MEGA TGV Train Lot from eBay - Will They Run?

For almost my entire time in the hobby I've wanted a TGV train set however they tend to be expensive so I've been on the hunt for a budget set for a while now. I was browsing eBay around a month ago and I came across this lot with three different TGV sets. I managed to win the auction and after having a look at them in person I have to say that the seller under-rated the condition of all of them. Each will still need some work but I don't think it will take much.

[@brianbenson1973]

Vintage 80s Limas are Awesome! 😎

[@jasper_saberwolf]

Always loved the look of those old orange TGV trains with the older looking headlights and split windscreens. Happy to see your eBay find was even better than expected!

[@canadianbehaviour8280]

Just got back from the pub, lo and behold Harrison posts a video. Tonight just got a whole lot better

[@antonbruce1241]

Damn! Those ARE pretty good runners!!!! And yes - give that seller a great review!!!! Nice haul, Harrison!!!

[@HeavyTanker-vx4oq]

The Orange, Black and White is one of the most iconic TGVs ever.

[@legorj35]

I bet that the controller of the seller is broken and not den trains XD

[@antonbruce1241]

And all that newspaper...something for Nerf Cat to play with!!!! :)

[@leewaymodels]

I saw that ebay listing and was tempted. Come on, TGVs ! The best passengers trains in the world! I have many of them, including à full Atlantic (blue and silver) 10 cars + 2 locomotive set. The orange one is the "Sud-Est" version.

[@leewaymodels]

You have Lima and Jouef (pronounced Jou-Ef). They are normally not compatible together (not the same coupling mecanism) Other info: -Lima has a pancake motor. - If you can find a Bachmann or a Model Power TGV, they were both made by Jouef in the playcraft factoryand are identical to the Jouef in all intent and purposes.

[@DowneastProductions211]

Man I was just about to send you one dang

[@dkendrick1916]

The French are taking over smt’s layout

[@Trainman4014]

No the us have the layout

[@patrickhundley1203]

Those are awesome looking trains! I’ve always wanted either a TGV or Eurostar.

[@ARP_GA]

Great Video SMT! These are my favorite videos you post. :)

[@MontrealtrainChannel]

Nices sets you get there. The TGV Atlantic from Jouef made in 1981 with metal wheels. Have the same set but add on cars are pretty hard to find and expensives. The orange one are TGV PSE by Lima made around same year. I have my own with 3 middle cars that represent the world speed record in 1981 with was 380 km/h and the trainset was number 16 as we have in Model.

[@bmtrains1003]

It’s a nice looking train set

[@martinross5521]

Great win Harrison, so pleased these first two units and the loose motor are runners. I used the silver and blue TGV from Paris to Le Mans and back - incredible speed and comfort. Unusual to see the wheel sets bridging across the cars. When you’ve added TLC, these should be perfect 🤩

[@resender329]

IMHO the original (orange) French TGV, the Britisch HST 225 & German ICE 1 are the best looking European HST trains from that era

[@Amtraklover10002]

I never have had a model-train-set and I love your CSX and Union Pacific trains 🎉🎉🎉

[@acrranscaleandlifejourney4330]

Great trains SMT! And all three are runners. Great haul.

[@ferrovocho28]

Wow, great train sets!

[@tv4184]

I remember as a kid in the 90s, I used to go to this local shop and see a single silver TGV on their main display. I guess they got it as a gift because it was never for sale and they never got those models in. It wasn't until into the late 90s that I convinced my mom to buy me a cheap TGV set on a trip to France while visiting relatives. It was super cheap because the drive motor wasn't even in the engine car, it was just a stand alone motor that connected two of the rail cars. It wasn't as nice as my heavyweight bachmann Pennsylvania set but it was still awesome to have. I don't know if my dad gave them away or not. I might have to make a trip to their house to see what HO scale models are still laying about.

[@DAFIOX]

These are some sharp looking TGV!

[@pelletierrailway4455]

Tgv was my favourite hi speed when I was young

[@elleryparsons5766]

Nice Haul Harrison.

