I have never seen an engine with one center roller. If an engine had only one roller, it could never pass through any switch.
Earl
EIS posted:I have never seen an engine with one center roller. If an engine had only one roller, it could never pass through any switch.
Earl
I guess my word 'most' is unwarranted.
I replaced 14 pieces of track and now all the cars lights stay on with no flickring at all so i know the track connection is good and after a few mins running the engine again it said check track no engine found while it was crusing at 25mph but didnt respond. i hit the e stop button and i thete must be something wrong with that enine my other 2 run with no issues. this engine had the same problem 2 seasons ago and was in the shop again during Christmas. i guess this year its just a static display. im not working from a injury at work so its going to sit. i tryed everything i could . thank all of you guys for your input and trouble shooting. i think its a short in the engine which is out of my league to fix it. thank you
Dave
As I said ....
Lowes2win, it has been clear since the beginning the problem was with the locomotive, given your description. I'm sorry you have to relegate it the shelf.
But your conclusion that there is an electrical short isn't necessarily certain, at this point. A circuitry problem that appears only when you are pulling a load suggests something else, possibly electrical, possibly electronic, possibly mechanical.
As for the flickering car lights, that issue will return as the new track ages. FasTrack has a tendency to need a thorough cleaning after it has been stored away, so clean the rails before reassembling it next year.
As for your thoughts about not being able to get down on the floor as you age, I'm with you there. Same with me. Getting up off the floor never seemed so daunting. A raised layout will help, but remember to build it high enough so that can troubleshoot track problems more easily when you have to access the underside of the layout. Same reason.
Typically I run at least a second electrical drop to the far side of a large carpet layout to improve the DCS signal. I am not sure that will help your engine. It certainly could be a problem with the PS3 board or a pinched wiring harness. It's odd that it works for a while and then stops responding. It could be a wire in the wire harness that is pinched and moves when you are going around curves. If you are going to send the engine for repair, I suggest using someone on the forum. GGG fixed my engine.
Good luck and Merry Christmas!
George
I suspect his problem is an intermittent open circuit (loose wire or connector) since it didn't pop a circuit breaker when the engine slowed or stopped and he didn't report lights dimming or going out on the passenger cars when the problem occurred. If not an intermittent open circuit, an engine electronics failure is the next most likely cause of his problem.
Earl
What version is your TIU? The PS-3 can be more sensitive to DCS signal strength than PS-2 3V. So the fact that a PS-2 engine runs fine and a PS-3 does not, DOES NOT mean the engine is bad. I suspect a signal strength issue. Train is running fine from a power perspective, but you have lost DCS communications with the PS-3 engine. Do a signal strength test and let us know what TIU version you have (on bottom of TIU). G
The TIU only says REV L
I did a track signal test without the engine on the track and its 10
When i put the engine on the track now it says ENGINE NOT ON TRACK CHECK TRACK and now it is totally unresponsive to DCS commands.
I did do a track signal check on the other engine while the problem engine was still on the track and the track signal dropped to between 4 and 5 and when i removed the dead engine it went back up to 10 
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This is something you could fix potentially. I have a feeling the wire harness is under the caps and too close to components on the PS-3 board. You need to fold the capacitors down on the board and make sure harness routes over them. This helps with signal strength. G
You were right the yellow and white harness was under the board. i did carefully bend the capacitors down and routed the yellow and white wire over them and the board. im hoping this was it. on the test 30in track it always runs good but on the layout it acts up. i hope i did this right. thank you. i would never think the way the wires were routed would effect the signal but thats why there are techs like you. thank you GGG. i really appreciate you taking the time to help me when you could easily just say send it in for repairs . thank you. i will let you know if this fixed the problem.
I just tried running it on the layout track and it started fine went into the turn then said check track and its lossing the signal then turns into a runnaway no responsive train so i hit the e stop. i have 2 other engines that are working just fine. im just going to have to pull the santefe cars with the PRR 260 and dont tell anyone lol. i think they do that with some of the real trains anyway to so its more realistic. i will just squint my eyes and pretend. actually it doesn't look that bad. im lucky i have 2 operational trains. i bought the genset a few years ago from Chicagoland trains and its a back up and i like it. this aba unit has been in the shop before for this problem. it sure is a nice looking set i just wish it performed like the other 2 i guess i now have 3 dummy units i was going to say 4 but i dont want to incriminate myself. for $499.00 I would think it would be more reliable.
