MTH Norfolk & Western J class engine with Loco-Sound

[gendraco]

The engine's other attributes, bell, whistle, smoke all work fine, but it will not move in either direction. I removed the loco and the tender's shell and could not find a battery. Can anyone help?

[phillyreading]

gendraco,

In order to help you, people will need to know the number on the cab and or the part number from the box it came in, as this will tell you what year it is from. The stock number has a year code in it as well, and that will tell approximately when it was made and what features it has. The number should be either a; 10, 20 or 30 as the first two numbers, then there are more numbers.

Have you tried getting with MTH to see about downloading an operating manual for your engine? I did that for an older MTH I bought at a train show.

Lee F.

[gendraco]

Thanks for the reply. This is my first post. The number on the cab is 612. The engine is from a RTR set numbered 30-4036-0, and the engine is 30-134C. I did download the manual from the MTH site, but it wasn't much help.

[phillyreading]

Thanks for the parts numbers.

Do you know if the engine has Proto Sounds; PS-1 or PS-2?  PS-1 was just a glorified sound system to describe it breifly. PS-2 can be used with the MTH DCS base and handheld remote.

From what I know about MTH, you need to have a fully charged battery installed. Sometimes a battery that is low in power won't let you start the engine in forward. Here in south Florida I use a wall charger and not the track charging method, as FPL's power flickers too much and I am afraid of having a miniture rocket sled on rails happen.

Are you using an MTH transformer? This too could be a factor to look at.  MTH engines and Lionel's CW-80 don't mix!

To locate the battery in steam engine by MTH, remove the tender's shell and look inside for either a 9 volt battery or what appears to be a battery pack from a portable house telephone. If it has the 9 volt battery there is a very good chance it is PS-1, and needs a factory re-store chip installed. If it is PS-2, you may have to take it to the MTH authorized repair shop. But before doing anything else try to charge the battery!

Lee F.

[gendraco]

I don't know if it is PS-1 or PS-2. I'm using the MTH transformer that came with the set. I opened up the tender looking for a battery, and found a small black box, (approx. 1.5" square and .75" high. It is where the battery would normally be, as I compared it to another MTH steam engine.

[phillyreading]

Remove the black cover and you should see what looks like a 9 volt battery, be careful when removing the cover as it is difficult to re-install, and you can lose the screws very easy. The battery is a re-chargeable 9 volt type, and it must be charged outside of the engine or tender before installing it back inside or replacing it if it is the original battery. Also check connections at the tender to engine plug-in, you might have a pin pushed in by accident.

Does your engine give you any sounds of steam after applying power for about five seconds or more?After the battery remedy if it is that, to move the engine from nuetral you need to hit the direction button, at least once, wait five seconds and try again, on the transformer while having at least one third power to the track.

You say that you have an MTH transformer, for a start that is good. Which number MTH transformer is it,  Z-500 50 watt,  Z-750 75 watt, or Z-1000 100 watt?

FYI, I think you have a PS-1 engine and it won't respond to DCS base if it is.

Lee F.

[crip]

Hi gendraco,

MTH locomotives with Loco Sound do not use a battery. Have you checked to see if the engine is locked in neutral?

 You can lock your engine into a directional state (forward, neutral, or reverse)

so that it will not change directions. To do this, put the engine into the

direction you want or into neutral, to lock it into neutral, run it at a very slow

speed (< 10 scale mph), and quickly but firmly press your remote’s Whistle

button once followed immediately by three presses of the Bell button. The

engine will not change direction (including going into neutral) until you repeat

the 1 whistle, 3 bells code to return the engine to its normal state.

                        Hope this helps

                                                       Mark

[gendraco]

The small black box is too small to house a 9V battery. Is the battery a special size that fits in the box?

[gendraco]

Mark,

The engine will not go in any direction, it doesn't move at all. Is there a self charging system in the Loco-Sound engine? If so, how do I charge it or replace it?

[phillyreading]

gendraco

The small black box is too small to house a 9V battery. Is the battery a special size that fits in the box?

If the little black box don't have a battery under it then you have a version that is before PS-1 or Proto Sounds, and there is no battery any where.

As far as I know there is NO self charging system or back-up with Loco Sounds, it is just a circuit board with engine sounds.

See if you can run your MTH engine from a D.C. power source, as you may have to replace the circuit board. Most model trains have D.C. can motors today, so using D.C. will test the motors, you may have to bypass the circuit board and put power straight to the motor.

Lee F.

[gendraco]

Mark and Lee F

Thanks for your input and help in finding the solution. After examing the "little black box", I left the engine powered up on the track in neutral for about an hour. Then I pressed the whistle button once and the bell three times,shut off the power, then  turned on the power. Lo and behold, the engine came back to life and is working fine. It must have been stuck in neutral.

Thanks again.