Hi everyone. I am attempting to put together my first ever model railway setup. I know very little on the subject but am trying to learn. I purchased the R778 from Ebay a week ago. I put it together on my board, but i get nothing. I have checked visually that the track is put together without any gaps, but i get absolutely no response from the train. Can anyone kindly offer a complete novice some guidance? Kind regards - Darren
Welcome to the MR forums. Are you from the UK ?
I wish I knew about Hornby Trains. That Scotsman train set looks great!
I have a Bachmann set which is similar.
You have everything connected the way it's all suppose to be, but no power? No humming, no lights? Nothing?
You might try the Hornby web site, I see they do have a forum, it might be worth checking out.
I wish I could help more. Maybe someone on here is familar with Hornby, and can be of some insight.
Maybe this "bump" of your question will put it back into view.
Mike.
My You Tube
to the forum
Some of the European folks on the forum maybe more well versed in Hornby, but looking at their website, it comes with a transformer, a controller with a 2 pin lead on it, a piece of track that the 2 pins fit and the trains.
Three possibilities:
I suppose your electrical outlet could be dead. That's easy to test. Here in the states, we have Harbor Freight stores, 100% made in China, but you can buy a cheap voltmeter for $5. Measure the power to the tracks, if none, the plug from the controller (can't tell if there is on off/on button by the pics, but there must be) If none there, check the output of the transformer.
A new trainset, dead on arrival is probably pretty rare. Of course you don't really know the history of an Ebay product. Hopefully the seller will make it right.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
The only piece of Hornby rolling stock I own is over 50 years old and obviously not a useful guide to offering long distance advice.
A complete novice is unlikely to have an ammeter connected to the track.
But there are some trouble shooting practices that are useful across the board. Assuming dirty track or a burned out power pack are not the causes (but let's not assume those things by the way -- clean the track and test the power pack), what else could explain this problem?
Let's start by ruling out the track. With the locomotive and tender upside down in a soft cradle so details are not damaged, touch the wires from the power pack directly to the wheels on either side -- try various combinations. If the wheels turn smoothly then something about the track or the electrical connections to the track are at fault. If the motor seems to want to turn but can't, then likely it is a mechanical rather than electrical issue.
But if nothing whatever happens?
1. Well the motor could be burned out or the magnets have become demagnetized. Or so weakened that it might move with no load but has no strength to move once under load.
2. Or the gearing could be "frozen" in place due to old grease becoming rock hard (a common problem by the way with old LifeLike Proto2000 diesels from their early runs which sat for too long without being run). If there is grease on the gears clean it off as best you can and regrease it presumably with a plastic compatible grease. You'd want to do this even if the engine ran OK.
3. Or the gearing could be jammed up due to the engine being dropped or otherwise mistreated. Sometimes the side rods get jammed so that the motor cannot turn or the locomotivbe cannot roll even if the tender wheels are the powered wheels. One way to test this is to disconnect the motor and gear from the wheels.
4. Electricity is somehow not getting from the track to the two poles of the motor. A broken wire can be the culprit. Reversed insulated wheels can be the culprit.
5. The Devil has taken over the locomotive. This is a more likely cause than you might think. Ask any modeler.
If there is a mechanical "jam" that is the cause the way to trouble shoot is to remove the motor/gear and see if the locomotive is easy to push down the rails or is there a "hitch" that needs to be bulled. A hitch means a mechanical issue.
If the motor is removed can it be made to run? One way is to see if applying the power directly to the motor (rather than through the track) makes the motor move. A quick internet search suggests the motor is in the tender in at least some of these Hornby Flying Scotsman locos. With care if it is possible to get direct access to the motor by removing the tender shell (or the locomotive body from its frame if the motor is in the locomotive) and touch the two wires from your "power pack" with the pack set at medium voltage directly to the two brushes on the motor.
If the motor seems to run well by itself (no load) and the engine seems to roll smoothly by itself, then my hunch is that the cause is the electrical path from track to motor. There is where I am totally at a loss because I do not have the loco in front of me on the workbench but presumably some wheels pick power from one rail and other wheels get power from the other rail. If someone tinkered with the engine and reversed some wheels then there might be a short circuit.
Dave Nelson
Thank you everyone for all your fantastic information. Using a multimeter i see there is current going to the track. So the problem looks to be the train itself. Im going to buy another train, as i would want more in the future anyway. I have already order another controller, so by the end of the week i hopefully should have this figured. I've also ordered some lubricant as i think this will be needed. I really do appreciate you taking the time to reply, and look forward to interacting again.
Kind regards
Darren
Hi guys, just wanted to update this post, becuase of the time you all gave to assist. Now did i mention im an idiot?
When i tested this set i used the engine, and a carriage. After some discusion with the seller, and almost returning the set, she just happened to mention the 'tender' which is the coal thingy. That was the part that had the power stuff. (I'll get better at this i promise) So i put the train engine on the track, and the tender, and off it went. I look forward to educating myself on this immense site, and again say thanks for showing interest.