3 truck shay harness

[bob kaplan]

When the 3 truck shay was first release, there was a notification by someone (with agreement with Bachmann i am almost positive) stating that the wire harness from (or to) the third truck needed looking into. i think hot glue was to be applied to keep the wires from pulling loose or causing some type of problems.  As a result i was hesitant to purchase.  i have been looking at purchasing the 3 truck shay again.  Have adjustments been bad to the model since its first release so that there are no longer problems?
    Thank you.

[Loco Bill Canelos]

Bob,

Can't remember anything official, but there was this post from 2012:

http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/board/index.php/topic,20103.0.html

Maybe it was what you were remembering.  Hope it helps

bill

[bob kaplan]

I found it saved on my computer!!....Should we still do this if we purchase a new Bachmann 3-truck Shay wiring issue "procedure"


We have permission to publish this (for those who want to try to create problems at Bachmann, I have it in print):

This procedure addresses one area of concern.
The wires from the power plug for the third truck are not strain-relief-ed sufficiently. This is very apparent in non-dcc versions, but also apparent in some dcc versions. Inspection indicates if both wire bundles are wedged under the decoder, the problem was minimized, but even then, vibrational issues with the locomotive bouncing through frogs can cause issues at the board as indicated below.
If you remove the fuel bunker and move the third truck side-to-side while observing these wires (or just the plug to the third truck), you will see the wires move at the board.
They will break if not secured.

This procedure is written to allow the consumer to enact strain reliefs on the wiring harness from the third truck where these wires enter the locomotive main body and attach to the circuit board.

Remove fuel bunker. Two screws, in rear corners of bunker, accessible from under unit.
Lift bunker at rear and unclip front from chassis. Set bunker and screws aside.

Inspect wires along left rear side, or fireman's side. (see attached photo).




These are 8 wires in a row from the back of the board forward on the left.
Not the wires along the back.
Make certain all wires are attached without pulling on them.

Hot glue the wires, both the bare wire and the insulation (important) to the board.



Allow to cool for a few minutes. The attached photos show the front 4 wires hot-glued, the back 4 not hot-glued so you can see the difference.

Now, obtain a small, narrow tie-wrap.
On the floor of the locomotive, at the rear, you will see the two wire bundles in flexible tubes coming through.
There is a small piece of black tape around these wire bundles where they cross each other.
Remove the tape.
Ensure the wire bundles are moved so they are both roughly the same length from the locomotive to the third truck end of the harness where the plug is. Move them as needed.

Run the tie-wrap through one side slot at the very front of the end beam, under the center brace dividing that slot from the slot on the other side of the loco.
Using hemostats or tweezers, grab the end you have fed through and pull up through the other slot (these are left and right of centerline).

Press wire bundles down to floor, remaining crossed, place tie-wrap over the top of these, insert end of tie-wrap into locking end, pull end and move tie-wrap and wires and necessary until both wires are tight against floor and tie-wrap it tight.

Thank you.

[mickeykelley]

Just got a non DCC so want to do this but the pics are missing. Any way to get the pics?

[bob kaplan]

Sorry I don't know how to include the pics.   They are on my computer, but when I copied the document to put on this post, the pictures were not included.

[mickeykelley]

So I'm a little confused after reading all the postings and refer postings. Is the issue where the wires go into the little white connector, which then plugs into the 3rd truck tender OR is the issue somewhere under the 2nd truck bunker where wires attach to something OR is it both?

[bob kaplan]

Looks like both may be involve.
   Has anyone purchased this engine and run it without those modifications put in this tread?


   Has anyone made these modifications and run the engines with success?

Any info would be appreciated.
Thank you

[mickeykelley]

I'm a little backed up on getting engines RC and sound done, so it may be later this summer before I start on the 3 truck, but I'm just trying to get handle on what to expect so any further comments will definitely appreciated.