So, I just received my HO scale PRR K4 made by MTH. Nice loco, but I can’t figure out where to put the smoke fluid. Does it go in the smoke stack or somewhere else? Honestly, the manual says nothing about this. Thanks for your help.
Atasar,
Yes, add the fluid down the stack. Add about 10 drops to prevent overfilling. After adding the fluid gentley blow down the stack to clear any bubbles. Do NOT add fluid with the smoke fan operating. Turn off track power, turn off the smoke switch under the tender hatch, or if your running DCC or DCS turn the smoke off with the cab control. Attempting to add fluid with the fan running will spit the fluid back up the stack.
I highly recommend getting a small funnel for adding the fluid. The small tube of fluid that comes with the locomotive works fine by itself, but the larger bottles of fluid sold seperately are harder to control. Have fun!
Thanks Dave! That’s very helpful.
Hmmm, well I followed Dave’s suggestions and refilled the smoke fluid with 10 drops of the provided fluid. Now, the smoke does not work at all. The switch in the tender has not been touched. It’s still positioned to the left (looking down on the tender with the front up) so that the smoke is on. I have set the F8 function key to on and off without any effect on the smoke. I’ll wait till tomorrow to see if it needs some time to do its thing. Any other advice would be appreciated, but otherwise, I’ll be contacting MTH for service.
Did you blow down the stack to clear any bubbles? This is usually what stops the flow of smoke.
Did the smoke work for a while when you first started running? So far all the engines I’m aware of have had the smoke unit switch turned on at the factory. If it worked for a while, and you haven’t moved the switch it’s probably a bubble. If the smoke has never come on slide the switch.
You mention hitting F8, so your using DCC. When you hit F8 can you hear the fan motor turn on and off? If not, slide the switch.
Yes, the smoke worked for a while when I first ran the engine, so the switch was set for smoke-on from the factory. When I hit F8 (yes, I’m using DCC), I do hear a fan turn on and off, so I figured this must be the smoke fan, but still no smoke. I blew down the smoke stack several times keeping in mind the bubble problem you mentioned. Again, no effect. One question: how long should the smoke last for a typical fill of say 10 drops? When I took the loco out of the box and started to run it, the smoke lasted for maybe 10 minutes.
The smoke should last for about 20 minutes of continuous use. The first five minutes or so it will be especially thick, but will still be quite visible for about 20. They only put a few drops in at the factory to keep the wick inside the unit wet during transport.
You are correct, the noise you hear when you hit F8 is the smoke fan and you don’t need to change the switch under the tender hatch. Do make sure to turn the unit on with F8.
Try running the locomotive for a little while. It’s unlikely if you only added ten drops, but the unitl could be over filled. See if it wont burn off the excess in a few minutes of running. It sounds like you’re having more trouble than usual, so I’m not discounting that there may be a problem. But, I also find it’s the little details that get me with a new model. Keep trying and report back.
In the O world, it’s common to inadvertently overfill the smoke reservoir which then results in poor smoke unit performance. When this happens to me, I twist the corner of a paper towel and gently insert in down the smoke stack to wick out excess fluid.
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Mike
Thanks Mike for the advice. I tried your suggestion and ran the loco for about 5 minutes forward and backward pushing the F8 button and hearing the fan go on and off. Still no smoke. What’s funny is that when I took it out of the box and ran it for the first time, I don’t remember hitting the f8 function key to get the smoke to start working. The smoke just came on as soon as I hit F3 to start the loco sounds. I’ve already submitted a service request to MTH to see if they have any suggestions. Have not heard back yet, but I will keep the forum updated on progress (or lack thereof). I have to say that I am rather disappointed with MTH at the moment. -Ata
The smoke should come on the first time you start the locomotive in an operating session by pressing F3. This is the default. Make sure you turn the unit on (so you can hear the fan) and leave it on. It dose take several seconds (20 to 30) for the element heat up. You might try doing a feature reset by adressing CV 55 and entering a value of 55.
Is it also possible that the smoke volume is turned to minimum…which sometimes means “zero?”
Also, look to the owner’s manual and look up how to perform a factory reset. This will take everything back to as it came out-of-the-box. It’s possible that you’ve inadvertently reprogrammed the engine. Then try it and see what happens. In the O world, this reset often fixes a multitude of problems.
Cheers,
Mike
Yes, I checked the smoke volume and used the F17 key to change that volume (I have a MRC prodigy advance system which has function keys up to F20). Still, no change. I also used the F20 key to do a feature reset (heard 2 toots after doing this), but still no effect. If there is a ‘hard’ reset, I don’t know about it. I didn’t see such a thing in the manual. -Ata
Sounds like you’ve covered it all!
Okay…here’s MTH’s secret weapon to get service issues handled well. Send an email to:
The service line on their site is OK, but Kirstin is incredible…her customer focus is beyond words.
And, if you ever need parts:
Cheers,
Mike
Agreed Mike. Kristen is exceptional.
It’s nice Ata that you have the extra F keys, you’ve deffinately eliminated all the usual possibilities. Sounds like the heating element probably isn’t getting voltage. Hope you’re up and running soon.
Thanks Folks…will keep you updated. -Ata