Hi All,
Just curious, does anybody have some sort of idea about how much run time that one can expect per drop or per dose (if more than one drop) of smoke fluid? I would think that any loco, regardless of size, would exhibit about the same amount of time, whatever it may be.
Thanks in advance!
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From my experience:
Mega Steam is about 15 minutes from Fill to Empty.
MTH is about 20-25 minutes from fill to empty
Lionel is 25-30 Minutes from Fill to Empty.
I have not put a stopwatch on it, but I find that, if I pre-moisten a smoke unit a couple of hours before running that engine, the smoke feature lasts longer on the twelve drops I added when starting up any engine. I am going to run with the smoke "on."
The smoke pellet types can go, with a reduction in output, for an hour or two easily, probably more. Especially if they have been "overdosed" at some point(and I think they all have - by exuberant yutes from 1947 on).
ADCX Rob posted:The smoke pellet types can go, with a reduction in output, for an hour or two easily, probably more. Especially if they have been "overdosed" at some point(and I think they all have - by exuberant yutes from 1947 on).
"yutes" ? - thank you Cousin Vinnie !
SDIV Tim posted:From my experience:
Mega Steam is about 15 minutes from Fill to Empty.
MTH is about 20-25 minutes from fill to empty
Lionel is 25-30 Minutes from Fill to Empty.
I find those numbers a stretch. I'm lucky if my locos run 5 minutes on the low setting before more fluid is needed.
Some of the newer Lionel engines have smaller than average sized reserviors. This results in less fluid being added at more intervals.
That is a question similar to the one below.
How long is a road?
The answer would vary widely with the exact locomotive, the smoke settings, and any maintenance on the smoke unit. IMO, 30 minutes is pretty unattainable, at least I've never seen it. 
Most forum folks know my reputation for either starving or flooding smoke units and thusly getting the cab light blinks of death. Adding too little burns out the resistor and wadding; adding too much floods the fans. So, I have been experimenting: after running for 12 minutes, I add 12 drops; IMO, adding less than 10 drops just wets the funnel and resistor and never makes it to the batting. So far, no units destroyed.
Some say to use an injection needle to get smoke fluid straight to the batting; however, some internal funnels and delivery channels do not allow that.
gunrunnerjohn posted:IMO, 30 minutes is pretty unattainable, at least I've never seen it.
Agreed. All my steam locomotives, from postwar through my #3000 Mohawk, get no more than ten minutes from a smoke fluid filling. If anyone is getting half an hour, I want to know how.
Probably 15-20 minutes for me on a medium setting. That's from fill to empty.
What does empty mean for the smoke unit?
RickM46 posted:What does empty mean for the smoke unit?
It means you smoke your smoke unit. 
Mixed Freight posted:RickM46 posted:What does empty mean for the smoke unit?
It means you smoke your smoke unit.
Yep, you are right; great quantified advice. As I have learned the hard way: burnt resistor, hardened batting that no longer absorbs fluid. Some have said that when smoke begins waning, add fluid. I did that and drowned the fans. So now, I time how long I have the units on and add 1 drop per minute at the end of 12 minutes - Lionel smoke fluid. I am all ears for a better way or back to an art form for filling the units.
gunrunnerjohn posted:That is a question similar to the one below.
How long is a road?
The answer would vary widely with the exact locomotive, the smoke settings, and any maintenance on the smoke unit. IMO, 30 minutes is pretty unattainable, at least I've never seen it.
Good point. But with the replies so far, me thinkeths we're starting to get some sort of fuzzy idea just how long that road might possibly be. 
gunrunnerjohn posted:How long is a road?
Twice the distance from the center to either end.
As for the actual question I agree with a lot of the OPs. It really depends on the locomotive being run, age / type of batting, how much power is being applied to the smoke unit / tracks. I'm not sure if environment plays a factor (humid vs dry room, higher elevation vs lower elevation, hot vs cold, etc.) I believe that there are just too many factors involved to quantify this question.
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