The Tyco Turbo Train with Nite Glow is a super fast model train set released in the US, UK, and other markets worldwide in 1986.
Concept
Billed as ‘Worlds Fastest Train!’, the Turbo train has parallels with actual super fast trains in the real world, such as the Japanese Shinkansen series, and French TGV series. Aerodynamically shaped, with liberal use of the world ‘Turbo’, and fluorescent materials, this item has late 80s Tyco written all over it!
Can you imagine being a kid and getting this big box with a TURBO TRAIN inside? So cool.
Features
Turbo Train ships with several futuristically styled set pieces such as a tunnel, tower, and station. These come as hard cardboard pieces that need cut-out and glued or stuck together, which aren’t as glamorous as they look on the box but are better than nothing.
Together with the excellent box art we always find on Tyco products, and the glow-in-the-dark ‘Nite-Glow’ feature, this would have been a memorable present to wake up to on Christmas morning.
For collectors, finding a set with these cardboard buildings in good condition, or ideally not yet built won’t be as difficult as you might think, since many simply did’nt bother to build them!
It’s also important to remember that for Nite-Glow they just include the glow-in-the-dark tape, and made you decorate the set with it, rather than paint it directly on during manufacturing. I always thought that was a bit lame, though I can see how it adds some entertainment value and obviously would have reduced overall cost.
Important! Not compatible with regular track
While it appears similar, Turbo Train is not compatible with regular nickel-silver / brass track. In order to make the wall climbing (and later loop and jump mechanics) the track on Turbo Train is a ferrous metal alloy, to make it magnetic. Many modelers were disappointed to find the train itself didn’t run on their existing track, so if you’re grabbing one of these be aware!
Track Layout
The Turbo Train track appears to be the standard HO scale brass track that you’d find in any Tyco model train set, though it’s interesting in this case how they’ve combined that with ‘modern’ (at the time) slot car technology in the vehicles, though I’ll cover that later.
The main event with this track is obviously its wall climb, and it looks just as cool in real life as it does in this box art (see below).
Vehicles
The Turbo Train itself is a three section model. Looking at the underside, it’s startlingly similar to a Tyco Magnum 440-X2 slot car design, in fact the chassis with the motor and magnets looks almost identical, simply modified to attach to a larger plastic train chassis and train wheels.
Availability and Collectability
The Tyco Turbo train #7427 is occasionally available on eBay in various conditions, though its successor the Super Turbo Train is probably more common and arguably even better than the original.
Both as a toy and collectable, the Turbo Train is admittedly pretty darn cool, even for kids more familiar with modern toys. As a collector of Tyco Toys, Models, and Trains, the only thing that might stop you from grabbing one is its successor!
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