I'm new to the Monorail Playsets

[DisneyDad73]

Hello!

I've just discovered the monorail playlets and all the truly nifty things that go with them. Very exciting.

I could really use a primmer, though. Is there a starter guide someone could point me to? A board where people who collect this sort of thing talk all about it? I'm just looking for some basic info and opinions. Things like...

- are all the trains and their tracks compatible? Including the older ones without the opening doors and then new ones with them?
- do the new opening doors really fall off all the time? Has anyone been able to fix that?
- how, exactly, to the activation switch thingies work??

thanks!!!

 

[DisneyDad73]

Hello-

I've now read through everything that came up on the board history under a search for 'monorail' in this forum...and surprisingly, no answers of the kind above. Someone MUST know this!!!

But, while I'm at it...I have another question...

the newer monorails (w/ the doors that open, etc) and the older ones....are the engines identical (excepting stripe color)? Is the difference only in the middle cars, or is the whole set different?

thanks!

 

[jaygalterio]

As far as I know, the tracks between the sets are identical. As long as you are referring to the full size Monorail set. I believe there is also a "mini" set which is more decoration than motorized.

You can also find some home made tracks for sale over on eBay.

The doors, at least on the set I have, do fall off. They aren't firmly attached, which is probably good. If they were they'd probably easily break and ruin the whole car.

I do think the sets are pretty much the same despite the color differences.

I'm not sure about the activation switch you are referring to.

- J

 

[Reto]

- are all the trains and their tracks compatible?

Yes.

Including the older ones without the opening doors and then new ones with them?

Yes, these are compatible as well.

- do the new opening doors really fall off all the time? Has anyone been able to fix that?

Not on my monorail playsets (Green and Teal). But then again, I don't really touch the doors, since I just use mine to run it around my christmas tree.

- how, exactly, to the activation switch thingies work??

A simple forward / stop / reverse switch on the left-hand side of the lead car, plus one on top of it where you can turn on/off the announcements.

The playsets currently cost $79.95 (someone correct me if I'm wrong). Spare tracks are also sold (recommend getting at least one set of straight tracks, since the playsets include only two of them).

In addition to the trains sold at WDW, there's a different Disneyland version out there, featuring their new, fanca-looking red trains. The coolest thing about it is, that these trains are remote-controlled.

Here's a photo I took to show you the difference between a WDW and a Disneyland monorail:


New Disneyland Monorail Playset by Reto Kurmann, on Flickr

 

[dISNEYlOveer]

Hello!

I've just discovered the monorail playlets and all the truly nifty things that go with them. Very exciting.

I could really use a primmer, though. Is there a starter guide someone could point me to? A board where people who collect this sort of thing talk all about it? I'm just looking for some basic info and opinions. Things like...

- are all the trains and their tracks compatible? Including the older ones without the opening doors and then new ones with them?
- do the new opening doors really fall off all the time? Has anyone been able to fix that?
- how, exactly, to the activation switch thingies work??

thanks!!!

I have one of the old monorials(doors don't open) and it is gold and i have green(with opening doors) yes they are compatable on the same tracks and the doors fall of VERY easy and for the activation switch q there is a switch on the left side of one of the trains that makes it go forward and backwards(forwards goes faster because it pull instead of pushing the car) and for the second post:i don't know what you mean...

 

[CandyMandy]

Actually, I believe the OP's use of the term "activation switch thingies' doesn't refer to the on/off direction control switch on the engine car of the trains (or the very basic, limited remote control that comes with the Disneyland version).

Rather, I suspect they are referring to the now out of production and comparatively hard to find attraction activation units (shown below). Those are special track pylons with a built in switch (a plunger type that is activated when a monorial passes over it). The switch can be connected via a hard wired control unit to one of the three also out of production ride attraction playsets (Dumbo, Teacups and Astro-Orbiter).

When set up, the units cause the attraction -- if it is working -- to start running when a monorial goes by it. I add "if it is working" because the attraction playsets are notoriously unreliable (particularly the Astro Orbiter and Dumbo; the motor/gear systems in both are similar and poorly designed, so they almost always fail early in the life of either toy). In fact, this has led to a cottage industry developing on eBay, where specialists sell services to repair these units, which basically involves completely replacing their cheap mechanical guts with a more robust drive system.

Lastly, IMHO the most useful and valuable accessory for those who really want their monorial sets to have full "play value" is another out of production item, the monorail switching station, pic below (which some collectors erroneously refer to as the "TTC.") It allows you to connect up to three separate track loops and move trains between them , which can make for some exciting action when you have multiple one simultaneously running.

 

[tcsta]

I also just started collecting the monorail playsets as a result of receiving one as a gift this Christmas. I'm having a great time so far researching them! It's a bit frustrating that some of the more interesting pieces are discontinued, but I guess the hunt will become part of the fun.

From what I've seen, I agree with CandyMandy that the switching station is one of, if not the, coolest pieces to have.