Written on November 11, 2008 – 8:35 am | by Maria Mihale |


When you see something like this indoor, child-sized train set that can move young lads around, the only thing you can think about is that this kid’s dad must be a very wealthy, not to mention generous, man. Alright, people love their children, this is the human nature, and they all want to give them the best things in the world. But only the fortunate ones succeed to reach this purpose. This is why regular kids have to settle for tiny, toy train sets that they have to move around with their hands. But not rich kids!

If you have a home large enough to accommodate this Hand Crank Locomotive, chances are pretty good your kid will want this in his bedroom. Of course, those who could never afford such a thing would consider you nuts to splash $4,100 on the train set just for your kid in these times of economic crisis. But your children’s happiness has no price, isn’t it?

This is the heirloom locomotive reminiscent of the ones encountered at carnivals and fairs in the 1940s that uses simple pushing and pulling of a child’s arms on a hand-crank to propel it around an outdoor track. There are two included locomotives and each of them is made from cast aluminum with stainless steel crank handles, supporting a single child up to 100 lbs. Children are forced to make minimal efforts, as they crank, so each train glides easily on precision-crafted, cast-iron wheels with a familiar “click-clack” sound with no slipping.

The 30’ diameter 12-gauge circular track is made of welded steel and sets up in under one hour with the included fasteners and wrenches; it fits into its own 45 ¼ L x 19 W x 9 ¾ D inches rolling storage cases. The package includes two locomotives and the track, plus two nylon covers that are meant to protect the locomotives.

Each locomotive measures 47 x 25 x 23 inches and weighs 83 lbs, while the track weighs 32 lbs and can be purchased from Hammacher Schlemmer. This must be an awesome gift for kids, but due to the large size, I don’t think that many children will find this under the tree on Christmas morning. Not to mention the $4,100 price tag, and that to have it shipped to your door it will cost you $500. You couldn’t call this a bargain, could you? I’m sure you’ll have to confine yourself to buy your kid some Legos, like regular parents, right?

(Source: Dvice)