Williams Reverse Board in a Lionel Trainsounds Loco?

Classic Toy Trains Forum
1

I bought a Lionel El Capitan set least October from “the biggest Lionel dealer in the country”. The FT diesel is a good puller but has some issues. It doesn’t move until approx. 9 volts are applied, then takes off like a rocket. It also does not cycle through F-N-R well. I brought it back to the store and after waiting five weeks, got it back as if no one even touched it. Same exact problems.

I could take it back again, wait another several weeks and get it back not fixed a second time. But I’m inclined to write that place off for any more repairs or purchases, so I was wondering. Has anyone ever replaced a Lionel reverse unit with a Williams one? The loco I have has Trainsounds. How hard would it be to make the swap? What potential issues would be most likely?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Jim

2

Have you tried contactling Lionel’s tech support? Also, have you tried the loco on a different power supply?

I haven’t seen the inside of a Trainsounds equipped loco so I don’t know if these use a modular arrangement similar to the TMCC/RS units. If so, doing a swap may be problematic as the Williams unit is definitely not going to mate with the Lionel backplane. I have swapped reverse units on conventional loco’s and the main issues are keeping in mind current draw and physical mounting issues. You might have to cobble up brackets. Also, TS board may not have any external connectors like the early RailSound boards did to allow access to trigger sounds.

3

I run the loco off of an MRC Dual Controller. Just looking for options.Thanks for your thoughts.

Jim