I bought this 38 ton shay used years ago and I put it on the track the other day and the sounds came on but it did not move. I pulled the cover and started checking the mess of wires. I found that the thicker red wire at the center of the photo is the culprit. If I wiggle it the engine moves. I removed the wire, stripped a new end and put it back in tightened the screw terminal and the problem persists. Could it be the socket?
I bought this unit used so I do not know what is stock and what is not in there. It looks to be an older Sierra board but I don’t know if the main board on the left is stock. What is the black rectangular thing on the right? The red problem wire is split with one lead heading under the floor with the other lead being soldered to this black thing and then it heads under the floor to the trucks I would say.
The battery pack is under the board to the left.
Another issue with this is that the lights are setup opposite on this. If it is moving forward the rear light comes on. The switch behind the smoke box door does nothing which leads me to believe that the wiring has been reconfigured.
I have been toying with the idea of removing this stuff and putting in a Revo unit. I do like the sounds that the Sierra/ Tsunami board produces though.
What do you guys think? and thanks for your advice.