New Lionel S2 Loco

"first seeing the TMCC version as a kid"

"...as a kid"? Really? Gee, it wasn't that long ago, was it? Seems I bought mine new just a while back... 

 Thanks for posting the neat video. Legacy certainly makes a big difference in sounds, crew/tower com talk.  It’s really nice....It’s good to hear it runs great upon arrival....Enjoy....

D500 posted:

"first seeing the TMCC version as a kid"

"...as a kid"? Really? Gee, it wasn't that long ago, was it? Seems I bought mine new just a while back... 

Well....maybe I was a teenager then but either way, I was broke and couldn't have one. Making up for it now!

Mine is wrapped under the tree.

Have to wait to run it.

I did pull out the instructions and I don't see a way to turn off Odyssey.

did I miss the switch location?

I saw no Odyssey switch but then again, I also wasn't looking. Controls are all under the roof hatch - great move. I hate having to take an engine off the track every time I need to adjust the volume, etc.

The video looks great.  Does anyone have pictures or video of the other paint schemes?

my brother picked his up on Sunday.  We tested it on my layout.  That swinging bell is amazing and I hope Lionel continues to offer that feature on more locos.  This one is a winner!  

I have one and it is a big time keeper.  The guys at Lionel did a fantastic job.

I'm still waiting for a call. This week, next week hopefully.

Nice!!

Swinging bell is cool, too!

Looking good Whatshouldibuynext, that's the one I chose as well. I'm still waiting for a call. I would love to pop that under the tree(still working on finishing the table, next would be the tree). Just a bit more of putting screws in, then track laying 

Nice loco but no Odyssey on/off switch and no other way to turn Odyssey off.

Not a big deal considering all the pluses?  :-)

It’s a gem of an engine.  The sound, though nice and rich sounding, is on the quieter side when compared to other larger stream engines I own—maybe it fits the size of the engine well. I did have a few kinks with this engine after I first got it but those have been worked out. The  external detail texture is excellent. Overall, it’s a beauty. 

Whatshouldibuynext, would you show us a good picture of the Run/Program switch compartment.  Thank you.....That’s a nice engine...

WhatShouldIBuyNext posted:

It’s a gem of an engine.  The sound, though nice and rich sounding, is on the quieter side when compared to other larger stream engines I own—maybe it fits the size of the engine well. I did have a few kinks with this engine after I first got it but those have been worked out. The  external detail texture is excellent. Overall, it’s a beauty. 

For what it's worth, the volume knob on mine was only turned about half way up from the factory. 

Does this help, Leapinlarry?

Surefire posted:

WhatShouldIBuyNext posted:

It’s a gem of an engine.  The sound, though nice and rich sounding, is on the quieter side when compared to other larger stream engines I own—maybe it fits the size of the engine well. I did have a few kinks with this engine after I first got it but those have been worked out. The  external detail texture is excellent. Overall, it’s a beauty. 

For what it's worth, the volume knob on mine was only turned about half way up from the factory. 

Yes, I forgot to try turning it up...how absent-minded of me. 

Ok, just curious, how much did Lionel save by eliminating the orange module, now eliminating the Odyssey switch.  Also, see the earlier 2003 Model, has RS switch, Odyssey switch, and run/program switch. Thank you whatshouldibuynext for the picture of the new S2.....

leapinlarry posted:

Ok, just curious, how much did Lionel save by eliminating the orange module, now eliminating the Odyssey switch.  ....

Very good question, Larry.  And it also leaves us wondering WHO is making these decisions:  Lionel Stateside or their Chinese Factory.    The orange module thing is purely a bean-counter move with no really significant impact to buyers.  But the elimination of the Odyssey switch (also a bean-counter move) already has a significant ramification that we know about from a user who has reported the new Legacy locomotives w/o the Odyssey switch cannot be used on "automated" layouts with relay control.  Admittedly, that's not a huge segment of the population.  But nonetheless, it shows how these kind of decisions can't be made in a vacuum.  And certainly shouldn't be left for buyers to discover AFTER they've made a purchase decision -- only to realize their new Legacy locomotive needs to be "modified" (and probably void the warranty) in order to work in those environments.  Not good.

