Help Please! Son's trains not working

[Trainmom7041]

Hi everybody.   Please forgive my lack of knowledge on the subject. but my 11 year old son has an HO layout (he's obsessed with it).   We've had a few problems and I'm not sure who else to ask. 

He has a Bachmann EZ command system and EZ track.   He has about 20 engines. He asks for them for every birthday and Christmas and uses all his allowance to enhance his layout.   One problem- when he gets a new "toy" he often gets ahead of himself and out of excitement either takes engines apart or tries to modify them or change them or do things to them which usually renders them useless.    ugh.   A few of his engines cost over $130 and are now not operating. 

i'm not sure if some of these problems are simple or if these engines are unusable now. 

Here are the 2 main engines with problems:

1-  A union pacific broadway limited AC6000 - - -   it was working fine and then all of a sudden it won't make any noises. this engine he actually didn't mess with at all.   it was just going down the track, then the engine suddenly wouldn't stop with the ez command controller. it kept going down the track so my son had to turn the controller off while the train was going 'round.    then when he turned the EZ command back on, the train sounds wouldn't work anymore. the engine still runs on the track fine, but no more sounds. the sounds from this engine still work on the DC track he has, but not on the Bachmann ez command.

2. NS F7A.  engine.       my son got an MRC speaker for a different engine, but wanted to hear it, so he took the shell off this engine and touched the wires of the new speaker to the speaker terminals on the NS F7A to hear it.   the speaker worked, but when he took the speaker off and put the shell back on, now this engine will not work at all. it won't work or run or makes sounds on any track.   
  :-(  *sigh* 
what's a mom to do?   

are these problems fixable???

[Hunt]

First - reset the decoder.  The Bachmann E-Z Command Control Center cannot reset the decoder.

Locate someone with knowledge of the decoder installed in your problem locomotives at a local model trains store, model railroad club, or an individual with a DCC system capable of programming CVs who is willing to reset the decoder.

[NarrowMinded]

The EZ-command was designed to run trains with decoders installed, if his train does not have a decoder it will only run if you press the #10 button many people use it this way but don't leave the loco stopped on the track or the motor can over heat and ruin it or worse.

The EZ command has the ability to change decoder addresses and do a basic reset through a series of button presses, however I think your issue has more to do with a lack of decoders ain some of his and or the address has been changed.

opening up a loco is a big no no if you don't know exactly what you are doing


If you know which locos have decoders installed place them on the track one at a time the press then press each button and rotate the dial forward and back, do this on each numbered button to see if any of them start running.

The one that run on DC and then run when the number 10 is selected likely are DC only loco,s if this is the case the loco will make a lot more noise when it runs on #10 then it does on the dc controller.

most locos can be fixed its just a matter of if its worth it.

Don't toss any of the old locomotives, recycle them on ebay or another site and recoup some of the money.


NM-Jeff