Lionel Legacy PA forgetting ID

JamesRx posted:

One more thing....when you all get a chance can you check if your front electrocoupler is working? Mine is not because the little white plug that powers the coupler is not plugged in. Twisted off the lion drive truck, spent a good hour getting the plug back in (due to an impossibly short cord on the plug) and then when I twisted the truck back on the plugged pulled out again! Fortunately I never really use the coupler on the lead engine, but still...

James - 

All couplers are working on my set. 

So not sure if I should alert our LHS that ALL his stock should be sent back?

Having the same issue with the PB unit forgetting its ID.  Additionally, the lash-up loses its functionality when the power is turned off.  Thanks for this thread. 

This isn't good if all these ALCO PA's have to go back.

BobbyD posted:

This isn't good if all these ALCO PA's have to go back.

Still not sure on that. I will be investigating

Bryant...took your advice again..one problem at a time. Got some Bachmann contact lube today...one drop on each side of each roller...problem solved! Constant loud ticking sound is gone. Thanks again!

James,

Thank you for that positive investigation. I have a Legacy RS-11, SD-40, and my PA A unit that ticks very loudly. I know the fix now.  

J Daddy posted:

BobbyD posted:

This isn't good if all these ALCO PA's have to go back.

Still not sure on that. I will be investigating

Friends have 2 Santa Fe sets with the issue, one is pondering repair vs the potential for damage and cost to return them to Lionel. the other guy is sending his in for a refund. I believe his exact words were "I didn't spend $1,500 to get defective/damaged units, I bought NEW ones" and the emphasis on "new" was his. I tend to agree, while they may fix these it is something that should never have happened. Does anyone here have a set that works?

J Daddy posted:

James,

Thank you for that positive investigation. I have a Legacy RS-11, SD-40, and my PA A unit that ticks very loudly. I know the fix now.  

No problem JD! We all help each other here.

Hey guys I know this is not related to the main issue on this thread but for yet more Alco problems check out my post, titled appropriately enough "More Alco problems" So far I have sent one set back due to an internal short circuit, complete with sparks,  dealt with super loud ticking rollers, a non-working front coupler (on both sets!), and now the dreaded blinking cab light! Good grief!

I wanted to give it a few days and hopefully I'm not jinxing myself here. On Thursday I used some contact cleaner on all 3 of the Run / Prog switches on my ABA. Ran the switches back and forth, sprayed on both sides, and then reprogrammed all of them.

So far over 4 days, and multiple power cycles I have not run into the issue with losing the ID on any of them. I will continue to run them at least once per day this week and see what happens.

BNSF-Matt posted:

I wanted to give it a few days and hopefully I'm not jinxing myself here. On Thursday I used some contact cleaner on all 3 of the Run / Prog switches on my ABA. Ran the switches back and forth, sprayed on both sides, and then reprogrammed all of them.

So far over 4 days, and multiple power cycles I have not run into the issue with losing the ID on any of them. I will continue to run them at least once per day this week and see what happens.

Best of luck Matt...hope or works out. Mine have so many other issues I'm hoping to find a way to keep from sending them back to Concord. There will probably be a long line of units going in for repair and I'd rather not be in that line!

JamesRx posted:

BNSF-Matt posted:

I wanted to give it a few days and hopefully I'm not jinxing myself here. On Thursday I used some contact cleaner on all 3 of the Run / Prog switches on my ABA. Ran the switches back and forth, sprayed on both sides, and then reprogrammed all of them.

So far over 4 days, and multiple power cycles I have not run into the issue with losing the ID on any of them. I will continue to run them at least once per day this week and see what happens.

Best of luck Matt...hope or works out. Mine have so many other issues I'm hoping to find a way to keep from sending them back to Concord. There will probably be a long line of units going in for repair and I'd rather not be in that line!

Thanks James and I hope you get your issues resolved without having to send them in. I don't particularly like shipping my units to get them fixed, the last one I sent in to get fixed came back working but damaged.

BNSF-Matt posted:

JamesRx posted:

BNSF-Matt posted:

I wanted to give it a few days and hopefully I'm not jinxing myself here. On Thursday I used some contact cleaner on all 3 of the Run / Prog switches on my ABA. Ran the switches back and forth, sprayed on both sides, and then reprogrammed all of them.

So far over 4 days, and multiple power cycles I have not run into the issue with losing the ID on any of them. I will continue to run them at least once per day this week and see what happens.

Best of luck Matt...hope or works out. Mine have so many other issues I'm hoping to find a way to keep from sending them back to Concord. There will probably be a long line of units going in for repair and I'd rather not be in that line!