I take a lot of heat here on the forum for shining the spotlight on an importer, when they don't follow good business practices.  But this is once again another example of the left and right hand not knowing what's going on at Lionel.  Another example is the fact that the instruction manuals for these locomotives have not been updated, so they're still showing the Odyssey on/off switch as being on the locomotive when in fact it's no longer there.   It begs the question whether somebody here at Lionel Stateside is making these kinds of decisions.  Or whether the Chinese factory is acting on some kind of overarching direction from Lionel Stateside's CBC (i.e., that's a new C-level acronym for Chief Bean Counter) to trim costs wherever possible.  Or worse yet, whether the Chinese factory is just making these changes willy-nilly, and Lionel Stateside discovers what's going on after the fact.  Whatever the case may be, none of those scenarios leave us with a nice warm-and-fuzzy feeling.  But I think we're all getting accustomed to that feeling nowadays.    Building toy trains is not an easy business (anymore).

On the plus side of things... at least the new S2 locomotive appears to be a winner in all other respects.  Love the swinging bell, and the smooth running operation.  The former is just a cool feature, and the latter is ever-so-important by today's standards.  Nobody wants jerky, slow-speed operation that's plaguing the latest Lionel Mogul... nor do we want locomotives that start up at 40mph.  We've all moved past those days.

This engine runs smoother than the old TMCC issue.  It is fantastic.   I own a small handful of engines and if I do not like an engine, I do not buy it.  I  will settle for perfect operation only.  This is a perfect running locomotive.   All trains on my layout are run in command mode.  

I've been having issues with Legacy functioning on my layout and have the engine running conventional for the time being. I've got little free time these days but I've put some time on this engine. I can say it is a real winner.

It is absolutely perfect out of the box and runs, sounds, and looks great. I'm quite happy with it. The swinging bell is a cool feature that brings a lot of attention to it. Very happy with it.

ALL: ENJOY! :-)

Just called my local dealer, they had to call me back but yes, the one I ordered is in and waiting for me. With so much stuff coming in late in the year, I can understand why they missed calling me. No harm, no foul. Saturday I go and pick it up. Hope to try and finish my Christmas layout this weekend. When I do, I'll pop some picks somewhere(think there is an under the Christmas tree topic out there).

Marty Fitzhenry posted:

This engine runs smoother than the old TMCC issue.  It is fantastic.   I own a small handful of engines and if I do not like an engine, I do not buy it.  I  will settle for perfect operation only.  This is a perfect running locomotive.   All trains on my layout are run in command mode.  

Hi Marty,

I just got the S2 set and I find that it drags the cars that came with it ( fixed trucks )  right off the tracks on a O36 curves. Cars work fine with another unit so I ruled out those couplers,  if I put a car with a articulated truck behhind the S2 it works fine. It seems like there is not enough movement in the coupler on the S2 , I have not been able to try it on a larger curve, seems like that may work. I also tried both front and rear couplers on the S2 with the same result . It is not a intermittent prroblem the instant it hits the curve the first car derails. 

Thank you,

I have no response as all my curves are 0-72.    Being a short wheelbase locomotive, I would think it would do ok on smaller curves.  Heep us posted.

Thanks Marty, I will, I know I can fix it by changing the car coupler but should not have to.  Thanks, Tim

The catalog, I believe listed 0-36 as the minimum. It is not uncommon for fixed coupler cars to have trouble directly behind the engine. I've got one Weaver car set up this way that I cannot put directly behind the engine. 

The S2 runs great on 0-42 curves, the largest on my layout. It will not go around 0-31 - front/rear trucks derail. 

SJC posted:

The catalog, I believe listed 0-36 as the minimum. It is not uncommon for fixed coupler cars to have trouble directly behind the engine. I've got one Weaver car set up this way that I cannot put directly behind the engine. 

The S2 runs great on 0-42 curves, the largest on my layout. It will not go around 0-31 - front/rear trucks derail. 

