Polar express engine D.O.A.

Lots of options available, including a 103 reverse board, aftermarket reverse board, or even a mechanical three position reverse unit, and more.

I thought a (reverse board)  was a conventional..  So where can I get one?      Would the reverse board work with a remote or transformer?  Sorry way behind in all this.. Thanks for your reply Doug

Remove the LC board & replace with a conventional reverse unit for transformer control, Lionel, Williams, K-Line, Dallee, JV Digital, etc. and you have a good running steamer with F-N-R operation. Click on these links for suppliers... 103 reverse board, aftermarket reverse board,

OR, source a used/new PE LC remote(or LionChief Universal Remote) and see if it still works in LionChief mode... it will appear to be dead on the track with just the headlamp on without its dedicated remote powered up nearby.

Thank you soooooooo much.....Merry Christmas.....I'll let ya know if I get it going..Doug

Unless it’s LC+, which most sets are not, it requires the remote to operate. It will NOT run without it.

Buy the Lionel Universal Remote, it's a lot easier than ripping all the guts out and replacing them!  It'll run any LC or LC+ locomotive.

@MartyE posted:

Unless it’s LC+, which most sets are not, it requires the remote to operate. It will NOT run without it.

The  engine will not power up at all... I have a remote from my P.E. and its dead..The engine anyway. 

Also.. I was told by one of the other members that the speaker in the tender is matched to the engine??  I have a frosty the snow man engine and I hooked it up to another engine to test it (the engine) and when I powered it up, it made a weird noise.  When I re hooked it up to the Frosty engine.  It runs but had no sound at all anymore.   

@Dougie fresh posted:

The  engine will not power up at all... I have a remote from my P.E. and its dead..The engine anyway.

You must use the MATCHING remote or the Universal Remote.  You can't just take the remote from another set and get it to run.

@Dougie fresh posted:

Also.. I was told by one of the other members that the speaker in the tender is matched to the engine??  I have a frosty the snow man engine and I hooked it up to another engine to test it (the engine) and when I powered it up, it made a weird noise.  When I re hooked it up to the Frosty engine.  It runs but had no sound at all anymore.   

There's more than one wiring scheme for LC & LC+, you likely killed the audio amp on the LC locomotive.  It's a BAD idea to swap any tender to a non-matching locomotive, many times bad things happen!  The one exception to that rule is the Lionel IR drawbar equipped locomotives/tenders.  While they might not work, you won't damage them since there is no electrical connection.

@Dougie fresh posted:

The  engine will not power up at all... I have a remote from my P.E. and its dead..The engine anyway.

@Dougie fresh posted:

I was given a P.E. lionchief engine, no remote.

So do you have a Polar Express remote or do you not? Do you have 2 locos now & one is dead?

@ADCX Rob posted:

So do you have a Polar Express remote or do you not? Do you have 2 locos now & one is dead?

Yes.. I have one remote that I have with my old P.E. and I was given this none working P.E. but no remote with it..

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

There's more than one wiring scheme for LC & LC+, you likely killed the audio amp on the LC locomotive.  It's a BAD idea to swap any tender to a non-matching locomotive, many times bad things happen!  The one exception to that rule is the Lionel IR drawbar equipped locomotives/tenders.  While they might not work, you won't damage them since there is no electrical connection.

UGH!!!!..  Thanks

@gunrunnerjohn posted:

You must use the MATCHING remote or the Universal Remote.  You can't just take the remote from another set and get it to run.

Problem is when I put the train on the track, power the track no head light even comes on.        So here is the back story on this...I was contacted by a company that had built a custom lay out for Ruby Falls here in Chattanooga, Tn.  The problem they ran into was they could not get a engine to run for more than a week or so.  I was taken down to see if I could find the problem.   What I found was DUST.....it is every where down there.   Cute place at Christmas with all the lights and all.  But I told them that I believed that the silt fine dust was killing there transformers and the engines.  They ask if they could use one of mine so to finish out there contract for the season.  I did with it in writing that if my engine failed that they would pay me the replacement cost.     I ran for 9 days.     I was given a check in 5 days.    When they shut it all down I was given there last P.E. engine.  So there you have it.  I thought if I even got it to run in a conventional mode I could repaint it to another road name if I want.     Do you know of any place I can send this to, to have the repair done???   I look at the reverse boards on line and mine has so many plugs I don't know what would go where.  Any idea's.  I thought of calling Lionel tech support in the morning to see if they could help me out.....Doug