We acquired a few old items recently and have a model R 100w transformer that appears to be a twin controller. I am not familiar with this one. Both dials are indicating 6v - 24v with a 14v pair and a 16v pair on the front. Would this indicate a prewar model with the higher voltage?
There was also a similar transformer labeled 110 watt but otherwise identical to the 100w ones.
Looking at eBay there are several but no one mentioned this. One seller calls it 'rare' and wants $599...
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Sam
The Type R transformer spans the late pre-war and early post-war eras. It is similar to the Type V and Type Z transformers from the same era in that it is a well built transformer that came with an external No. 167 whistle controller.
If you want to use it all the usual precautions that go with a 65 to 75 year old electrical appliance apply. In good condition it could make a serviceable accessory transformer. They are not rare and at a $599 asking price I would suggest that they drop a nine. 
The R/RW transformer is the one Lionel used to handle all their special or foreign applications with. Read the lable carefully and check the frequency and input voltages. The reason there was a postwar R without the whistle feature is that the whistle relay will not work reliabley on 50 or 25 cycle power. I believe Mexico runs a slightly higher primary voltage and there are R transformers rated at 125 volts, rather than 120 volts. There are R transformers with 220 volt input power.
Sam,
The R Type is a true power monster. While I still own two that I used early on, mine are now retired.
The R/RW transformer is the one Lionel used to handle all their special or foreign applications with. Read the lable carefully and check the frequency and input voltages.
All of the type R transformers I have ever seen say 115 volts 60 cycles. I'll bet that is what Sam's says too.
The reason there was a postwar R without the whistle feature is that the whistle relay will not work reliabley on 50 or 25 cycle power.
25 cycles? Lionel made transformers to work on the Pennsylvania and Great Northern electrifications??? 
Lionel made all of their better transformers without internal whistle controllers for a few years after the war. 
I own type R intended for export -- says 220 volts (I think, its in a box somewhere) on the label. They are still a useful transformer, especially is it does not buzz. Great for variable voltage used for post war accessories or modern lighting. Not so user friendly to operate your trains with -- small control knob.
I would suggest having the primary to secondary windings tested for leakage between the 2 before using it in any potentially damp environment. Could be a shock hazard.
The transformer in question is listed in the service manual as a Type RX transformer. Designed for 115V 25Hz, could be used on 150V up to 40Hz or 220V 60Hz.
http://www.collector-modeltrai...log_item/MT-0953903/
In poking around on the TCA site I found a link to this forum and I wonder if someone here can provide some guidance. For the first time in quite a few years I recently dug out the Lionel train set my parents gave me as a kid. It has been in an outdoor shed for at least 20 years and the Model R controller seems not to have fared too well. (We live in North Carolina so even though the shed has been a dry environment, the ranges of temperature and humidity have not been particularly helpful for the controller.) When I plug it in there is a quite noticeable hum and I cannot measure voltages between any of the terminals. I tried taking out the four screws in the bottom to look inside, but the bottom wouldn't come off.
While the transformer might be the culprit I image that a more likely source of the problem is a failed rectifier. My questons are:
1. Would it be best to just accept that the controller is dead and pitch it
2. If the bottom plate can be removed in a way that it can be remounted, is there a source for a rectifier anywhere
3. With just a voltmeter to work with, what should I look for to figure out what the actual problem is - rectifier, fuse??, something else.
4. Does anyone know of an online source for the circuit diagram of what's inside?
Thanks for any input you might have.. Ed Graham
The Model "R" does not have a rectifier, or whistle control. It is strictly an AC transformer. The hum is OK, and this is a very simple transformer.
Are any of the lights coming on? Check the bulbs. It may just be a circuit breaker problem(there are two), but the bulbs have to be working, and you need a load on the transformer to get the short circuit lamp to light up.
Connections to A&C or A&F should be about 20 volts AC with the throttles set to the midpoint.
Here's a reference from an old Lionel manual for the output connections:
The left hand light is working but not the one on the right. How do you go about fixing a circuit breaker problem? Do I need to have the Model R connected to a piece of track with the engine sitting on it to check the voltages?
Ed
The left bulb on means you do have an open circuit breaker(it's supposed to have a red lens over it). The right bulb out means the bulb is burned out(that's the pilot lamp - it's supposed to have a green lens over it).
Thank you very much for your help. I was mistaken about the lights in my last post when I said the left hand light was working. It was just the other way around - the left hand light is out and the right hand light is on. Your response has saved me a lot of unnecessary fiddling trying to fix something that was not broken!! I cannabalized a short piece of electrical cord to make a better connection to the track section on my work bench and, amazingly enough, the engine runs!!
As you probably recognized from my comment about a rectifier, I had assumed that the train runs on DC and that reversing the polarity is what controlled forward/reverse selection. Once I found that cycling the power off stops the engine and another cycle reverses it I realized how the REVERSE button on the remote control is supposed to work. If only my Owners Manual hadn't disappeared years ago perhaps I might have figured this out on my own.
The only problems I have now are to find Red and Green caps for the two lights on the transformer and to see if the horn in the coal tender can be made to work. I've tried lightly cleaning the rollers and the little sliding shoe on the bottom of the coal car but that doesn't help. Either there is a problem with the button on the remote control or the whistle mechanism is kaput.
Thanks again.
Ed
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