Replacing Bulb on Lionel 2408 Passenger Car

the 2400 series cars have two roof vent screws that hold the roof on. the earlier cars have operationg couplers, I'm not sire on your car.

thank you very much re the vent screws - Ill give it a shot

I have freight cars from a late 50"s set that have the disc under the couplers that would uncouple - and a little tongue that appeared when the coupler opened -

these cars don't have the disc or from what I can see anyway of opening the couplers -

the early 2400 cars have coil couplers, that are opened on an uncoupler track. the later ones have a metal plat you can pull down to open.

And the end which has moldings on the roof like a ladder goes over the door/vestibule end.

It's quite likely that your car uses 2-6 volt bulbs wired in series. One socket is grounded with a wire going to the other socket. The other socket has a second wire going to the roller(s).

If someone placed a pair of 12 volt (14v ?) bulbs in there, they likely wouldn't light. Not that anyone would just assume that the trains run on that voltage, so the bulbs must be that voltage. And like Christmas lights, if one bulb burns out, the other one goes dark too.

When you unscrew those "vents" be careful not to scratch the roofs. The paint on the few I've opened seems to be pretty fragile.

I'm afraid I can't help you with the couplers as everything I know about them has been covered already.

Hope this helps,

J White

tsheridan posted:

also I noticed the couplers on these cars (2408/09/10)  are fixed - is that correct or am I missing something...

The mechanical coupler trucks on these are there - just not obvious. There is a rectangular metal plate on the bottom of each truck that hinges at the coupler end and swings down toward the track when the uncouple button is pressed. Car placement over the track/electromagnet is critical.

You can open them by hand but it takes a decently sharp fingernail to catch the plate, or you can use a small screwdriver and retract the long stamped steel rod from the coupler head, releasing the knuckle.

Thanks to all for your comments -

was able to remove roof to access bulbs 

and saw how the couplers work - would not have figured that one out at all

wishing all a happy and healthy New Year!

Tom