Shorting Switches Possible Cause

Yep, many of the starter set steamers just had one traction tire.

Matt,

What kind of switch are talking about? Most switches, especially Lionel, can be taken apart some and repaired. With most Lionel switches there are four to seven screws that hold a metal plate to the bottom of the switch, you may have to take the solenoid housing off if it is an O gauge switch. 027 switches by Lionel you can just take the bottom plate off with a small screwdriver.

Lee Fritz

Well, many of the Lionel O27 switches have to come apart with a drill, they're riveted together!

They're the 5021/5022 manual switches.

Sure I can take them apart like a kid would take apart a toaster, but I really don't know what to look for or how to fix it when I find it. Any suggestions?

MTH RealTrax switches started shorting out on MTH Premier Locos and Passenger cars this weekend.

I troubleshooted it all day, and ended up throwing out more pieces and switches that could not be salavaged.

I am very close, to just tearing it all up and going Gargraves and Ross.

I have no problems with my Fastrack.

Shorting on switches is an old problem.  The early modern switches may be some of the worst. Very small amounts of masking or electrical tape at just the right place on either the switch or the loco may resolve the problem with little effort.  The arcing usually leaves a distinctive mark, so it is not too hard to figure out were a little piece of tape will help. 

PROGRESS!

I received my new Williams GE "44 ton" (really 80 ton) switcher in Lehigh Valley red yesterday, so I plopped that on the track. Of course, it would go dead on the problem switches.

Turns out the pickup roller was shorting between the swing rail and the center rail.

Covering the swing rail with black duct tape solved that. The switcher goes around the layout smooth as silk with no blips.

The old UP 4-4-2 is better, but still having problems. It's sparking at the drive wheels as it goes over the problem switches, and still stalls if it's not going fast enough.

I think the old 4-4-2 is getting tired. After replacing the traction wheel it's awful sluggish.

Hopefully the electronic E-unit shows up today and I can get the K-line DC switcher converted over.