The Lionel Mail Pickup Set No. 161 would transfer a mail bag from the arm to a passing car. This is the only Lionel accessory that attempted to do this, and it was supposed to do this with the clever use of a magnet and the use of an electronic coil contained in the stand. It was available from 1961 until 1963.

The placement of this accessory is critical to its proper operation and some shimming or other alignment of the base may be necessary. The instruction sheet says it should be 2-1/4 inches from the track. Lionel included in the parts envelope (No. 161-30) a magnet (Part No. 161-23) and special glue capsule (Part No. 3330-102) that was to be used to attach the magnet to a car. As the train passed by, and the rotating arm on the No. 161 was activated with a No. 90 Controller, the bag was detached from the arm by the magnet that was on the side of the designated car. This magnet is often missing from this accessory.

Only one instruction sheet was printed for this mail pickup set and it uses BLACK ink on BLUE-GREEN paper and is numbered 161-32 and dated 9-61.