Lionel Type Q Repair & Restoration
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ย. 2024
- Repair and restoration of a postwar Lionel Type "Q" transformer from 1946. Enjoy!
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Enjoy the repair and restoration of a Lionel postwar type "q" transformer.
ericstrains nice job on the repair
Excellent job Eric! Just a great change of pace. BTW I also like to do repair work as part of my hobby enjoyment and find that ArmourAll or Pledge works great to clean and polish out the bakelite black plastic cases and knobs.
Well done!
Bob in Seattle.
ericstrains I have a type z twin control transformer, during quarantine I might clean up the Lionel logo now if I can get it off
I have found a old aluminum o scale locomotive tender I found in a cardboard box in the dumpster with o scale tracks but there was no locomotive
Timothy Demarco Is it a heavy tender? If so it’s a whistling tender and those are about 25-75 bucks ( condition pending
Just got one of these working the other day. Thanks for the walk through.
Wow
Great video!
nice job very informotive
Great video. Allowed me to fix a friend’s Type A transformer. It’s almost same as the Q.
I enjoyed your little video and it's very helpful to see
My son and I just got done doing a V that we picked up at the train show for a dollar cleaned it all up,, new globes,,, looks like a brand new piece...
Thanks, your video's are always interesting and teach me things!
Thanks, Catherine
wonderful detail. thank you so much.
NICE VIDEO ERIC VERY THOROUGH WELL DONE AS USUAL
Much appreciated!
Thank you. This will help me with my type RW.
Excellent restoration. Thanks
Thank you too!
Hello Eric. I just picked up one these Type Q transformers last week. Ever since I saw this video originally 3 years ago, I’ve been wanting to get this exact transformer variation, and I finally found one that appealed to me. It came with the original box and inserts. It tested out perfectly on all of the thumbscrews, and I cleaned it up. Even though the power cord is in good shape, I do plan on replacing it with a new one. Watching this video again really helped me out. Thank you! Are you still planning to do future postwar transformer repairs? I look forward to it. This video was excellent. Thanks again, Tom
I seen someone heat those tabs up with a solder iron before he bent them.he said it helps with breakage
Really enjoyed watching the type Q Repair and Restoration. I have to assume the Type A 90 would be restored the same way. I have both among several other transformers. Thanks for the info.
Yeah more or less the same way
I have found that the Lionel Type Z for some reason that it will run Lionel Standard Gauge Trains much better than the Lionel ZW. I tried with all 3 of my Lionel ZW’s. The type Z has more power than the ZW. I know that the Type Z is a 250 Watt, and the ZW IS 275 Watt.I prefer the Type Z.
Awesome video as always Eric
Tip for melting old solder...add some new solder. The additional solder increases the area being heated and helps with heat transfer. From an old pinball repair guy... :-)
Ya beat me to it Chris-- great point!
So funny! I am an old Pinball guy too. Great tip.
As a 74 yo newbie I learned a lot. thanx Eric
I'm always apprehensive to open a transformer for repair. But thanks to this video, I'm jumping in feet first! Many thanks. Well done.
I got a 1043 (50W) in 1953. Tandem says it didn't have a circuit breaker, but mine did
This will drive the TH-cam views and will get a lot more subscribers. Postwar collectors will love this and future videos. Great job!
Thank you so much!
As someone who lives in the U.K., I’m surprised that the early post war Lionel Transformers don’t have a ground ( earth) connection. The early post war Hornby Dublo and Triang transformers which had metal cases were grounded.
Another fine video! I look forward to future restoration videos.
More to come!
Really enjoyed the video. Awesome work.
Awesome, thank you!
Great review and repair Eric!!!
Thanks! 👍
@@Ericstrains Your welcome!!!
Nice job Eric. Would never have thought to use a magic eraser to cleanup the face-plate. I do vintage hi-fi audio equipment restorations and will have to try this on face-plates which so often with chemicals or liquid solutions removes the delicate silk screening.
Very cool!
Very well done Eric. Keep up the repair vids.
Thanks 👍
Thanks for uploading this, Eric! This helped me replace a brittle cord on an LW transformer I just picked up that I will be using for a 3x7 rollaway layout and I was nervous about messing it up. Hope you do more videos like these in the future.
- Chase
Very interesting, Eric. Please do more. It's great to see a little-known aspect of model railways, especially when it's vintage equipment.
There's a set screw on the knob. It does not just slip off.
Not on those knobs
Eric, I must say that I almost didn’t watch this video as I thought it would be somewhat boring. In fact it was extremely interesting and educational. Thank you very much for another excellent video !
I watch just about all of your videos as time permits. I just want to tell you how glad I am that you are doing post war and hopefully prewar episodes. I really enjoyed watching you bring that transformer back to life and hopefully once you get into the older engines and rolling stock people will see how fun they are to work on. Thank you for the great video and hopefully a whole series on the old stuff.
It’s great to know how to restore these old transformers instead of just throwing them out. Awesome video Eric! 👍
Wow great work the difference is night and day that magic eraser worked out well.
great video-really enjoyed
Glad to hear it!
