S Gauge Now & Then
But the problem lit a fire under me to fix the unit
I HAVE 14 AMERICAN FLYER BY LIONEL STEAM AND DIESEL locomotives that have fan-driven smoke units. They are all Legacy engines, except for three FlyerChief steam engines. Years ago I learned how to repair these engines when the volume of smoke fell to little or nothing. I’d like to share with you how I did it.
I first learned this fix when I called Lionel and talked with a repair technician about a problem I was having with a General Electric U33C diesel. He told me one of the problems could be that the smoke unit’s batting had become charred at the heating coil in the smoke unit.
Time for some DIY
Since the engine was out of its warranty period, I decided to disassemble it and have a look. It wasn’t a difficult process with this locomotive. All that’s needed is to carefully take off the engine’s body shell by removing the Phillips-head screws from the underside of the chassis.
Because the engine shell is connected by a number of electrical wires, I had to carefully place it beside the chassis. When you’re done with that step, you can easily see the smoke unit with its fan motor and smoke chamber.
There are small Phillips-head screws on top of the smoke chamber that hold the top in place. These need to be removed very carefully because of their size. I used a computer screwdriver because it fit the small screws best.
Once the screws have been taken out, you can lift off the lid to see the smoke unit’s heating coil with the batting or cotton-like media underneath.
Please be aware that there is a gasket for the cover and you need to be careful not to tear it.
Yep, it’s burnt
With the top off I used a small screwdriver to separate the batting from the heating coil. Sure enough, it was charred.
I took it out and removed the burnt area. There was still plenty of clean and functional batting left.
I carefully put what was left of the batting back in the smoke unit, leaving space in front of where the air flows from the fan so it could blow the smoke through the smoke chamber and out the stack.
Then I checked the gasket on the smoke chamber before replacing the lid and adding smoke fluid.
Before I put the engine shell back on the chassis, I tested the unit o see if my repair had succeeded. The results were mixed at first. I had to remove the lid and adjust the batting several times before I got it right.
At last I had it smoking well. I put the shell back on the chassis, making sure all the wires were in place. I put the U33C diesel on the track, and ran it. Once again I was satisfied the smoke production.
Assuming this problem would recur at some point, I decided to order some replacement batting. It can be ordered from Lionelsupport.com; the part number is 691SMKP008. It’s Fiberglass, so always wear nitrile gloves while handling it.
Following my experience with the U33C, I proceeded to do the same repair on other diesel and steam engines, including a Y3 and a Challenger.
Disassembly of the steam engines to reach the smoke unit is more complicated. Still, once you figure out the process the rest is largely the same as with the diesels.
The same repairs also work on modern O gauge Lionel diesels, too!
This method won’t fix every engine’s smoke problems, as sometimes the issues are electrical. But checking the wick or batting is a relatively easy process and for me has eliminated 90 percent of my smoke issues.
Bill Clark has written features and reviews for S Gaugian magazine. He operates vintage and modern equipment from American Flyer and other manufacturers.