Lionel 2020 Smoke Pellets

Don’t think anyone makes the original pellets that were made for the bulb units.

I think the pellets used in the follow-on units are still available but I don’t know if they work in a bulb unit.

I have a 2020 with a bulb and what I do is place a wad of MTH smoke wick on top of the bulb and add some smoke fluid to it . It works fine.

s & w carries the current sp12 pellets at $16 per bottle

Original 196 bulb pellets are just about impossible to find. They came in a little plastic 'lunch box' container. They are made of Ammonia Nitrate and are very corrosive in the liquid state. They look just like a SP pellet but you can tell the difference by they are glossy in color and you can't crush the pellet with your fingers like you can with a SP pellet. (Unless you are superman.)

Don't put liquid smoke fluid on a hot bulb, it will crack.  Learned from experience.

Best to convert (or have a service station do it) to a pellet or liquid type unit.

You can buy replacement bulbs from parts dealers.

I have not put smoke liquid directly on a bulb, but I have put it on the wadded up MTH smoke wick. So far, I have not cracked a bulb (not saying it won't happen). CSXJOE makes a good point.

One plus of keeping the smoke bulb unit rather than converting it, is that you get the light coming up through the stack, which is a neat effect with the smoke (using the MTH smoke wick).

If you do want a lot of smoke, and don't mind losing the classic smoke bulb unit, Art is correct on the conversion.

I have seen converted units and they do smoke somewhat better than my suggestion.

Thanks all. I would rather keep the original. My Lionel repairman likes the idea of a wick and I’m going to try that.

Here is a picture of the two. They look the same on camera. And a paragraph from the service manual.

Chuck, Do they worl equally well?  TIA Pat B.

I am running a 1946 2020 currently.  The smoke bulb works very well with SP smoke pellets and has that great SP smoke smell.  Just remember to not turn the loco over while the pellets are still liquid.  Of course, the higher the load on the loco, the better it will smoke.

Just a question.

Do the real turbine engines, like the Lionel 2020 are modeled after, produce a steady stream of smoke or do the produce puffs of smoke like steam regular steam engines?

Charlie