Atlas MP-15dc With Sound
#31
I would, as Randy suggest, indeed have a look at contact problems. Those plastic clips on the circuit board are a good idea, but don't always work well.
They could have shifted in transportation (god only knows the way parcels get treated in logistics centers etc) for example. I'd get rid of those, and solder the wires straight to the PCB. A bad contact can have the same effect as a resistor, and then taking up part of the applied voltage so you need more before the loco responds, be it lights or whatever (and on DCC it programs very difficult if at all).
If you don't trust yourself to solder , do you know someone in your area who could do it for you (say for a cool glass of the beer variety? )? It takes a little bit of patience. I would also clean the wheels and bushings out. Put a little isopropyl alcohol or other contact cleaner on a q tip and rub the surfaces, you'll be amazed what comes of those wheels, even when new!.

Koos

PS it may help to take a couple pics of it if this doesn't work, one from the bottom so we can see all wheels and trucks, from the top so we can see the PCB with wires attached and how they go to the trucks etc, and from the sides too. One of us may spot something that you may have overlooked or didn't recognise as being a problem?
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#32
torikoos Wrote:I would, as Randy suggest, indeed have a look at contact problems. Those plastic clips on the circuit board are a good idea, but don't always work well.
They could have shifted in transportation (god only knows the way parcels get treated in logistics centers etc) for example.
Funny you should mention the parcel handling. When I received this, there was no obvious damage to the package and was very well packed, but when I opened the box the model was not properly seated in the factory packaging. Even a few details had come off it or were bent. But I felt like this was mostly a result of Chinese "quality control" as when the model is properly seated in the packing - you can shake the daylights out of it and it won't budge (I tested that when I thought about throwing it across the room!). Even so, the way parcels are tossed around at the distribution centers - not unlikely that something I can't see has worked loose.
torikoos Wrote:If you don't trust yourself to solder , do you know someone in your area who could do it for you (say for a cool glass of the beer variety? )? It takes a little bit of patience. I would also clean the wheels and bushings out. Put a little isopropyl alcohol or other contact cleaner on a q tip and rub the surfaces, you'll be amazed what comes of those wheels, even when new!.
Have no problem what so ever with soldering so may well give that a shot if all else fails.

There is a fellow that specializes in installing and working on DCC loco's, but about 80 miles from here, and I've thought about taking the model to him to let him take a look at, next time I go visit his hobby shop. But again, I'm looking at more expense to try and get this thing running right.

As for cleaning the bushings and wheels - well I did clean the wheels right off, but hadn't thought about cleaning the bushings. In fact I have some spray contact cleaner around here so might give that a try too, although I really think there is some other problem. I get really aggravated when I purchase an expensive locomotive model and have to spend hours getting it to run right!
torikoos Wrote:PS it may help to take a couple pics of it if this doesn't work, one from the bottom so we can see all wheels and trucks, from the top so we can see the PCB with wires attached and how they go to the trucks etc, and from the sides too. One of us may spot something that you may have overlooked or didn't recognise as being a problem?
I'll see if I can get a couple of shots of the model that are in focus enough to see the details and try and post them on here. I have a really good digital camera, but haven't been too successful with taking close ups of models.

Thanks for your input!
Ed
"Friends don't let friends build Timesavers"
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#33
cnw1961 Wrote:Ed, I can’t tell you about the sound, because I got an Atlas MP 15 DC without sound and installed a LokSound decoder myself, but my engine definitely does not have traction tires. It is a fantastic engine and it runs smooth as silk. I am sure you will love it!

[Image: 2690-1.jpg]

Kurt,
How did you manage to fit a Loksound into the MP15. Did it involve any hacking of plastic?
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#34
Steve, sorry for not replying earlier, but I just found your post.

I bought my MP15 used and it came without the weight above the front truck, so that I could put the decoder there. If you don’t want to remove the weight, you could remove the PC board and hardwire the decoder so that it would fit easily above the motor. No hacking of plastic involved. To use the 23 mm speaker that comes with the LokSound decoder, I milled the frame so that it would fit into the tank. Even if it is not difficult to install a LokSound decoder, I don’t recommend it for this engine, because I don’t like the sound of the ESU 645 soundfile. I would use a Tsumami instead.

[Image: speaker.jpg]
Kurt
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#35
Thanks Kurt. That's useful info.
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