Is it possible to convert post war Lionel and mth locomotives to Lionchief?
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Possible, yes?
It's a bunch easier to convert them to either TMCC or DCS. If you want to run them LC, you have to buy the board from Lionel, and then fabricate the wiring harnesses to make it happen. LC+ is even harder, you have to mount the tach sensor from the LC+ setup on a motor.
@gunrunnerjohn posted:Possible, yes?
It's a bunch easier to convert them to either TMCC or DCS. If you want to run them LC, you have to buy the board from Lionel, and then fabricate the wiring harnesses to make it happen. LC+ is even harder, you have to mount the tach sensor from the LC+ setup on a motor.
Thanks' For all of the help @gunrunnerjohn,
I am new to the hobby, Susanne and I have been playing with the O Scale 3 Rail trains for a couple of months now. We have 3 LionChief loco's, One GE Diesel and the other two steam, we don't use Apples in our household so control is by the L.C. remotes.
I am in the process of finishing a ERR TMCC Cruise Commander and Rail Sounds Conversion to my MTH GP-60 ( I'm really waiting for the Legacy 990 to arrive so I can test the setup ) and get her back on the tracks.
If you were going to do the L.C. install on a MTH GP-38-2 Diesel from P.S. 1 or 2 era to the LC or L.C.+ The Lionel Parts List schematic for the Diesels look like it is a straight forward install.
The BIG Question is, are the L.C. Parts available? The Lionel Repair Store lists the GP-38 LionChief Boards for $55.00 Marked as unavailable? Are these dealer only items? If so would it make more sense and possibly better choice to buy a Lionel Lion chief + GP38 donor and scrap the Lionel after the conversion?
Whew! too many Questions. I'm going to wear you out 
Truthfully, I would seriously consider just going with TMCC using the ERR stuff, it's going to be loads easier to do, and IMO the end result will be far better. As I said, the LC+ will require you to mount the tach encoder and toothed flywheel on the motor, that could be a significant issue, depending on exactly what you start with. Stuff marked as unavailable is usually truly unavailable, even to dealers. LC and LC+ sound is an all-in-one affair with the control electronics, there is only one board package.
If you want an LC or LC+ locomotive, I'd just bite the bullet and buy it that way. If you have an LC or LC+ locomotive that is similar sized to a shell you have with a desired road name, it is usually possible to swap shells and move any lighting, etc. to the new shell. Obviously, that has to be evaluated on an individual basis.
