Williams GG-1 #4053 Data?

[gunrunnerjohn]

I acquired an older Williams GG1, #4053.  It only runs in forward.  I opened it up and found what appears to be a kludge, which I'd like to unwind.  The control board has a three position dip switch hanging out in space and wired to some spots on the board.  The only position that lets the train run at all is the combination it's currently in.  A couple of them appear to reverse one mother and have them fighting each other.

The board is labeled Williams Productions Reverser and has no part number.  It's a single sided board with a couple of relays and a couple of socketed chips, a Motorola MC14017B and a CD4011B.  Obviously, there are some other components, transistors, a heat-sinked TO220, etc.

I'd like to find any data available on this control board and how to get this train running in both directions.

[GTBob]

If it were me, I'd buy a new WbB reverse board and junk the current one.  Sounds like more trouble than it's worth-----But that's just my 2 cents.  Good luck w/ your loco.

Regards,

GTBob

[gunrunnerjohn]

Trust me, that's one of the options.  I'd like to get it running before I start sinking money into it.

[gunrunnerjohn]

Actually, my GG-1 is a 4811, I was thinking of a different train!  Hopefully, that didn't change too much about the request.

[Joe Satnik]

Dear GRJ,

There are 2 reverser board mods listed in the WBB FAQ section, one of them is to lock the loco in forward only (sound familiar?):

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,5567.0.html

Perhaps the former owner added dip switches to this mod to allow it to return to "normal reverser board operation" when desired.

By carefully studying the FAQ diagram and your board, you could back out the mod or figure out how the former owner intended it to work.

Perhaps the former owner was trying to piggy-back the "neutral start" mod on top of the "forward only" mod:

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,5568.0.html 

Another option, manual forward-neutral-reverse control with a diode bridge and a center-off DPDT toggle switch sticking out the bottom. 

Parts at Radio Shack for under $10.  Part numbers on request. 

Hope this helps. 

Sincerely,

Joe Satnik   

[gunrunnerjohn]

Well, I don't know for sure what the modification was intended to do, but I'll check out those two sets of instructions.

I actually figured out the problem.  It's my KW transformer!  I happened to be testing this on the bench with an old 1033 transformer, and it cycled properly!  For some reason, it doesn't with the KW transformer, I have no idea why.  I don't measure any track voltage when I press the direction button, so I can only assume that it's some impedance issue between the center rail and common that's different and causing the issue.  Note that no other engines are affected, even two different Williams models.

Very odd...

[phillyreading]

Sounds more like your KW transformer isn't shutting down power all the way, rather than any impeadance problem. Take the lever off the KW and check for dirt under the handle area, as this may be causing your problem more than anything else.
Also some engines are more effected by incomplete voltage drop-offs than others, and adding a switch to a circuit board can affect the way it operates because of adding more resistance(the switch and wiring) into the circuit than what the circuit board originally was designed to handle.

Lee F.

[gunrunnerjohn]

Like I said, I used an A/C voltmeter on the tracks and measured no voltage with or without a load when I press the direction button.  It's not as simple as that.

[phillyreading]

What style of volt meter are you using? Digital(LED) or analog(needle on a  pointer). Digital will measure from a tenth of a volt, analog may a volt or two to measure first.

Lee F.

[gunrunnerjohn]

I'm using a Fluke DMM.