Servicing Newly purchased Lionel L3A Mohawk & Vanderbilt

Ok, …both of these engines are notorious for the original grease to dry up to the consistency of cured concrete,…..the CV is by far the easier of the two to service, so I’d suggest starting with that one to get your feet wet,…..go slow, take pics, and proceed with caution, and you’ll be fine, ….you need to access the gear box to remove and clean out the dried crusty grease, or worse, if someone put fresh grease on top of the dried grease and now you’ll have concrete soup with chunky pieces ….I’d suggest reviewing exploded views ……fortunately, the CV mimics the old Prewar 700, or even the Postwar 773 as far as the gearbox layout is concerned….that dried up grease can really gum up those ball bearing inserts, so be mindful you’ve got them cleaned really well,….take note of thrust washer positions, and put them back as you found them….if you need to go into further details, or the gear box has excessive slop, you can contact me via profile for a more in-depth step by step procedure for setting up the thrust ( end play ) ……

many things to check, clean, and apply lube to as you go along…..including the motor and the wheels, axles and rods, ..basically, if it moves, it needs to be lubricated ….I’m not going to get into the great oil debate, it’s nonsense, but IMO, you can take all those Excelle lubricants and put them back on the shelf,…or dump out the contents and use the needle tip applicator bottles for some real oil….the three lubricants I keep in shop are 75-140 gear oil ( rods, rod bolts, and axle bushings )  10W-30 ( motor shafts, bearings, etc.) and Mobil 1 grease …..BUT, you use what you like, and again, I’m not entertaining the great oil debate ……biggest thing is to have fun and enjoy doing your own service work!!….

Pat

I have an 18064.

This model was known for being fitted with a weak ACDR motor controller from the factory, resulting in low top speed and poor pulling power:

A replacement unit was offered through Lionel Parts, No. 691-PCB1-021, which was intended to fix both problems.  With it installed high speed performance is much better.

Even so several techs on this forum prefer to modify the 18064 even more radically by removing it's AC-powered Pulmor motor and replacing it with a DC can motor and a DC TMCC controller like an ERR Cruise Commander to improve its low speed performance and smoothness as well.

You can choose either one and be happy depending upon what kind of performance you're looking for.

Personally I'm fine with the ACDR upgrade.

Mike

Thank you both for your guidance and support. I really would like to learn and achieve the skills you mentioned to perform maintenance and upgrades you each referenced. Unfortunately my 7 and 6 year old take up a great deal of my time. I consider myself blessed.

If anyone knows of someone who can perform the recommended upgrades please let me know. I would like to install the necessary components to get both locomotives to perform at optimal levels.Any recommendations and contact info would be greatly appreciated!

Thank you both!

Sincerely,

Anthony

Anthony

Sounds like you have your hands full! 🙂

I dunno if it's okay to recommend someone, but the fellow who first responded ("harmonyards") is who I would ask. He knows as much about these models as anyone and is, I believe, a straight shooter. 👍

Mark in Oregon

Thanks Mark!

Mark - I agree with Strummer’s comment. In fact, I sent a used one of these engines that I ‘d bought on eBay to harmonyards for a checkover and service (as require),  but no upgrades though. When I got it back I was very impressed with the thoroughness of his work (which he described in detail) and the engine has run more smoothly than it ever did before. 👍

Correction -  I meant to say Anthony.

Some of Pat's work over here.

And Pittman's for all. Tales from the Harmon Shops

My 18009 L3 Mohawk gets worked on later on in that topic, starts off with a Hudson, forget which even though I was just over there.