Just connect the jumper wires to the same connections on the back of your transformer as your original connections, and make sure that the wires are not crossed. Lionel introduced a few LionChief Plus 2.0 starter sets in 2022. The smaller of the two is # 12028, which turns your oval into this: There is also the larger 12031 plan, which has a couple extra straight track pieces included, creating this: Even better, one or more of the expansion sets can be combined to create even more interesting track layouts. At an average 14 volts - this is 9x14 = 126 watts - the ZW is getting quite warm and I have not run an accessory or another train yet! The whistle requires more power than the outfits that don't have it. Lionel 1033 Transformer Renovation Part I Peter Fenzel 306 subscribers Subscribe 11K views 3 years ago Lionel 1033 Transformer gets cleaned up, a new power cord, a new whistle rectifier. However, there are times when the solid wire has advantages, particularly when soldering in small locations. All Lionel transformer comparisons should start here. Everything you need to get going is included, its reliable, and setup is usually very easy. Price Received. The wire can also be purchased as solid or stranded. The next evolution in model train control is radio- or bluetooth-controlled trains. Service/Tested $55.00 1 bid $14.06 shipping 1d 6h LIONEL TYPE (KW) TRAINMASTER TRANSFORMER FOR PARTS OR RESTORATION $17.05 4 bids $19.95 shipping 9h 23m Expanding the basic oval from the set is the quickest way to add more interest to your trains. In most cases, stranded wire is preferred because the multiple threads provide more conductivity and flexibility. The Lionel ZW has four sets of posts and six controls. The modern equivalent is the Lionel CW-80, but frankly I like the old ones better. This will solve the slowdown problem. There was a video by Mike Reagan from Lionel about better smoke output from a chopped wave transformer, but the pure sine wave didn't cause any operational issues. Lots of good tips for building a layout from two of the most experienced people in the hobby. As your layout grows so, too, will its power demand. (Use buss/feeder lines to distribute power.) I thought you wanted information related to your layout not operations at a trains show. Some great beginner accessories are the #12052 Fastrack Highway Signal set, which is a set of highway signals that blink as the train goes by. I didnt mention the 1034 above because its easier to find a 1033. Hello, I'm new to this site, and completely new to toy trains also - so please pardon my ignorance! Transformer sizing for new systems Viola, DCS on alternate power blocks, Max signal, Happiness. Enter your e-mail address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by e-mail. The load voltage and load amps must be known to calculate KVA rating. By creating alternate routes, more complex loops, and storage tracks, your trains will suddenly be even more interesting to watch and they will begin providing you the feeling that they are going somewhere and that you are running a small railroad. If you want to connect ten landscape lights to a magnetic transformer, and the lights use 30 watts each, you would need a 375 watt transformer. As the train goes by, the door to the shed opens and a figure pops out, and once the train has passed the figure re-enters the building and the door shuts. Steve's rule of thumb for derating is very close to and in the same spirit as the NEC rule that an appliance may not draw more than 80 percent of the current rating of the outlet. Get the Classic Toy Trains newsletter delivered to your inbox twice a month, Calculating transformer size for layout size. Understanding the difference is important in getting the right power supply for your needs. In three-rail systems, the outer rails are both grounded, and the center rail is "hot.". I am assuming that your starter set came with either o27, brown ties, or 031, black ties, track and it runs well as is. Lionel made these for years and kept them in production under a different model number well into the 1970s because it was a reliable, dependable design and had enough power for a typical starter set while leaving some room to grow. This wire is very fine and can be found in many color combinations. Ill try to find a link to it for you. For Lionel power the 45 watts is good for a 4 by 8 as a rule of thumb to compensate poor track you just use more feeders. The new Lionel ZW-L is getting a lot of good reviews and is a very powerful transformer for most layouts. Lionel 1033 90 Watt Multi-control Transformer (102) $9.99 1 bid $16.00 shipping 2d 9h Lionel Type Z 250 Watt Transformer & One 167 Whistle Controllers. I really doubt you will need more than that. Lionel Rolling Stock Identification Guide. Replies and comments they make will be collapsed/hidden by default. 10 Easy Ways to Improve a Christmas Train Display, Wiring a Model Railroad for Block Operation, How to Build and Wire Reverse Loops for Model Trains, How to Choose the Right Transformer for Your Model Trains, Compatibility of Different Model Train Brands, HO Scale Track Plans for Model Train Layouts, buildings, streets, and other scenic accessories. Lionel developed and perfected its model designs and layouts during the Pre-War Era (1901-1942). The other type of cars are the Scale cars, which are exact or near-exact replicas of actual freight cars. There are also numerous static accessories that do not operate but add visual interest to your layout, such as the #24219 girder bridge. I have had the same problem. This is different from the stranded wire in that the different individual wires, each with their color-coded insulation, is placed inside a secondary insulation wrap. This works for command control layouts too, since those parked trains are still drawing some current. Professionals Need: Kindle Direct Publishing Indie Digital & Print Publishing Made Easy Amazon Photos Unlimited Photo Storage Free With Prime: Prime Video Direct Starter sets almost always include a power supply along with the track and train. All Lionel transformer comparisons should start here. what size lionel transformer do i need. Needless to say the "Spring into