Oh and by the way...I run Bachmann On30 trains with their DCC on my layout too...love 'em!

James,

I looked at Lionel.com and if you go to "Parts Lists and Pictorial Diagrams", a search on "polar express" will get you close, nd the correct Lionel part# from your loco should take you to the correct docs.

James:

If you keep the smoke adjustment on high on high for >1 hour, it will burn up. I run my Legacy engines on low or medium, and with fan driven smoke, it's plenty for my sniffer. Lionel just went thru an extensive service program upgrade, and there are many named dealers who have completed Legacy training. I'm pretty sure that I saw the latest list in Jan or Feb Classic Toy Trains Magazine.

I have applied a light coating of scenic cement [50/50 white glue to water, a couple drops of dish detergent, and a capful or two of alcohol] lightly sprinkle the ground foam, let it dry overnight, and then re-apply foam if needed, and drench it in the same glue mix,  [or dilute it slightly if it's not flowing right] and let it sit overnight, then use a computer vac to clean up. Works every time.

Cheers!

I model O scale and am using On30 for a segment depicting coal mining on the same layout. If you put Lionel's Conrail Lionmaster engine next to the 0-4-0 Davenport from Bachmann you really get a sense of the difference in size, even though both are 1:48 scale. My advice would be to model one or the other, or combine them on a segment. On30 offers a lot of price advantages, but since I model all Lionel, my opinion is tilted toward enjoying the size advantages of the larger models [easier to modify locos, rolling stock, and structures]. Like anyone in this hobby you have balance what you want to model vs your budget vs your available space vs the experience your are seeking...most of all, enjoy!

I recently bought 2 3-packs of On30 V-Dump cars. There only seems to be one "bracket/arm" holding the cast dump body to the chassis and it won't attach without falling out. Is this intentional? I rec'd a note from Mr Riley stating that these are prototype cars, but I'm confused as to how they are supposed to dump prototypically with only one "bracket/arm" holding the dump body in place.

I don't see any diagrams or close-up drawings on the website...can I buy extra brackets or parts for these? Can you help?

I'm hoping that the Bach Man joins this discussion to shed some light on our questions. I'm still interested in buying parts for it so that I can match the hardware on both sides of the "bucket". In the mean time, I'm exploring ways to modify them to add range of motion and perhaps spring activation from a lever.  I will certainly start on the conservative side by simply modifying the mechanism to stay in the cradle and limit the travel of the "bucket". I'll report back.

I recently bought 2 3-packs of On30 V-Dump cars. There only seems to be one "bracket/arm" holding the cast dump body to the chassis and it won't attach without falling out. Is this intentional? I rec'd a note from Mr Riley stating that these are prototype cars, but I'm confused as to how they are supposed to dump prototypically with only one "bracket/arm" holding the dump body in place.

I don't see any diagrams or close-up drawings on the website...can I buy extra brackets or parts for these? Anyone able to help clear this up for me?

Greetings!
Is it possible to add sound to one of these little DCC engines? I know its short on space, so I thought perhaps I could mount it in the gas tanker that I'm building to tow behind it....Help?

Thanks so much!  These are just what I'm looking for....too bad the manufacturers don;t offer this, but then what would be the fun in that?

Does anyone know whether or not these cars operating cars? In other words, can they be activated to dump their load?

I'm building a mining operation and my local dealer has nudged me out of my Lionel fog to realize there are other brand alternatives that will enhance my layout. I'm very interested to know if anyone has modified these cars or other On30 cars [to be able to activate them] for a mining application.