Poor smoke from Lionel Y-3 6-38083

Hi most of the time people don't put enough smoke fluid and run it dry which burns up the wick, I would replace the Wick and then add 20 drops of smoke fluid to see if it works if the output does not increase then you possibly might want to get the smoke unit repaired!

Alan

@Art Lites posted:

Look I know there have been many posts about improving Lionel smoke output but I am confused about the remedy for specific models.  I recently bought a 6-38083 y-3.  Don't know the history but shows very little run time. After massive amounts of smoke fluid maybe 50 drops I am getting little wisps of smoke.  Initially, it would not run so I did a reset and it seems to be operating normally but the smoke output is very weak.

First, let me preface this with always go to Lionel support and put your product number in https://www.lionelsupport.com/...MCC-2-8-8-2-Y-3-2009. Then review the various components so that you can see exactly what you are dealing with. They have exploded diagrams for the engine, the tender, and even the smoke unit.

My question: Is this the best I can expect? I'm outlining the shortcomings of the Lionel system below.

What is normal?It's a Lionel earlier smoke unit that tend to not smoke like an MTH if that is what you are getting at.

That is one of the external smoke regulator style "smart" (which I call dumb) smoke units. I call it dumb because the "smart" function is just the fan puffing, however it doesn't provide idle smoke- hence dumb.

Is there a resistor solution that has been successful? Depends on how far down this rabbit hole you want to go, cost and money wise. This factory has an external smoke regulator module, and then should have an 8 Ohm resistor to keep from burning out the smoke regulator. The problem is, those smoke regulators can fail and are no longer available from Lionel. Further, then the fix gets more complicated to rewire the system, go directly off of the R2LC smoke output and use a typical 27 smoke resistor.

Is the super chuffer something I should consider and is it compatible? Yes, the super chuffer 2 would replace the smart smoke fan control section, and would give you idle smoke. It also would give you additional light outputs that you could use to add special features (ground or inspection lights, on while idle cab light). I do love them and use them, but it won't change the smoke volume- it's just there to smartly control the fan of when it is on and off.

Is there a fan to drive airflow such as MTH? Yes, it is a fan driven smoke unit, similar to MTH.

It looks as if the smoke unit is a major job to reach.

do I just need more batting? I probably would replace the original Lionel batting and use fiberglass rope smoke which just like I use in every other smoke unit. While the wick might improve smoke output over stock, this is just more of a maintenance and longevity thing, but obviously we try to optimize ever single part of the system.

any help will be appreciated. Thanks

Well, a commonly overlooked but often troublesome component is the smoke voltage regulator in those models.  I've recently done a few similar upgrades, and I often rip out the voltage regulator and rewire the smoke directly to the R2LC smoke output when the smoke regulator is flaky.  That also necessitates a resistor change to a 20 to 27 ohm resistor.  Of course, these upgrades are slated to receive the Super-Chuffer II and the Chuff-Generator, so the smart elements of the smoke unit aren't needed.  For those smoke units, you should also not overlook other maintenance and smoke improvement options like tightening the resistor screws, drilling out the fan intake hole to 1/4", and of course, changing the wick.

Thanks for your replies.  I conclude even with super-chuffer and Chuff-generator the loco would not generate smoke at stand still because there is no fan.  If I weren't 1800 miles away, I would send it to you Gunrunner and have you do your thing but sadly I am located in a NM with no repair technicians.  I will dig into this one mod at a time.  Thanks

@Art Lites posted:

Thanks for your replies.  I conclude even with super-chuffer and Chuff-generator the loco would not generate smoke at stand still because there is no fan.  If I weren't 1800 miles away, I would send it to you Gunrunner and have you do your thing but sadly I am located in a NM with no repair technicians.  I will dig into this one mod at a time.  Thanks

Actually, that Y3 has a fan driven smoke unit.  I just did one that had a bum voltage regulator, the only way to fix that now was the direct wiring to the smoke output of the R2LC.  We can guide you through that repair, it's not that complicated.

This is a recent addition to my PRR roster.  It's yet another one that got the "rip out the regulator" treatment.  When I initially ran it, I got almost no smoke.  There was a wisp of smoke, and no matter what I did, that was as good as it got.  After a couple voltage measurements, I realized that the regulator was toast.  Swapped a couple wire around and changed the 8 ohm resistor in the smoke unit for a 20 ohm one for running from the R2LC, and this is how it looks now.

What a difference. Mine is no where near that.  will give it a try.  Thanks Art

@Art Lites posted:

What a difference. Mine is no where near that.  will give it a try.  Thanks Art

That smoke result is realized by using the R2LC to power it and doing a few simple "tuneup" tricks to the smoke unit.

• Use a 20 ohm 2W wirewound resistor.
• Drill the fan intake hole out to 1/4"
• Make sure there fresh braided wick installed.
• Make sure the resistor is in firm contact with the wick but NOT buried in it.
• Make sure there's a clear path between the fan chamber and the stack with the resistor between them.
• Make sure the airflow from the fan chamber passes over the resistor and then on to the stack.