North Pole Special Big Hauler NOT WORKING

[heapstack]

The train stopped working within a couple of days of use last Christmas. It was set up under the tree on carpet. Power light on the controller is on, and track is now set up on nice flat surface and seems to be done correctly. Nothing happens. No lights, sound, nothing. Frustrated. Ive assembled/disassembled 6 or 7 times thinking that Im not getting good contact, but still nothing.

[ABC]

What scale is your train? If it is HO I can tell you what your problem is...If you set it up under a tree especially a live one that drops needles and what not, then your track is probably really dirty as are the wheels of the locomotive. The reason why your locomotive is not moving is poor electrical contact between the locomotive wheels and the track, the actual connections to the track are probably fine. Get a track cleaning eraser or fluid and a moist cloth and wipe of the rails and wheels.

[Joe Satnik]

Dear heapstack,

Measure the Voltage on the rails and report back.

Tool stores like Harbor Freight have Digital Multi-Meters (DMMs) for under $10, sometimes on sale for as little as $2.

Every model train operator should own and learn how to use one.

Questions?  We'll help.

Also, please ID the scale you are in.  If there is a 5 digit set number on the box, that would be nice to know, too.  (e.g. the 900xx series are G scale Big Hauler sets.)

Sincerely,

Joe Satnik

[heapstack]

Thanks for the help y'all. Its a 90044 and a Big Hauler. North Pole Special. The train was only working for about 2 days last year and now not at all. The tracks and wheels are clean as a pin. No needles or dirt/grime. I checked the direction of the front wheels and they are fine too.

I plugged it up and tested the tracks with a GE2527 Multimeter and got no reading except on the "X1K ohm" setting and then it BARELY moved. Then I tested the clip that gets pwr to the tracks. Nada! The wall wart seems to be getting plenty of pwr to the controller, but not to the clip. Maybe a bad red cord from the controller to the tracks? Maybe a bad clip? More advice welcomed. Thanks in advance.

[az2rail]

Sounds like your transformer is bad. Check your voltage again. Make sure your reading the right voltage [AC or DC] and if you don't get a reading, take it to your local hobby shop, let them test it, and buy a new one if needed.

Bruce

[Jim Banner]

heapstack,
It sounds like you have taken the right approach to testing, working from the locomotive back to the power source.  But I am interested in one test you made:

I plugged it up and tested the tracks with a GE2527 Multimeter and got no reading except on the "X1K ohm" setting and then it BARELY moved.

Did you have the power on during this test?  And was the locomotive sitting on the track?  If the power was off and the locomotive was on the track, you should have measured the resistance of the motor and the headlight and/or smoke unit if they were turned on.  This should have been around 10 ohms.  That would put the needle all the way to the right on the times 1000 scale.  If you did this test with the power turned on, you are lucky that you did not instantly burn out your meter.

When you tested the track clip, I am assuming that it was connected to the speed controller and the the speed controller was powered up and turned up to full speed so that there would be a voltage to detect (about 18 volts dc would be normal.)  If you were using a resistance scale with the power turned off, I would expect an infinite resistance (needle on the left end of the scale.)

When you say the wall wart transformer was putting out plenty of power, I assume it was plugged into a live outlet and you measured the voltage coming out of the attached wire.  I am not sure which controller you have (there have been several over the years) and so cannot tell you whether the output of the wall wart is ac or dc, but it should say on the wall wart itself.

Bottom line, if there is power coming out of the wall wart transformer, it is okay.
If there is power going into the speed control unit and none coming out (even though you try the speed and direction controls at various settings) then the speed control unit is faulty.
If there is power coming out of the speed control unit, but not making it to the track clip, then the clip or its wire is faulty.
If the power is making it all the way to the track but the locomotive still does not run, then the locomotive is faulty.  Incidentally check for track voltage with and without the locomotive on the rails.  The Ten Wheeler locomotives in the Big Hauler sets have a bad habit of shorting because the front wheels are wrong way round (CAUTION! on some of them, the sticker was stuck on backwards.)  They can also short where the front pickup wires pass through holes in the washer at the top of the spring.   If you have any doubts about the front truck, just slip a piece of paper between the four wheels and the rails.

Some of these tests may seem repetitive but they may be subtly different than what you did before.  Hopefully at the end of this exercise you will not only have a working Big Hauler but also will be a crackerjack troubleshooter to boot.

Jim
   

[heapstack]

Thanks for the advice on troubleshooting Jim.

When I did the test w/ the multimeter, the Locomotive was off the tracks. I did the test with the speed control at 0 and at 100%. and directly on the track itself and the only movement I could get on any of the multimeter settings was the Ohm setting and on x1K and movement was negligible on either 0 or 100. I did not test the lead coming from the controller to the clip, but I did test the clip, and got nothing with pwr on and controller at 0 and 100. I also did not test the transformer with the meter, but the light on the controller burns bright. I would assume (like you) that if the controller is pwred up, then the transformer is working.

Is the circuit breaker in the train set in the transformer or the controller?

I notice that the wires (power leads??) inside the front 4 small wheels are really tiny and have kind of a crappy solder job. How can I test the locomotive off of the tracks to rule out the locomotive as the problem?

[Jim Banner]

I forgot that the newer controllers have a pilot light.  And a lit pilot light is a sure indication of power from the wall wart.

So power is going into the controller.  No power is coming out of the clip.  All that is left is the clip, the wire to it, and the controller.

The circuit breaker is normally inside the controller.  If the controller has an electronic speed control (as opposed to a rheostat) then it may electronically limit the current to some preset maximum value instead of having a circuit breaker.

To test the locomotive off the track, simply put your meter on ohms scale and connect the leads to the locomotive, one lead to a wheel on one side, the other lead to a wheel on the other side.  The resistance should be around 10 ohms.  If a lot more, then there is a problem, usually in the motor.  But if the resistance is infinite (no movement of the needle at all) then it may just be the brushes (little, spring loaded brass "bullets" behind the front and rear drive wheels) are not making contact with their wheels.  If the resistance is very low (less than about 2 ohms) then something is shorted inside the locomotive.

Jim