I have a BLI Pennsy K-4 that has had a problem stalling when passing over insulated turnout frogs ever since I got it. I suspected that it was not picking up power from all the wheels it is supposed to. To test it out, I put it on the rails and turned on the bell to find out where it was not getting power from. I can tilt the right loco wheels off the track and the bell keeps ringing which tells me it is still drawing right side power from the tender. Likewise, I can tilt the right tender wheels of the track and the bell keeps ringing which tells me it is also picking up power from right side loco wheels. When I tilt the left loco wheels off the track, the bell keeps ringing so I am picking up left side power from the tender but if I tilt the left side tender wheels off the track, the bells stops ringing which tells me I am not getting power from the left side loco wheels. One other thing I noticed is I can tilt the rear tender wheels off the track without losing power but if I tilt the front wheels off the track, I lose power. This suggests to me that the tender is getting left side power from the front wheels and right side power from the rear tender wheels.
It appears that I will have to open up the loco to find out why it is not picking up left side power. I am not looking forward to doing that so I'd like to get second opinions to make sure I'm on the right track and not missing something before I take that step. Also, I would be grateful for any suggestions anyone has for what I should be looking for or what precautions I should take so I don't mess this up worse than it is.
I had this problem with my Reading T1 when it was new. Open up the tender and check the connectors. The problem with mine was that the pin connected to the loco pickup on one side was put into the shell upside down, so when the plug was conencted, rather than actually mate, that pin was shoved back out. Hard to explain but if you look closely at the connectors and shells you will see what I mean. The contact pins have a tiny tab on one side that, when inserted into teh shell, keeps the pin from being forced back. The shell has a tiny slot to hold this tab. Put the pin in 180 degrees reversed and the tab does not go into the slot so nothing holds it in place. It was a simple fix, I pulled the pin out completely and put it back in the right way, then plugged the connector back in and all was fine. This is an internal connector on the sound board, not the one between the loco and tender - although yo umight want to make sure that's seated squarely before opening anything up. The pickups are I believe the outermost pins on that cable, so if it's not seated straight, one side might not be making contact.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
I have this engine, and it runs fully reliably across all of my gapped frogs, including my longish Fast Tracks #8 gapped frogs. The tender's pickups should suffice while the engine's drivers are moving through any unpowered track. If the problem isn't a connection such as Randy describes, I would check the tether to make sure the plug is fully home...use the end of a bamboo kabob skewer or something non-metallic/hard, and force it home. In fact, it wouldn't hurt to actually remove it, inspect the pins and receptacles in the two mating locations, and then re-insert the plug just in case you are also scrubbing the pins to free them from poorly conductive matter...oxidation, say.
Also, using good light and an Opti-Visor, check the various wipers for cleanliness and positioning against their wiped surfaces. Check for a broken wire...a solder that is broken.
There is a cause, probably only one, and you can find it.
-Crandell
The tilt testing I have done seems to indicate that I am getting good pick up from the tender wheels but not the left side loco wheels. As long as all the tender wheels are on the track, I continue to get power from track. When the left side tender wheels are disengaged from the track, the power is cut off. Am I missing something? Are these locos designed to pick up power from both the loco and the tender at the same time. It's clear that the right side loco wheels are picking up power since removing the right side tender wheels does not interupt the power. I only get the problem when I tip the left side tender wheels off the track or the left side tender wheels are in an insulated gap. It appears to me my left side loco wheels do not have a solid connection. If that is the case, I will have to open up the loco, something that I'd rather not have to do but it seems to me I have no choice.