I have a norfolk southern heritage legacy sd70ace from lionel that the smoke unit has never worked....buzzes loudly and no smoke. I have sent several locos back to lionel for repair and had excellent service...but was just wanting to maybe fix this one myself if possible...the paint seems easily scratched on this beautiful model. Has anyone removed the body from these easily?...or is it as hard to remove as the u30s? Thanks
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Good Day,
It's not hard removing the shell.................It's putting it back together that is tricky...... must be very careful. Watch out for the wires when reinstalling the shell.
Regards,
Swafford
I have a norfolk southern heritage legacy sd70ace from lionel that the smoke unit has never worked....buzzes loudly and no smoke. I have sent several locos back to lionel for repair and had excellent service...but was just wanting to maybe fix this one myself if possible...the paint seems easily scratched on this beautiful model. Has anyone removed the body from these easily?...or is it as hard to remove as the u30s? Thanks
Don't know about that model but I tried to remove the shell from my PRR U28c to repair one of the number board lights without any success. Called Lionel to ask them where the additional screws are located, I did locate and remove them from the front and back. They told me if I removed the shell that I voided my warranty.
Anyway, they sent me an RA. I returned the engine to them. When I got it back it had a missing MU platform and hinge, broken pilot and snow plow on the front of the engine along with a broken chain on the front railing. They did send me replacement parts but I'm convinced,but can't prove it, that they sent me someone elses engine.
The did however fix the number board light.
Thanks for the responses...just can't get motivated to send back for repairs...done that already on several locos...having many engines in my fleet I might seem to need to learn to repair these myself!...also wanting the newer CN gp35s...hope they will not need returns. I will continue to be a loyal legacy fan...hoping they get the quality control problems worked out.
Like Swafford said, not that hard to remove, but re-install takes some patience. Most Lionel diesels have eight screws holding the shell on; four in the corners, two forward of the fuel tank and the remaining two are usually hidden by the rear truck which needs to rotate almost full travel to see the screw heads.
I thought only removing the shell from Vision Line engines would void the warranty. So that policy also follows all Legacy equipment?
Wow...thanks...now if I can figure out what to do with the smoke unit when I get the shell off!
Once you get access to the smoke unit, check to see if the fan impeller is contacting the gasket that seals the lid on to the base of the smoke unit. I also like to put a drop of Labelle oil on the fan motor upper & lower bushings as they likely have never seen any lube at the factory. You'll need a needle-point oiler to get the upper bushing oiled.
There's a body in your loco?
Real or scale?
I thought only removing the shell from Vision Line engines would void the warranty. So that policy also follows all Legacy equipment?
That's what the woman at LCS said. I was surprised because their warranty excludes lighting.
I found this thread while attempting to remove the shell form one of my new SD70ACes. I primed the smoke unit for first use. Then I felt like I kept adding smoke fluid and nothing was happening. I could hear the fan turning on and off when I switched smoke from on to off. I could feel heat coming from the stack. Still no smoke. I was afraid I was going to over fill the smoke unit. That is why I decided to remove the shell. When I removed the shell, and opened the smoke unit, nothing was charred/burnt. The wick looked very dry though. Since I could see the wick, I decided to fill it while I could see it. I put the shell back on and now I am getting smoke. I guess I was just being too careful during the initial fill.