A few weeks ago I posted on the forum that after repairing a non-operating pantograph on a JLC scale GG-1 I, shortly thereafter, in a stroke of genius completely mangled said pantograph. I felt a definite need for some kind of redemption. In any event, earlier this week while I was attempting to reclaim the area from underneath my layout from an overabundance of partially filled plastic storage boxes and other assorted paraphernalia I came across an engine I bought way back circa 1976 and which I had a short time later devastated in a disastrous derailment and a four foot fall to the concrete basement floor. The front and rear trucks were bent and twisted almost beyond recognition and the engine would no longer run. At the time of the accident I possessed absolutely no maintenance or repair skills whatsoever. Nevertheless, I attempted the impossible. When I opened the engine up and began to disassemble it screws, brushes, springs and the smoke unit cascaded onto the floor. I didn't have the slightest idea how to reassemble the darn thing. This, of course, was long before the internet so there were no on-line schematics to refer to and I didn't know if there were any kind of repair manuals available. I truly was groping in the dark. I had only been married a few years and was in the process of raising a family so taking it to a hobby shop to be repaired was out of the question since I felt I couldn't afford it. This engine was by no means a top of the line Lionel item. It was the 8204 4-4-2 Atlantic type engine in C&O livery. It was a die cast engine with smoke and the Mighty Sound of Steam and possessed a two position reverse unit. The casting on this engine was horrible and it constantly reversed itself during mid operation. Yet, this was the first toy train I had been able to purchase to augment the two small Lionel engines I had inherited from my Dad and Grandad and I wanted to hold on to it for sentimental reasons. So I boxed it up and stashed it under the layout in hopes that at some future time I would be able to resurrect it. Of course I promptly forgot about it. That was about 38 years ago.
When I found the old 8204 the memories came flooding back. The pricing sticker was still on the box, $43.00. I shook the box and shuttered as I heard the untold number of parts rattling around inside. Undaunted, I told myself that my previous failure to rescue the engine occurred 38 years ago and a lot had transpired in the interim. My technical skills had improved considerably; Lionel schematics were attainable on the net, I possessed hard copy and DVD repair manuals and I knew where to purchase spare parts. Well to make a long story short and to coin a phrase, " I've come a long way baby". In short order I replaced the mangled parts, reassembled and rewired the engine, overhauled its agent smoke unit and replaced the foam backing underneath the Sound of Steam circuit board and cleaned and lubricated the motor and brushes. The engine runs, smokes better and sounds as good, well as good as the SOS can sound, as it did back in 1976. I have been reborn. I can thank a lot of the progress I have made in toy train maintenance and repair to the knowledge imparted to me on the good old OGR forum.
