K-Line LIRR RS3 I Need a Review

Hard to tell, nice looking box.

I can't find anything that matches that number, so it's hard to know what's in the box.

Buy MTH.  That K-Line engine is all over York for $100.00.  Not worth the money. It was made in 1998.   I see these often and a bad motherboard is not uncommon.  I do not like to down any product but you asked and that is my honest opinion.

I did a search on the number too and came up empty. I'm hoping someone on the forum has this engine and can tell me something about it.

Maybe its this one, different item number but manufacture date is close. There is a discrepancy between the locomotive description and its features however.

http://www.legacykline.com/app...p_oem_sku=K2439-1553

http://www.ebay.com/itm/K-LINE...rksid=p2047675.l2557

Thanks Marty!

I found that one as well Rick, but it's cab number is different, so I'm not sure if it's the same model.

With no information, I'd probably pass it by anyway, I don't like hidden box deals!

Hmmmm.....it is a puzzlement.  This is the closet thing I could find.

http://www.collector-modeltrai...log_item/MT-0424486/

Perhaps some of our K-Line historians can help out.

Like I stated, it is not my style to down something like this but if it will keep a fellow forum member from making a bad move, I am ok doing so.  You can buy a current production MTH for less money with PS3, a warranty and smoke.

That's true Marty, but if he's strictly a TMCC man right now, he may want to look for something else in TMCC.

I do agree that I wouldn't buy that one, simply because nobody seems sure of what he's actually buying!

Good point made by Marty, pls follow his advice. I had the k-line rs3 and the mother board went bad just as Marty said. I now have a couple of MTH ones and they are great. 

John,. I did not know he is a TMCC guy.  I am also.  I love TMCC, DCS and Legacy.  I did the TMCC beta work with Lionel on my layout a year before it was released.  That engine is cheap everywhere.  No need to pay that money.  Buy one cheap and figure you are going to have to put in a motherboard at some time.

Another way out is buy the MTH, sell me the boards and that will cover the cost of an ERR conversion for him.

I think we all agree that it's probably not a good buy. 

What kind of TMCC package is in that one anyway?  All of the K-Line stuff I have or have worked on has pretty much the standard Lionel MB, very little on it, just places to plug in the three Lionel boards. I have six or seven K-Line TMCC engines, I've never seen a MB that I was worried about failing.

The K-Line cruise control is another matter, if one of those goes, it'll get a Cruise Commander.

John, standard Lionel MB.  No cruise in that engine.  I have many K-Line engines and more passenger cars than I like to admit.  It seems the RS-3 motherboard is just a bad one.  I have several F and E units and they are all good.  When I replaced the last one two weeks ago, I took the bad one and followed the blown traces and hard wired the board to keep as a spare abck up.   I had a blown board I did that to last year and a customer wanted the hard wired board over a new old stock board.

I've cooked a couple of motherboards, but it's usually because a wire got pinched and shorted.  I've never seen one spontaneously die like that.  Good to know.

I see you did what I'd probably do, just replace the traces with wires and move on.

Thanks to everyone for their help! I will pass on this engine.

John what I see is traces from pins 1/2 (roller in) and 3/4 (ground) going from board to board.  I feel it might be from derailment or shorting situations with old transformers not tripping like they should.   If I had one of my own, I would rather have it hard wired.

My guess this is an Atlas RS-1 but not a k-line. Kline RS-3's are all in the 1500's -- 1553 and 1558 for sure and maybe a third. Someone probably does not know much about kline, does not know what they have or has the wrong box shown. Item number is also wrong.

Well, it's clear that none of us know what he has, so it's a pretty well kept secret!   I think Marty may actually have it nailed.

Well bpott nailed it.  The stock number corresponds to this Atlas RS-1 from 2003.

WOW, you're right.  Even has the right number!  Don't know if it's a good deal, but at least it's not the troublesome K-Line.

I recently bought a new K line RS3 EL w/TMCC  from the last year of Lionel selling them. I like it, a nice engine. Lacks speed control but runs well. I am not sure if or how it differs from the 2003 model. Fred

Here is the link...

http://www.atlaso.com/ors1.htm

I had this engine at one time.  The MTH Railking RS1 is the better buy.

Sunrise

Well now that you mention its actually an atlas RS1, I owned one of these inn a different livery.

Decent runner, but I'm a fan of speed control, this early Atlas RS1 that lacks it isn't the best candidate for slow speed switching type stuff.

The smoke worked well once you tilted the loco just right to get the fluid to work its way down and over to the unit.

This was the only loco I ever owned that would occassionally stall on my fastrack switches.

FWIW, I think the later RS1s from atlas may have additional pickup rollers and cruise was added as well.

Any TMCC locomotive that I get without speed control gets the ERR Cruise Commander M to replace the DCDR, low speed operation fixed.