New Kato Mikado 3rd run engine

[cjp53]

Just won this last week and received it in the mail,set it up on my track and it will only run in reverse regardless with the direction switch is on.I'm so disappointed. I have two other Kato engines and they run flawlessly.I just contacted the seller.It was listed as new unrun.Any ideas?

[randgust]

When you say 'third run', is is the one with factory-installed decoder?

I've seen stuff like this happen using analog DC in a decoder-equipped locomotive.    Most decoders have a terrible time with anything other than a pure analog DC supply; if it's coming out of any kind of a transistor-type or pulse-type DC throttle, forget it - all bets are off.    I had this behavior in a Bachmann 44-tonner - it either randomly reversed for no reason whatsoever or wouldn't reverse at all.   As I have transistor throttles, only solution was to yank the decoder and direct wire it.

[cjp53]

It was advertised as 3rd run in the auction,I have a 126-0211.I contacted the seller just now and waiting for his reply.I not sure I understand what you mean by pure analog DC supply I have an MRC1300 power pack

[cjp53]

I don't know if these are still in production and if they are wired for sound.I see nothing in the packaging.

[greenwizard88]

Pulse DC vs pure DC.

The 1300 are... problematic with some decoder types, if your engine is wired for DCC it's possible that the 1300 fried the decoder. If it's not setup for DCC, and is a straight DC engine, I'm not sure what would be wrong with it.

[mark.hinds]

Based on the replies you've gotten so far, I would suggest checking whether your model is wired for DCC, per the Spookshow site:  http://www.spookshow.net/loco/kato282.html.  If it is, you may have damaged the decoder(s). 

Per the above URL, evidently opening up the tender is relatively low-risk for those who are not expert in disassembling N-scale steam. 

MH

[cjp53]

I did not know Kato offered DCC and it was not listed as one.The seller is offering an exchange and is being helpful.So I'm relieved.

[nsbob]

This has been discussed at length on this forum.  It all started when Rapido Trains advised that if you use an MRC 1300 throttle with their decoder equipped locomotives and damage the decoder, they will not replace the decoder under warranty.  They came to this decision after researching and locating  the problem.
Go to the search section and enter "MRC 1300" and you will have the discussions listed, specifically Topics 1 and 2.

[randgust]

If you get an exchange for the same locomotive with a decoder buried in the tender, you'll be right back where you started.

1)  Look at the spookshow site.  You really need to look inside that tender to see if it is decoder equipped.  A normal Kato 2-8-2 is nothing in there but air.

2)  If you're using an MRC 1300 I suspect you're dealing with a pulse-wave blend throttle, not pure DC.   Note that MRC has a warning about this throttle on their website for Rapido, which to me, only means that there's 'something going on' with this throttle and decoder-equipped locomotives that means they don't like each other.

https://www.modelrectifier.com/product-p/aa300.htm 

When I'm testing current Atlas diesels I'm using an ancient Golden Thottlepack 501N and decoders don't mind that at all.   That lets me debug decoders on analog behaviour rather nicely when I get random results from my Digitrax unit, which has its own gremlins.

[Mark5]

I don't know if these are still in production

Definitely not in production - not even listed.

http://www.katousa.com/N/locomotive.html

The other two American steam locos that Kato has made (GS4 and FEF) are still listed.

Mark

[SkipGear]

This is pretty easy to determine.....if it was a KOBO factory DCC conversion then it also had a DCC working remote uncoupler on the tender. If your coupler on the tender has what looks like additional wiring to it, then it is the KOBO version with DCC.

This picture on spookshows page will show you what it looks like.
http://www.spookshow.net/loco/files/kobo282mech3.jpg

If it does not have that and it is "new old stock" then it would not have DCC in it unless somebody added it. If somebody added it, then it is not "new old stock". If it does have the remote coupler, you have a very rare loco.

It pretty much has to have some sort of decoder in it for the loco to act the way you describe. Nothing normally in an analog loco would make a it run only in reverse without adding a bridge rectifier in the circuit.

[mmagliaro]

And for the record, the MRC 1300 is not a PWM throttle.  It just puts out full-wave rectified DC (albeit where the full-wave peaks are kind of high, which is what begat all the research and theorizing about it damaging decoders in the other thread).

Try THIS...
First, make sure you can still run some other engine in forward and reverse from that power pack (i.e. that you just don't have the bad luck of the reversing switch getting broken or a shorted wire inside the pack causing this).
Then...
Just hook a 9v battery with some clip leads and touch them to the drivers or the tender wheels with the engine flipped on its back.  If you can make it run forward and reverse by swapping leads, then there's something weird going, possibly with a decoder.  If it still only runs in reverse no matter which way you swap the leads, I'd start suspecting somebody else's handiwork gone awry in there... like some kind of constant-brightness circuitry with a bridge rectifier.

[cjp53]

Seller said it was straight DC and the replacement is a straight DC engine.I have a new Kato D51 and new Kato GE ES44AC that run great.I have been out of the hobby for over 20 years so this is a little confusing.I do have a used Mrc1370 power pack my local Train shop is holding for me but they are closed because of the virus.Will I have the same problem?I have never dealt with DCC and it came out just as I left the hobby.I already have the engine packed ready to ship.When I get the new one I will check the coupler on the tender,I will not run it till I know for sure.Again the seller said it was not DCC.He also follows this forum so maybe if he sees this he will comment but he was very understanding and willing to help.I did run the ES44AC after I ran the Mikado and it worked fine in both directions.

[u18b]

IF.... there is a decoder in there... then the throttle is a possible explanation of the described behavior.
I have seen decoders freak out and were not damaged (yet).   I have a friend with an old throttle and I never take my DCC locos over there any more because they act so strangely with his throttle.

So if there is a decoder in there, the decoder may NOT be damaged yet, and may still run well on a different throttle.   

However..... IF... the loco is true analog as the seller and the buyer believe....

Then I have never heard of a loco only running one direction no matter how the throttle is set direction-wise.   And I cannot imagine how that would even be possible.

That's why I'm also wondering if there is a decoder in there.

[cjp53]

Well regardless it's going back and being replace with a new one,a 2nd run that the seller tested today and it ran well in both directions.This is all very strange and hope I don't go through it again.