LEGO® Set Review: 4515 Straight Rails
4515
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[Photo not currently available]
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Straight Rails (us,uk)
8 rails droits (fr)
8 lige skinner (da)
8 gerade Schienen (de)
8 Rechte rails (9 Volt) (nl)
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Trains / 9v
Ages 8-12 / 8 Pcs
No manual, no pages, no catalog :(.
©1991,1994
Price Range: $19.99 Canadian, plus 15% tax, around $3 per piece of track
Review Written: 22 March 1995 by Calum Tsang
Special Features / Compatibility
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Extra Elements
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Decals: None
Scale: 9v Trains
Errors: None
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Ratings:
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Set: Must-Have
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Models: Good
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Playability: Must-Have
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Conclusion
Improves your train system so much, they're a necessity if you own trains.
Description
A small box, with 8 pieces of train track for Lego System trains, such as the (yay!) 4558 Metroliner or Load and Haul/Railrunner sets. All put together, it gives you a 103 cm run. By putting four pieces of side of the standard oval of the Metroliner, it extends your layout to around 150 cm wide. An elongated oval.
It's the same track as the straight pieces that come with the trains. Just more of it. They have metal tops for conducting electricity,
snapping together at the ends. They seem to be less rigid that 4.5V track. There are also curved tracks (#4520) and switches/points (#4531). My next intended purchase is those damned 4MB of Static Column ZIPs for my Amiga
3000/25 (har har dammit!), but after that, the $31-40 switches, will be my next prey. Hahahaha! More on that later.
Impression
I will tell you up front, while bringing it home, I had my doubts. Would my family, think the track never even grew? Well, you can see easily the Metroliner loop is longer with the addition of this set. But the idea is you need more, much more, to make a somewhat reasonable train system.
I would have felt it was worth it, if it was a bit cheaper like $15.00 per pack of 8, because I paid $300 for the Metroliner. But alas, it does make the train more fun. It's like computers, they get you on the accessories.
Ratings
Set Rating:Must-Have
Why? Because the [gosh-darned] Metroliner track is too small! You
need track for a train to run on. Me, with my remaining money from the
Metroliner, bought the track. It's much more playable now, and might
actually fit into the Lego town properly, instead of circling the airport.
It's a given I will buy more...
Model Rating:Good
Well, I'm tempted to build a several meter run out to my airport,
distancing it as some sort of commuter run. The track seems much more
realistic than say 4.5V track or 12V track (same thing, but with a middle
rail), but the 9V track has something odd to it. I can't place my finger
on it. It maybe because only half of the rail is metal, meaning, the rail
is capped with metal. It seems cheap.
Playability Rating:Must-Have
Look, the only reason it's a Must-Have, is because the Metroliner is deficient in length of track. Adding more track means more realism, which means more fun in laying it out and planning your rail line, more fun in running the train around. I noticed, now, that the Metroliner, with a 10 (or is it 11) VAC P/S, will derail at top speed. Because the train has distance to pick up speed before rounding the corners.
It does mean a lot of fun, if you have more though. If you have say $100, yeah, it really becomes much more fun.
Elements
8 pieces of Lego straight track. Nothing else :)
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