Hello,
About 8 years ago I bought a metal HO scale MTH Milwaukee Road Little Joe, numbered E-72. It ran fine for a few years, then I moved, lost track of it, then I found it last month. When I tried to run it on my home "layout" (a loop of track on a ping-pong table connected to a Digitrax Zephyr) it only responded to the address 03. It previously ran under 72. I took it to a friend of mine who has a test track and we tried to change the address (we tried 7002, 720, and 72) using JMRI DecoderPro, but it would not change. After eight hours of trying to fix this, as well as minor sound changes on some of my other engines, I gave up. The engine is unchanged since new, except for that it is missing a pantograph due to a previous derailment. (Side question: does MTH make pantographs for these still?) I checked every setting on the engine and in DecoderPro. Is this an issue warranting a new decoder? If it is, who makes a suitable one?
Thanks,
Victoria Cyunczyk
Victoria,
Does the locomotive work fine on address 3 otherwise? Have you tried resetting the MTH decoder then readdressing it?
MTH DCS decoders allow limited access to CVs in DCC - even using JMRI. You'd need to purchase a DCS controller to fully utilize the DCS decoder. You might want to consider scrapping it and installing a TCS Wow or Loksound decoder instead.
My ...
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
tstage Victoria, Does the locomotive work fine on address 3 otherwise? Have you tried resetting the MTH decoder then readdressing it? MTH DCS decoders allow limited access to CVs in DCC - even using JMRI. You'd need to purchase a DCS controller to fully utilize the DCS decoder. You might want to consider scrapping it and installing a TCS Wow or Loksound decoder instead. My ... Tom
Perfectly. Except for raising the missing pantograph.
I haven't tried resetting it. Is the process different than Tsunami (which I am more familiar with)?
The NCE website has a page about resetting decoders - including MTH DCS decoders:
https://ncedcc.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/201489365-Master-list-of-Decoder-Resets-by-Manufacturer-
Pennsy_I1. (Side question: does MTH make pantographs for these still?)
Your going to have to contact MTH about that.
Mike.
My You Tube
Hi, Victoria,
I have only one MTH locomotive, a New York Central Empire State Express Hudson.
I also tried several attempts at reassigning the address using Decoder Pro by several methods including manually writing CVs. No luck.
For years I ran it at the default 03 until one day when running another engine, also on address 03, the Empire State Hudson, out of my line of sight, ran off a siding and on to the floor
Finally I decided to get down to using the "POM" (also called 'ops-mode') address method described here:
https://mthtrains.com/news/037
I was too "afraid" of using programming-on-main for fear of re-writing ALL my locomotives to the new address so I simply set up a temporary "main line" by removing the wires connecting the layout and using those wires to feed a shore length of track.
If you only have the "Little Joe" on the track there's no problem. I probably had more than a hundred other locomotives on the "main" at the time and didn't want to risk it.
So, bottom line is, MTH decoders require address changes to be made on the main track, not the programming track.
I did the address change several years ago and don't remember the exact details but it only took a few attempts and the address has stayed in memory ever since.
Hope that helps, Ed
Being one of those people who tries to have reasonably large trains that I can take to clubs and run, I'd likely be running the Joe with a trio of SD40-2s or SD45s. Pushers behind the caboose are also a possibility.
MTH decoders don;t necessarily change the address the same way standard DCC decoders do. If you've lost the manual, it is probably available on the MTH web site. It will explain what DCC features this particular loco has (they kept changing things over time, making the newer models someone more DCC compatible than the first ones). I have an FA, I think the cab number is 305. It ran on address 3, then to change it all it allowed me to do was change CV29 to 34 which enabled the long address 305. I could not pick my choice of long address. Now since this loco is E-72, and 72 is a short address, I have no idea what they might have done. Perhaps the same thing, as 72 is accessible as a long address on NCE, but that would render it inoperable on Digitrax or Lenz. Perhaps it would make it 172, or since E is the 5th letter, 572. If you set CV29 to 34. The manual will tell you, and should be on the MTH web site.
If you want to rip and replace, keep in mind MTH wires the LED headlights and all the other lights with a negative common. DCC uses a more reasonable positive common, so you can't just connect the wires from the MTH light circuit boards to a DCC decoder - you'll need to modify those small circuit boards or replace them and wire in your own LEDs. So swapping the decoder isn't quite as easy as changing a QSI for a Tsunami or Loksound or WOWSound.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
You have to program MTH engines on the Main otherwise the chances of it accepting your commands are slim, I have heard of people being able to use programming tracks but it is not recommended.
You will want to look up 55 reset and cv8 resets as depending on the decoder/software on your decoder it may not respond to one. Sometimes depending on what happened to the engine you must perform 55 reset then cv8 reset to gain control of an MTH engine this is very common when using consists.
Short address is set on cv1, long uses cv17, cv18, cv28.
It is possible the decoder could be partially faulty causing the address to not be remembered, but it will cost you over $160.00 to get it replaced, shipping to them, $100 for decoder, $45 labor, $15 return shipping.
MTH doesn't have the panto graph for your engine, I know this as I was until a few months ago a Technician at the Michigan location. MTH doesn't make spare parts for engines, they at times have some left over from runs, but other than a few wheels that get made and the electronics for the newer ones, they make no spares. If you contact them about getting a part for this engine you will probably not be informed that they don't have parts and get recommended to send in the engine and then get stuck with a diagnostic fee and return shipping.
Best of Luck
Welcome to the MR forums.
Very enlightning stuff. Every once in a while someone with MTH problems comes through here.
Something interesting about MILW's LJ's:
In a YouTube video of a "Milwaukee Scrapbook DVD", I saw a Little Joe pulling a freight train and the rear cab windows appeared to be blacked out.
I know these locomotives were built with a cab at both ends, but why would MILW make theirs single ended?
ATSFGuy Something interesting about MILW's LJ's: In a YouTube video of a "Milwaukee Scrapbook DVD", I saw a Little Joe pulling a freight train and the rear cab windows appeared to be blacked out. I know these locomotives were built with a cab at both ends, but why would MILW make theirs single ended?
Sorry it took this long to respond, but I'm back.
Some of the Joes had steam generators for passenger trains, and these were mounted in one of the cabs. After the passenger trains were discontinued (the Olympian Hiawatha came off in '61), the steam generators were removed, though I'm not sure when.