I see some guys who have engines worth more than my car so i guess i what i paid is really nothing to complain about.
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You can find just about anything on Utube except how to repair a broken MTH engine.
Did you shut down the engine in the video or did it shut down on it's own? You could try adding another outside rail feeder to the other rail.( or jumper both outside rail with alligator clips.
PS proto-2/3 engine carry on with the last command given in the case of a track signal failure. If the engine was going 10 per it should stay at 10 with the loss of the dcs signal.
Yes i shut it down it works perfect on the test track but its also not going into turns. yes on the layout i started the engine set it at 10mph and after the turn it said check track and was unresponsive so i did a e stop so it didn't ram the other cars on the track.
I did add a jumper to the back side of the layout but it is happening only 2 ft from the main track power connection.
Its reading 19v on all track
the other 2 engines perform perfectly
Maybe check out the hot(rollers) & common pick wires on the truck... Is there enough slack and are the 2 leads close enough together that they might short out on a curve.... Hopefully you don't have to take anything apart except removing the shell.
On the other hand if the engine is dropping into neutral at the slightest power interruption there could be a Cap problem. I may have missed it but how long do sounds continue on after track power is removed?
The sound shut down after i did the e stop wen it was going at 10mph slowly like they normally do. but while it was going it was stuck on 10mph with sound. i saw on utube how the trucks come of. just twist and turn but these i dont think do. if i could get a better look between the trucks and the chassis i may find something. i know the last time i sent it in it was a simple short and only $50 to get it fixed with shipping. but i missed using it tgat Christmas too that was 2014 it was out for repair and what sucks is i only run them a few months a year thanksgiving thru mid January.
GGG will likely offer better advice, but I doubt it's a simple short. It sounds like a board problem. You might want to follow George S's suggestion and send it to GGG for a more thorough analysis and repair.
Jim R. posted:GGG will likely offer better advice, but I doubt it's a simple short. It sounds like a board problem. You might want to follow George S's suggestion and send it to GGG for a more thorough analysis and repair.
That's what I would do as well.
If GGG has the time, you may still be able to get it back before Christmas.
George S posted:If GGG has the time, you may still be able to get it back before Christmas.
You have to talk to my scheduler.....my wife
. Did you lay down all those caps horizontal so all wires are on top? Those pictures show how the caps are wtong and that wiring could effect signal strength. Also, are these MTH Passenger cars? If not, they may be killing the signal strength on the PS-3 engine, and require an inductor to be added to the pickup wire. G
Yes they are all mth railking santefe cars. caps means capacitors i am assuming and im not sure how there wrong in the picture. i cant put them down horizontally and put the shell back on. i did lay them down and routed the harness between them . should i get the harness away from the board. i have to bend them back down and pull the harness back over and them and bend them back up. are they flexible enough that they wont break?
Thank you George
I cant send it anyway i will just have to box it up until i can afford too. or my wife will box me up and send me.
Been married 32 years because i know better 
Yes, they are flexible. Bend them so they lay flat along the board. Route all wires above them and make sure away from the donut coil with wires wrapped around it near the 8 pin plug. G
Thank you i will check those options out. I really appreciate you taking the time to help me. today i did my first LED Police car and it turned out well. The back tail lights flash in red like the front. it sure does get your attention. I hooked it right to the track acc. it works well with 19V. $18 at Evan Designs out of Laporte Colorado .
Im very pleased with the out come
I had a 67 Camaro police car 1/43 and i used that.
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The LEDs look great! I am thinking about getting those.
One more thought on the engine, have you tried running it in conventional mode? I know this may be a little limiting, meaning you would need to setup blocks to have more than one train on the track, but curious if it will work. I think that would isolate any shorts or wiring issues and leave a DCS signal issue. You could either replace the TIU with the MTH Z controler, or you could use the TIU variable channel to control track voltage and turn off the DCS signal for that channel.
George
