about $60.

The polar express train sets for older children tend to be electric. Some are even remote controlled. Most run on track, but some do not. The top end of this market is also dominated by Lionel with the $300 Lionel Polar Express Train Set 0 Gauge Model 6-31960.

The Lionel 6-31960 Polar Express Train set was carefully designed to be true to the original description in the book and film. This exclusive Lionel train set features a die-cast metal Berkshire steam locomotive with a new, larger pilot, headlight lens cap and unique whistle.

The engine and tender are painted in a dark, matte finish to complete the image. You would easily recognize it from scenes from the movie.

The locomotive tows a tender and two passenger carriages with interior lighting. The observation car features a new rounded observation deck, just like in scenes from the movie.

Silhouettes in the windows depict scenes from the film including the frightening marionette carriage, and the happy carriage where the children are given hot chocolate and candy.

The principal characters from the film are included as articulated figures with turning heads, movable arms, bendable waists and jointed knees. They can be posed and placed on areas of the locomotive, tender and passenger cars to reproduce your favourite scenes from the film.

These particular polar express train sets include one 2-8-4 Berkshire steam locomotive and coal tender, two passenger carriages, one passenger observation carriage with rounded deck, three straight FasTrack track sections, eight curved FasTrack track sections, one FasTrack terminal section, CW-80 Transformer, articulated movie characters, smoke fluid and a “How-to Set Me Up” instructional video.

These Lionel polar express train sets feature such details as transformer-controlled forward, neutral and reverse operations, an air whistle in the coal tender, an operating headlight, an operating coupler on the rear of the tender, a powerful maintenance-free motor, two traction tyres and puffing smoke. All the body work of the rolling stock in Lionel's Polar Express train set is well-done. These toy trains are true to the movie.