I received a pair of very toy like train sets of lionel heratige. I need info on the power supply for the seperate throttle/reostat. looks like a cell phone charger but is missing. My expertise is HO and out of my leauge here. Any help is greatly appreciated. Stay Happy RMR
You might wanna try the “Classic Toy Trains” section, that’s where the lionel (and american flyer) gurus usually frequent.
98% OF LIONEL was '3 rail ‘Tinplate’. which ran on large AC transformers…
It may have ‘Collector’ value if it is in ‘pristine’ condition. (Most is not).
Lionel '0-27 was made to run on a (then) popular 'Ping-Pong table or plug-together on the Living room floor. It was popular up 1930 - to 1950. HO scale took over post WWII.
Sounds like you have one of the inexpensive DC powered sets of the late 70’s (Kickapoo Valley, Steelhauler, etc.). The DC rheostats are of poor quality and the wall packs are underpowered. They do not control the sets very well at all. The sets run much better on a modern mid size or larger HO power pack with filtered DC such as MRC. Being an HO guy, you probaly know where I’m comming from. It’s much like running an Atlas Silver series diesel, pulling 25 cars off a cheap HO starter set pack. You can find the wall packs and rheostats on ebay fairly cheap if you want to make your set complete.
These sets are often refered to by collectors as dimestore trash. The semi trucks that came with the Steelhauler type sets are the only thing that causes excitement (they are O scale and well done). The weak link to the sets is the power supply and rheostat. Once you put them on a quality power pack with filtered DC, they really come to life. A diamond in the rough so to speak.
Some people install bridge rectifiers in the engine and run them off a Lionel AC transformer but you are limited to one direction and the DC isn’t filtered. If it’s an older transformer that starts at 6 volts, the engine takes off like a rocket. Another alternative is to install an electronic reverse unit that converts AC to DC. Fitting them into they engine can be a challenge and they often cost more than what the engine is worth.