I was wondering if Postwar Lionel trains made around the 50s, such as the F-3, can run on AC or DC.Thank you everyone!
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They can run on DC, but if they have a whistle or horn in them, that would need to be disconnected or else it will blow constantly. I'm told they run smoother on DC, but haven't really tried it out much to know.
J White
I have also heard DC will do a number on the e-units over time. But those are "universal" motors, so they ould go either way.
In fact Lionel did have a two tran set in which one engine was AC, the other DC. You could run two engines on the layout at the same time.
DC will magnetize the E-Unit and it'll start sticking. A shot of AC for a spell fixes it.
I found that out on a conversion to DC to stop the buzz, I got the locomotive back after a few months and he complained about a sticking E-Unit. Sure enough, it was. 
Demagnetized it and all was well again, at least until the next time.
Originally Posted by DominicMazoch:
..Lionel did have a two tran set in which one engine was AC, the other DC. You could run two engines on the layout at the same time.
The only two train set I'm aware of like this was the Magic Electrol set. All AC, though.
Modern Lionel made at least 2 engines set up to run on DC: One was a plastic(?) New Haven (#8007, made in '80 & '81) version of the postwar #675 / 2025 / 2035. The other was their "Laser" set with a small "chrome" plastic engine & matching cars.
To convert a "normal" Lionel engine to DC power, as indicated by other "Forum" members, would involve disconnecting the "E" unit & the whistle / horn relay.
I service many prewar Lionel "00" trains & I frequently come across missing "E" units & cannibalized whistle assys. - both are sure signs that the train was modified to run on DC.
Originally Posted by chefnme:
I was wondering if Postwar Lionel trains made around the 50s, such as the F-3, can run on AC or DC.Thank you everyone!
Oh, there were a LOT of modern era starter sets that were DC only.
There is no need to disconnect the reverse units on prewar or postwar unless you have the desire to change direction by reversing track polarity, but that would entail making other wiring changes and the use of an on-board rectifier for either the field or the armature. As they still have to be wired in series to keep current draw acceptable, one of them has to be run on single-direction / non-reversing DC.
