@Hancock52 posted:Well, there are true experts on the forum who can help more than me, and hopefully one of them will chime in, but based on what you say and looking at the parts diagram for what I think is your model:
(1) I think that the AC Regulator has fried - as they were very prone to do with what appears to be the specific smoke unit installed in your case (no longer available as a complete unit from Lionel).
(2) If your smoke unit PCB has not also fried, you might be able to track down a replacement regulator (I don’t recognize the specific product number you mention) but the resistor in the smoke unit would have to be 8 Ohm or greater value to safeguard against the regulator being overtaxed again. I think that these smoke units originally shipped with 6 Ohm resistors, and produced prodigious smoke, but Lionel soon changed the spec to 8 Ohm because of frequent AC Reg. failures.
(3) The clipped black wire is an extra ground wire that is surplus to requirements and was probably clipped in manufacturing.
(4) Really not sure you can just change the resistor or install an earlier generation “dumb” smoke unit wired direct to track power as (AFAIK) you won’t have control over smoke effects.
I could be wrong about that last point but someone else may know better.
Hancock52,
The model # is 6-28548. The last 3 digits in Lionel's part# 691ACRGES2 is assigned based on the sticker on the 8 pin IC chip. Lionel's other smoke regulators have the same prefix but different 3 digit extension at the end. I'm assuming they're for units with different resistor values and/or steam/diesel applications. Smoke unit reg 691ACRGES2 is available for $20.00. I measured the resistor and my meter showed 8 ohms which is congruent with Lionel's parts site. I guess I'll just order one...or two.
Thanks!
Dan
