My Amtrak P-54 locomotive will suddenly STOP on a piece of track. This happened on a viaduct track slope (in the middle of the incline, not beginning or end) AND also on a flat track. then when I push it past that piece of track, it lights up and zips off again.
Baffles me because none of my other locomotives (P-54's included) do that. I thought it may have been the distance between the trucks, dirty track (impossible because its new and shiny), angle etc...(which it cant be because it happens on the straight and level track too)...
Anyone encountered this before?
When you say it stops on a "piece" of track, do you mean a particular piece of sectional track, or just at a spot on the layout? When you push it to get it going again, does it take off once the wheels reach another piece of sectional track?
If so, you probably have a bad rail joiner connection to that section. You can squeeze the rail joiners with pliers to make them a bit tighter, but in the long run you should either solder most of your track joints, or put in more track power feeders.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Is this happening with the locomotive pulling a line of cars, or is it also happening with just the locomotive alone? If it's with cars, try the locomotive alone. Also, if it is with cars, are they lighted passenger cars? If so, they could be siphoning off enough power to cause problems. If possible, send me an XtrkCad file with the locations indicated...it may well be a spot that needs a closer power feed.
Also, there is the possibility that for what ever reason, that loco is needing more power than the others...in theory, all of the same brand and model should be equal, but in reality manufactured things are not as equal as one woud expect.
Meanwhile, I'd replace the Unijoiners on the sections in question, just to be sure you have as good a connection as possible.
Reality...an interesting concept with no successful applications, that should always be accompanied by a "Do not try this at home" warning.
Hundreds of years from now, it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove...But the world may be different because I did something so bafflingly crazy that my ruins become a tourist attraction.
"Oooh...ahhhh...that's how this all starts...but then there's running...and screaming..."
VickyB wrote:Its a particular piece of track. Whats baffling is that all other locomotives run just fine on the SAME piece of track.
This, plus a couple other clues you provided, lead me to believe you have a combination of two problems (provided the hump that derailed your Superliners isn't doing the same thing to your locomotive):
1. (the obvious) you have a short dead spot in the tracks
2. (why it's only this locomotive) not all the pickup wheels on the locomotive are working.
The dead spot is short enough that the other locomotives (that run properly past this point) with all the pickup wheels working, will make contact on either side of this dead spot and keep running. Most of the locomotives made in the last decade or so pick up power through all the wheels. The easiest way to test the pickup system is with a spare power pack and a short set of wires from the "DC to track" terminals. Set the malfunctioning locomotive upside down in a cradle (yes, there are foam ones made just for this purpose), turn up the power on the power pack, and touch the leads, to a wheel on each side of the locomotive. Move the wires to each pair of wheels until you've touched them all. The motor should run and the light come on no matter which combination of wheels you touch the leads to. Any that don't activate the motor need to be investigated as to why the pickup isn't working.
Amtrak P-54's are known to stop dead on particular pieces of track for no apparent reason....it's a nasty personality trait, a manifestation of the extra 1200 horsepower they put out. However, all your other Amtrak P-42's run fine because they don't have the extra demands made upon them...they're less stressed.
OK....that was bad. Do what Tom says, that'll fix you up.
Bill
"Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig"
VB:
I'd try cleaning the track.
I have a cranky old Lima 0-4-0 that seems to be really good at finding dead spots where nothing else can. I suspect its wheels are coned or otherwise shaped a little differently from the rest.
Still havent tried the amtrak thing. going to do it today. Now I noticed something else. Its not a dead piece of track. rather, when it STOPS, I have to whack it on the top and it starts going. Me thinks that its a lose decoder connection under the hood?
Am I getting good at this?
VickyB wrote: Still havent tried the amtrak thing. going to do it today. Now I noticed something else. Its not a dead piece of track. rather, when it STOPS, I have to whack it on the top and it starts going. Me thinks that its a lose decoder connection under the hood? Am I getting good at this?
We used to call that "ball-peen maintenance" in the Air Force. Most of the military issue flashlights used to work that way, Turn on the switch and smack it against the bottom of your foot to make it turn on.
Since this thread started, I've been wondering what an Amtrak P54 was.