Hi Thanks for the reply,  It is running on O36 as stated is the minmum in the description,  but just not enough. I have some O60 on another layout which I am sure will work but this was going to be a around the Christmas tree train running on O36.  Someone would have very disappointed if they opened this on Christmas day and was not able to run it without some modifications. Bad deal 👎

Fixed the problem my S2 set not that it makes it right but I Installed one articulated coupler on the engine end of the lead car and train works as advertised on O36 track. It would appear that the couplers on the S2 just dont have enough swing to accomodate the fixed couplers running on the O36 track. You would think that for a small $ 900.00 set they could have installed some better couplers . Oh well 

"I can fix it by changing the car coupler but should not have to."

Well...the loco specs state that it will take these tight curves - and it does - but the specs do not claim - and cannot claim - that it will pull every car you put behind it around that curve.

TJ Wallace posted:

Marty Fitzhenry posted:

This engine runs smoother than the old TMCC issue.  It is fantastic.   I own a small handful of engines and if I do not like an engine, I do not buy it.  I  will settle for perfect operation only.  This is a perfect running locomotive.   All trains on my layout are run in command mode.  

Hi Marty,

I just got the S2 set and I find that it drags the cars that came with it ( fixed trucks )  right off the tracks on a O36 curves. Cars work fine with another unit so I ruled out those couplers,  if I put a car with a articulated truck behhind the S2 it works fine. It seems like there is not enough movement in the coupler on the S2 , I have not been able to try it on a larger curve, seems like that may work. I also tried both front and rear couplers on the S2 with the same result . It is not a intermittent prroblem the instant it hits the curve the first car derails. 

Thank you,

I have the same issue with mine on a 42" curve. Goes through the other 42" curves Ok, but the one leading to a slight incline derails the first car every time. That is of course when it chooses to run. It will only start up randomly in conventional. Beginning to think there is something loose inside.

Steve

TJ Wallace posted:

Fixed the problem my S2 set not that it makes it right but I Installed one articulated coupler on the engine end of the lead car and train works as advertised on O36 track. It would appear that the couplers on the S2 just dont have enough swing to accomodate the fixed couplers running on the O36 track. You would think that for a small $ 900.00 set they could have installed some better couplers . Oh well 

Can this be the same problem as Lionel’s Legacy reissue of K-Line’s 2-truck shay which did not have sufficient room/range for the coupler to operate on the advertised 0-36 or 0-31 curves? Lionel did not offer the extended range K-Line provided coupler guide bracket.  I wish Lionel or someone would make that shay part.

D500 posted:

"I can fix it by changing the car coupler but should not have to."

Well...the loco specs state that it will take these tight curves - and it does - but the specs do not claim - and cannot claim - that it will pull every car you put behind it around that curve.

This is the S2 set I am only using the 3 cars that came with it

I may be a little more accepting of this issue but as I mentioned before this is the Lionel factory S2 set 6-84512  and I am only talking about the cars that came with the set . A simple run of this set would have revealed the problem because it is not intermittent it happens every time entering the very first turn 

I have the older NYC # 100  S1 and it works great on 031. I wonder what has changed.

I don't have the set but I did get the individual S-2 #115 for Christmas.  I've been running it with some Lionel Baby Madison NYC passenger cars on O-36 for the past week or so and thus far I haven't had any problems with the curves.  (There are two O-36 switches in the route as well, if that's relevant.)

I agree with the earlier opinions that I've found it to be a very smooth-running engine.  But I still haven't figured out how to get all the Legacy features unlocked or uploaded because it doesn't come with an orange Legacy module.

BC1989 posted:

I don't have the set but I did get the individual S-2 #115 for Christmas.  I've been running it with some Lionel Baby Madison NYC passenger cars on O-36 for the past week or so and thus far I haven't had any problems with the curves.  (There are two O-36 switches in the route as well, if that's relevant.)

I agree with the earlier opinions that I've found it to be a very smooth-running engine.  But I still haven't figured out how to get all the Legacy features unlocked or uploaded because it doesn't come with an orange Legacy module.

Hi, do your cars have articulated couplers ?