Last Updated on March 31, 2024 by Dave Farquhar
Marx train set 9616 was an electric train set Marx that Sears sold in 1953 and 1954. But you may also hear collectors refer to it as Happi-Time train set 9616, because that’s what Marx printed on the box.
Happi-Time train set 9616
Set #9616 was the low-end Marx train electric set in Sears’ 1953 and 1954 Christmas catalogs. Sears priced it at $9.65. That’s about $110 in 2023 dollars. This set predates Sears’ use of the Allstate brand on its train sets.
Marx lettered this set inconsistently, with a Marlines tender and New York Central caboose. This was a toy, not a scale model. Marx put the humble but hard-working 400 locomotive at the front of the train. The engine and tender were plastic, while the freight cars were 6-inch lithographed tin.
It consisted of the following:
- 400 loco w/ headlight and reverse
- Marlines 4WP tender
- 86000 D&LW blue hopper
- 553 Union tank car
- 20102 New York Central (NYC) caboose
- 10 pc O27 track (advertised as 102 inches of track)
- 1209 transformer
A 45-watt transformer and an oval of 10 pieces of O27 track rounded out the set. Specifically, it included eight O27 curved sections and a pair of O27 straight sections. Sears called it 102 inches of track in its catalog description. It makes it sound bigger than calling it a 27-inch x 35-inch oval. Sears also sold extra track at 18 cents apiece for O27, and 22 cents apiece for wide-diameter O34 curves.
If you have one of these sets and you’d like to see it running again, I have advice on setting up a Marx train set. I also have some tips on refurbishing a model 1209 transformer.
Positioning
Sears positioned this set as its entry-level electric set. Customers who bought windup sets in previous years could use this set to upgrade their kids to electric. 6-inch cars from windup sets worked just fine alongside 6-inch cars in electric sets. This set stood in contrast with set# 9625 from a year earlier, with new lithography on the freight cars, and a plastic engine and tender.
Value
I frequently get questions about the value of old Marx train sets. As for the value of set 9616 today, I would estimate it at $50-$75. Nothing in the set is especially rare or unusual.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.
I wish I could still get O-scale track for 18¢ a piece. That is amazing. I realize the dollar was worth more at that time but still!
The hobby shops near me sell used track for 25 cents for curved sections and 50 cents for straight sections. I looked it up (I should probably add this to the blog post) and 18 cents in 1953 is about $2 today. Modern track systems tend to sell for more than $2 per section, but part of that is because it’s no longer a mass-market item, and the market is so fragmented now, so that turned every type of track into a niche, specialty product with a price to match.