Lionel Wire Question

Classic Toy Trains Forum
1

I have had to replace wires in postwar Lionel engines occasionally and have used the normal wires I have in supply with the vinyl coating. Lionel used a wire with a cloth-type coating. My concern is that I had to replace a wire for the headlight on a 675 steamer and the wire passes right next to the smoke unit and I am concerned that the smoke unit may melt the vinyl coating. Does the smoke unit cap get hot enough to melt wire coating or should I have used the same type of wire that Lionel used?

I know Lionel used at least two basic types of wiring in their locos and cars. One type of wiring is the cloth insulated wiring used in their locos. The other type of wiring is the very flexible wiring attached to either the rollers or hot shoes on their rolling stock trucks.

I have two questions:

  1. What is the correct terminology for both types of wiring?

  2. Are those types of wiring available at stores such as Radio Shack or Lowes?

Thank You…

Earl

2

If you’re worried about heat, look for Teflon insulated wiring. I just route the wire away from anything hot and use standard plastic wire, been doing that for years. You can also slip some heat shrink over the wire where it passes the smoke unit.

I don’t think much of the smoke unit gets hot enough to melt plain plastic wire, in the modern TMCC & Legacy units, there is plastic wire all around them for some models.

The “very flexible” wire is called super-flex, it has many very fine strands.