Just when I thought I got a reallly good Christmas Present… I got a Rail King Chessie System F3 A-A set for Christmas. The unit features Proto Sound 2, station sounds, and directional lighting. The set worked greart for a few weeks then stoped working. When you fire it up, it starts as it should, the sounds start right up, the horn and bell work when prompted, then the engine will move for a bit, and then spark like crazy and stop. The sparks come from the power trucks, and you can see it sparking through the port holes. Any idea whats wrong with it ??? Thanks Ken
have you tired un hooking the 2 units from each other and running then one at a time?
that might help narrow down where the problem is.
Also what transformer are you using?
Sometimes CW80’s and PS2 don’t mix
It acts the same if I try to run the powered A unit alone. I use a ZW with Fastrack on my main loops, and a MTH transformer with a remote on my upper level which has Marx 034 track. Ken
Remove the body, it has 4 screws. Look were the power wire is going to the truck, it’s probably rubbing against the frame and this usually happens at the front of the engine. Hope this helps.
Bill
Sometimes the track in those MTH sets is the older style, and the center black coating causes that sparking. Try rubbing a green Scatchbrite pad over the center rails, and get back to us.
Thanks to Bill and everyone who made this suggestion ( I also posted this issue on the MTH Yahoo site, and got back the same suggestions). Right after getting this advice, I had a house full of company for Presidents Day Weekend, so I could not work on the train. In fact over this relative laden weekend, I took the brood to an indoor pool, and decided to show off the skills that made me a lifeguard, MANY years and pounds ago. The end result being a torn tendion, and strained calf muscle in one leg, and intense pain for most of the week (NOT the ideal mind set for train repair). Today thanks to the wonders of pain killers I took the engine apart. All the wires looked intact, but when I fired it up with the shell off, the sparks were clearly coming from the point where the wires connect to the front truck. I crudely fitted some electrical tape around this area, and the engine ran around the track fine. I’ll need to fit this tape in a more permanent manner, but at least the problem can be solved. As a few suggested this is far from an ideal way to have these engines wired, and as someone who does not own a lot of MTH engines, this situation does not exactly cause me to wanna run out and buy more. Ken
Ken
If you have a dremel tool you can grind the slot a little wider. If not ,you can use a file. You don’t have to remove to much.
Bill