MTH F3ABA 20-2218-1 Engine will not reset

Is the battery in it also from 2000?

Bet Paul's on to it; charge up a new battery or take the chance to install a BCR if you are gong to keep it Protosound and have one around.  Otherwise a new battery, like the ones from Harbor Freight, are under $10.

Be careful with off brand batteries such as thse available from HF. In the past, I've found that the case on these batteries is slightly taller than the major brands, resulting in an extremely tight fit, or cutting something to make it fit, accompanied by a lot of frustration and cussing. BTDT.

Chris

LVHR

Can you tell me more about the BCRs? Where can I get one?

A BCR replaces the battery. It is a capacitor device which charges up with one minute of track power and then holds the charge for 2-3 hours, acting just like a battery.  Except they don't wear out, you just leave it in and don't change it.

Available from the manufacturer, http://www.modeltrainstuff.com...-Repl-p/jwe-bcr1.htm

Thank you for the response. How do you charge these BCRs? Do they come charged, do they need to be charged beforehand, or do they charge when they're place in the engine. Do you have to buy a charger?

Thank you,

Jim

I am looking at these BCR's and think all you need to do is wait a minute with the engine active on track power .10 volts.

I am half tempted to replace all of my batteries with BCRs... although I have been blessed with good batteries as they were from the factory.

Yes,  You just turn the engine on and let the BCR charge for 45-60 secs.  It keeps it's charge from track power.

Remember, if you try to move the engine out of reset(neutral) before the BCR fully charges it will replicate the same state as a partially discharged battery.

The main advantage is it has a longer life then the 8.4V batterys which are about 4-5 years depending on use.

I think they are a waste for the 2.4V batteries, since they seem to be like the cordless phone batteries and last 7-10 years.  Plus the PS-2 engines are not effected the same as the PS-1 engines where by a battery in a low or discharged state.  G

Conway,

My E-8 PS1/QSI from 1999 exhibited similer problems, such as the reset not working properly. I thought I had a bad board. Actually I had my transformer hooked up wrong. It's easier to do than you might think. When I wired it correctly everything worked fine. Verify the track power terminal from your transformer goes to #1 on lockon and the common to # 2. Good luck.

Chris