1978 blue commet set

[billbarman]

I just got a 1978 Blue Commet locomotive, tender, and full set of cars from my grandfather. only one problem. The sound systom for the tender isnt working. There is a plug comming out from the tender and I have to connect it to the engine. when I do it makes a strange buzzing sounds when I try to run it  with it connected it shorts out. Does anyone know whats wrong?

[1688torpedo]

Hello Bill!

 The Foam Board that holds the Sound of Steam Circuit Board may no longer be good & as a result, the Circuit Board may have shorted out. Never fear though. Try Jeff Kane at the Train Tender Website & see if he has Both the Sound of Steam Board & the Sticky Foam to hold it in place. He will know what you're talking about as he is very knowledgeble about Lionel Parts. Hope this helps. BTW- I used to ride my Bike to Willoughby Trains in 1978 & the Engine for the Blue Comet was $115.00 Brand new & the Passenger Cars were $16.00 each!  Quite a buy then! You have a nice Train there, Bill & I hope you enjoy it for many years to come. Take Care.

[Boxcar Bill]

The sound board was mounted on foam rubber and has probably rotted away. That is what is causing short. Hope this helps.

 

B C Bill

[billbarman]

Yep the foam base is the case. Its turned into powder and is spilling out the bottom of the tender! Whats a mess...

[1688torpedo]

Hello Bill!

Go ahead & get a New Board for your Blue Comet & I'll help you pay for it if you want to as I know Jeff from many previous dealings for parts & I would hate to see you get soured by a Lemon Board, so to speak. Just PM or e-mail me at: [e-mail]. Take Care & have a fun day.

[billbarman]

Thanks for the offer but I already ordered  the piece from a freind I have down at the hobbie shop Still thats really nice of you.

[Lionelking313]

Since I have become sort of a pro with the Sound of Steam Ciruit Boards, and repairing them, I will advise not to use new foam rubber pads. Use double sided foam tape if instead. It does not deterioate like the foam pads. Thouroughly clean the tender frame by scraping all the old residue off, and apply small strips of foam tape. After apply the circuit board to the tape, and firmly press, try it out before installing the shell, if all goes well, great. If not, it could be the board was fried when it came in contact with the tender frame itself. Let me know, This is what happened to many Lionel 8206 Small hudsons, one of the first MPC Steamers with the new whistle in 1972. I have several mint 8206 steamers, I replaced the pads with foam tape, and the SOS and Whistle work great! Better then the air driven whistles. I have several brand new SOS circuit boards available if needed.

Mark

[Cheese]

Ah,

I have always wanted this set. I am quite a fan of the MPC FARR, FF, and Passenger sets. I hope you enjoy your set very much.

Cheese

[ADCX Rob]

Since I have become sort of a pro with the Sound of Steam Ciruit Boards, and repairing them, I will advise not to use new foam rubber pads...

Mark

I have to agree with this too.  I use the "HandiTak" adhesive made into 4 or 6 little standoff "pads" instead of foam or tapes.  It stays pliable and comes off clean whenever you need it to.

Rob 

[billbarman]

Just wondering, how would not having the bord effect the whole system?

[Boxcar Bill]

Bill

 

 The best fix is to order " Bracket Mounting Horn Board" Part # 600-8708-085. I thinck they are $1.25 Each. It works perfect.

 

B C Bill

[dmestan]

Since I have become sort of a pro with the Sound of Steam Ciruit Boards, and repairing them, I will advise not to use new foam rubber pads. Use double sided foam tape if instead. It does not deterioate like the foam pads. Thouroughly clean the tender frame by scraping all the old residue off, and apply small strips of foam tape. After apply the circuit board to the tape, and firmly press, try it out before installing the shell, if all goes well, great. If not, it could be the board was fried when it came in contact with the tender frame itself. Let me know, This is what happened to many Lionel 8206 Small hudsons, one of the first MPC Steamers with the new whistle in 1972. I have several mint 8206 steamers, I replaced the pads with foam tape, and the SOS and Whistle work great! Better then the air driven whistles. I have several brand new SOS circuit boards available if needed.

Mark

Mark, any tips on testing the SOS board?  I'd hate to buy a new one only to find out that maybe the speaker was bad.  I have the board with 3-wire connection to the engine.  Do you know of any specific voltages, resistance, etc. I could check on the components?  Is there a way to test the board without the being connected to the engine?  And if the board is shot, could I buy one from you?

thx, Don.

[QueensNY]

I have one that's new in the box. I never took it out of the plastic. Hope nothing happen to it. This thred got me nervous now.

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[Berk765]

Why dont you run that Blue Comet? Whew, if I had it, I'd probably die if I didn't run it. But I bet its worth some serious money.

[Berk765]

What does the sound of steam sound like. Do they have chuffing thats cincrunized with the drivers?

[palallin]

Why dont you run that Blue Comet? Whew, if I had it, I'd probably die if I didn't run it. But I bet its worth some serious money.

 

Not worth that much if recent sales are any indication (which is another strong argument for putting her on the rails and cranking the handle of the transformer).

[QueensNY]

I received it as a present when i was 4 and my grandfather had a standard guage setup. So we always ran his blue comet. Which became mine. So i had it in storage and to this day its so nice that i cant use. There not many left new in the box.
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[QueensNY]

Not worth that much if recent sales are any indication (which is another strong argument for putting her on the rails and cranking the handle of the transformer).

 

Ive been offerd  between $500 and $750 dollars for it. But i will never ever sell it. I seen them sell on ebay used between 3 and 4 hundred.

[Lionelking313]

I never heard of a SOS board with 3 wires going to the engine, usually one to the speaker, one to the pick up roller and 1 to the engine itself, the later models, at either a male and female going to the engine, and the last of the sound of steam units, have a pin plug.

The speakers usually dont blow, I many extra speakers too just in case.

If the ciruict is in the tender, and ready to go, try it out, but do my repair suggestion first. It should sound like a static sound, synchronized with the drivers (pre historic Railsounds)

Let me know if you need anymore Help.

Mark

[Lionelking313]

I should of said, I have many speakers too in my parts drawer just in case.

 

Mark

[ADCX Rob]

I never heard of a SOS board with 3 wires going to the engine...

Mark

The Hudsons(783,784,785) had 3 wire SOS connectors between engine & tender - part number 8306-61 is the female/engine side connector. 

Rob 

[NYC Fan]

I was a postwar collector when the MPC steam locomotives startd being produced. I remember that Electronic Sound of Steam and that lame whistle. And the worst part, them all sounding alike, and it was relly bad. So, I never connected the plugs. As a result I've always really enjoyed those MPC Steam Engines, almost as much as my postwar.  

[dmestan]

Are all of the SOS boads the same?  So is it just a difference of the 3 wires to the engine vs. wires to pickups on the tender?  I have the board loose from the tender and still no luck - no steam sound and no whistle.  Are there specific components on the board known to go bad that could be replaced?

 don