MTH proto 3 with non tethered drawbar Premier J-1e # 6621

Bob, there’s a pattern & trail emerging of your equipment dead all over the place. ….let’s start with what you’re using to power your layout be it temporary or permanent…transformer??…..command systems or not??.& the type of track you’re using??…curves??……the draw bar on this particular Hudson is the electrical connection between the engine & tender. I’m not sure what you mean by jiggling it. They’re either seated or they’re not. It’s possible the drawbar got damaged in all this commotion, or there’s a harness that’s come unplugged from the drawbar on the engine side, but if you’re experiencing strange noises then somethings up.

Pat

Your right. multiple issues frequently  Simple  5x9 oval loop  027 tubular track, power is a Lionel brick, Cab 2 and power master

That engine was finicky from the get go. always needing the drawbar tender connection jiggled  This time I got it running by doing just that but when it was going around a curve it stopped dead That's when I couldn't get it going gain by jiggling the connection. When I took the tender cover off and looked at the connection it appeared ok. but when I appliedI power to it the computer board got real hot.

What I mean by jiggling is after seating the connection fully I had to wiggle it a little to get. it fired up

@Bob is cool! posted:

Your right. multiple issues frequently  Simple  5x9 oval loop  027 tubular track, power is a Lionel brick, Cab 2 and power master

Right off the bat, this MTH Hudson will never navigate O27 curves. I’m surprised you’re not having more problems. If in fact you are using O27 curves, you’re putting one heck of a strain on the tether connection, which more than likely contributed to a self inflicted wound. Hopefully not fatal…….you need to have that engine checked out if you’re not sure what’s going on with it. There’s some things inside there that are pretty sensitive, and unforgiving of misuse …..

Pat

not o27 curve.s lionel made 027 rail  with 54" curves and this what I have

Misuse?  I haven't been misusing that engine Ive been very careful]l and gentle with it

@Bob is cool! posted:

not o27 curve.s lionel made 027 rail  with 54" curves and this what I have

@Bob is cool! posted:

Misuse?  I haven't been misusing that engine Ive been very careful]l and gentle with it

You didn’t specify what curves initially. You mentioned O27. If you WERE trying to pass that engine through O27 curves, that would’ve been misuse. …..So now that we have more info and we know what you’re running on, look at the pins in the draw bar. Are any bent over? Can you see if the harness has come unplugged from the draw bar on the locomotive side? Can you lay the engine on its side and make the connection on the tender and visual see it’s seated good? …..was this engine bought second hand? Bought new?

Pat

The draw bar needs to fully seat and stay stuck upward installed.  Best to do it on with engine and tender no their side so you can see how it snaps together.  Yes you can have drawbar pins cracked, or the wire terminals that plug into the drawbar bad.  But most time it is about fully seating the plug.

How did you power the tender when you were inspecting it?  I will say this, if you messing with tether or drawbar to get continuity while powered up, you do risk an AC spike that can kill the board.

Since it is dead and gets how with power it is most likely killed and needs to be replaced.  G

I bought it new. When I looked at the pins. none were bent. when I layed it on its side everything connected properly However the tender strut wobbles a lot but its screw is tight The wire on the engine drawbar seem connected. don't see any loose wires or disconnected ones I took the drawbar apart and check the wiring in the engine and all pins etc. everything appears good. I believe the problem is withe the module in the tender. As I said when I took the tender shell off  and connected everything and powered up that mother board got hot and nothing worked

I think you're right. when the engine stopped as I said. I repositioned on the track reconnected the drawbar and while powering up I did wiggle the connect as I said. Because this was a constant problem. when I did that I heard phist phew noise. So Your right. The board is fried. How much $ to fix?

I literally had the same issue on the same engine. It happened most often on an O45 curve and once or twice on an O54. I ran throught the same troubleshooting with jiggling the drawbar. I even went over my Atlas track in those areas to do more cleaning and to ensure that the middle black rail was "denuded" of the coating. The problem persisted. I then pushed up the little black piece that came with the engine to keep the drawbar as tight as possible against the tender connector. The problem was completely resolved (at least I think so!) when redeploying the engine on nothing less than an O63 Atlas curve. There seems to be something bizarre going on when that drawbar swings past some point on its turn. I even thought there may be something to the fact that the engine only has two pickup rollers -- four like the more modern MTH engines would have been better -- but I did not observe pickup rollers disengaging from the middle rail. I wish MTH would, as a rule, maximize the number of pickup rollers. That can only help any engine's performance IMHO.

Sometimes there is not enough slack in the harness that plugs into the drawbar on the engine side. If you move the drawbar side to side does in move freely to points behind the sides of the cab? If it gets tight you may have to remove the shell and give that harness some more slack.

Pete

Thanks for that. I did notice that the drawbar seemed a little tight. I will go back and revisit this.

You can contact me via email which is in my profile.  G