Do Lion Chief locos only run on the remotes?

LionChief Plus will operate on both a remote and conventional transformer.  Lionchief (the engines in sets) run only on a remote.

Thanks! Bummer!

Do they still make Lion Chief? Hasn't the entire line been upgraded to Lion Chief Plus?

RoyBoy posted:

Do they still make Lion Chief? Hasn't the entire line been upgraded to Lion Chief Plus?

Unless it changes in the upcoming catalog, all starter set engines are Lion Chief.

They make a Universal remote that can be a replacement if the original fails.

The 13 year old will like the remote.  My 13 year old nephew, who can't be separated from his iPhone, spent an hour and a half running Lion Chief Polar Express and PRR Broadway Limited sets on my Christmas layout.  My 10 year old daughter and 4 year old son run them as well.  I have conventional, LC, Legacy, TMCC, and DCS.  My LC engines and remotes have no problems and my kids like them the best.  The remote has been dropped many times and still works perfectly. 

Transformers add significant expense to starter set costs.  Not needed for the initial purchase.  Conventional control provides no real plus to the performance of LionChief locos.  You can however, operate them independently of conventional locos on a conventional layout because the remote and loco receiver provide command control.  No real disadvantage I can see.  No more disposable than a conventional transformer and a lot cheaper. 

A Lionel service bulletin came recently listing many LionChief sets that the universal remote will not run.

I have used my universal remote and it works great.

Click here: for LionChief and LionChief Plus Manuals

These are photos from my train room, hope this helps..............

These photos are from Lionel 4-6-4 Hudson. LionChief Plus - This will only help for the Plus Locomotive. Click on photos to enlarge.

Gary

Griff,

   If your sister purchases a Lion Chief Train Set, plan on it only running from the remote control, no matter which power source you intend to use.  Unfortunately it will not run like the old time Lionel conventional engines, straight off the transformer.  The Lionel Santa Express you see in the Picture above is a Lionel Chief train, it only operates from the Remote control that comes with the Lion Chief Train.  It is a way cool Christmas Train however, and the kids love the small remote control that is very child friendly.

PCRR/Dave

For a lionchief engine, can you set the remote to full throttle while applying variable voltage from the transformer? Or does the engine need approximately 18 volts to operate? Thanks

JD

JD,

   I can not remember exactly what voltage, I set my transformer at, for the LC Christmas Train, however it is low some where between 15-18V, then the actual speed is controlled along with backwards and forwards direction, from the Lion Chief remote control.  To much voltage from a transformer can damage the LC Engines so read the directions and do not set your transformer to high, especially if you plan on using a bigger transformer.  Operating like you are thinking of trying, would probably damage the engine.

PCRR/Dave

You can to a certain extent. But it really doesn't function as a Transformer controlled engine does. The lights get very dim and it doesn't respond the same. You also don't have any direction control that way.

You can to a certain extent. But it really doesn't function as a Transformer controlled engine does. The lights get very dim and it doesn't respond the same. You also don't have any direction control that way, except by using the remote.

Train Nut,

   I understand what you are getting at, but would not recommend running the LC engines in that manner.

PCRR/Dave

Pine Creek Railroad posted:

Griff,

   If your sister purchases a Lion Chief Train Set, plan on it only running from the remote control, no matter which power source you intend to use.  Unfortunately it will not run like the old time Lionel conventional engines, straight off the transformer.  The Lionel Santa Express you see in the Picture above is a Lionel Chief train, it only operates from the Remote control that comes with the Lion Chief Train.  It is a way cool Christmas Train however, and the kids love the small remote control that is very child friendly.

PCRR/Dave

PCRR/Dave, like your Toymaker Santa Express set? Any problems with it? Have you run additional cars with the set? If you have, what's the most cars the engine easily pulled before it appeared to struggle with them?

The best thing that happen to LionChief and LionChief Plus is the Universal Remote.  I am not a big fan of running these locos with the transformer. 

To learn more, check out these two threads on the OGR Forum.

LionChief Locomotive Compatibility List

https://ogrforum.com/t...e-compatability-list

Lionel Universal Remote • Video • Product Review & Demo

https://ogrforum.com/t...duct-review-and-demo

Gary

OGaugeGuy,

   No problem with the Santa Express at all, I have many other Christmas Cars I run in her consist, some even heavy tin plate, she runs on the top level side loop, and I usually do not put any more than 11 or 12 cars behind her, because of the size of the inside loop.  Never have tried to load her down and see the max I could pull however.  

PCRR/Dave

On the original question, regular LionChief can only use the remote, LC Plus have a switch to use conventional control as well, though you lose access to a couple of features when running conventional.  

I've found the quality of the remotes to be pretty good in all but the very lowest cost starter sets.  The weakest point is probably the throttle knob, which seems like the only thing that could break without applying a hammer.  Even the knob, however is not any weaker than any potentiometer knob on any other device in the world.  It won't break unless you're trying to break it.  On the very low end Dinosaur Diesel set I purchased, the remote seems to be made of a lower grade of plastic, but still seems unlikely to be broken in normal use.  The Universal remote also seems to be made of a lower quality plastic than the remotes that come in the sets and with + engines, but this may just be my perception.  Even if they are not as strong as the original remotes, the universal still feels solid enough.  There are some things about the design that I don't like very much, but nothing that should be a problem for most users. Perhaps I'll do a video on dissecting one of these remotes in the future.  

In general my thoughts on this are, if you have a kid that is likely to throw a remote at the floor or some such, they are just as likely to throw the locomotive in such a manner, and maybe an O-gauge train isn't the right choice for them.  There are lots of fantastic wooden trains on the market today.  

As for setting the remote all the way up and using the transformer to reduce voltage as a speed control, this is not likely to work very well.  I don't see it likely to harm the engine as long as track voltage remains between 8 and 18 VAC, but because of the way the internal power supply works, you are likely to run at full speed with the throttle set at 9 VAC.  That's enough voltage for the motor to receive the same power it does at 18 VAC.  

With LC+ engines, this won't work at all, as the speed control circuit will take over and increase the power to the motor.  In testing of these engines I found that LC+ engines are capable of reaching top speed, or at worst, one step below top speed, with as little as 8 VAC on the track... and they require more than 7 VAC to operate at all.  

If one really wanted to convert a started set LionChief engine to conventional control, it wouldn't be particularly hard.  Any electronic E-unit would do the job, but you woul lose the sounds and remote control capability.  I suppose one could add a switch to toggle between boards if they wanted.  

JGL