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Hi Team OGR,

I have a vintage Lionel 1010 35-watt transformer and need to replace the power cord; however, I cannot find any information on how to take the cover off of the unit to get to the cord.  I searched the Forum, and the only reference I could find had just a general discussion on the 1010. Even the Lionel service documents are silent on the procedure, probably to keep 10-year-old model railroaders from hurting themselves.

Sm Lionel 1010 style transformer ??? | O Gauge Railroading On Line Forum (ogaugerr.com)



Below is a picture of the transformer,

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Here is a snip of the service manual.

Lionel 1010 service picture

It does not look like the two terminals or control arm are removable, so that would imply that the cover needs to be pried off?  Does that sound right?

THanks in advance for any help!!

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Last edited by Former Member
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This was posted in a different forum 10 years ago:

"The plastic case is pressed onto the steel base, there are internal one way grippers that hold the case on. I have removed these by taking a two inch wide putty knife and wrapping the end of the blade with several layers of masking tape. Then insert the blade between the bottom edge of the plastic case and the steel base and twisting the blade slightly to put upward pressure on the case. Go around all 4 sides of the transformer and repeat the process, you should start to see the plastic case moving up from the steel base. Continue until the case comes off. Good luck. Fred Hachmeyer fred.hachmeyer@falconjet.com"

Hi Bruce, thanks for the reply! I did see that post on the other forum.  I will try that method and post some pictures of the process.  I do have a working version of the 1010, which was professionally serviced and looks and operates like its nearly new.  I was surprised on how quiet it runs.  I recently repaired a Lionel 1062 Steam Loco and wanted to have its transformer also operating.  I think CW Burfle would be proud. 

Success!  I was able to remove the cover of the 1010 transformer. I did use a small metal puddy knife to get the grippers to pop by just gently twisting a bit.  I had ordered several replacement cords from the Train Tender and will look to replace the cord later today.  Below are some pictures of the separated pieces.

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Below shows the metal grippers that hold the transformer to its case.

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the replacement cord has the "L" logo. How cool is that!

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To close the loop here, I was able to solder in the new power cord.  Before reinstalling everything, I took my Dremel tool with a wire brush and removed the various rust spots, just about all of it was surface rust. I then applied a light coat of WD40 to give it a bit of luster.  I love the stamped "THE LIONEL CORPORATION NEW YORK, N.Y."  on the bottom.  The top of the transformer has "MADE IN U.S. OF AMERICA".

The Lionel 1010 Transformer was made in the 1961 to 1966 period and was included with the lowest of the low-end sets.  But here we are some 60 years later, the transformer just needed a new cord (part # B-292 block L 6’ power cord repro) which are just $2.85 from the Train Tender if you buy 10.  These transformers are considered "cheap" by many, but the craftmanship of these units is amazing, and have stood the test of time. And my thanks to my friends on the OGR Forum for providing some helpful hints. 

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I have a 1010 that needed a new cord.  In the process of disassembly to attach the new cord, the wire from the circuit breaker to the coil became disconnected at the coil.  Unfortunately, the diagram in the service manual and the pictures in previous posts don't clearly show where it goes or how it is connected at the coil.  Any suggestions would be appreciated.

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