I have a Bangor nd aroostook jeremiah o'brien spirit of 1776 stays in neutral.

Hi TBS!

This could be a number of issues. I believe your Jeremiah O'Brien has an older mechanical "E" unit which controls the direction. If your locomotive has not been used for a long time, it could have become stuck.

If I am correct about the nature of the problem, let me point out that "E" unit repair is not easy. If your mechanically competent, be sure to view some online tutorials before you attempt the repair.

First try spraying the plunger and contacts with some contact cleaner. If that does not work, the 'E' unit may have bad contacts or a bad drum.

Here is a 2-part tutorial on rebuilding 'E' units.

part 1

part 2

Larry

Thank you to both of you. I spray the plunger with contact cleaner.It appears to work!!! Thank you!!!!!!

I've got one of those. Had to give the e-unit a serious servicing and lubrication when I bought it. I plan on installing a Dallee electronic e-unit eventually.