BLI BigBoys both In-Stock and arriving soon

[robert3985]

While I have no personal experience with this particular smoke generator, I don't see why any "smoke fluid" would not be compatible with the BLI unit. They all are just miniature electric heaters which boil (evaporate) the oil.

Peter, although your reasoning is good, it doesn't work for the BLI N-scale Big Boy. 

BLI has specific instructions on what type of smoke fluid to use and gives a link in their instructional YouTube video to where to buy it since it isn't BLI smoke fluid.

Go here:  https://www.broadway-limited.com/paragon4upbigboynscale.aspx

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[robert3985]

BLI Smoke Fluid Requirements and Instructions:

Since lots of advice and opinions are being given here about the N-scale BLI Big Boy's smoke fluid that are WRONG, I have posted several corrections to these erroneous opinions and assumptions just in case somebody reads them and doesn't actually go to BLI's site and view the instructional video, which makes it very clear that BLI's smoke fluid won't work in the N-scale Big Boy, and gives a link to where to get the smoke fluid they're using in the video.

I'd rather to do a little overkill here if it prevents somebody from screwing up an expensive model they've just purchased because of erroneous advice they've read here.

I'm not going to say what smoke fluid to use in this thread which forces you to use the provided link and watch BLI's instructional video, which should have been done before giving advice/opinions that were incorrect.  At least until somebody posts what the video says... 

This was easy to do...took me like three minutes to get the correct information from their website.

Go here: https://www.broadway-limited.com/paragon4upbigboynscale.aspx

Like I said in a previous post, sometimes it's better to read/view the instructions first before giving uninformed advice.

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[peteski]

Well, BLI actually recommends to use Marklin/Trix smoke fluid in the N scale loco. That is a generic fluid which can also be used in other smoke generators.  I don't feel my earlier statement about N scale smoke fluid was incorrect. I guess it depends on how you interpret it.

I suspect that other similar fluids would also work, like the one from Diverse: https://www.dm-toys.de/en/product-details/Diverse_SR24-120.html

The description states SR24 can also be used as steam oil in all smoke generators.

[robert3985]

Well, BLI actually recommends to use Marklin/Trix smoke fluid in the N scale loco. That is a generic fluid which can also be used in other smoke generators.  I don't feel my earlier statement about N scale smoke fluid was incorrect. I guess it depends on how you interpret it.

I suspect that other similar fluids would also work, like the one from Diverse: https://www.dm-toys.de/en/product-details/Diverse_SR24-120.html

The description states SR24 can also be used as steam oil in all smoke generators.

Your opinion was only incorrect in that you didn't specify that the smoke fluid has to be "light" oil.  Heavier smoke fluids, including BLI's own HO scale fluid won't work.

The logical line of reasoning, which you used, would assume that all model smoke generators, being nothing but simple heaters, wouldn't require a specific type of smoke fluid to work.  In this case, logic gives way to the reality that BLI chose to use a smoke generator that requires "light" smoke fluid for whatever reason.

I agree with your line of reasoning, but BLI threw us a left hook. 

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[peteski]

Your opinion was only incorrect in that you didn't specify that the smoke fluid has to be "light" oil.  Heavier smoke fluids, including BLI's own HO scale fluid won't work.
. . .
Bob Gilmore

But I did Bob, in https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=55322.msg760427#msg760427 . Lightweight and light are the same thing to me. 

[up1950s]

Got my 4022 today .

[Nato]

    The question is , should you buy a BLI Big Boy with smoke, or an Athearn Big Boy with sound, the Athearn locomotives are getting harder to find as they have been out (current release) for a while, or do you wait and go for the KATO Sound equipped Big Boy which is only the Excursion Locomotive with Oil Tender. Nate Goodman. (Nato).

[up1950s]

Your opinion was only incorrect in that you didn't specify that the smoke fluid has to be "light" oil.  Heavier smoke fluids, including BLI's own HO scale fluid won't work.

The logical line of reasoning, which you used, would assume that all model smoke generators, being nothing but simple heaters, wouldn't require a specific type of smoke fluid to work.  In this case, logic gives way to the reality that BLI chose to use a smoke generator that requires "light" smoke fluid for whatever reason.

I agree with your line of reasoning, but BLI threw us a left hook. 

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

Thanks . This is a screen shot from the video

[Glenn Poole]

I run DC. Does the smoke work?  What happens if you don’t put smoke fluid in?  Can you burn the unit up? 

[spookshow]

You activate the smoke unit with F7, and presumably you wouldn't want to do that if there's no fluid in there. There's also an on/off switch if you want to disable the smoke unit entirely.

-Mark

[peteski]

Boy, this brings me back to my early teens when I was fascinated by smoking models.

Smoke generator is basically a reservoir of oil and a heater partially immersed in the oil.


The heater is basically a resistive wire coiled like a spring,. Looks like a filament in a light bulb.  When hot it boils the oil generating "smoke".
If you run it when unit is dry that will eventually burn out the heater.

When I played with these I ran DC and the smoke generator was connected to the rail pickups.  How much smoke it generated was dependent on the track voltage (and speed of the loco of course).  BlI does not sell DC locos, so it will need rather high DC track voltage to power the decoder. If the smoke unit is enabled then it will likely work.  But as it has been said, in a long run, this is a messy proposition.  Even if not running, the oil will eventually creep out of the stack and spread onto the boiler.  Plus the smoke is actually oil vapors.

[Nato]

      Any of you old enough to remember the old 'Lionel SP Smoke Pellets". They came in a bottle with orange and blue (Lionel Colors) labels and a black screw on top. They could easily be confused with aspirin tablets, if your 0 or 027 locomotive had smoke you put one pill/tablet in the stack and the heating coil unit caused it to smoke. You got a wooden clean out plug of sorts to clean the white residue powder left in your stack after use. I do not recall what American Flyer first used, I believe some kind of oil in the stack? Arnold Rapido  of Germany was going to offer their US 2-8-2 with smoke. It would have been the same drivetrain and Seuth Smoke Generator as their DB German 2-8-2, but this never happened. Nate Goodman (Nato). Salt Lake, Utah.

[robert3985]

Thanks . This is a screen shot from the video

Lol!...Yup.  In English it says "Lightweight", but in German, the correct interpretation is "Steam Oil, Light"

So..."lightweight" and "light"...the same!

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[peteski]

That makes me wonder what BLI used in H0 steam generators? Bunker C oil?   

[mu26aeh]

To me, it's seems like a whole lot of fan fair to get 4 minutes of smoke out of a full reservoir.  I know they can only get so much in an n scale boiler but stopping every 4 minutes to get more smoke just seems