Lackawana 2321 Repair and Cleaning

The 2321 is a nice Diesel in any collection.   I would tread very lightly cleaning the shell and yes, stay away from disturbing any of the decals ( such as the round F/M).

The problem with the horn could be either the horn itself or the relay.   If the relay is pulling in but the horn is not sounding, try these steps for the horn:

"Locate where the horn power wire is soldered to one of the relay tabs.   Obtain a fresh battery. Get a length of hookup wire and strip both ends.Hold the bottom (Negative) side of the battery to the metal casing of the horn itself. Touch one end of the wire to the top (+ positive) side of the battery, and the other end of the wire to the horn wire on the relay. You may wish to temporarily tape the wire to the top of tthe battery for easier handling. The horn should sound. If it does not sound, unsolder the horn wire from the relay and try again. If the horn still does not sound, obtain a 9 volt battery and repeat the above connections, but only for a second, to try and jar the coil inside into operation. If the horn is still silent, it may need to be opened up and diagnosed internally, or simply replaced."

I have taken a horn apart carefully and gotten it to work again, just by cleaning the disk and solenoid inside.  There is a video how-to out on Utube.

Hope that helps!

If the horn won't sound with the 9 volt battery take something that will fit inside the opening in the horn, like the end of a screwdriver handle, or a log, and give the diaphragm a sharp tap while the 9V battery Is connected.

I use a Lionel transformer, set to around that voltage.
If that doesn't work, you can try raising the voltage, just don't run it this way for more than a moment if it starts working.

I have yet to cause any damage doing this, and have rescued plenty of horns this way.

While you're under the hood, you may want to address one other issue the 2321's shipped from Lionel with....

Lionel used pickup roller wires that were under-sized to carry the amperage both motors and headlights MIGHT draw under load. Mine was like that when I owned one; I'd replace both wires that come from the pickup rollers to the e-unit solder tab with 20 gauge wire for added insurance.

I have gotten back to the 2321 horn question from 6 weeks ago.  First,  I tried to find a youtube video to find out what the horn should sound like when it works.  No success.  Any suggestions of links to other locomotives that use the same horn?  I would like to know what it is supposed to sound like?

I tried the transformer connected to the relay and grounded to the case.  I get a buzz and can feel the horn diaphragm vibrating.  Any suggestions about working backward to the normal power source to track down my problem? 

I am looking at the Lionel wiring diagram and need to understand how the horn operates.  Power for the horn comes from the D cell battery.  I know the whistle button on the transformer activates the horn.  I think I understand how it works but can someone explain it to me to make sure I understand it correctly?

Thanks

Here is a link to repair video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LsDKsNBBKQ

Marty

I have one also, and I can't face a big brute like this with a bicycle horn. If you find you really need a horn, add a Williams True Blast 2 horn, you get a crossing signal and a bell for your money and installation. I used one on an MTH GG1 and the owner was satisfied with the result. I took a picture of it ;pulling a passenger consist and a Lionel purist friend of mine said I should run it long hood forward. That is the way it is shown in the catalog. Sheesh.

The horn, battery and horn relay contact are one circuit. This circuit shares the frame with the ac circuits. The horn relay gets power from the track outside and center rail. It is a slug relay. AC will not make it operate, DC will.  The whistle button on the transformer puts a rectifier in series with the AC that runs the train causing the whistle relay to operate. Problems with horns are usually 1) no dc out of the transformer, 2) whistle relay will not work, 3) power will not flow in the D.C. Battery Circuit. This is usually the problem as there are a lot of connections in the D.C. Battery Circuit and only 1 1/2 volts to overcome high resistance problems. The contacts on the horn relay and inside the horn can both be a problem. To trouble shoot start with watching the horn relay when the whistle button on the transformer is operated. Either it operates or it doesn't. That tells where to start.