Need quick help with Lionel GS-2 ERR Upgrade

That is a Pullmor motor.  Your only option is the AC Commander.  Cruise control is not an option with those AC motors.  It looks like you might have enough room to fit it in.  If you want to add railsounds, you might be able to fit the sound board in but the speaker will have to go in the tender, maybe also the sound board.  For sound you are going to need a tether.

Maybe someone else in the Forum has does this engine or similar and could provide more details.  My only AC Commander was an F3 which had a lot more room than you are dealing with.  Good luck.

elementdude195 posted:

Also, one last question does that e-unit with the toggle lever suppose to be ripped out during this upgrade process?

I don't think that this engine had the old-style e-unit with the lever. Pretty sure that by this time Lionel had gone to the electronic e-units. There would be no toggle lever.

The E-Unit lever appears to be below the frame, it obviously has an E-Unit as you can clearly see it sitting there.

The typical upgrade of these to command is to put the electronics in the tender as you have more room, and you can float the tender shell for use as the antenna.  Since these will obviously not have insulated handrails, you don't really have an easy option for an antenna in the locomotive.  I use the MTH 10-pin tethers for steam upgrades.

A trick I learned from Phil Klopp is you can make an antenna of the handrails of a steam locomotive if it has the cotter pin securing method like this engine. Use some heat shrink tubing or another form of insulation at both ends making sure the metal doesn't come in contact with the metal boiler, and slip some of the insulation material inside each cotter pin.

This is helpful for an engine like this, where the small 2046 style tender doesn't have much room. I did a similar upgrade with an MPC C&A junior Hudson that has a slightly larger 2224 metal tender, and everything (AC commander, RailSounds board, speaker, and wires) was crammed tight in there.

I've replaced the metal stanchions with plastic ones to create an antenna, but I haven't tried to insulate all of them with heatshrink, sounds more difficult.

Usually by now someone mentions Frank Timko and his DC motor conversions. Have that done and your will be able to install Cruise. If he offers a drop in kit you will probably be able to install it yourself.

Pete

Thanks everyone for the information. I guess I still need clarification about the red copper looking e-unit thing with the lever. Do I need to include that with the ERR upgrade or can I remove it and bypass that part? 

The ERR upgrade will handle direction control electronically.  The e-unit can be removed.

You take out everything but the motor and the smoke unit, then you start from there.  As Dan says, the E-Unit goes.

Ah great! I will buy the cruise control board now and cross my fingers it works fine with the AC Commander option.

For those curious, this is what Phil Klopp did to his postwar 773 when TMCC was introduced in the mid 90's, using the shrink tube insulation method.

gunrunnerjohn posted:

The E-Unit lever appears to be below the frame, it obviously has an E-Unit as you can clearly see it sitting there.

Yup, there it is. I had this engine many years ago, but sure don't remember that. Odd that this engine, from 1991, was equipped with the "modern" RailSounds electronic innovation, yet still had an old-fashioned e-unit. I thought by that time all Lionel engines had gone to electronic e-units. Off topic a bit, but in looking it up, I see that the electronic e-unit patent actually came in a little later. Interesting that Neil Young was involved in the invention.

elementdude195 posted:

Ah great! I will buy the cruise control board now and cross my fingers it works fine with the AC Commander option.

I think you have this wrong - cruise control isn't for AC.

breezinup posted:

elementdude195 posted:

Ah great! I will buy the cruise control board now and cross my fingers it works fine with the AC Commander option.

I think you have this wrong - cruise control isn't for AC.

Elementdude, Breezinup is absolutely correct, cruise control will NOT work with the AC Commander and Pullmor motors.  If you want cruise you need can motors which Norton mentioned earlier in this thread.

Ah don't worry everyone I purchased the AC Commander and I understand the cruise or dc boards will not work with this engine. It's too bad there's no cruise option for pullmor motors.