Thanks Eric for this video - very informative.
Excellent tutorial! I’m now going to work on my Z tomorrow! Thank you
Great video Eric! When you got done cleaning and repairing, it looks like a brand new transformer. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks!
I just watched this again, and I loved it. You need to more of your old Lionel transformer restorations. I purchased a KW, a 1043, and a 1073. All 3 need help, but I want to learn how to do it myself, especially soldering new line cords on them. Seeing and learning what you did makes it look possible.
If you have power cord issues even after changing the wire, i usually rub a little piece of sandpaper in the solder terminals to rid of any corrosion. Great job on the repair!
Excellent job. Really enjoyed this. Great looking vintage transformer.
Liked this video, years ago you spoke about old Lionel transformers and were going to make a video about them. Glad to see it begin with this one.
Glad you enjoyed it!
This was really fun to watch! I have an old American Flyer and I'm still trying to dig it out of my basement. It doesn't work anymore due to what I believe was a short circuit and caused the outlet to "explode" years back. I'm gonna try and find it and see if I can fix it up. Thanks Eric!
Also something I think you would really like on your layout is a DM&E Centerflow Hopper. They are a beautiful yellow with a crisp blue logo that think you would really like and I know Atlas makes them. P.S. DM&E is my favorite railroad.
I appreciate your attention to detail, and there is nothng wrong with your soldering skills. I run a ZW and KW and per your warning I installed quick acting circut breakers between transformer and track
Thanks!
Thanks Eric, this was a great video!
Glad you liked it!
Very cool eric
Well done Eric! A great tutorial for the transformer.
And, an interesting item for collecting.
Living in the United Kingdom I have a few old Lionel transformers all made to 240V mains input, including type R and type Z , perfect for my standard gauge trains, enjoyable video thank you
Good job! You're going to love that 224 when you get it cleaned and serviced.
Great video as always.
Good idea with the Magic Eraser on the face plate. I've always worried about scratching those up in the past, so I'd just not clean them. Thanks for sharing, looking forward to your next video.
I didn't read all the replies so don't know if this was mentioned or not. For soldering electronic components never use acid flux or acid core solder. It will turn beautiful copper wire into green crusties. Always use rosin flux and rosin core solder. Also use 40/60 solder, not the "low lead" solder the "green police" are trying to sell us on. 40/60 means it is 40% lead and 60% tin. It takes less heat and less time make your solder connections and less chance of a "cold solder" joint. If your worried about lead poisoning, just use common sense - ventilation and wash your hands when finished.
Lovely job on that transformer! My grandfather had a much simpler controller for his pre-war setup, but it did have the whistle controller you mentioned. It's amazing just how long these kinds of controllers will last - The electric finger setup in that reminds me of a real EMU/streetcar controller setup! The font on the faceplate and the design in general is very late 30s.
Using old controllers for accessories is something I also like to do, though I mainly use things like old Tyco or Mehano ones that don't have a very good speed range - And the all-metal ones look cool.
Soviet O gauge, ooh...
Nice work, thanks! I actually used one of these as a boy in the late 1940s-early 1950s with my Lionel Train set. Taught me basic electricity so I'll always be fond of it. But my sister and I managed to destroy it pretty much. Bought a LN one on ebay a while ago. Never knew about the 2 empty hole faceplate version.
I see chessie made the credits roll lol.
I have the 1946 Catalogue & price list that came with it. The price for the Q transformer was $6.75.
Thanks for the info Eric, it will come in handy for me on the few I have. Really enjoyed this very useful video 😎👍👍👍🛤.
Awesome video Eric! Very well done. Very informative! Looking forward to more similar videos.
Awesome repair work really like the series looking foward to further post war repairs love all Lionel products I like to bring old locos and lionel products back to operating condition myself really enjoy that aspect of the hobby
Thanks!
Great video Eric I have a few posts war zw's I use to run my trains with my 180w bricks. I just got some 10A in line fuses between the zw's and my track works great.
Can you review a Amtrak Genesis p40dc in phase 3 paint
I have a broken sweep arm , the two tabs that keep it allied have broken off .
Sorry kid, you`re on your own!
"Eric's Restorations" nice job sir...
Thanks!
Thanks for a great video very informative. I hope to see more postwar restoration videos of the items shown in this video( the cars especially). Thanks Eric, Scott.
Definitely a great and informative video! I would love to see more like this. Very curious on that Russian stuff you were teasing!
Well done. I thought sure that you'd use the nut on the back of the post (inside the xformer) to secure those wires rather than solder them. It works!
Enjoyed this video. Looking forward to more like this. Some pre war refurbish
Eric Love your shows.
While seeing this you could have reused the terminal solder plate with the new terminals in sted of soldering the wires to the terminals. Also, you should have transferred the cloth sheath to the new wiring. I would have replaced it with cloth wiring. But since most people would not have cloth wiring reusing the cloth sheath on the new wiring would future-proofing against shorts. Out of all the pre/post-war trains I have repaired I have yet find a cloth wiring that has disintegrated over time. The cloth wiring is good for future-proofing the transformer.
