LIONEL LIONMASTER UP CHALLENGER QUESTION

I have one.  Very nice engine.  I recommend it.  There is a Legacy version although it will probably be more expensive.

While I don't have that exact loco, I can say that our legacy lionmaster BB gets the most runtime on our layout. Fantastic sound, speed and smoke. No complaints.

It is a recommend if you want a bigger engine to run smaller loops and are ok with "compressed" scale.  The Lionmaster Challengers and Big Boys from 2008 are Legacy equipped.  I have challenger 3985 (6-11200).

There have been many posts on the forum you can search for. They have a lot of feedback and photos.  Almost everyone who has one has expressed how satisfied they are with tnem.

I've seen some on the For Sale forum not too long ago. Happy hunting.

I have the WP Challenger from 2004.

Great locomotive and runs really well.

It is somewhat compressed in overall size but it is nicely proportioned and looks better to my eye than the RK version.

You should be quite happy with this engine if you run conventional or TMCC.

Go for the later version if you run Legacy.

 

Rod

I am not sure about the ones from 2004, but I have one from the 2003 v1 catalog and one of the Legacy versions from 2008.  The Legacy just blows the older one out of the water - the sound and speed control is astounding.  Better smoke too.

I have a Lionel Lionmaster Challenger, it is the very first one issued, not sure if it was 2003 or 04.  It is beautiful well  proportioned engine.  The only complaint is that there is no switch to turn the Oydessy speed control off.  The loco runs perfect in command but absolutely awful in conventional.  Mine went back to Lionel 2 times as I am a conventional operator.  Lionel finally admitted that it was designed for command control and agreed with me that it's performance in conventional was terrible.  The only solution was new boards from a newer model that would allow you to turn off the speed control with the Cab 1 if you wanted to.  The 2nd engine in the Lionmaster series was the Prr T-1 Duplex, same story.  If you run only in TMCC you will have no problems, but don't buy either if you want to run conventional.  Somewhere along the line Lionel put in a switch under the loco to turn off the speed control, not sure when that was.

 

Paul Edgar

 

 

The first LionMaster Challengers were cataloged back in Vol. 1 2001. The improved Odyssey on/off-equipped versions were first cataloged in Vol. 2 2004.

OK gents, so I got this rumbling behemoth.  It is the largest and most high end toy I ever bought for the layout.  I am following directions and have 2 questions:  Is the new Legacy add on with the TMCC looking controller kinda like a Legacy Lite and will it work well with this Challenger?  And 2:  I am running with a PW KW transformer.  When I blow the whistle the engine comes to a complete stop, the whistle sounds, and then the engine continues in whatever direction it was in.  I should be able to run the whistle while the engine is in motion, no?  Even though this is NIB it was probably made in 2005 and thus out of warranty by the new warranty rules.  Whaddya think? 

POTRZBE, I have 4 Lionmaster Challengers, a LM Bigboy and a LM Cab-Forward, I have never heard of that problem. If yours is the UP in 2004 Vol2, then it is the Greyhound with the Silver striping and lettering, that is my FAVORITE paint scheme of all of them.

 

I also have the Lionel HO Challenger in that paint scheme, that is where I got my screen name from.

 

 

The HO model may be more correct to scale, and be a bit better detailed, but the O Gauge model is just simply more Impressive visually(At least to ME)

 

 Unfortnately, you will probably be right about getting thrown under the bus, as far as the new warranty policy goes. I HOPE that Lionel will do the right thing and treat you fairly, about resolving your whistle issue.

 

MY Personal feelings about Lionels current warranty policy, and most current experiences with their Customer NON-Service dept.

 

Good Luck ,

 

Doug

 

 

I had been running mine originally with a post war ZW.  I would experience the same issue.  Hit the whistle switch and it would blow, move a little faster, then stall, reset, and then go.  Just part of the difference it seems with older voltage variance vs newer electronic locomotives.  I've found that shorter lighter bursts on the whistle did not create the same problem.  But I've always been worried I was going to fry my new locomotive.

 

I've solved the issue entirely by picking up a new ZW-L.  Probably not the answer you're looking for....

Thanks for the insights.  Will the new Legacy Lite controller add on solve this problem and also let me access a few extra features of the sounds etc?