MTH question

The board gets scrambled because of a low battery. I'll buy it for parts. S/V Express 30 "Ringmaster" "Trains are a winter sport"

This is a simple problem to take care of. Whatever you do don't even think about selling it for parts. MTH and any of their warranty dealers will reprogram the engine for you at no cost. You just need to take it to an MTH dealer after obtaining a Material Return Authorization from MTH. You may or may not need to replace the battery. If the NICAD battery will no longer hold a charge it will need to be replaced and the service station can do it at the same time. If you have a number of MTH PS1 engines you can purchase a repair kit from MTH for $26.95 plus shipping.

I thought that the SAIL jerk had changed his tune but I guess not. He has the MTH repair kit for the chip and can reprogram the engine. He just wanted to get your engine for next to nothing rather than offering help.

Next time post your questions about model railroading on either on the AOL MTH or Lionel hobby boards and you will get help from other hobbiests rather than a vailed attempt to steal the engine.

December 16, 2004 - M.T.H. Electric Trains has released a Reset Kit for early Proto-Sound locomotives suffering from dead batteries that may have scrambled the Proto-Sound circuit board's memory.

This simple-to-use kit contains a reset chip, chip puller and replacement Proto-Sound battery and allows the Proto-Sound memory to be reset to factory defaults. Full instructions are included with the $24.95 kit. Users will find resetting their boards a fairly quick process and a great substitute for sending the locomotive to a service center for repair.

The kit can be ordered from any M.T.H. Authorized Retailer or directly from M.T.H. by visiting the Online Store at the M.T.H. Website. Click on Shopping and select Speciality Items from the departments.

MTH Part No. is 50-1023 OR 56-1023.....

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Trainman 9 your such a putz. The comment was a joke. I don't have or desire any Railking engines. As far as me changing my tune you might try explaining that one. And when you fail at the attempt I'll bury you with a little of your history. S/V Express 30 "Ringmaster" "Trains are a winter sport"

Is the road or engine ID selected? Scroll through all your ID's before tearing into the board.

Also, try an "Operational Clear" - I'm not sure you have this position but my RailKing Berk has it - I had to use it just this am as my

6-year-old somehow got into the programming and mussed it up... power down for three seconds, power back up, you will hear 1 or 2 dings, press the horn / whistle button for 3 seconds, the engine should come alive and operate normally.

On mine, reset position 18 is the one to return to factory defaults. It seems I do this once a year, the engine gets used about 1 month & stored for 11, and something my son does always seems to require this action.

Still original battery - fall 1996 - 8 years + old. It seems to charge up just fine. It can be recharged in a conventional charger outside the loco, too, if you want to troubleshoot this aspect of the problem. Remember, it is a 8.4 Volt battery, not the common 7.2 volt 9V replacement. I can't imagine too many locos of this age getting the use/storage abuse that mine does.

Good luck!

Rob

Gee, it's a "common problem", and they didn't offer to fix it or replace the part with one that doesn't have this problem??? And you didn't nail them for it?

Wonder what other "common problems" there are with their other locomotives.... I'd avoid that brand in future if I were you.

Thanks for the warning - I'll pass it on to my customers.

There's only one common problem ans MTH in my opinion has really stood behind the product. They have always offered to fix it under warranty no matter the engines age and now they have come up with a kit that allows the customer to reprogram the board themselves. You mention "your customers" If your in the train business you should really try to keep up. S/V Express 30 "Ringmaster" "Trains are a winter sport"

Yeah, well, I don't have much demand for O gauge stuff, so I don't stock it; it's all special order. The way I keep up is by noting what complaints/cries for help/etc show up here and other places. I don't see much point in advising customers to order stuff that may not meet expectations.

OP's post implied that MTH merely diagnosed the problem, since he asked for help - so it seems that MTH did not offer to fix it for for him. That's what I responded to. Your experience appears to be at odds with his. But I'll also note your good words about MTH. :-)

All,

Just an update. Based on the responses I contacted MTH again on this loco and asked about the kit. We determined the correct model and MTH stepped up to the plate and without hesitation offered to send me a kit at NO CHARGE.

So... hopefully it will work and I will not have to sell the loco for parts.

I do wish however their web site would be more intuitive and comprehensive. I think this issue could have been resolved a lot sooner.

Thanks, Phil

To all... another update.

MTH chip arrived today and in less than 1 minute my RK hudson was back in service chugging down the track. I have to give MTH credit for its commitment on a loco that was bought several years ago. I doubt many companies these days will have such commitment.

So... if you have a MTH engine that needs help send a note to MTH before you do anything else. It will save you money and frustration.

Kind regards to all who offered their suggestions and especially the suggestion about the kit.

Thanks, Phil