[@callmebigpapa]

Neat to see an auction you saw. Great video!

[@dannyshortwave]

Great find!!!

[@northerncountryrailroad8939]

Nice

[@vettebecker1]

I had both these sets years ago, great catch!!

[@HarryDiecast]

Wow! Those are some nice-looking models you got. I hope to one day get my own TGV as well. Congratulations on another win!

[@HarryDiecast]

Thanks for all the 👍

[@Demun1649]

I bet I get my TGV before you get yours. And mine will be in T-Gauge, so not an RTR from the shop. And don't forget the TGV has changed over the years, as they get better and better. Compare the first TGV to the TGV Duplex, or the TGV POS, or the TGV M.

[@HarryDiecast]

@Demun1649 I hope you do get a TGV, and I have no doubt you will get one before me. A TGV in T-Gauge sounds awesome! I need to do more research to find out which TGV I should get.

[@Demun1649]

@@HarryDiecastMy TGVs are being re-scaled from 1:220 down to 1:450. Going to take a while as I am running at least 3, and full 16 coaches on each train. The one I am getting is the Duplex version, the double-decker one. And I'm building a Netherlands layout at the same time, they look very cool in their blue and yellow livery.

[@jolla9963]

I could have hours of fun with these 3 set. I too like the TGVs. I'd have a siding for just these trains.

[@ChristopherBrown-mq1lg]

Cool looking trains 👍 and they run !

[@casstelles]

A lot of sellers on Ebay often don't list engines as running to avoid the problems with returns. If they sell it as 'non-working' and it works, then it is a bonus to the buyer. Another phrase for sellers are 'not tested - as is' or 'for parts' to avoid returns problems, also.

[@shockstrains5077]

those TGVs look amazing smt!

[@chasesrailwaylinesrr6447]

The way to tell if it's playart Is for the fact that They wired their locomotives backwards To Bachman Athen atlas ex...

[@0v3rr1d3]

That silver set is beautiful! Can't wait to see it running all together!

[@eugenewebber535]

Good deal! A couple minutes tinkering, bam, 3 whole sets. Kudos to the seller.

[@louisianamainlineproductions]

I like the “well folks in today’s video” He’s gonna do this forever

[@terielrand8344]

Me too! I have always wanted an orange one!

[@commandermodels]

I went to France for 10 days a few days ago, spotted some TGV trains and even sat in one (Arras-Paris). Very nice trains!

[@mercuryoak2]

Wow. I got to say I always love finding out that when someone says it doesn't run or they say they don't know if it runs at all and then they do end up running it's like a State of Shock. But knowing that they're going to get some TLC is a great thing. I never really seen these type only on here. I wonder something if the coupling was the same could the cars in the middle of one of the sets be linked together with the other one to make it longer.? They are odd looking but also very neat modern-day High-Speed Rail. Nice catch man

[@Demun1649]

What is odd looking? Do you refer to the TGV?

[@rayronvr]

really good find

[@OscarHernandez-el3mq]

Lucky I hope you have fun whit those locomotives

[@ParkerCt]

I was about to get this, but you beat me to it.

[@keatonsparksvideoproductions]

Sweet set

[@NSNUT2013]

liked the blue and silver version. I also have a soft spot for the orange and black TGV, i also have a lego version of it that was offered by lego (kinda expensive......i think it was a $300 set)

[@michaelhoffman6354]

You can run three separate trains to tour the Hershey factory!

[@myvideosetc.8271]

This Lima TGV trains for some reason went from 20€ for a second hand full set to more than 100€ in a year, it was a really strange trend, it happened maybe 6 or 7 years ago. I have both this trains, the Juef one is specially noisy like yours but they look awesome.

[@SMTMainline]

I've seen that happen before. In 2013 you could find a big boy in good condition for $120, now a good one goes for around $200 or more...

