New guy here w/ a question about a Lionel set I just bought..........

[drums1427]

I just recently won the Lionel Chessie Flyer train set on Ebay. I received it a couple of days ago & it is in really good condition. The guy I won it from only ran it once. It looks brand new.

My question is about the engine. It's a standard 4-4-2 with the smoke unit. I put some of the MTH smoke fluid in it & ran it & it smoked just fine. About 3hrs later I tried it again & now it won't smoke. I ran it for at least 15min (about 10min longer than the 1st time). Is there something with the engine that I can look at? I'd prefer to be able to fix this at home.

Also.....Does anybody have any info on this particulat set? I've looked around on the net but can't seem to find anything. Thanks

[ChiefEagles]

Welcome. Seems there is a problem. Since you have a piston type, read down to that.

http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=53624

Don't feel lonely. If this does not help. Keep asking. That is one of the reasons for this forum. Good luck.

BTW: be sure the smoke on off switch didn't get turned to off.

[drums1427]

The only thing missing from this set is the instuction booklet. Where would I find the on/off switch for the smoke?

Thanks

[ChiefEagles]

Not familiar with that set as I am a diesel guy. Look inside cab. Usually a smoke switch and a reversing unit off on switch.

[jimhaleyscomet]

Sometimes the switches are under the engine. One for smoke and one for reversing. This may be silly, but is it possible it ran out of smoke fluid (or was dumped over and it all ran out?). Try it in neutral so you can boost the power and see if it smokes. It usually only takes about 10 seconds.

Jim H

[drums1427]

The only switch I see underneath is for forward/reverse. I went on Lionel's site & looked at the download for thier 4-4-2 steam engines & that didn't help. Also, for this particular engine it said that it was supposed to have sound. I can't seem to get that to work either. I tried thier solution of reversing the lockon wires, no luck. Sorry to seem to be dumb questions but it has been at leat 20 yrs since I've used on of these (my dads when I was 8 or 9).

[drums1427]

And no, I'm not out of fluid. I bought a brand new bottle.

[1688torpedo]

Hello drums1427! Your particular engine does not have a switch to turn on-off the smoke generator.Sounds like the heater element gave out in your smoke generator.If so,then the whole unit needs to be replaced.Go to Dr.tinker's Toy Train website and he should have a New original stock version for you. They usually go for about $10-15.00 and be sure to specify a smoke generator that operates the Sound-of Steam unit in the Tender.Just give him the Engine # which is 8304 for the 1974-77 version of this set and # 8800 for the 1978-79 set. And use Lionel fluid only for this particular train as it was formulated for Lionel engines. Other fluids may not be compatible with your Train as there are differences in each manufacturer's smoke fluids.Hope this helps. Let us know what happens. Good Luck.

[oscaletrains]

i got that set it was my first about 5 to 7 years ago and the smoker still works but i only use linoel smoke fluid, sorry that was a really nice set.

[otftch]

Our club has had problems with MTH smoke fluid in Lionel steamers.It works fine then slowly seems to clog up.Put the train in neutral and let it sit at high voltage for a couple of minutes.Don't overload it with fluid either.I've also found that loosening and re-tightening the gound wire under the front truck helps them work better,
Ed

[drums1427]

Thank you guys very much. I bought a bottle of Lionel smoke fluid & now it works just fine. I think I read somewhere in these posts about a way to make it smoke more with some modifications. Does anybody know the link to that post?