GG-1 ho gauge how to wire for catenary operation

[adula]

I recently purchased a GG-1 BAC 65303 engine and the ad said it will operate on the pantographs. I am new to HO as I have old Lionel o gaugetrains.
Please explain how to run the GG-1 on pantographs?

Thanks,
Alex

[adula]

Oh by the way is there a front or back to the HO GG-1
Thanks,
Alex

[Len]

There's a switch under one end of the shell to change the GG-1 to operate off the pantographs. You need operating cantenary to use the pantogrpahs though.

The GG-1 was bidirection, so either end could be the front. In general practice, the side containing the steam boiler was considered the 'Front' or 'End #1'. The other half was the 'Rear' or 'End #2'. At various points some units had an 'F' on one end to indicate 'Front", but often times they came out of the shops with either no 'F' at all, or an 'F' on both ends, since it didn't really matter.

Len

[Piyer]

The GG-1 was bidirection, so either end could be the front. In general practice, the side containing the steam boiler was considered the 'Front' or 'End #1'. The other half was the 'Rear' or 'End #2'. At various points some units had an 'F' on one end to indicate 'Front", but often times they came out of the shops with either no 'F' at all, or an 'F' on both ends, since it didn't really matter.

Len

Len, please forgive, but I've just gotta poke a bit of fun at you for fun's sake. 

The "front" only really mattered when the engineer slipped it into drive and it started moving the wrong way! LOL!

But, seriously, the Bachmann model should have a tiny F right above the outer most wheels on the end that's considered forward. As with the prototype, it's handy to know which is the "front" when you set your throttle to forward, otherwise the model will run the wrong way round.

On the prototype, the F was a federally mandated requirement, even on bidirectional equipment, for an assortment of reasons, from maintenance record keeping to safety appliances to literally which way the locomotive should be expected to move with the reverser handle in forward or reverse. In addition, some diesel locomotives were setup to run long hood forward, while others where running short hood forward even before short hoods became half-height noses / snoots.

[Len]

The GG-1 had two widely seperated cabs. 'Forward' depended on which cab the loco was being operated from, which is why many of the PRR units had an 'F' on both ends.

Len

[adula]

Hi,
Thanks for the help.
How do I remove the shell to get at the pantograph switch?
Thanks for the info on the forward/aft direction I can remember seeing the black GG-1 in Washington, DC during 1983-1984 when I was there. It still is my favorite engine. My Dad got me one in the early 1950's It was a 2332 5 stripe O-gauge which still runs.
Thanks,
Alex

[Len]

The exploded diagram for the DCC Ready version is here:
https://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/dwg/dwgs/HO_GG-1_(DCC_Ready).pdf

The 'with sound' diagram is the same, except it shows the speaker.

There should be 4 screws on the bottom that are removed in order to lift off the shell. They are labeled, "SCREW# 10215X4" on both diagrams.

A list of various product manuals and locomotives can be found here:
https://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/references.php

Len