CW going out?

What do you mean by "everything was lit up?" Was everything connected to the accessory terminals? Gonna need more information on what "everything" is and how you have everything connected.

No accessories, just track power.  The switches were lit up and the train started moving, with the handle in the off position.  18.5 volts with the handle off.

RK

Do you have the  A terminal connected to the middle track and the U terminal connected to one of the outside tracks?

 The A terminal is for variable voltage controlled by the handle.

Hooked up correctly.  Been running trains for 3 days with no problems.  Tonight turn on the power strip, handle off, train took off.  Hit the direction button, e-unit cycled to neutral.  Unplugged it to turn it off.  Took off the track wires, plugged it back in, 18.5 volts, handle in the off position.

do you know that CW stands for Command Warp Speed!!

 

$oo

From what I've read here it seems that this could be a blessing in disguise.  Only the CW80 gets problematic posts.  There's a lot of other good ones out there.

Alan

And I was told CW stands for Can't Work! as in CW-80 a.k.a. can't work 80.

Mainly because the first run of CW-80's were problematic.

 

Lee F.

Well, if everything is hooked up correctly then yes, something is wrong with your CW-80. I dont know why this would suddenly occur.

The good news is that it is still a good transformer for running accessories and/or command locomotives.

The bad news is that its not much good for conventional trains.

You could try calling Lionel. They have been pretty good about replacing dud CW-80s. No guarantees though, considering you've had it well past any warranty period.

I never owned a CW-80, but heard the failure of a certain electronic component will cause this problem. Maybe it is time to replace the transformer.

Time to break out the old ZW.

Before scrapping it, I would modify it to be a fixed (18v) transformer.  Just remove the circuit board and connect the transformer output wires directly to the 2 sets of terminals on the back, and close it back up.

 

Now you have a pure sine wave 18V 5amp (+/-) fixed voltage transformer.  I use one to power a spare Z-1000 controller, giving me a MTH compatible 100W transformer.

 

Ed

I agree, Dale M. has load tested the CW transformer core to 8 amps / 130 watts and it is a beast.  Great unit for all kinds of applications.

I wouldn't give up on CW-80's, by any means.  I have four on my all-conventional layout and two extras on hand for impromptu carpet setups.  Considering they can be had new for $40-45 on the secondary market from set break-ups, they're the best value out there, from my perspective.

 

Ebay user jopchen sells tons of CW-80's cheap--got several of mine from him.

Like eddiem says, it's easily adapted to a fixed voltage supply, you just need a special triangular-shaped screwdriver bit to open the case. I have a very similar CW40 transformer which lost its variable output, but the transformer component without the electronics is still good for fixed AC output.

I too have a cw80 with the same problem. full output no variable. now resides in the cellar.  BUT where is the problem?  id fix it if its just a cheap resistor,diode,or ?  Anyone know the cause or part ??  

I'll take the CW over to my dad.  His is an electronics wizard, maybe he can figure it out.  He says he has the triangle bit to open up the case.  The kids like the small CW and it saves the ZW rollers.  I think from reading the forum several years back, Lionel changed the internals on the transformer.  I can always get another from the BAY.  I can check the local Alaska Lionel dealer, but that is 160 miles from me.

I would think that in Alaska, that is pretty close