Thanks James and I hope you get your issues resolved without having to send them in. I don't particularly like shipping my units to get them fixed, the last one I sent in to get fixed came back working but damaged.

I hear you! So many people have had similar experiences. These trains don't travel well when they are not on the tracks!

I am glad I waited and let you guys be my guinea pigs on these new Legacy PAs.

I was interested, but now, I will pass.

This QA stuff with Lionel is getting old.

Ok so running day 5. Turned on power; returned A unit is ok, super bass B unit ok, trailing A unit is starting up in conventional now. 

Remove shell, found magnet glued to top of shell with double sided sticky tape has fallen down and noted that there are two wires to the antenna. One wire was loose, resoldered, reprogramed, shut power off and on, ID remembered. 

When did the Antennas go to two wires and sticky taped to the shell? This is what gets Lionel into trouble... non-standardization. 

Well, will continue running and will report out what I find. 

Cheers.

Just took delivery on the PRR Lionel PA (1933191) and PB (1933193).  After fully programing the engines, when placed on the same track with other engines already programed, the new engines will not respond and have to be reprogramed.  The new programing works fine (crew sounds, signals, engine sounds, speed) until the unit is placed on a powered track with other locomotives, then the engine will not respond.  Only happens with these two new PA/PB units.  Any one else having this issue?

Pennsyforever

pennsyforever posted:

Just took delivery on the PRR Lionel PA (1933191) and PB (1933193).  After fully programing the engines, when placed on the same track with other engines already programed, the new engines will not respond and have to be reprogramed.  The new programing works fine (crew sounds, signals, engine sounds, speed) until the unit is placed on a powered track with other locomotives, then the engine will not respond.  Only happens with these two new PA/PB units.  Any one else having this issue?

Pennsyforever

Do they respond when using Engine ID 1?

That's right Matt, once you program to engines, and then cut power to the track, and turn power back on, all the previous programing is lost.  Seems Lionel's PAs are as problematic as were Alco's!  And it also seems to problem is pretty universal across owners.

pennsyforever

Craignor posted:

I am glad I waited and let you guys be my guinea pigs on these new Legacy PAs.

I was interested, but now, I will pass.

This QA stuff with Lionel is getting old.

Craignor, I hear you! And nobody gets more frustrated with anything less than perfection at these prices then I do. It reminds me of the quote often attributed to Albert Einstein. Something about the definition of insanity being doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result! But in this case I prefer the old joke about the man who goes to a doctor complaining that his brother thinks he is a chicken. The doctor says why don't you get him some help? The man replies we would but we need the eggs! So I would give up on these Alcos too if it  we're not that they are so good-looking and good sounding and so close to the prototype of my beloved New York Central!

I have certainly been through stuff like this before but Dean at Lionel has always made things right and in the end I always believed it was worth the wait because you end up with some really spectacular trains to run.

But I certainly respect and understand your decision!

JamesRx posted:

Craignor posted:

I am glad I waited and let you guys be my guinea pigs on these new Legacy PAs.

I was interested, but now, I will pass.

This QA stuff with Lionel is getting old.

Craignor, I hear you! And nobody gets more frustrated with anything less than perfection at these prices then I do. It reminds me of the quote often attributed to Albert Einstein. Something about the definition of insanity being doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result! But in this case I prefer the old joke about the man who goes to a doctor complaining that his brother thinks he is a chicken. The doctor says why don't you get him some help? The man replies we would but we need the eggs! So I would give up on these Alcos too if it  we're not that they are so good-looking and good sounding and so close to the prototype of my beloved New York Central!

I have certainly been through stuff like this before but Dean at Lionel has always made things right and in the end I always believed it was worth the wait because you end up with some really spectacular trains to run.

But I certainly respect and understand your decision!

It has been 2 weeks since I received mine.  I did some things that I posted earlier in this topic.  I have been gone for 1 week without touching them.  Came home last night from a business convention and fired up the layout.  Works like a charm  Cycled transformer on and off.  Cycled engines on and off.  Perfect operation.  To summarize:

1)  Flipped program/Run switch fast back and forth about 30 times.

2) Assigned ID per instructions with the following EXCEPTION:  Don't cycle transformer power on and off during the assigning.  1) Transformer power off 2) Place engine on track with switch in program. 3) Assign ID - DON'T TURN POWER OFF ON TRANSFORMER 4) Flip switch to run mode. 5) Turn engine off with CAB.

From that point I was done with assigning and have had no problem whatsoever for 2 weeks.  I recommend giving that a try before giving up.  I am convinced it is a switch issue.

Hopefully it works for you guys also.