I just got this train set as a birthday gift for my son, it is TMCC equipped and has railsounds. I want to run it with the cw-80 transformer that came with the set.(adding the TMCC when my son gets a bit older) When I did this, the sounds didn't work properly. The locomotive is supposed to flash its headlamp for about 4 seconds looking for a Cab-1 signal, if it doesn't get one it goes into conventional mode. My engine seemed to continue flickering its lamp after many minutes. (i put on 2 1970s pennsy passenger cars and their lights seemed to flutter also) The throttle would only run it at near full speed, with no attenuation. The horn and bell buttons would cause the locomotive to slow down, almost as if it was loosing power. THe chuffing was only at full speed with no gradation, and the horn and whistle worked sporadically at best. It was wired properly and the tether was seated also. I also tried run/pgm switch as well as the "no sounds" switch on tender. Is the transformer shot or is it the locomotive? Or did i do something wrong? I did not have the 9-volt battery in tender - does that matter? This is my first set since i was a kid in the '70s - so i have never seen a railsounds operate before! help,his birthday is 3 days away!

Battery is not needed. Only reason for battery is for sound (when powering down or cycling thru neutral) when you're in conventional mode.

This may sound silly, but double double check all electrical/track connections. I had a few pieces of Fastrack that snapped together well but didnt make good electrical contact. As a result the train ran very erratic on certain portions of the layout. It took some crimping with pliers on a few pieces of the Fastrack to resolve the bad connections.

Also double check the tether connection between the loco and tether. Make sure no pins are bent or damaged.

If none of this helps, either give Lionel a call or visit a local dealer.

hope this helps

Vanz,

Considering the 3-day timeframe, a good approach is to contact the nearest Lionel Service Dealer in your area (especially if it is the one you bought the set from).

The CW-80 has a built-in over-current protection circuit that will reduce the voltage output when the current draw is excessive. The green light on the CW-80 flashes if the over-current condition lasts long enough. A check with a voltmeter would help to verify if this circuit is kicking in.

If you'd like to try a few checks to narrow down an over-current problem through a process of elimination, use a short length of track with the CW-80 connected to it and place one of the passenger cars on it to see if the lights flicker. Repeat this with only the engine. You can also try swapping out pieces of track just in case it might be a piece of track.

By the way, I have a TMCC PRR Mikado like yours which I have run in conventional mode using a CW-80. Now it is running in TMCC mode and I did notice sluggish/intermittent operation with the headlight flickering. I traced this to a poor connection at the ground pin of the AC plug in the 'wall wart' that powers the TMCC Command Control module.

Tom

This message has been edited. Last edited by: TomK,

TMCC needs to see a good ground.

I called Trainz.com, the company which I bought the set from, and they are sending me a new transformer and locomotive. I haven't gotten it yet, but I am very impressed with their customer service. This was more than I expected. Trainz seems to stand behind their sales, and quickly! Hopefully this fixes my issues. Thanks for the responses.

Vanz,

Glad to hear Trainz is sending you an engine & CW-80.

Keep us posted as to the outcome?

And, please wish your son a very Happy Birthday!

Tom