Spring" train show very nearly became unsprung! Its a good transformer. Here are a few: --The Lionel Fastrack Book, by Robert Schleicher. Many will still run on the track in your starter set, but because they are scale sized, the bodies of these cars may be slightly wider and longer than those in your set. Our community is FREE to join. On a large loop of track you will need to have multiple drops, hook-ups, to the transformer because if you only have one hook up the train will get slower the father away it gets from the transformer. Over the years I have collected boxed(mostly liquor boxes) sets from attics.So I have a variety of transformers on hand. The best of the best Lionel trains are very valuable. As you can see, a lot of great helpers here. Starter set locomotives can pull up to 12 cars easily, and most can handle up to 20, so building a longer train will not harm your engine. The smaller the number, the larger the wire. Join Today! He directs production at Lionel, the premier model train manufacturer, and he istheformer president of theConrail HistoricalSociety. Most command systems use a constant AC power supply, and trains are controlled by impulses sent through the rails. Note that when working with specific products, manufacturers will often recommend a wire size and type. The larger wire is usually more expensive and more challenging to work with. If the transformer fails, you most likely have a short or overload somewhere in the control circuit. 12V DC to 120V AC 60Hz pure sine inverter. CW80 Transformer. This tool only evaluates common voltages for North America (ie. Obviously, for a lot of people, the $700 Lionel ZW-L transformer is overkill. That could also be the reason the other transformers don't work. Transformers are sized by determining the total load required (in amps). You don't really need a diagram -- you want to pick your interval (some would recommend as often as 3'), drill a hole down through your base, and connect a wire to a bus which runs beneath the layout and connects to your transformer (obviously, you need two wires, one for each powered rail). At auction, Lionel train sets, pieces, and accessories can sell for a few hundred dollars or for a few thousand dollars, depending on the rarity and condition of the piece. A. That's about enough to run a single locomotive and perhaps power a few lighted accessories or passenger cars. As you progress with your layout there are a lot of people here who will help you with any questions you have. Now, I diconnected that old dinosaur and connected two separate smaller ones which weren't powerful enough to run my Amtrack MTH trains. We use a ZW 275 and a KW on this, so 405 watts. And again regardless of scale or manufacturer, switch machines of these two types will have similar needs and performance. The iconic and legendary 270-wattLionel ZW was the biggest and best transformer Lionel made in the postwar era. A Passenger consist can easily use more power than the engine. Electric Trains make great power supplies, depending on usage, on a DCS controlled layout. And both of them give more wattage per handle than a KW or ZW. Most two-rail track systems use direct current (DC). "What size wire should I use?" When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission, which supports our community. It is much easier to be ready ahead of time then to have to do some changes afterwards. Not really a how-to-build-a-layout book, but it is a good general introduction to the hobby full of interesting stuff. You can use bus and feeder wires to more evenly distribute the power over your track. These sets use a remote control which talks directly to a receiver in the locomotive. Price Received. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Classification/marker lights on the PRR steam engine, For Sale: Lionel 6-11127 Legacy Southern Pacific GS-4 Daylight, Lionel Bethlehem Steel slag car and ATLAS NYC Baggage car, Lionel O 2333790 TrainWorld & RBP Trains Chris Raines -Exclusive - Katy LEGACY ES44AC #2021, Converting MTH Rail king GS-4 PROTO 2 to ERR Cruise Commander, The Harpers Ferry Layout II - Backdrop panels completed. Stop it with your hand to full stall, and it goes up to four amps--sixty watts--trying to pull. The insulation on the outside of the wire also varies greatly. The power supply that comes with these sets is usually a very small wall pack plug-in that cannot be easily expanded. June 5, 2022; cleveland open chess 2021; mexican martial arts xilam But if you already have a 1034 and dont need a whistle button, go ahead and use it. God bless TCA 05-58541 Benefactor Member of theNRA, Member of the American Legion, Retired Boss Hog of Roseyville , KC&D Qualified. Subscribers, sign in to access exclusive content. DCC is less common in starter sets, but some are available. The CW-80 is a nice little transformer, has accessory output as well,but as you have stated you will outgrow the CW-80 pretty quick. This thing has more power then I will ever need. Doug Murphy 'We few, we happy few, we band of brothers' Henry V. I am a person with a very active inner child. Classic cars have a 5 or 6 as their second digit [25051, 16686, etc]. The article you suggest would be a daunting task, as you'd have to gather virtually every known locomotive and transformer! Any of the below transformers from M.T.H. What does a Lionel transformer do? All members here are welcome to drop in and visit. Lionel is also introducing a new 180 watt transformer to accompany the 80 watt CW 80. If your track joints aren't near perfect or if you should want to split that loop into two blocks, you'll double the voltage drop. An Essential Guide for Toy Train Enthusiasts! I have purchased diodes to put into the older transformers to see if this resolves the issue with newer tenders. I got a lot of lightweight transformers that came with starter sets over the years. Lionel 1033 90 watt Transformer Postwar from 1950s-60s Whistle, Direction. Outdoor railroads are, of course, an exception! Actually the choice of transformer is secondary to the choice of control systems since you can operate O gauge trains with most any good modern transformer. Transformer capacity is rated in KVA (kilo-volt-amperes). If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Theres nothing inherently wrong with them, though I would shy away from the smaller transformers that are less than 75 watts, including the modern CW-40. To my knowledge, you should have no compatibility issues with a pure sine wave track feed with any major brand locomotive. Also, you must have a built-in circuit breaker to prevent a short circuit from causing permanent damage to the power supply or the trains. The 1033 is not the same as the 1044. Keeping in mind that I will likely continue to add to the layout as my addiction develops! Come join the discussion about brands, various scales, repairs, storage, displays, reviews, accessories, classifieds, and more! Thanks in advance for any information, Mike. Beginners Ask Trains New trains; old transformers. I think the RW is a bit better value, but that could just be timing. I cant see you needing more than a capacity of 5 amps. Buyers truly want all-original trains that have never been tampered with. Reverse the above if planning to run mostly Lionel and go with the Lionel command system, either the full Legacy system or the upcoming CAB-1L and just add a Track Power Controller and a cable to run most MTH engines in conventional with the Lionel systems. I have since wired the new transformer to my layout along with the old ZW. Sign up for new product releases, promotions, and more. A Veteran, whether active duty, retired, national guard, or reserve, is someone who, at one point in his or her life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America" for an amount of "up to and including my life.". If you plan to just run MTH go with their DCS system if you plan to have a number of different engines or the MTH DCS Remote Commander which is limited to running only one engine at a time. As cheap as the 1033 is, if youre going to buy a transformer, you might as well pay a few dollars more to get a 1033. Why Sign In? All Lionel transformer comparisons should start here. I had 3 lionel cw80's and two quit working. My layout I am building is 5 sheets of 4x8 plywood and it will probaly take me 100 years to build it (I hope I have that much time left). Stop it with your hand to full stall, and it goes up to four amps--sixty watts--trying to pull. But a 12-gauge solid wire is one strand, while a 12-gauge stranded wire may be made up of more than a dozen much smaller individual strands spun together. Mint-in-box examples of vintage Lionel trains are still valuable and will continue to appreciate in value over time, because there are so few of them. The Lionel ZW has four sets of posts and six controls. Take the hint. Early issues used a Bakelite case while later releases had a case made out of plastic. A rule of thumb from the elders, (I had to go to the mountain top for this one), Add 2 more watts for Spankybird's fun-filled layout! The Lionel Multi-control 1033 is a 90 watt transformer produced from 1948 to 1956. The accessory activation track (#12029) is used to activate Lionel trackside accessories. (10 lights X . Adding more freight or passenger cars [also known as rolling stock] to your set is another way to quickly expand your railroad. Both are lighted. Improve ready-to-run freight cars with a little paint. That was before all the technician assemby work was outsourced overseas and they left the poor engineers to fend for themselves. QUOTE: by Skyray "Typical engineer--you need a technician. Will get a Z4000 one day [this summer probably, unless I find a good deal on an older ZW] just to say I have one. American Flyer Trains were made in several gauges. As your needs grow, you can employ a larger transformer of fixed voltage. electronically controlled outputs. JavaScript is disabled. If youre going to run more than one train, you can pair up two smaller transformers, or you can look at the two-handled transformers. What about removing flanges from diesel wheels? Members enjoy 15% off any purchase in our store. Multi-conductor wires with many strands of finer wire are more common for telecommunications and electronics. Dave, the nice thing about Lionel transformers is you can run them until the bimetallic breaker pops and then you let it cool and you are back in action (after shutting a few things down)! He directs production at Lionel, the premier model train manufacturer, and he istheformer president of theConrail HistoricalSociety. Big Ed Railroad Tycoon Do not operate the CW-80 Transformer with a damaged cord, plug, or case. You should take care, however, to replace worn cords and wires. Get the newest photos, videos, stories, and more from Trains.com brands. Of course, if you happen to have enough Number12 wire left over from a home renovation project to install all the buses on your small layout, it won't do any harm. The transformer, when operated at the lower frequency, may . These bus wires are often more important than the size of the power supply itself in getting good results. There are a few standards when it comes to the color-coding. Scale cars almost always have the number 7 as the second digit in their number [17623, 27241, etc]. The thing that eats current is a lot of light bulbs on the layout. Should it be a Lionel or should it be an MTH with command control? Finally, you'll never receive email notifications about content they create or likes they designate for your content. The 1044 is just a 1033 in a different case. Frankly, its hard to go wrong with either of these transformers, especially at todays prices. This will spread the load of your lighted passenger consist across the two transformers. My question is.how big of a transformer will I need to power this thing? The car on the left is scale, and the one on the right is the classic, underscale size. --Toy Train Collecting and Operating, by John Grams. A solid and stranded wire of the same gauge will be the same total diameter. Turn on the throttle, then short the A and U posts (in the case of Lionel) or variable and base posts (in the case of Flyer) with a screwdriver or a piece of wire for a maximum of five seconds. ransformers were issued by Lionel thoughout the Post War period. Solid wire is preferable as it is much easier to solder to the rails.