Need help with a LionChief + 2.0 locomotive

Just a guess.  But is the Bluetooth switch in the OFF position?  Manual does not say anything about this, but maybe it needs to be in the OFF position.

I'm looking for the same answer and we may not be having the answer you want. I have the separate sale version of that engine, not the one in the set but still the very first LC+ 2.0 steam engine that Lionel shipped. I bought it because I wanted to understand the underlying tech and the control system of the LC+ 2.0 platform.

So testing, I could get mine locked in forward as long as the time I dropped power was very short. However, if a long enough time passed with power off, then the engine "forgets" to be locked in forward. As I read your description of the function, that sounds about the same result you got too.

I gotta be honest with you, the problem is, this was meant to be a command control locomotive as are all current Lionchief Plus 2.0. And you'll argue, but Vern, the Lionel advertising says conventional operation too. The problem is, this series (LC+2.0 VS the previous LC+) no longer has a dedicated switch to tell the firmware to kick into conventional transformer control like the previous Lionchief Plus boards. So each and every time that processor boots when you power up after a power off event, it has to first listen for TMCC RF signal, then decide that is not present, and then decide to listen to conventional voltage. Somewhow, that little "bit" that gets flipped somewhere storing the direction lock is NOT as semi permanent as intended.

Here's what I know: Lionel has gone to this new electronics platform for all Lionchief Plus 2.0 and Legacy engines. The boards are all very similar and the difference is what firmware is installed to differentiate between legacy and Lionchief 2.0. I definitely remember another recent topic about either a Legacy or Lionchief 2.0 engine using this board and running slightly choppy under conventional control.

All I'm getting at is, my personal opinion is I would not tell buyers to buy a recent Legacy or LC+2.0 engine, with the expectation of it working perfectly 100% on conventional control. Can you run it basic operation under conventional = yes. Will it work as you expect and all features like reverse lockout work flawlessly= no sorry, I think a bit of hit and miss here.

Again, the takeaway:

My engine does it too (LC+2.0 NKP Berk) and even more testing, my other Lionchief Plus 2.0 engines (CSX ET44, docksider) all are not quite 100% under conventional.

I think that is due to them all using the same basic control board hardware, and while some are different, there is definitely some bit of the same operating firmware at play here too.

And, to just be blunt, I don't think this new platform (recent legacy, LC+2.0) is ideal for a conventional only setup and especially with automation where you depend on a given action of the engine after a power drop. Right or wrong, I have more than one example of this platform not working well under conventional.

Wow.  Thanks for this info.  I was seriously looking at the Lionchief 2.0 and 2.0+ locos, but it important to me to be able to run them in a conventional mode with my other conventional engines.

Now, hearing this, all Lionchiefs are permanently off my list, as with all new Lionel locos.

Lionel has falsely advertised the abilities of these to run in conventional mode.  They should have been truthful and said,  "Oh by the way, . . . you can kinda run them in conventional mode."

Mannyrock

Thanks, Vern.

Yes, not the news I wanted to hear, but kind of what I suspected.   

I wonder if there is an easy way to bypass the LionChief electronics and just run it off track voltage?  I realize it will kill the warranty.  They don't care if the loco has sounds, or any other features for that matter.  They just want it to pull the train when someone pushes the button.

The museum really wanted this locomotive for their collection as the NKP was, at one time, a major employer in Delphos.

Tom

So, because I want to be thorough, I was doing more testing after typing those answers. So these were the LC+2.0 engines I had handy. Also, my test bed is fastrack with a Z4000 and my Legacy base completely unplugged.

My CSX ET44 would stay in forward locked- but only if I also turned off smoke. I had to test this a few times to be sure. If the smoke unit switch is off, an you perform the direction lock (easier on this engine since the switch is under a hatch on top) with smoke off, regardless of how long you waited to return power it actually appeared to be a true direction lock in forward. However, if the smoke unit was on, then for sure, if you waited about 25 seconds in the off state, it would forget the direction lock just as I was seeing on the steam engines.

Now re-testing the steam engines (LC+2.0 docksider and the NKP Berk) to see if smoke off is the trick?

And the answer is no, on the 2 steam engines (docksider and Berk), regardless of smoke on or off, bluetooth on or off, they forget the direction lock if the power is off for more than a few seconds.

I initially tried it with the smoke and Bluetooth on.  I turned them both off after my first tests.  Same results.  I even killed the power to the Z-4000 to see if it might be a residual voltage issue.  Same results.  Keep me posted with your results.

Thanks!

Tom

If it was my choice for that use case, I would buy a cheap MTH Railking Berk, especially one with a digital whistle and the plain DCRU that is easily locked in forward and run it forever. Example an MTH RK-1109 Nickel Plate Road 2-8-4 Steam Engine with Elec Whistle. Obviously, I would want to find one for cheap but knowing that hardware, I think that is a better engine from ground up for that use case.