A quick replacement of posts is buy bolts to size,nuts,wing nuts to tighten down the wires
When we started good luck I hope you will work ☺️☘️
Why didn’t you up grade the circuit breaker instead of replacing with factory original?
Cool.
Nice, just a month or two ago I rebuilt two Type S transformers. I replaced the A.C. cord, disc rectifier in the whistle circuit with a diode, the circuit breaker with faster acting bussman 5A, removed the faceplate and repainted the housing, attached a new faceplate sticker to the original one and couldn't swaged those rivets so I had to glue them. The appearance and functionality is showroom condition. I still have to tackle the RW transformer.
Nice work!
@@Ericstrains thanks, im only in electric trains for two years and that is in TT scale. I needed a hobby after my stroke and picked TT because of the scale 1 inch = 10 feet, being a now retired Aerospace Quality Engineer and Metrologist I could figured out the prototype even though they're European. I'm been in O gauge only since Christmas when my brother took down my late father's 1931 249e tin plate set all boxed and mint. This is only the second time in over twenty years that I've seen it.
Eric you did fabulous work on that transformer I'm glad it's working I had the big Lionel transformer with a handle keep doing new ones and morcellation work and keep doing excellent videos like that video you 😀
at 19:26 did the new posts work? keep us posted!
Hey do you use Lionel or MTH transformers? Edit: if there is a video on it or if they are shown in a video, which video?
Why not just clear out original lugs at the wire ends and slip over the inside threads before nut and tighten ?
I did this hundreds of times.
Thanks for the tips here! You said to not use those old transformers to run modern trains, but is it safe to use modern transformers to run the old trains?
EpicCSX yes
@@Ericstrains 👍
That’s the thing about these old machines from the 40s. With a little care they will live forever
They sure don’t make them like they used to
Great video, Eric. Would love to see you convert a postwar engine to digital.
How many lights do you think you can put on the A-C 14v posts?
For the love of god oil the 249e ! 🤣 I'll give you one tip with soldering. When putting 2 wires together tie them for machical connections solder is not that strong. Otherwise a outstanding video!
Christopher Bradley The 249e is awaiting a rebuild, so yeah it’s a mess. But it works and it was nearby to use for testing.
@@Ericstrains Hey Eric did you know that the union pacific big boy 4014 is back on the rails
also how do you clean your tracks in those hard to reach places im not shour if you made a video on that or not just asking
When attaching the new binding posts, use solder lugs over the threads before putting on the inside nut. Much easier to solder to than the nut itself.
Interesting video! The Q transformer is actually a prewar piece and was first cataloged in the 1939 catalog and was carried over into the postwar period for only the year 1946. When it first came out in 1939, it was part of Lionel's new Trainmaster series of transformers that included circuit breakers. THe best of these was the Z. Another reason not to use this to run modern trains is that the voltage maxes out at 25 volts and that is too high for many of the modern locos.
Hey Eric do you have the Lionel Type 1033 Transformer? I have one and I’m gonna try and fix it up.
Trainiac yep
These old transformers have a very high start speed. I have a set from 1972 that was the very bottom of the line train sold that year. 1972 wasn't known for high end to begin with. The little Kickapoo train comes with a circle of O27 track. No straights. At the lowest speed the train flies off of the track. With my much more powerful MRC 180 watt transformer it creeps along. Lionel really dropped the ball on that set.
I realy liket this video I do suggest that you make these types of videos Eric keep up the great work
Ok thanks!
Eric, I would LOVE a vid on Lionel 275 watt type ZW...one side leaking electricity...keeps old 260E loco just barely on and buzzing...Thanks!
Cool!
Will you do a tour of your collection again soon
Wait... 120VAC comes out the wall, then how is it working if it’s rated for 115VAC
Anyway great video
Excellent video! I learned a great deal and now have the confidence to restore one of my old transformers. I am curious whether the throttle control is working properly since the train seemed to run very fast even though you moved the knob very little. Looking forward to future videos. Thank you Eric.
Yeah it's working perfectly. The throttle starts at 14 volts, so the engine takes off immediately.
Nice job - the only thing I would have suggested is to replace the remaining two posts while you were at it.
And 2 old transfers one big one and one small one thay still work so that's good
Looking forward to the next one
Edit: I also really like this type of video
You could stand a little grease on the gears of that loco.
Thats probably one of the ones he'll repair that he mentioned
Hey Eric, how come you run three rail? Not trying to be a jerk but three rail just ruins the scale for me.
Cuz 3 is better than 2. lol. :)
@@Ericstrains well yeah but I mean you build wonderful layouts that really like life like...and the three rail never seems to bother you?
@@johnsmith6974 Nope. I do 3 rail because that's what I started with when i was a kid. The way I see it, the 3rd rail helps us remember that the most important ingredient in enjoying model trains is imagination. Also keeps me from taking things too seriously.
Where do you suggest gettin replacement cables from (I’m sort of new to this and I want to use a trustworthy brand)?
I get mine on ebay
Great video thank you. May I ask what the "3rd hand" you where using was please?