Well, I bought 2 L1s recently and they were both plagued with this horrid issue. Thankfully, I reached out to @harmonyards and got a very detailed instruction list. Also, thanks to @Norm Charbonneau for the 3d Printer files, I've got a couple of shims to put into these L1s and solve my problem. Thanks you guys!
Ugh.. well, before I could even open one up it’s already crapping out on me. Just got it back from customer service too. I suspect an antenna, as it would occasionally run fine, but 50/50 it would not respond and have a headlight flicker (as shown).
@Sams Trains posted:Ugh.. well, before I could even open one up it’s already crapping out on me. Just got it back from customer service too. I suspect an antenna, as it would occasionally run fine, but 50/50 it would not respond and have a headlight flicker (as shown).
Any luck it's just the antenna shorting, I had an early challenger that would run for maybe 10-15 minutes then short out, I looked everywhere for a short and it took two trips to Lionel before they replaced the board.
@zhubl posted:Any luck it's just the antenna shorting, I had an early challenger that would run for maybe 10-15 minutes then short out, I looked everywhere for a short and it took two trips to Lionel before they replaced the board.
One of the side hand rails. I pulled it out, made it work perfectly (for now)
@Sams Trains posted:One of the side hand rails. I pulled it out, made it work perfectly (for now)
Now you see why we fix them ourselves, ……it went in for warranty service, & returned to you not only not fixed, but worse than it went in……😉
Pat
These and the Decs have tricky antennas. If they get jostled around the junction box area they can ground out and go into conventional mode. Bluetooth will still work though (different antenna).
@Norm Charbonneau posted:These and the Decs have tricky antennas. If they get jostled around the junction box area they can ground out and go into conventional mode. Bluetooth will still work though (different antenna).
Decs? I assume you mean decapods, the new run of them
@Norm Charbonneau posted:These and the Decs have tricky antennas. If they get jostled around the junction box area they can ground out and go into conventional mode. Bluetooth will still work though (different antenna).
Well that's interesting Norm. Good information as usual. I hope mine don't play like that.
Does anyone know if the Atlantics have any issues with the gear boxes?
@MartyE posted:Does anyone know if the Atlantics have any issues with the gear boxes?
Marty, I haven’t seen any of the Atlantics on my bench exhibit any gear box woes….I’ve had a few with bad motors, but the case on them was fair wear & tear, …the motors had gotten so much end play they raised the encoder ring off the sensor enough to make it do stupid things,….or vise versa, the encoder ring would land on the sensor, and make noise…..however, I hardly call 3 in the past decade a cause for concern……definitely nothing like the K4’s where I was buying brass stock by the linear foot, …..😉
Pat
@harmonyards posted:Marty, I haven’t seen any of the Atlantics on my bench exhibit any gear box woes….I’ve had a few with bad motors, but the case on them was fair wear & tear, …the motors had gotten so much end play they raised the encoder ring off the sensor enough to make it do stupid things,….or vise versa, the encoder ring would land on the sensor, and make noise…..however, I hardly call 3 in the past decade a cause for concern……definitely nothing like the K4’s where I was buying brass stock by the linear foot, …..😉
Pat
Thanks Pat!
@harmonyards posted:Marty, I haven’t seen any of the Atlantics on my bench exhibit any gear box woes….I’ve had a few with bad motors, but the case on them was fair wear & tear, …the motors had gotten so much end play they raised the encoder ring off the sensor enough to make it do stupid things,….or vise versa, the encoder ring would land on the sensor, and make noise…..however, I hardly call 3 in the past decade a cause for concern……definitely nothing like the K4’s where I was buying brass stock by the linear foot, …..😉
I remember one of those Atlantics with the bad motor, it was the nightmare I sent you. 
I think the forum at large has covered, both good or not, the following:
The only ones I'd consider looking at that haven't been covered are:
The tanks because they're the only other K-line derived locomotives left that Lionel has been using since the buyout in the current product line that hasn't been discussed, and I'm not sure if the Harrimans use the same chassis as the H9/10 series.
@Mikado 4501 posted:I think the forum at large has covered, both good or not, the following:
- the K4 Pacifics
- the light/heavy/brass-hybrid Mikados
- the H9/10 Consolidations
- the L1s Mikados
- the I1 Decapods
- the Strasburg 90's
The only ones I'd consider looking at that haven't been covered are:
- the Harriman-style Consolidations
- the 4-6-6T tank engines
The tanks because they're the only other K-line derived locomotives left that Lionel has been using since the buyout in the current product line that hasn't been discussed, and I'm not sure if the Harrimans use the same chassis as the H9/10 series.
I sort of wonder what is the difference between the Harriman and the H9/10? Maybe the Harriman are shorter or longer than the other?
@Dave NYC Hudson PRR K4 posted:I sort of wonder what is the difference between the Harriman and the H9/10? Maybe the Harriman are shorter or longer than the other?
The lionel h9/10 is basically a consolidation with a Bel Paire firebox.
The chassis is the same.
@MartyE posted:Does anyone know if the Atlantics have any issues with the gear boxes?
The Atlantics use a different design from the "problem children." Most, if not all of the failure-prone locos have an idler gear on an intermediate shaft that engages an offset spur gear on the driving axle. This allows for additional gear reduction. So the worm on the motor shaft can have a higher lead angle, and be back-drivable. This is actually a good approach. But Lionel's implementation allowed for excessive side-to-side play and perhaps poor choice of materials for the intermediate shaft and its bearings.
Conversely, the Atlantics have a fine-pitch worm on the motor shaft directly driving a large worm wheel on the axle. They are geared low-- 36:1 on the two examples I tested, and are NOT back-drivable. My 6-11225 has a removable "bottom plate" so the whole axle with the worm wheel can be replaced if it ever wears out. Some of the Atlantics made before (like 6-11117) and since have a one-piece chassis with captive axles. Weird! This serves to illustrate the vagaries of contract-based production. The flywheel is attached with a set screw, but the worm gear is pressed onto the motor shaft. So if and when the motor fails, you'll need an exact replacement.
Both examples I have exhibit st-st-stuttering or juddering at certain low speed steps (perhaps around 7-10 scale MPH.) You can see it, and hear it because the drawbar chatters. My guess is that the feedback interval for speed control just happens to match some fundamental frequency in the drivetrain. Again, these are self-locking gears, so the mass of the loco and trailing load doesn't damp it out. This is exactly the type of issue Lionel was trying to prevent by adopting the back-drivable idler setup. When I first got my 11225 it bothered me, and I thought about trying to eliminate it by shimming the motor at its mount (sound familiar?) But when I opened the loco up, there was so much circuitry in the boiler, I coudn't even get to the gearbox!
Someday when I get my layout built I'll have to test my locos with the speed control turned off. That'll confirm whether it's a feedback issue with speed control, or a gear mesh problem. I consider my Atlantics good runners, but the shuddering issue is a detraction not shared by my 11150 Ten-Wheeler with its back-drivable gears. Overall I think the Ten-Wheeler is more fun to run. My $.02.
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