I’m working on a post war Lionel 2046 “baby hudson”. I’ve been active with this hobby on and off for 40 years and I have never seen this. The E unit coil on this engine cannot be cut out. Usually, you can turn the switch off on top of the locomotive. This will freeze the E unit in the position it was last in and it will not sequence. Opening this switch opens the coil’s path to ground stopping it from sequencing when the power is interupted. The E unit on this engine sequences irregardless of the switch’s position when the power is interrupted. Is this E-unit faulted internally somehow?
Should I;
Find another post war E-unit and replace the one that’s in my engine.
Replace the postwar E-unit with an electronic one.
Retire the engine and get a Williams/Bachmann “Golden Memories” baby hudson.
If I go with option 2, what is the best way to mount an electronic E-unit in this engine?
1)If you want to keep it “original” you can either replace the e-unit, which are fairly easy to buy from the train part guys, They can be had for around $20 - $25 or have it rebuilt by the local hobby shop if you don’t want to tackle the job yourself. This way you still have the buzz nad it is still original! Or have someone look at it and it may be someting as simple as a loose wire!
2)You can also replace it with an electronic one which are about the same size as the original and the ones made by Dallee Electronics can be bought for about $40. This way you can have a nice quiet operating engine.
3)Don’t retire it. The e-unit is, for the most part, is the problem with the postwar engines. These engines will run for years, with proper maintenence and a little care will outlast us. We all need a little tender loving care once in awhile!
If the E-unit sequences reliably, it would seem that it has been rewired such that the switch has been cut out of the circuit. Sometimes folks will do this when the contact-and-rivet loosen up and will not maintain contact. A cycling E-unit is a whole lot better than one that won’t cycle, so I’d try to save the one you have. Try tracing the wiring from the pickup rollers to the E-unit. This link should help.
If the e-unit actually cycles when the switch is in the off position, then the e-unit is getting a ground somewhere else. The most likely cause is the engine is mis-wired. If the e-unit does not cycle with the shell off, but does cycle with the shell on then the shell is contacting the e-unit or a wire to it.
One caution: whatever else you decide to do, please do not toss out your current electro-mechanical E-unit. They are increasingly difficult to find, and some parts vendors will not sell a new one unless you return an old one in good enough condition to be rebuilt.