[@myvideosetc.8271]

@@SMTMainline I find so funny that in both sides of the atlantic we are talking about the same trains, I saw Rivarrosi Big boys around thet prices long ago too. Your collection is SO different (and bigger) than mine :)

[@christophermondone6864]

im glad all three motors are working, just having to some maintanince

[@Bonzoguy66]

I drove in one of these, in summer 1983, from Paris to Nice...really fast:-D .My first trainset, was a Lima....cheap and not very detailed, and mostly plastic.

[@SMTMainline]

I rode in one of the Atlantics a few years ago, it was a great experience.

[@MrThairacer]

yeah 👍 Lima motor G was very good and efficient, i get one from 1981 and is working good, just to repair some plastic and put headlights, i get some atlantic jouef tgv 🚄 like new but i needed to change rubber wheels, i done it but you have to dismantle the gears and after the motor blocked :(, so i have to find the perfect gears position and it works like a charm ! i already have digitalized the lima 😅 , i will do after for the jouef . the atlantic version from jouef from 2015 is so easy to open, the lima version from the eighteen is awful ! great video mates :) , on my channel since 6 months i do train models and i rocks !

[@wilks3620]

An orange tvg is something I've always wanted, the only one I have is some old technic 9 battery operated plastic n scale one with magnets for couplers. It does fit on n scale track but clearly isnt meant to be used on actual model track as it doesn't turn on any curves easily. Been chasing a model one for a while but they are very expensive lol.

[@kennymcgowan2880]

Hey SMT, nice set x's 2, definitely on my train set list. Ebay may be the place I need to go for train sets..

[@TexasRailfan21-RailfanRyan]

What a great find you should put all the orange cars in one train and see how well you can run a full TGV I think the orange paint scheme is the old and the blue paint scheme is the new correct me if I'm wrong I'm not an expert on the French TGV passenger trains which actually broke the speed record over 300 mph I forget how fast but it broke the speed record

[@ivovanzon164]

The Lima with the removed bogies could be the result of a two motor conversion which was often done to run a full length consist

[@erikthepirate8068]

Looks Cool!

[@haasebahn]

I’ve saved up a lot of money, and I will buy a whole lot of model trains at one of those train shows where an old antique locomotive it 20 dollars. To show how these train shows work, I got a box of 3 locomotives and 15 or so freight cars. I could’ve got a big lot of antique streamlined cars for 60 dollars, including the locomotives and B units, but I didn’t.

[@jonathantebbutt1305]

The TGV Is a lovely train. The British Rsil High Speed Train is also a great looker. So many deliveries to choose from too.

[@cpcnmodelrailroadingrailfa9339]

wow you need to turn your train yard into one for TGV's i can't wait for your next video :D

[@AussieGunzel]

Remember getting a TGV alantique 2nd hand on ebay

[@Trains-With-Shane]

Very cool to see that the sets are mostly in running status and will only require a little bit of maintenance. Are you sure it all came from France? The box says fra-gee-lay.. Might be Italian ;) You've inspired me to put a few model train vids up on my channel. One of them is even an ebay repair. :) Cheers Harrison. -Shane

[@cbarry7570]

you should add a decoder to the rivarossi berkshire. only reason why is because I like restoration videos! that's why I subscribed Aswell.

[@exlimey1417]

I remember seeing that orange TGV in the store in the 1980s. Never did pull the trigger on getting one, too expensive for this youngster.

[@raymondleggs5508]

I was hoping the Jouef ones would work! and they did!

[@High_Green_Productions]

Wow!

[@noahvaive5291]

You should make a really long train with the cars of the broken sets

[@cbarry7570]

hi! love the videos! nice video btw

[@Brianrockrailfan]

Awesome train lot :)

[@TheLocutus70]

Great haul.

[@johnm.withersiv4352]

I love passenger train sets. I've always wanted a full set of Amtrak.

[@CPLWTrainz]

What hobby shops would you recommend for the Ottawa area? Came from the east and I'm thinking about popping into Larkspur line but I'm curious if there's any other spots I should look into.

