2355 F3 AA QUESTION

[Anonymous]

I have a #2355 F3 AA unit and had a question. the train works fine, goes forward and backward, but having trouble getting the horn to work. It takes a "d" battery and put a brand new one in and no sound still? it just buzz's and lights go up when pushing the whistle button. any body have the same problem or know a solution? is it worth taking it in to get checked? dont want to ruin something since its my pride and joy......you guys have steered me right in the past on quite a few others. thx in advance.

Cade

[daan]

In the 2355 there is a buzzer which should act as a horn. It's no real hornsound, just a loud "scream". But it could be that the relais doesn't work the way it should or that the buzzer is gone. Both can be repaired, but you'll have to take the housing off. It's fixed to the body with 3 srews, one under the coupler on the front and 2 on the back, or with 1 screw in the front and 2 clips on the back. In the last case, take the srew in the front out and gently move the housing forward. the clips are visible on the end of the loco, in the hole where the last truck is mounted.(My 2353 has the clips)
I'm not sure where the horn in your unit is mounted. In my 2353 the horn is in the unit whithout motors, but there are also units where both the horn and the motors are in the same unit. The last ones are the ones with vertical pullmor motors.
In the unit you'll find a relais on the mount where the battery slots in. Put tre train on the track without the housing on, power up and see what happens if you pu***he horn button. (units with motors in neutral!). Normally the relais will activate by attracting the metal piece under the coil. On the metal piece there is a small copper contact which closes when the relais is attracted to the coil. the copper contact will close the electric cirquit to the "horn" which is the round metal thing in the back, which looks like a carhorn in small size.
If the relais doesn't close, help it with your finger and hear if the horn works. If it doesn't work, check the wires going to the horn and the mounting of the horn, since the mount of the horn also functions as ground. Also check the battery compartment for damage or rust, since a lot of units have damage due to leaking batteries.
If none of this helps to get the horn to work, you best buy a new horn. Though sometimes it can be repaired, but it won't last, since it's mostly the coil inside it.
If the relais doesn't work, try to see if all wires are sound and that the unit is grounded properly. Also check if the battery is connected to the copper contact of the relais.
If everything seems okay, try if another locomotive also doesn't whistle, sometimes the rectifier in the transformer is gone.
One more thing, if you have the version with the heavy horizontal motors like I do, the horn relais will only work properly if the unit is running fast of is in neutral, since those motors use a lot of power. (up to 4 amps).

The F3's are simple to work on, but be sure not to overtighten the srews holding the shell of the locomotive, since the shell's srewholes are pretty easy to crack.

[jakeoregano]

Hi guys, I have horn issues too.

I have a 2343 which has the horn in the powered unit. When I placed the D battery in the compartment, the horn continually sounded. I'll have to look to see if the relay is stuck shut. Maybe that's causing my issue.

Good luck with your horn.
Dwayne

[ben10ben]

You might also try cleaning the contacts of the relay with some sandpaper.

If there's battery damage, you can also have problems. Clean both the battery box and the bottom swing plate with some vinegar followed by sandpaper.

And, also, make sure your battery is good. This is probably the simplest one, but a weak battery may not have enough power to make the horn buzz.

If the horn buzzes when you turn the engine upside down with the battery installed, this generally means that the horn should work with the control on the transfomer.

[lionelsoni]

If you can get the horn itself (not the relay) to make a clicking sound when the relay closes, the problem may be with an adjustment on the horn. With luck, you may be able to get it to sound by turning the little screw that protrudes from the back. If not, you can pronounce it dead.

[Anonymous]

daan & ben10ben & lionel soni
you all had a part in the fixing. did everything you told me and first I took off the cover and hity the power and horn and nothing. next I noticed what dasan was talking about is the little relay thing that was trying to move. so i took the relay apart and cleaned the surfaces and nothing again. so i by mistake left ther battery in while messing with the screws that held the horn on and WWWWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!! scared the life out of me, haha! so in all it works now thx for your help and just to let you know my dad couldnt figure it out since i was a little one (didnt spend to much time on it probably) so its finally up and making the sound i was looking for. I'm sure my dad heard it. rest his sole!

Cade