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Thomas the Tank Engine and Strongman Cranky Set
First written June 12, 2024
In 1999 the very cool Thomas the Tank Engine and Strongman Cranky Set (きかんしゃトーマス ちからもちクランキーセット) was released for the Thomas Plarail series of toys. The set features Thomas, four troublesome trucks, Bulstrode the barge, and Cranky the crane at a two-track dock base with motorized action. The front of the box has very nice Owen Bell art of Thomas, Bulstrode, and Cranky at the docks.
Funnily enough, the original "laughing" troublesome truck face shown with Thomas on the box is not actually included in the set.
Set contents| Quantity |
Item |
Photo |
|---|---|---|
| 5 pieces |
Thomas (six wheel painted face) with four Troublesome Trucks |
 |
| 4 | R-02 Half Straight Rail |
 |
| 2 | R-04 Double Track Straight Rail |
 |
| 8 | R-05 Double Track Curved Rail |
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| 2 | R-08 Stop Rail |
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| 2 pairs | R-13 Single/Double Point Rail |
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| 1 | R-15 Double Track Point Rail (manual "lever-type" only) |
 |
| 5 pieces | Cranky at the Docks |
 |
This set includes the six-wheel version of the painted face Thomas as well as four troublesome trucks, which is very cool and helps to fill up the sidings in the yard and give Thomas and Cranky a nice long train to load.
From left to right, the included trucks are the "angry", "happy", "shocked", and "mischievous" faces. Being from 1999, they are late examples of the original 1996 toolings with the newer plastic-rimmed-screw chassis insert.
New for this set is the Cranky at the Docks destination, a double-track accessory with a motorized Cranky the Crane. The base of the dock includes two tracks, one with a manual stopper and the other with a catch-and-release mechanism powered by a C battery under the brown crates on the dockside. When a train arrives on the close line, its weight triggers the switch under the stop rail, starting the motor inside the base which runs Cranky back and forth, loading and unloading the train's cargo as it spins a timing gear that eventually drops the track stopper and releases the train before shutting off the motor.
Included as part of the accessory is Bulstrode the barge. Bulstrode is on wheels and can be "docked" to be loaded or rolled around elsewhere in the "sea". Cranky's bucket is removable and other things can be hung from his hook. The accessory's production period is located inside the brown crate battery compartment.
All set up this is probably one of the cooler Thomas Plarail sets from the 1990s with two big loops of track and a nice yard.
This set is pretty much perfect for expanding with more characters, especially ones that come with more trucks... with a few more trains you could have a very busy yard and docks with multiple trains running at once, switching them between the two loops and changing which trains are stopped in different sidings.
7409 Thomas and Cranky the Crane Train Set (Tomica World (Australia)) (2000)
In 2000 in Australia only a version of the Strongman Cranky set was released in Tomica World packaging as the Thomas and Cranky the Crane Set. Other than the packaging, this set is the same as the Japanese Plarail release. The box for this release can be seen here.
| Set name | Thomas the Tank Engine and Strongman
Cranky Set きかんしゃトーマス ちからもちクランキーセット 7409 Thomas and Cranky the Crane Train Set |
Release period | 1999-2000, Japan 2000, Australia |
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| Notes: | I really like this set, so I think I rated it a little too high | Price | 6800 yen (2000) |