Lionel AC/DC converter

Cheryl, it should work however, be certain that you actually have an earlier Lionel engine that was set up as to run on DC voltage. When can motors came out people were thinking that since the engine has DC can motors it must run via DC voltage. That is incorrect.  A product number would help us to determine what you have.

Rod Miller

Cheryl,

When my father-in-law went from HO to O (post war stuff), we gave him a starter set that was DC powered.  Needless to say we were surprised when it did not run using his LW transformer. 

While Rod had your answer, another way to run it on your AC powered layout is to add a diode to the center rail power wire in the engine.  This will allow the engine to run on conventional AC power BUT  in only one direction.  This engine still got a lot of run time.

romiller49 posted:

Cheryl, it should work however, be certain that you actually have an earlier Lionel engine that was set up as to run on DC voltage. When can motors came out people were thinking that since the engine has DC can motors it must run via DC voltage. That is incorrect.  A product number would help us to determine what you have.

Rod Miller

 

The set was the Lionel Midnight Shift 6-11708.

Some of the later trolley sets came with a DC transformer that would also work.

Thanks Grampstrains.

Rod

Thanks guys, appreciate your time and responses.  It does have a DC power pack, haven't tested it yet, but I have a small Christmas track that I want the little guy to share time on with some AC trains and it be so much easier to flip a switch or two then to change out transformers, etc....

Cheryl,

It sounds as if you've found a 6-5900 AC/DC Lionel converter box. That should work fine with the 6-18900 Pennsylvania switcher.

As noted above, you could also run the loco on straight DC from an HO power pack.

But what may be the longer-term solution is to install a bridge rectifier inside your loco. In fact, you could remove the one inside the converter box (it's the only thing in there) and wire it directly to the leads coming from the pick-ups in the loco chassis. The installation will make the loco "forward only", but this way you never have to change-out transformers, and you can always keep AC going to the track.

The final option would be to install a Lionel 600-0103-001 reversing unit. (I think there's a newer equivalent.) It'll take care of the AC/DC conversion, and you'll gain the ability to have the standard forward-neutral-reverse operation of the standard locomotive. Lionel did this themselves with locomotives 6-18910 through 6-18912 and 6-18924 through 6-18926.

I hope this helps.

TRW

If you are looking for an inexpensive way to run a DC engine on an AC transformer, then use a bridge rectifier rated at; 50 volts, 6 amps. You can get one at most electronic parts stores or from internet vendors like; Mouser.com or Digikey elecrtronics, Radio Shack(if you still have one nearby) for only a few dollars plus shipping. The bridge rectifier should be around $3.00 at the most.

You run both the hot & common wire to the rectifier's two ~ and then run the wires from the rectifier's + and - to the track.

Lee Fritz