Ryan and Dave 2021 American Flyer Show

One more item. They confirmed the Legacy Pacifics will have the IR sensor to interface with the LCS Sensor tracks.

Exactly what does the IR sensor let you do?

I wonder how hard it would be to make the dummy front coupler the size to accept a scale kadee. I want to put one on my legacy Berkshire but the box is way to big.

It communicates with the Sensor tracks. The Sensor track can be programmed to control most all engine functions, from blowing whistles, changing speed, triggering announcements, changing engine labor etc. It also reads and communicates engine status back to the base and on to the iPad. It also programs engines into the Cab2 automatically. I am leaving out a lot of features. I have three Sensor tracks on the layout and now wish I had put in double that number.

Pete, here is an AM dummy coupler to mate with a Kadee, is is designed for their passenger cars. It would need to be cut short and some kind of spring centering. AM also makes a dummy coupler for the front of their Pacifics. You might take a look at them as well.

@DL&W Pete posted:

I wonder how hard it would be to make the dummy front coupler the size to accept a scale kadee. I want to put one on my legacy Berkshire but the box is way to big.

Here's what I did for a similar situation on my SouthWind 2-8-0's: I cut down the shank of a Kadee and filed it to allow some wiggle room in the existing coupler box (which also had a dummy coupler.)  I then drilled a hole for the screw to pass through and mounted the coupler.

I had no trouble with the limited coupler swing down to 27" radius and was also able to doublehead my 2-8-0's with no issues.

Of course, you'd lose the delayed action uncoupling feature, but it's a heck of a lot easier than modifying the pilot for the Kadee coupler box.  I also didn't worry about a centering spring.  Heck, the prototype doesn't have any...

Rusty

Legacy and TMCC are one way communication.  So the sensor track communicate back to the legacy system to upload engine data.  In the past you had a little memory thing in the box that you plug into the legacy remote to do the same thing.  It has other features as mentioned above.

The Orange engine modules did load the Engine data into the base for setup. Lionel no longer provides them, cost savings probably. The Sensor track does more than that. Agree the Cab 2 to base to engine is one way. Add in LCS, WiFi and Sensor Tracks and it becomes two way, but not for every function.

One more minor thing I heard. Dave said the 2119250 is the first music playing Christmas car made by Lionel in S gauge. He has apparently forgotten about the Christmas Music Winter Wonderland Refrigerator Car from 2009. Here are the instructions that show the mechanism and the use of a 9V battery in the 2009 car.