[@busvehiculesettrainsdefran6827]

Good TGV Atlantique blue and grey and TGV orange Sud est 👍

[@MMRails]

“I’ve always wanted one of these” is something you say a lot. May I see your wanted list? How many more to go? Haha. Awesome haul. Never heard of it.

[@SMTMainline]

When I was a youngster I dreamed of having a whole bunch of different locomotives and consists and so far I've found the majority of the ones I was looking for.

[@WMRailSpotter]

The lima TGV looks like it has similar tooling to the hornby Eurostar as the hornby Eurostar also uses shared trucks between the passenger cars (the Eurostar runs between England and france via the English channel using a tunnel under water)

[@JBofBrisbane]

The real Eurostar is based on the TGV technology, hence the articulated carriages.

[@theoldbayrailfan]

Wow such a cool lot I wish I had that

[@steve87thpsap]

You get some of he best old things.

[@Orgnet23]

Draco malfoy? no, im just kidding. but great videos. just found the channel, and i really enjoy the mega lots! keep up the good work harrison!

[@liftoff3270]

wow i alwase wanted to buy a lot like that but i can nver find any on ebay

[@galahad6334]

To be fair, Lima offers the best model trains. they might not be as detailed as roco, fleischmann or bachmann, but you cant break them. a train I own most likely ran more miles then my car.

[@andrewking2193]

I got an orange and gray TGV a few years back for a good price, I don't know if they run because I'm afraid to try it till I get a better controller.

[@reglementme6321]

Nice vids you have.

[@ExploringPennsylvania]

Like these vids

[@robertcrundwell2782]

I have an 8 car lash up but no power unit which was broken by a neighbor's kid. Still trying to find one.

[@KayoMichiels]

And to think... the original TGV was a gas powered turbine... but due to the oil crisis, they were converted to electric...

[@Bobbys110]

Wow love the video

[@SMTMainline]

Thanks

[@Bobbys110]

@@SMTMainline your welcome man

[@AmaanSiddiqui]

Your fan from INDIA 🇮🇳

[@Trainman4014]

3 for 3 running

[@designyourcards]

How do you know which side is the back and which is the front when taking a photo of a train for ebay? If it has a tender does it always go left to right or right to left ? Thanks for your help

[@mikeyfulger7449]

Hi I know this is a little off topic but I just purchased a 1970’s Chessie system Steam locomotive and it goes a little bit then stops, could you do a video on how to clean and lube up a steam engine from the 70’s if you have one or have the same engine I have use that as demonstration I’m trying to get it running completely again. And I been watching your videos for a while now and would love for someone that’s as educationed on trains as you are to help me out with my issue.

[@Pink_salmon]

Fist to watch a masterpiece

[@smittygod6719]

Would you know where I can find a new drive axle for a 1970 Lionel ho scale daylight, mine (brand new) was snapped I’m assuming during shipping

[@vuurvrrailfanner4656]

Can you do another video with the train runaway train 1985?

[@tugsandtrains78]

Also I love your videos

[@clapz_nxmb378]

SMT mainline i really need help my y6b motor is smoking and it would vibrate but the train wouldn't move at all

[@QuebecFietser]

Make a huge mixed TGV set and make a video about it

[@Matteroftaste666]

Did you know the first ever TGV was a turbo train

[@amtrakguy1547]

There’s a lots of dummy locomotives and some passenger cars

[@gamerfan8445]

I think I saw that listen

[@tugsandtrains78]

Dear SMT main line on KZbin on Leo’s story time there will be a live stream that I hope you can join thank you

[@EMD_F59PHI]

*AH, Les TGVs! SNCF 40 Ans.* *AH the TGVs! SNCF Is 40 Years Old.*

[@JesusGarcia-ch9gl]

What day you're going to use the southern Pacific railroad #99 0-4-0

[@JesusGarcia-ch9gl]

They are going to bring back the 4-6-2 golden engine? 🤨

[@mistermadmachine6311]

😮