" /> Hi All:
Been away for a while but need some help with a Williams motor connection. The engine is stalling over switched so I figured one of the pick-up rollers had a problem. A wire came loose from the cab/front engine and I can't seem to find its home. I applied power to the rear truck and both motors are operational however when I do the same to the front motor there's no response. So, if anyone knows where to connect the wire(see photo)please respond. BTW I touched the wire to the bulb housing and still no response.
Well I can see your photo and when I click on I get a era message
Life's hard, even harder if your stupid John Wayne
http://rtssite.shutterfly.com/
It would be nice if you can post a photo succesfully to see the issue better. However I know that most Williams engines have 2 wires that supply power to the motor and maybe a third wire that grounds the motor frame.
Lee Fritz
Sorry about the photo .... hope this works.
I can't really tell much from that photo. What I know about the Williams can motors is that there are 2 wires(I think they are blue & yellow) that go to the motor itself and 1 wire(usually black) that goes to the shell of the can motor and acts like a ground wire.
Does it have a circuit board or just a small electronic part with 4 wires attached to it that goes to the motor?
Williams diesel engines use a long phillips head screw that goes into the truck assembly and attaches to the center rail roller, see if you can locate that wire.
I have also wired up an unpowered Williams B unit with a True Blast 2 horn by adding some wiring harness's I bought at an RC car hobby shop. Wired up 2 powered SD-45's to an unpowered Shark B unit and installed the T.B. 2 unit inside the B unit. Maybe you can add a wire harness from another diesel engine to your GP-38.
Thanks for the input. There is a screw connected to the truck and I'll try touching the broken wire to that screw. Both motors work when I apply power to the rear motor which would indicate that power is not being delivered to the front motor from the roller since the engine is stalling when the rear roller goes over a switch or uncoupling track. I don't think the broken wire is a ground since I tried grounding it to the frame and bulb recepticle with no response but I may be wrong. This unit does have a board and tru blast with horn and bell.
See if there is a screw that is near the center roller but inside the cab area and touch a wire from the frame or ground, if it sparks that is the power wire connection for the center rail. Otherwise you may have to install a wire and small connector from the screw to the other center rail roller in the rear.
Does the front light bulb have power? You may have to tap into the light bulb's hot wire to get power. The lights in a Williams are connected with one side to the frame or ground and the center wire to the light to a hot wire or center rail pick-up.
I have seen some wire issues with used SD-45's but not with GP-38's however the wiring should be the same. Williams did not vary the wiring in their older diesel engines, most are the same.
Light is not on but before I pulled the wire it was tucked in behind the light and when I moved the light housing the bulb lit up. That may be the answer however the bulb was working before I removed the shell but the pick-up wasn't delivering power. Need to play with it and will advise.
The front bulb doesn't light. Switched bulbs and the bulb is good. On the rear motor bulb housing there's a solder point with a wire connected. There's a similar solder on the front bulb and it looks like the wire was connected there but the bulb doesn't light when I touch that point with the wire. I tried touching the screw on the truck and it shorted. Could the roller be the problem?
The roller might be the problem but more likely it is the wire coming off the roller or the plastic sleeve that the screw goes into to insulate from the truck assembly. Sometimes the roller is mounted wrong.
I swapped the rollers and got the same result. Checking the wires with gentle tugs the red wire (see photo) connected to the roller screw was broken. I believe the black wire needs to be soldered to the bulb housing. That should do it. Thanks for your suggestions Lee.
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