195 Floodlight Tower

Prodution:  1957 - 1969

History
For 1957, Lionel introduced an updated and redesigned Floodlight Tower accessory. The result was the introduction of the 195 Floodlight Tower -- replacing the popular 395 Floodlight Tower.

Some enthusiasts feel the 195 tower was a big step down in quality when compared to its predecessor. This feeling is primarily due to the 195 being slightly smaller and constructed mostly with plastic as compared to the all-metal and larger 395 tower. However -- and somewhat ironically -- the 195 is actually a more realistic floodlight tower seen in many communities of America during the later 1950s.

In addition to the 195 Floodlight Tower, the 199 Microwave Relay Tower and 299 Code Transmitter Set all share the same base and superstructure assembly.

Features
The 195 Floodlight Tower includes the following standard features: plastic base, silver plastic superstructure and a bank or eight lights on the top.

Variations to this accessory include the following:

• Base Color - Ranges from light tan to dark tan with darker tan being the later production variation.
• Lettering - On most towers, the letters 'Lionel' are painted red. However, some of the later production towers have unpainted lettering. The exact date of change is unknown.
• Lettering on Base - When viewed from the bottom, some towers are stamped in red '195 Flood Light' with the actual mold being numbered '199 Microwave Tower'.

Additional Detail, Photos & Box Information

Numerous Variation - Due to the number of differences with the color of the base, the Lionel lettering and stamping on the base, there are numerous variations to this accessory. The only collectable variation which will carry a premium is the tower variation having '195 Flood Light' stamped in red on the bottom of the base (see second photo below for an example).

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