Smoke Pellets or Smoke Fluid?

[kgkane78]

Hi all...  I recently got a nice Lionel 2037 engine and whistling tender on eBay.  The seller had the engine professionally repainted, so the engine is in great condition.  It has a smoke unit that the seller said is in working order, but I haven't tested it just yet because I am still trying to figure out what material to use.

From my research, it looks like this engine originally used the smoke pellets, which I know I can still get from the companies that reproduce them.  However, I have seen some other engines that have what looks like dried smoke pellet material all over the smoke stack, which seems to be pretty common if the pellet is not 100% consumed while running the train.  In my research, I also discovered that I can use smoke fluid instead either in the original smoke unit or by converting the unit to liquid with one of Lionel's kits.

Will I end up with the same kind of residue on my engine if I use smoke fluid or is the fluid an ultimately cleaner option than the pellets?

-K

[Anonymous]

There won't be any residue with fluid.  I actually prefer fluid over pellets.  Don't waste the time or money on the liquid conversion kit.

[cwburfle]

Its all a matter of personal preference.
I prefer the pellets because I'd rather put a small amount of dust into the air of my train room, as opposed to a small amount of oil.  Plus, I prefer the ordor of the pellets.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

My brother in law prefers the smoke pellets for his old Lionel steamer. I think it's a 2-6-2. He brings it out once in a blue moon.

[SantaFe158]

I use fluid most of the time in my postwar steamers.  Seems to work better for me.  I also use pellets for fun occasionally, but fluid is cheaper to burn.

[TRAINCAT]

Smoke fluid won't leave that thick white gunk in your smoke unit that eventually has to be dug out. I use Mega steam in all my engines now. You don't need that conversion unit.

Roger

[kgkane78]

Thanks everyone for the feedback.  Sounds like fluid should work fine (and be easier to get ahold of), unless someone has a strong preference for the pellets.

This was helpful!  So thanks again for all the info.