Anyone Else Having Troubles with Recent Cab1L Handhelds??

You've probably already tried this, but just in case...  Have you tested your system with another remote to make sure that the rest of the system is working properly?

@Rod Stewart posted:

I am batting zero for two at this point. When the new crop showed up late last year I bought one from a well known distributor on this forum. Initially it worked fine, then it wouldn't control engine speed. I called Lionel, got an RA and shipped it off July 31. On Sept 7th I got a new replacement, which I thought was pretty fast since I was told it could take 6 to 8 weeks.

Sadly the new one is totally dead. Won't address engines at all, no activity lights on the base. Yes I put in new alkaline batteries, total voltage 6.7. It could be something as simple as a disconnected wire, but since its on warranty I don't feel that I should mess with it.

Anyone else having troubles with these new Cab1L's? I can't imagine this is an isolated case. I guess I'll be back on the phone to Lionel to get yet another RA. You would think they would test out a warranty replacement item before they waste time and money sending it out, especially cross-border both ways.

Rod

Guessing you already verified you are on same channel between base and new remote?

@Sean's Train Depot posted:

Guessing you already verified you are on same channel between base and new remote?

I have never changed channels of any remotes or bases. And I assume any new in box handheld would be in the default channel. But I will ask customer service today. Thanks!

Rod

@Mallard4468 posted:

You've probably already tried this, but just in case...  Have you tested your system with another remote to make sure that the rest of the system is working properly?

Yes thanks, my original Cab1L handheld works just fine as it has for years. Its the two new ones that are duds.

Rod

Rod, it's quite likely that the channel is mis-matched.

Start by determining which channel the BASE1L is on.

If you're running with the Legacy command base, press the indented button on the bottom once and observe the number of times the yellow base LED blinks, that is the channel from 1 thru 9.  See page #78 of the Legacy User's Guide v1.60.

To set the channel of the CAB1L, hold the set button and press the channel desired on the keypad from 1 thru 9.

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

Rod, it's quite likely that the channel is mis-matched.

Start by determining which channel the BASE1L is on.

If you're running with the Legacy command base, press the indented button on the bottom once and observe the number of times the yellow base LED blinks, that is the channel from 1 thru 9.  See page #78 of the Legacy User's Guide v1.60.

To set the channel of the CAB1L, hold the set button and press the channel desired on the keypad from 1 thru 9.

Ok John, Ill give that a try and report back. Nothing to lose, right?

All is well again in Cab1L land! Yahoo.

The Base 2 is set to channel 1 as I thought. No Idea what channel the new Cab1L was set to, but I reset it to channel 1 per John's instructions, and bingo, works like a champ. I guess that should have been my first action, oh well.

John, thanks for that handy consolidation of channel information; gonna copy it and keep on hand should I ever need it again.

Rod

@Rod Stewart posted:

Anyone else having troubles with these new Cab1L's? I can't imagine this is an isolated case.

Rod,

Thanks for joining the legions who portend doom when no such portent is actually called for.  We've all been guilty of this at one time or another.

I can't really blame you.  Most people would assume that things are indeed broken when they don't appear to work correctly, and that others must also be experiencing the same frustration, caused by the same failure, even if that's not the case.

Operator error is a strange thing.  Thank goodness each one of us, having been guilty of it as some time or another, has learned from it.  In the end no harm, no foul.

Mike

@Rod Stewart posted:

All is well again in Cab1L land! Yahoo.

The Base 2 is set to channel 1 as I thought. No Idea what channel the new Cab1L was set to, but I reset it to channel 1 per John's instructions, and bingo, works like a champ. I guess that should have been my first action, oh well.

Love the easy ones.  Maybe that wasn't a brand new remote after all.

Mike, I'm not portending anything, but the first brand new Cab1L certainly was broken, after only minimal use, and not abused in any way. And I guess it was not repairable, at least not readily, so they replaced it with what I assumed to be a brand new unit. No markings of any sort, and in a new box. I number all my remotes with a stick-on label on the back, with a matching number handwritten on its box. None of these markings was present on the replacement unit I received.

So after the early failure of the first unit I became understandably a bit wary of this new batch of Cab1L's. I am sorry if you don't see it that way, but that's just me. I certainly should have reset the channel to #1 as has been suggested, just as a matter of course, but hey, didn't happen. My bad. But things are back to normal and hopefully will stay that way! And Lionel handled the assessment and replacement in a very timely fashion, so they get top marks for that in my books. Nuff said.

Rod