First test of an older MTH 30-1474-1 New York Central 4-6-2 Pacific w PS2

Catalogued in 2008, this engine should have a 3v system, so it should not fry easily. If it’s never seen the track, power it up slowly in place in conventional, to 10 - 12 volts, and charge battery for 15 minutes. Upon shutdown, sounds should last minimum of 7 seconds. If it fails, replace battery or insert bcr. If it meets that criterion, you should be able to operate it as normal. Nonetheless, at 16 years old, I would still opt for a battery or bcr replacement, along with a grease/lube application at the appropriate spots.

The charge port underneath the tender for PS2 5v is circular.  The port for the PS2 3v is rectangular.

John

@Mark V. Spadaro posted:

Catalogued in 2008, this engine should have a 3v system, so it should not fry easily. If it’s never seen the track, power it up slowly in place in conventional, to 10 - 12 volts, and charge battery for 15 minutes. Upon shutdown, sounds should last minimum of 7 seconds. If it fails, replace battery or insert bcr. If it meets that criterion, you should be able to operate it as normal. Nonetheless, at 16 years old, I would still opt for a battery or bcr replacement, along with a grease/lube application at the appropriate spots.

Thank you very much for your input.  I really don't think I should try the original battery, depending on how it looks. I may just take the chance. Thank you !

Put the battery in and apply track power and see if it holds sound through the shutdown sequence (about 10 seconds) when you cut the power while it is idling? If so, the battery is fine.

I have one of those and made my own BCR, but here is the inside of mine before I took out the battery.  My battery was actually fine, but I replaced it with a DIY BCR anyway.

3v charge port

original battery

John

Nick - Aside from the battery issue discussed above, if you get the engine running but the bell and whistle sounds have a lot of ‘static’ it might be related to the speaker, as some of the early ‘Star’ speakers had problems. Just a forewarning of another issue that you possibly could encounter, and if you want more inf on this do a Search on this Forum because there was an excellent Post(s) about this issue several years ago.

Think positive though that everything about this engine will be in good working order.

Thank you for all the replies. I'm really trying to find out if it's better to test it first with a normal battery, but I was thinking it was a 9 volt style. If it's the newer style, I would feel much better about everything. Thank you to everyone who helped !

@Kittytrain1969 posted:

Thank you for all the replies. I'm really trying to find out if it's better to test it first with a normal battery, but I was thinking it was a 9 volt style. If it's the newer style, I would feel much better about everything. Thank you to everyone who helped !

Again,  look at the charging port.  You don't even have to open it up (see 3v above in my photos).

John

@PH1975 posted:

Nick - Aside from the battery issue discussed above, if you get the engine running but the bell and whistle sounds have a lot of ‘static’ it might be related to the speaker, as some of the early ‘Star’ speakers had problems. Just a forewarning of another issue that you possibly could encounter, and if you want more inf on this do a Search on this Forum because there was an excellent Post(s) about this issue several years ago.

Think positive though that everything about this engine will be in good working order.

Very important to check speaker for flaking. Metal flakes not good for the electronics.

Thanks again for all of your help and advice. Turns out it's a newer style battery.  I'll just get BCR-2 , so I don't have to worry. 

Happy training!