When Circuit Boards Go Bad

Thomas talk to GGG or gunrunner john they may beable to fix your board!  

When in doubt, rip it out !   The simple way, yes.  I often wonder what happens to the more modern trains with electronics in them.  Since, as you mentioned, the parts are no longer made, you could rip everything out and run your loco conventional.  Oops, did I say that.  Don't let the DCC guys know......LOL

What the others said, no need to have a shelf queen these days.

You can install or have installed ERR or MTH kits, or even go the route of Battery-Powered Remote Control (all my steamers are BPRC) with kits from several manufacturers.  Hopefully we'll soon see a system for O scale from BlueRail Trains using an iPhone or iPad.

If it's your favorite engine, take the steps and fix it.

Dan Padova posted:

When in doubt, rip it out !   The simple way, yes.  I often wonder what happens to the more modern trains with electronics in them.  Since, as you mentioned, the parts are no longer made, you could rip everything out and run your loco conventional.  Oops, did I say that.  Don't let the DCC guys know......LOL

This is a conventional engine. It sounds like the motor driver board is bad if sounds still work. This a nice engine with a big DC motor, well worth upgrading to Command but you could keep it conventional if you wanted by using a Lionel DCRU or DCDR motor driver. Most everyone that does upgrades probably has buckets of these they would part with for small money. I doubt its worth it to have a component repair on your board, by the time you pay for shipping both ways, the replacement parts and someones labor.

Pete

I'll bet you could drop a QSI or Williams reverse board in there.  That looks a lot like a QSI board in the picture.

I'm assuming you're referring to #1 in the graphic?

John,

I think the problem lies in the little square board that sits on top of the QSI board (#1). Though I could be wrong.

Motor function is the DCRU, I have these available. The other boards support Lighting and sounds.  I am sure this is repairable especially if you state you still have sounds.

You may also want to check motor.  It could be going bad to and it took out the DCRU.  In either event I am sure we can get this repaired.  My e-mail is in my profile.  G

Not sure what the little board on top of the DCRU is, looks like a lighting board.  Curious that it's not labeled...

I misunderstood the topic.

The DCRU can be modified to have the CV lights and direction lights covered.  Though it might be a Remote coupler item, if this engine has that.  Normally the QSI top board is needed for that though.    Lot of electronics in that tender!  G

This engine doesn't have a remote coupler on the tender, though apparently, Lionel might've planned to do that if it didn't involve so much royalties to be paid to QSI or something...

The only thing that plugs into the square board is the plug for the back up light, so that's probably its major purpose.

The fact that I have experienced this issue about 8 years prior with another one of these engines tells me that some of these boards are prone to overheating and failing over a matter of years.

Makes sense, it looked like it could be a lighting board.  Removing that shouldn't affect running, so maybe that's not really were all the smoke was from.

That might explain why the square board gets hot as well, since a small metal rod connects them to each other. I'm not quite sure why these reverse units do this when most Proto 1 engines' reverse units by MTH don't seem to experience the same thing.

I have no experience with this model, and I guess I don't want any.

That is a lot of components on that board to run a reverse light.  I have a DCRU I can plug in that will give you directional reverse light and 5V for markers right off the DCRU.  G

It is old, upgrade it.  Have someone do it that knows the boards.   Nobody would want to fix a 1992 computer with original parts.  Go ERR od DCS.   A new DCRU can be had if needed.  I have several of those older boards but would not pass them on.  That was always a great looking engine and will be great upgraded.

 Could the small board be the battery outlet?  

RailSounds 1.0 didn't use any battery back up systems, unlike Proto 1.0, though part of me wishes Lionel did.

I'm personally looking for a later, improved substitute anyways that WON'T get so hot during operation.

Not sure whether to upgrade to command yet. ERR doesn't have a wide variety of sound choices, whereas MTH Proto 2/3 does, but DCS isn't quite as reliable for my club's layout as Lionel TMCC/Legacy.

If DCS is not performing right on your club layout, it is the layout and not DCS.    The PS-32 boards are great.  I see many layouts (club)  that are not wired right and never will be because all the experts who have a say in the matter want to do things their way and not the correct way.   It is below some people to get proper advice.  A guy with a home layout takes the time to seek good information.  

Any large layout can be properly wired for DCS.  

ADCX ROB: yeah, I mis-read the topic title briefly, too. I was seeing (hoping for) wild parties, bad behavior and a "perp walk", or at least "the walk of shame" the next morning.

Thank you Marty,

I'll keep this in mind. We've been planning to overhaul our layout soon actually, so I'll be keeping this in high priority.

Back to the topic, I think Proto 3 is the way I'll go to Command upgrade this engine. There are a lot of good files out there now that closely match the real engine.

Contact Wayne Renga at J and W Electronics

ADCX ROB & D500,
I Like your kind of misunderstandings!
Ralph

Well,  NOT THE CIRCUIT BOARD!  The key comment Thomas stated is it "started to slow to a crawl".  An amp meter would have helped on this.  What actually happened is the rubber motor mount grommets had gotten hard and were breaking.  The Motor was loose and the clearance is really tight.  The flywheel was binding on the motor bracket mount screws.  So the slow to a crawl was the motor binding and causing the DCRU to source about 5 amps to the engine.  The burnt smell was the AC pickup wires in the engine which started to melt.  PITA to disassemble to get at screws on motor bracket, but 4 new grommets and it is running fine. 

The circuit boards are early Rail Sounds double stack (hard soldered), a RS Power Supply board, a 6V CV board with direction control for tender light, and the DCRU.  G