Lionel 6-82806 Union Pacific #844 has no CAB light. Has Sparking Tender. Help.

My guess...from experiencing and hearing previous problems. The plug for the cab light that connects to the mother board might be loose. There was a guy on here that had the same issue but with the lights on the front of the engine. take the shell off and check the plugs. And the sparks you are seeing on the tender are probably electrical arching due to the chemically blackened wheels...and possibly dirty track. scuff them with a little Scotchbrite. If its sparking and shorting the transformer out then you will be having a bigger issue.

The tender sparking is not from dirty track.  Lionel Service in Concord, NC wanted me to use "Goo Gone" on my entire track.  Legacy Station suggests only 70% isopropyl alcohol. They tried Goo Gone and DO NOT recommend it.  The Goo Gone residue caught between my rail joints was softening my steam engine traction tires even though I wiped the track thoroughly. It would be impossible to get rid of all the Goo Gone unless I flushed the joints with a squirt bottle.  I an glad I tried only a short section on one main line.   How do you clean your track?

The cab light is not as bright as most have been in the past. Double check that it's actually not on or just very dim.

I have always used denatured alcohol, and allow it to dry completely before running anything.  I have never had a problem.

Dude you have way to many sparking trains something is wrong ..

John Rowlen posted:

 How do you clean your track?

Acetone works great. That's what I recommend. It breaks down the dirt very well and evaporates quickly. Alcohol works but doesn't break down the dirt as well as Acetone. Also that should help get rid of the Goo Gone.  If you want to get hardcore and melt anything  plastic and screw up your lungs and liver if absorbed into your body..."MEK" Methyl Ethyl Ketone that stuff will take all the dirt off and them some but I don't recommend it.

The Cab light is so dim you need to kill the room lights to see it.

I wonder if it is intentional to be so dim? hope it gets clarified as seems like all other cab lights are really bright in past engine releases.

pun intended...... is it possibly a rule 17 feature!  

In my opinion, that Goo Gone stuff is absolutely the WORST fluid to clean your track with! It leaves a film on top of the rails that affects the traction tires. I use either Denatured Alcohol or Lacquer Thinner, as both products dry quickly and do NOT leave any film residue on the rails.

if you have that many sparking engines you might want to check all the electrical connections on the layout. I recently helped a forum member trouble shoot his layout and what we found was few wires were crossed causing the layout to short out once an equipment hit that section.

Well you asked for suggestions, recommendations and comments, if you don't like it then relax. Nothing is PERFECT. Their is always something that causes the / an issue which you apparently have.

 If a manufacture doesn't QC their contracted product then shame on them. The Chinese are more than happy to take their money,

Like others on this forum I have a considerable amount of Lionel Visionline and Legacy products as well as plenty of MTH products and to date I have never experienced what you have posted.