Can you just swap out loco-sound tenders?
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Hi John: MTH steam locos with PS1 need the original tender for operation. I am not certain exactly what you mean by "reverting" to a basic no sound engine. PS1 engines use DC can motors so that they will not run on the AC supplied by the transformer without the intervening electronics. There are ways to make the loco operate by converting the AC to DC. I am currently running an MTH trolley without its electronics on my layout on a standard DC power-pack but this system is totally isolated from the balance of the layout. Not certain I can offer much more without more information from you.
Best Regards
Phranzdan
One easy way to make it basic is to install a Williams reverse unit. It converts the AC to DC and gives you forward neutral and reverse.
guys-- thanks for your advice-- I forgot the MTH can motors are DC--- I will try Lenny J's idea--- all of my Williams products have been trouble free. John A
LocoSounds is different than PS-1. But you can just install a basic DCRU and while now have an electronic reverse unit no sounds. Some are even modified to retain directional lighting for the tender. I have one if you need it. WIll fit in place of the bottom board of the PS-1 so no real modification needed. Even use the same harness.
Or, you pull the top board off and install jumpers and the bottom unit can operate locked in a direction. Switch can be added to lock in fwd or reverse. G
ERRCo has a whole catalog of items for replacing sound and control boards.
Jon 
I've bought a number of dead locomotives and gutted the electronics and installed a WbB unit...works perfect.
Do you have a part number for the Williams reverse unit?
Being PS-1 is just a conventional locomotive, why not just turn the sounds off with the feature reset, or turn the volume knob all the way down? If you are worried about weak battery, then just remove it. MTH has said that they will run without a battery, you just can't program them using reset.
Looks like the answer to a question I have has been (almost) answered.
What is ERRCo? It looks like a construction company and that can't be right.
Or..where does one purchase those WbB reverse units and does it take a lot of electrical knowledge
to change one out? Remember, I am down in the land of the alligators and we don't fancy electric
stuff too well.
Put an ad on the Forum "want to buy" list for the Williams reverse unit. Lenny J
In addition to suggestions above, I've converted five former MTH Premier PS1 locomotives to pure DC/DCC and even added an ESU loksound soundboard as a study to see how well such a system works and what the costs per engine would run.(I have over 50 PS1 locomotives) I still use a Z4000 for power but added a 600V 30A bridge rectifier to supply the DC. It works very well. Another option I've studied is to convert to pure battery operation using the CVP Airwire system preferred by many G gauge railroaders. I installed a borrowed system in a test locomotive and again,it works very well. It is more expensive to convert each engine to this system but the are some benefits as track cleaning and the 3rd rail are no longer needed. I actually ran the engine across the bare wood floor....creepy.
Thanks to all for their suggestions.
I will 'check 'em all out' !!
The Bachmann site under parts for Williams have steam reverse boards. But for a few dollars more, you can have an ERR board, which will lwt you run Conv, or TMCC/L
I also have used Williams reverse boards to replace the PS1 boards, and I can highly recommend this retrofit. The Williams board gives you smooth and dependable sequential forward-neutral-reverse. I have used a lot of these over the years, never a problem.
I get my boards from TrainWorld, here. Williams also makes sound boards, both for steam and diesel, and they "piggyback" on the reverse board, plugging into a socket on the reverse board. The steam version is here, you can search the TrainWorld site for the diesel version sound board.
The Williams reverse board contains a bridge rectifier, so you do not need anything else; it converts the AC track voltage to DC for the MTH can motor. It is a very very easy install: 4 wires from the Williams board go to: your track roller pickups; ground to frame; and 2 DC motor leads. Done. If you use a sound board, it just plugs into the reverse board.
The price has gone up significantly on the Williams boards recently, they used to be a lot less. The earlier version of the reverse board did not have the lock-out switch, and you might still find them on ebay or something, they sold for around $40.
david
You can find used reverse boards in the $15-20 range all day long, no reason to spend the prices for the new ones if cost is a factor.
So, basically you can strip out the electronics of almost any locomotive and wire the motors directly to the wheels and pick-up rollers ? Of course you would not have sound but you'd have a running loco.
DP posted:So, basically you can strip out the electronics of almost any locomotive and wire the motors directly to the wheels and pick-up rollers ? Of course you would not have sound but you'd have a running loco.
No, you need at least a bridge rectifier for the DC motored locomotives. Obviously, if you want lights, you'd have to deal with that issue, that would be dependent on what is there now and their operating voltages and currents.
For the price of a reverse and diesel sound board you could buy a Williams diesel engine, strip the electronics and have yourself a dummy engine too
