I, also just received a BLI Pennsy H10 on Monday. “Puffing” smoke has stopped PUFFING after less than an HOUR of running! Smokes like CRAZY, but no “puff”. Can’t hear the fan anymore, either. Has this been a problem with Paragon 2? Anybody know a fix? If BLI is having a problem with these H10’s (which I suspect they are), I really don’t want to send it to them for a “forever” repair! 1) if I can get the parts (under warranty) Ican fix it. 2) If I can figure out how to get the boiler shell off, I can fix it. OR, if Trainworld exchanges three-day-old defective engines, they can have it. Any ideas, or experiences with this issue?? Darn, just spent $10 on a bottle of “Mega Steam” just for this loco! Not to mention $325 for the engine!!!
Just askin’ —
Did you have to refill the smoke unit after the <hour of running? It is very easy to overfill the reservoir and the blower/puffer can not do its job.
Personally, the smoke is more of a gimmic and after ten minutes of running I’ve had enough. Most of my BLI steam has the switch for smoking turned off. I have been to model shows where the G scale/Lionel guys were running their puffing, chugging 0-2-0 whatnots and there was actually a film of oil on the table and surrounding floor from the smoke oil.
Smoke, like water, doesn’t exactly “scale” very well so I choose to disable the function… a good fireman keeps a “clean stack” anyway [:D]
Just my 2¢ hope you don’t have to return the engine… I’m still waiting for mine to be sent from FDT.
Good luck, Ed
When the smoke generator smokes like crazy without “puffing”, that´s a typical sign that you have overfilled it. Just carefully turn the loco upside down to clear it, run a short strectch without adding any smoke fluid - that should do the trick.
I can omly second what gmpullman wrote. Smoke generators leave an oily film on the engine an on the track, which is hard to get rid of. Personally, I can do without smoking engines, as long as the smoke doesn´t look like the real thing.
Look at this video - this is as close as you can get to the real thing, but not an HO scale …
Hi Ulrich. The HO scale Roco BR10 has the same dynamic smoke. The smoke comes out of the cylinders! I just ordered one, should be here in a few weeks.
While I’m hopefull you’re right, I just don’t think so. The fan in the smoke unit made a distinct “whirring” sound when it puffed. Now it doesn’t. I could adjust a CV to make it blow out a little smoke at idle, but now that makes no difference, either. I could always hear the fan when it was working. It’s silent now. Also, it’s been my experience that if the unit was really overfilled, it wouldn’t smoke at all, until it “burned-off” the excess. It was working fine, right up untill it just stopped “puffing”. Fan went silent…
Read through the user’s manual – there’s a CV setting that could have been inadvertently changed to turn off the smoke generator.
Personally, I think you’re better off without it because smoke fluid, which is Mineral Oil based, leaves a sticky film all over your layout (and in your lungs).
You know guys, it’s not a sin to like puffing smoke. In fact, some people actually like it.
I know it’s a “novelty”, but so what? I still like it. Surely adds a little “coolness” to the picture. I usually just turn it on when starting out, and coming to a stop. With the right fluid, and amount, it can look pretty realistic at times. Once you fine tune the fan, so smoke doesn’t just “dribble” from the stack, it looks pretty good! This stuff about a “sticky mess” all over the layout is a mystery to me. Any residue left on the engine, or anywhere else, is usually evaporated and GONE by the next day. Some people must be using pancake syrup for smoke fluid!
I think the faulty smoke unit is endemic to the Paragon 2 locos. I have a Paragon 2 Niagara in which the smoke unit quit working after less than an hour of operating time. My grandson’s Paragon 2 T-1 lasted longer, about 5-hours, before it quit working.
We sent the T-1 back to BLI who repaired it in less than 2-weeks. They said it had a bad fan. It worked for about 4-hours and quit again. We’ll just grin and bear it now. These smoke units are more trouble than they are worth in my opinion.
By the way, the non-working smoke units are the only complaint I have ever had with a BLI loco. Except for that, these Paragon 2 locomotives are great.
Got this from a friend who works in a LHS . The very first Paragon 2 smoke engines came with a small funnel to help refill the smoke fluid. Now they do not have the funnel. Even if you are careful, smoke fluid can get on the oputside of the actual stack, which is inside the loco’s stack, and get to the fan where it is mounted to the fan motor shaft, and soften the plastic. Result, fan doesn’t spin any more, the motor turns but the fan blades don’t move, so no puffing smoke.
–Randy
We had problems with quite a few BLI smoke units. only one locomotive, a Paragon 2 Pennsy T1 has consistently worked properly. I bought two of the new H10 locos, and both work fine so far. It doesn’t bother me too much if they fail. I bought the loco for it’s looks and performance, the smoke is just a nice option. I would’ve bought them with or without the smoke.
-Stan
I have several steam enignes that smoke. Both MTH and BLI. I got the JT’s Mega-Smoke product. It burns clean and doesn’t linger in the room, it dissapates pretty quickly. And most important it doesn’t leave any resedue on the rails or engine.
I use the small funnel, and so far they have all been working great. MTH’s smoke units work the best though.
That loco’s steam/smoke output looks pretty good, as realistic as I’ve seen on a small model. OTOH, I bet it gets the loco, track and surrounding roadbed just about as dirty as the real thing too. Those old steamers were not “clean” machines.
I am disappointed with BLI service regards this problem. I have a Y6b 2-8-8-2 with this problem. Sent it back twice and asked for a new one . BLI sent a new one which worked for a day. I run this loco without smoke. I have other BLIs, one 2-10-2 decoder problem which service fixed but I wont deal with service again for smoke problems. Smart alec youngster told me I wasn’t putting the liquid in right. My Y6b dosen’t have a fan and liquid runs over the power truck and onto the track
Then you have either overfilled it or are not getting it in the smoke unit itself. The entire stack is not the smoke unit, it’s a narrower tube inside that. You need a tiny pipette or a small funnel to fill it without it going all over the place. It should not be running down out the bottom of the loco.
–Randy
Without getting into “liking” or " not liking" smoke, the simple fact is the more complex these things get, the harder it is to mass produce them at a reasonable price/quality point, and the more “user variables” come into play.
My own personal modeling tastes aside, this is a primary reason why I have skipped, sound, DCC, and smoke.
Wish you luck with your problem, but it does not sound like a simple situation…
Sheldon
Just a few observations:
First, as one who is familiar with the sight and sound and feel and smell of real steam, these systems are all pale approximations that don’t quite do the trick for me. I’ve been curious, but never seriously tempted. Even less so when they are installed in diesels.
Second, the oily residue is enough to make me want to back away.
Third, the system described by Sir Madog looks much more realistic. It seems to be a variant of a vape system, so the steam is actually steam and looks like it. For smokers, Vape systems have health problems due to inhalation of too much moisture. That probably wouldn’t be a problem in a model railroad application, but I don’t think I want too much moisture to be introduced onto the model railroad. I would be concerned about the possibility of mold and mildew. Another possible problem is damage to painted surfaces and warpage of wooden or cardstock cars and lineside structures. This kind of damage might be imperceptibe at first, but I suspect it would show itself eventually.
I just don’t think it’s worth the trouble and the risk, but you are welcome to do whatever you like.
Tom
[:-^]
I’m with Sheldon on this. Those are my sentiments exactly.
However to each their own.
Go old school>>>
Johnboy out…