Lionel 5C Test Set
By Paul Olekson

Let's leave the familiar path of toy train articles and take a look at a Lionel test set.

For many years I wanted one of these. I did not want the larger 5F model, but rather wanted something in my collection that would be representative of all Lionel test sets. I didn't need more than one, nor did I want to pay too much. The Lionel 5C test set seemed to fit my criteria exactly.

It took many years for me to buy one, but I always remained loyal to my goal. In fact, 16 years before I actually became the owner of a 5C, I was able to buy a full original set of “Lionel Service Manual” pages for one.

Through the years, there were a few encounters with these test sets at train shows and eventually on eBay, but either money or condition kept me from my desired piece. I did finally purchase one and after examining it closely at home, realized that it had endured many years of repair and tinkering at the hands of previous owners. I learned a lot from the study of that first 5C set and in the end sold it on eBay. Much to my surprise, thanks to good photographs and an accurate description, that test set sold for two hundred dollars more than I paid for it.

At York in April 2006, armed with my newly acquired knowledge, I found another 5C test set. Everything about it seemed right so I purchased it. It is that test set which will be examined in this article. I only have the one, so there will be no lavish side by side comparison of three or four examples.

The tour will be a straight forward and unusual close look at what I believe is an excellent, complete, and original example of a piece of Lionel service equipment.

The 5C is a compact unit. It tested just about everything Lionel made in the days just after World War II. Jacks on lower right tested various things including transformer circuit breakers. I tried that and it made me nervous!

The front panel of this set is secured to the cabinet with slotted self tapping screws. I have seen some with Phillips head screws, but I do not think they are appropriate for the late 1940's era of production. The cabinet is coated in a gray crinkle paint. It has a faint but detectable yellow tint from age. I am guessing, but the slope front steel cabinet was probably a commonly available radio cabinet in its day. If you have ever seen the comedy movie, “It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World,” there is a sequence in an airport control tower. The flight controller's radio station in the tower is a larger version of this cabinet. The switches and dials on the front of that radio immediately put me in mind of Lionel's test sets.

Gray crinkle paint that has slightly yellowed with age is applied uniformly inside and out. This slope front steel box was possibly a commonly produced two way radio cabinet for commercial use in the 1940's.

A few words are in order about the test track on the cabinet top. My service manual sheets which were not acquired with the set, show two RCS track sections on top. I did have a chance once to see another instruction sheet that depicted one RCS track to the left and a plain O gauge straight to the right. The top surface of my test set cabinet has a few small extra holes that were sloppily drilled outside of the factory.

However, there are two sets of diagonal holes in the top that appear factory drilled. The right hand set would align perfectly with holes in the ties of a plain O gauge straight track. Perhaps my test set is older than my instruction sheet which is dated “1-48.” I believe it would be valid to have either one or two RCS sections if you intend to keep your 5C set in its original configuration.

When I purchased my 5C it came ‘upgraded' with two UCS sections. I have replaced them with an RCS and an O straight.

Wires for the RCS track pass through this neatly punched rectangular hole. Note extra holes drilled by a previous owner.

The track end bumpers are aluminum, tapered towards the top. Two inexpensive acorn shaped “push nuts” hold each hot dog shaped hard rubber strip to the bumper.

The aluminum bumper or track end stop has rounded edges. Look at the acorn nuts. They are inexpensive speed or push nuts. They are hollow and have splits to allow quick assembly.	Hot dog shaped hard rubber. Color is a dark brownish red.

The face of the unit is a heavy aluminum plate. The black graphics are not heat stamped but appear to be applied by some early screening process. Similar to a rubber stamp effect, but not grainy. The lettering and pinstripe border is unusually durable and has withstood much cleaning and rough handling. The power cord is a standard Lionel transformer cord with “Lionel” printed on the plug.

Inside the cabinet, at first, almost nothing but the bulbs seemed familiar. I was very surprised when I opened the cabinet and found a complete whistle mounted behind the right hand end of the face plate. I knew the 5C could test a whistle, but the 5C can also test the whistle control of a Lionel transformer. Very cool surprise indeed! It was not the only surprise, however.

The people at Lionel made these test sets using existing items and lots of wire. The whistle and reverse control buttons visible from the front are from a complete 167 whistle controller that has had 3 holes drilled through it to enable long machine screws with brass nuts to secure it to the inside of the front plate. So to, is an original RCS controller drilled and secured with 2 machine screws. They did a nice job of lining up the controller buttons with the holes in the face plate. All the internal wiring is cloth covered and most of it is 22 gauge stranded and tinned wire. All the connections were soldered except for one wire nut by the main power switch. There are no spade or crimp style connectors in the unit.

