497 Coaling Station problems

Classic Toy Trains Forum
1

I’m running it off transformer power instead of track power.

The wires from the station to the controller have been cut, and I’ve reattached them.

I’ve tried every possible combination and can only get the bin to raise and lower. I can’t get it to drop the load into the waiting hopper. Depending on the wiring, I can get the mechanism that drops the coal to buzz, but it won’t activate.

Any suggestions? Also…the motor for the bin becomes extremely hot after minimal usage.

2

nevermind…fixed it.

if anyone wants to know how to have the 497 be powered from a seperate power source other than the track, I can post how.

Its simple. But it also requires, atleast for my method, that you use a seperate unloading track, as the wires that would connect to the unloading track that is included are also used for power. Three of these four wires go to a lockon instead of the UCS.