legacy diesels

Mike Reagan at Lionel has a very informative video on smoke unit that may help you.  See link:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZlvekT67ws

As STEIMS stated about the video, also make sure there isn't a bubble formed in the smoke chamber.  To clear this is by blowing down the stack, this will usually clear the bubble, and you should see smoke.  I do this every time I add smoke.  Also make sure your voltage is higher then 14 volts you'll get more smoke with a higher voltage.

Had the same issue with the same engine. Sent it to lionel was told it works great. Got it back and the cab light blinked.  Lionel is very well known for horrible smoke units.   Unfortunately they do not know how to fix their own products and make a functional unit

Bagelman,

   I do believe you are being a might hard on Lionel in this repair matter, there are some engines that would need to be completely re-engineered to fix certain problems.  I have been critical of all the different companies for making the purchasers the final R&D section of their companies however.  If all Lionel's engines ran as perfectly right out of the box as my Legacy Shay, that including the smoke unit, Lionel would not need a repair department at all.  What many people do not understand is that the foreign business who supply certain electrical parts to all American companies, cheat on their original contracts, supply faulty or different electrical chips, as a way of doing business.   Just watching over this is a massive undertaking for a company like Lionel or MTH.  Guns has the absolute cure however, with the American made Chuffer units

maybe you guy need to upgrade.

PCRR/Dave

I have to disagree with the Lionel smoke units being horrible. I currently have only one Legacy engine. It smokes every bit as good as any of my MTH engines. It's a Dash-9 from a couple years ago. I have a couple more Lionel engines pre-ordered and I fully expect them to perform every bit as well as my Dash-9.

 

Laidoffsick made a video about adding smoke fluid and how much he had to add to get one of his engine smoking properly. It was a bit more (actually a LOT more) than the recommended dosage. Judging the correct amount of smoke fluid is difficult for us all, but I really do wonder if that isn't more of a problem than the smoke unit itself?

 

I believe Lionel had a problem with a vendor's parts for their smoke units a couple years ago, but I imagine this was resolved soon after discovery. I can assure everyone that Lionel doesn't like poorly performing smoke units any more than the end users do.

The smoke unit -- Lionel or MTH -- is a actually a pretty complex little element. The smoke fluid you add soaks into the wick material. The heating element, a resistor, is in contact with the wick. When the resistor gets hot it evaporates the oil where it contacts the wick. The micro-fan blows air into the wick chamber forcing out the evaporated oil as vapor (smoke). As the oil near the wick evaporates more oil moves in from the part of the wick that is still wet. None of this is precise and if anything in the overall system is not quite right you can get minimal smoke or no smoke. With Lionel twin stack diesels, the manifold is the chief offender. The draft angle is not enough for the oil to easily drain from the stack where you add the oil to the smoke chamber. So you have oil blocking the manifold and NOT getting to the resistor that needs the oil to remain cool. I'm also not a fan of the sponge element that Lionel uses as a wick. Just not enough contact with the resistor vs. traditional wick material.

 

With my Lionel diesels I remove the access panel over the manifold --  there's a link on this somewhere -- remove the manifold and add oil directly to the stack and wick. This has worked well for me. Where there isn't an access panel I remove the shell. You could argue that this voids the warranty but I doubt very seriously that Lionel has any way to tell that you have taken the shell off.

 

Within my small collection there's no contest. MTH PS2's have been the best smokers, then PS3 and then way down there is Lionel. One Legacy has a dead fan, The other two smoke but it's hard to see. I like the Legacy engines but it's for the detail and lights and especially sound quality. Not smoke.

I am a big MTH guy.  I have several Lionel SD-70 locomotives that are great smoking locomotives.  I have worked on many of those and when they smoke bad it usually gets down to how the wicking meets the resistor.  I have seen some where the resistor was installed too high and does not touch the wicking.  I have seen some that had the resistor shorting against the side of the unit.  I have seen a few where the resistor got bent back and not touching the wicking at all.  This is usually from new locomotives.  I have replaced my share of AC smoke regulators.  I keep buying Legacy locomotives and buy the regs often.

 

I agree with Dave.  Remember these locomotives were not assembled by one of out relatives in New Jersey.  If they were, they would be done right.  That is what we have to deal with to be able to buy trains at a reasonable price.  Lionel gives the specs and the person who puts it together can make or break the smoke output.  If put together properly, you will be a happy camper.

 

While I am at it, many people do not read the book that comes with each locomotive and usually put in more smoke fluid than needed.

hi guys-i'm telling right now my caps key is broken and for that i am sorry.

now to the trains.i have two sd 70's and two ac6000's. the sd70's have been sent back to lionel for smoke repairs multiple times each. i myself have  done multiple repairs to each. i have purchased 3-4 complete smoke units because the individual resistor is not listed in the parts diagram for the sd 70 and i wasn't told they were available until i read it on this forum. so, i have spares for parts and i'm ok with that. frankly, repairing the trains is a part of the hobby that i enjoy. i've been an auto mechanic for 35 years and i specialize in computer diagnostics and performance so i'm very familiar with multiple diagnostic methods.

 the ac 6000's have been nearly trouble free. i had to replace one smoke unit fan motor and that was it. they have been a pleasure and are good smokers.

 i look forward to getting an es44 and watching it run. i do have fun with this hobby. the time and money spent are well worth it!

6 ohm