kat180

I think the rechargeable battery is something he can invest in later down the line when he actually has a decent track set up, so its great to hear the AAA Battery will work fine. I really appreciate the help - I was about to just buy the three PF the woman at Lego told me too so I'm glad I decided to check again. Would have sucked on Christmas morning to not be able to get it up and running! Thanks again for taking the time to explain all that! :D

Thank you - I did think the woman on the phone didn't sound particularly sure. I wasn't aware I had gone against any rules, if I have I apologise. I'm afraid Emerald Night is the first lego train that either of us has bought/put together since I was a child. Neither of us have used Power Functions before and I'll admit, I was finding it all confusing. I was hoping I wouldn't have to get the Rechargeable Battery and Transformer, they are just too expensive for now, since he will only have the train running over Christmas and maybe once or twice throughout the year. Thanks again.

Yes I have. We don't have the box but the website says we need: 8882 Power Functions XL Motor 8878 Power Functions Rechargeable Battery Box 8887 Transformer 10v DC adapter 8884 Power Functions IR Receiver 8879 Power Functions IR Speed Remote Control Which is very expensive. What I want to know is are they all necessary? I don't understand how Power Functions all work, every piece is sold separately and it seems to me there are different versions of each thing. This list is also quite different to what I was advised over the phone. Then I was told: 8869 Switch 8881 Battery Box 8883 M-Motor When I was reading up about the 9V track I was told I need an extension wire to make it work with Power Functions, but the woman on the phone didn't think that was right. It seems people on this site do seem to understand, know and own these trains themselves so I was hoping someone would be able to clear it up for me.

I bought the Emerald Night for my dad last Christmas. This year I was thinking of getting the power functions so he can have motorized. We have an old 9v (I think) track - unlike the new tracks which are all plastic, this has metal lines and there was a chunky control that attached to the track and you could turn the round yellow switch clockwise or counter clockwise to get the train to move either forward or backward. Can we use this track? Is there anything extra we would need to buy to get the Emerald Night to run on this other than the list they suggest on the website? Also - I could use some help on what Power Functions I actually need to buy. I sent Lego an email but got no reply, neither did I get any help on their message boards. I finally rang up and the girl told me I would just need to get a Motor, Switch and Battery Box to get the Emerald Night moving (coming to around £20) Is this correct? She didn't sound sure and it is completely different from the website) It is only a basic, round track and not something that would be up and running much so I don't really want to buy the whole list of PF listed on the website - it costs more than the train! Am I correct in thinking that if I got the above 3 items, they would all somehow have to sit on the train (be hidden inside?) I've read the Battery Box is chunky - will it fit? I am considering buying him the Maersk Train. If I did would I need to buy different Power Functions to the 3 above? I assume it's only worth investing in all the Power Functions if you have a bigger track and would want to run two or more trains at once? Which my dad would love but we don't have the space unfortunately. Sorry for all the questions! I have been reading up about it all, but tbh the Power Functions and which ones you really need are quite confusing for someone who has no idea how they all work.