Lionel 675 engine problems

Sorry, I meant "compensate" instead of compensation... 

Hi Frank.   Yes, your engine is well worth repairing. The wire for the front light may be developing an open circuit( no current flow) if the light bulb itself is still good.

It sounds like the E-Unit & Motor need to be cleaned, if that is the case, all you have to do is oil all of the axels where they ride in the Bushings & put a dab or two of Grease on the gears & turn the wheels by hand to get the grease where it needs to be at after the motor & E-Unit are cleaned.

If you need more help, just let us know.

I second what Keith stated.....a good cleaning/lube of motor and gears (cleaning any old grease out), clean e-unit (I usually take my Dremel tool with cutting wheel and place an X on bottom of e-unit plunger), clean wheels and pick-ups.  Your locomotive is well worth keeping.

Steve, Lady and Tex

Great advice mentioned above. But before you go oiling and greasing, take some tv tuner cleaner and spray the e-unit, take apart the brush plate and clean up or replace the brushes, clean out the brush holders with a Q-tip and also clean up the face of the armature. Then proceed with the lubrication at the requires spots. Do not oil or lubricate the e-unit!

As for the headlight flickering, tighten up the rivet that holds the lamp holder clip to the boiler front. A loose ground will cause your issue.

On the surface it sounds like it will need to be cleaned and lubricated. The lubrication part is pretty simple and cleaning is not all that difficult. Here is a link that will give you a better idea of what to look for.

http://www.justtrains.com/Service/maint-main.asp

You can read through this and you can also search the web for more information, for example their are some very fine videos on how to clean an e-unit.

After reading this you can decide if you are up to the task or would feel better sending it out.

Now there are other issues that can cause the problems you have listed but 99% is just somewhere between a good lubrication and or cleaning.

The light does sound like it is a loose connection and again is something easy to check for.

Good luck and if you follow the information in the link I think it will give you a strong base of knowledge.

naw that ols 675 isn't worth bothering with. send it to me so you won't have to bother with it....

agree with the others, a good cleaning and lube.

First, continuing to run the engine, or forcing it to run faster with more voltage isn't doing it any favors.  If a previously good loco is suddenly misbehaving it's trying to tell you that something's wrong.

I agree with Yardmaster.  If it's not squawking or squealing then lubrication's not the problem.  Everything you said suggests it needs a thorough but careful cleaning of the electrical contact surfaces:  Brushes & brush holders, commutator surface, slots, maybe even wheels and pickup rollers.  

If the brushes are worn short they should be replaced.  If the brush springs are weak, you might need a new brush plate (which is available at modest cost and should last another 50+ yrs.)  If there are deep grooves in the pickup rollers, or the springs are very weak you can replace the individual rollers or the whole "collector plate."

Spritzing the E-unit drum and "fingers" with electrical contact cleaner is the best way to clean it, unless you have specialized tools and skills.  Most of this type of cleaning is basic and required maintenance on traditional Lionels.  I bet if you do this it will run as well as you remember.  Please give us an update with your results!

Thank you all for your suggestions.  When I noticed this problem several months ago, I actually took the engine apart, including the brushes, and sprayed the everything with electrical contact cleaner and re-greased and oiled it.  I used cotton swabs to remove a lot of grime, although the older grease was remarkably pliable, not hard.  The engine did reverse thereafter but on occasion is slowed down after operating for a few minutes.  That's why I think either I didn't do a through job of cleaning, or something more is happening that is beyond my expertise.  I thought that maybe the light was not getting enough voltage because of some malfunction in the engine because it starts bright and then goes out.  I may take the engine to a pro somewhere for evaluation because I am somewhat insecure about taking it apart again and losing or damaging small parts that I'll have to order just to get it together. Since I don't do these repairs on a regular basis, by the time the part comes in, I'll probably forget how to put it back together (lol). Every time I get excited about my old stuff and want to replicate the 50's layout with purchases of old-time accessories, my good judgment tells me to stop because that old stuff can be problematical and frustrating.  At this stage in my life, I don't need frustration!

If you took your 675 apart once, you can do it again! Do you have a copy of the Lionel(Greenberg) repair manual? The old Lionel's are pretty easy to repair. I have done 98% of my repairs, and I';m no Dr Tinker. Get the manual if you don't already have it, take your time, take pictures, and have at it. One repair I have not had much luck with is e units. But you can buy rebuilt E Units from dealers or off e bay.

Classic Toy Trains magazine

had, and has had, many articles

on cleaning and getting your postwar

trains up and running again.