Tech help, please, on American Flyer 4667 wide gauge box cab loco

A few clear pictures of the loco and mechanism you have would be helpful.

Larry

You are correct regarding the top lever. It is a manual reverse lever.

The rod through the front of the shell engages/disengages the "distance control" feature. This feature includes the solenoid, cam and activation rod you describe. When engaged, the motor will change direction when track power is interrupted.

I have found that the distance control mechanism must be very clean, without any binding, and the shafts on which the various parts rotate must be lightly oiled. I use contact cleaner and 5w Mobil 1, but any light weight oil should work.

A little cranky even at its best. Sometimes I feel like a safe cracker, trying to get the right combination of positions to make the distance control work properly.

OK. I am going to take another whack at it today. The fact that someone else has rewired it does not help. I have to figure out how the reverse lever is wired. I am assuming, and I know what it means when we assume, that the reverse lever is wired similarly to the Lionel reverse lever.

Once I get that going, the distance control device will come next.