First of all, my thanks is extended to all those kind folks who sent suggestions on the repair of my 313 bascule bridge. I never was able to find the schematic I was looking for, so I decided to take the bull by the horns, exercise a little patience and logic, and finally got this baby fired up. I have one suggestion after all this; DON'T take a 313 bascule bridge completely apart and then try to put it back together again (unless you check with me, because now I'm a self-made expert on the subject) You all KNOW I'm kidding about the "expert" part, don't you? Thanks again, everyone.
initagain,
Congratulations on getting your bridge running. While you were taking the bull by the horns, I was grabbing the bull by the tail and squarely facing the situation. (per W.C. Fields)
When I finally managed to get into the www.Lionel.com website this afternoon, I found a pictorial diagram of a modern-era bascule bridge in Customer Service officially listed as
#2317 Automatic-Remote Control Drawbridge
You might want to check it out, compare it to your bridge, and post back whether it has a similar mechanism or is entirely new. Others might benefit from your experience. Thanks.
Glad to hear you got the 313 running! What a fine accessory! I have both the postwar one and the modern era new in the box and have never tried them. After looking at it..some pretty fancy wiring.
Are you using the brace? I hate that thing and think it distracts from the scale model look.
bf, the #2317 drawbridge (1975-81) is totally different from the #313 except in general operation.
Lionel's first reissue of the #313 was #12948 from 1997 (I think there was a later one, too.). The drive motor is DC, not open-frame AC, and the gear on the bridge is part of the drive system, very different from the original. However, some of the other parts may be interchangeable, so it never hurts to look.
Possibly the problems we are having stem from the fact that the original 313 Bascule bridge was actually a pre-war item, carried over into the post-war period. This could explain why the post-war service manual for Lionel trains by K-Line gives it such short shrift.
I have no reference books for the pre-war era. It looks to me that the January, 1995 issue of CTT, as suggested by Back2Trains in the accompanying thread of the same name, might be the best bet if someone can get hold of one on whatever media it may be available. Or, maybe someone has a suitable prewar service manual that he could check.
The only thing that seems clear presently is that the mechanism of the early 313 is not at all similar to the modern-era ones. So much for that!
I did check out that pictorial a couple of days ago, in between cursing a blue streak and pulling my hair out. The new version of 313 differs greatly from the one I was tackling. Even getting to the drive mechanism in the newer version is much easier, because you simply remove the tower caps by removing the top screws. In the old model, you have to remove the support towers from the base, and then carefully reach up to the underside of the tower caps with a long screwdriver (and a LOT of patience) to remove the screws which hold the caps. THEN you can get to how the drive linkage and tension spring are fastened to the swaged drive bar. Good grief, I am going on and on and on here. Thanks for your suggestion, anyway. Garry.
Many thanks for your kind words. I don't use the alignment frame/brace, because I agree with you, it looks hoaky and it isn't really needed anyway, as long as the track is properly aligned.
Regards, Garry.
Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.
Get the Classic Toy Trains newsletter delivered to your inbox twice a month