Nothing too special as Lionel used standard controllers for the test set. I am intrigued as to how they lined up all the holes and buttons so well since the mounting holes in the stock controllers appear hand drilled.

I did put the 5C through its paces as described in the instructions. Two tests that made me nervous were the transformer “No Load Loss” test and the transformer circuit breaker test. The “No Load Loss” test checks for a shorted turn in the secondary winding and if the 60 watt bulb inside the 5C glows, the test has failed. Something about working with house current and an un-insulated metal cabinet can give your hair a bit of a frizz…

The circuit breaker test involves the jacks on the lower right and in one test of my ZW, the house lights dimmed a split second before the breaker opened. This was accompanied by a sizzling sound from inside the test set.

The instructions say the electrical outlet on the front provides 220 volts at a low current to test transformer insulation. I skipped that test. Needless to say, these test sets are primitive straight forward pieces that can utilize raw brute electrical force!

To use the jacks, Lionel provided the 5C with test leads. There is a lead with a single banana plug and a lead with a double banana plug. The plugs lend more credence to the idea that the test set has roots in the radio equipment available at the time. The plugs are marked by their manufacturer.

The double banana plug is marked “General Radio Type 274MB.” The single banana plug is marked “G.R.C. 274-DB.”

Back side of the face plate shows the exposed transformer, the whistle, the 167 and RCS controllers, switches, wires, and an older 60 watt GE light bulb with a brass base. Nothing sophisticated here.

This is the back of the main rotary switch. This switch allows you to select a number of tests. Look closely and you will see it is an open design with contacts and exposed rollers. It is really very well put together. First time I saw it, I was afraid to breath as I imagined all the little wheels and other pieces flying into oblivion.

This fiberboard has nichrome wire looped around metal posts. The wire is "tapped" at different points to provide different amounts of resistance. The tap wires lead to some of the double banana jacks on the front. The different resistance of each tap should correspond to the rating of the transformer circuit breaker it is intended to test. In short, this part simulates short circuits. By the way, this part sizzled, smoked, and clicked when I tested a couple of transformer circuit breakers.

Here's the double banana plug in one of its many corresponding double jacks. See how the single banana plug can "stack" on the double plug. (Nails by Diane)

Two styles of the general Radio Corp. double banana plug. Also shown, the single. All the plugs can "stack" on each other.	Mueller 'Pee Wee' no. 45 clips for attaching the other end of the leads to items for testing.

The most valuable single part of the 5C test set is the voltmeter. The most valuable part of the voltmeter is the glass. I passed on buying several 5C's due to cracked glass on the meter. I discovered that the ‘glass' in the meter on my previous 5C was very carefully cut from Plexiglas or something similar. I was not experienced enough to tell the difference when I purchased it. I did eventually contact the person that sold it to me and he admitted it was a replacement he made. The lettering on the face of the meter is deeply embossed. The meter is not the most accurate. This meter and the one on my previous set were okay up to about 12 volts. Above 12 volts, I could never adjust the meter to agree with the switch voltage settings printed on the face of the test set.

I researched hundreds of meters on eBay and have concluded that Lionel purchased them from a company called Weston in Newark , NJ . Having found a good supply of meters of the same size and style, replacing the original glass should no longer be a problem. Apparently Weston made this style meter for many purposes and the U.S. military. I have found the meter configured for AC and DC amps, volts, millivolts, and decibels among others. The one configuration I could not find this meter in was 0 – 25 volts AC which is how the Lionel meter is set up.

Notice how the lighting shows the deep embossing of the letters and numbers. Also note the adjustment screw for calibrating the meter. Pointer has a spade shaped tip. (Photo by Jonathan)

Here's a photo I borrowed from the internet for research purposes. Compare it to the Lionel 5C meter. This was being sold as a model "Weston 507." Exactly the same face and size as the Lionel 5C meter. Adjustment screw and pointer are the same also. Note that even though it looks the same, it is configured to read "milliamperes." I have purchased one of these old meters in case something unfortunate should ever happen to the glass in my "Lionel" meter.

I wrote this article and provided the many photographs in the hope that I could help anyone interested in learning about or acquiring one of these 5C test sets.

Also it can hopefully help others in determining the condition of a unit they already own. Since a test set can easily be the most expensive non-train Lionel item in a collection, it was important to set forth as much information as possible.

I would appreciate any additional information or corrections that fellow collectors would be willing to send me. I will compile any new information and eventually update this article.

The table of contents ambitiously shows everything that one could test with the 5C.	The 1948 service manual showed how to upgrade the test set by installing a UCS track. Lionel had to keep the 5C current by having it be able to test the new magnetic knuckle couplers.

	5C replacement parts list.