Need some help with an Air Whistle

Maybe something is stuck in the impeller. Can you turn the impeller by hand?

Try disconnecting the wires from the circuit board to the whistle motor, and use a DC power pack to see if the motor runs and the whistle works. If it does, the little circuit board is history. These are available from Lionel, or your Lionel service station can repair your whistle tender. If you have any difficulties, I can help with this. But you would have to mail your tender to me, which might be not desirable. 

I removed the entire impeller assembly from the "box" that it bolts to, so I could get a look if something was broken/jammed in.  No such luck and the impeller does spin freely on the motor, i.e. motor isn't locked up.

I will try removing the white and blue wires to the circuit board and try that, thanks!

If not, I will be in touch.  We have another engine so I wouldn't have a problem mailing the tender off to you.

I removed the motor leads from the circuit board and put an accessory transformer across the leads.  The motor hums and vibrates but does not spin.  I guess the circuit board is fried?

Is there some kind of rectifier that turns the transformer's AC into DC?  I thought these were AC as all of my transformers show 18VAC out on the out terminals.

I don't have a DC transformer handy to test.

It is not a good idea to apply Alternating Current to a motor designed for Direct Current.

In theory you could damage the motor, but usually they do survive.

A DC motor will hum and vibrate, and will not spin when AC power is applied.

You could buy a bridge rectifier from Radio Shack to convert AC to DC.

You could probably use a 9 volt battery to test your motor.

You might try a 9 volt battery up against the motor terminals and see if the motor turns.  When you use straight  AC from the transformer, the current is alternating (going back and forth at 60 times a second)  locking up the motor which is trying to turn both ways at the same time. The DC of the battery is only moving the motor in one direction and if the motor is good, it should work. Try it and see what the result is.  Dennis M.

Great, I will try that, thanks.  I'm guessing it is the circuit board as the motor did attempt to spin.

I will dig up a 9v and try it.

Found a 9v and attached the leads.  Motor spins freely.  I guess it is the PCB.  I will try to get one at the LHS next time I can go there. 

Any tips on where to get one online if they are out?

Thanks!

We have the PCB and the regulator if you want to save the board. The regulator is what usually goes bad. We offer 15% off most Lionel parts.

Bill