M.T.H. Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine User manual

By MTH Electric Trains
TinplateTraditions®
Contemporary 408E Electric
Engine Operating Instructions
Thank you for purchasing the M.T.H. Tinplate Traditions 408E Locomotive. This
locomotive runs on Standard Gauge three-rail track and can handle a 72” curve. It runs
on 14-20 volts AC (Alternating Current)
.This Standard Gauge Tinplate Traditions®
Electric Engine contains state-of-the-art electronics with many built-in automatic features
for exciting operation. Despite these advanced features, the locomotive is easy to operate
with any compatible standard AC transformer that is equipped with whistle and bell
buttons (see the compatibility chart on page
17), and is compatible with most other 3-rail
Standard Gauge locomotives, rolling stock, and accessories.
This locomotive is equipped with Proto-Sound 2.0 with Digital Command System
(DCS). This new system will allow you to operate your locomotive in Command mode
(when used with the DCS Remote Control System, sold separately) or Conventional
mode. Conventional operating features are described in the following pages, while the
DCS operating features are covered in the set of operating instructions that
accompanies the DCS equipment.
Conventional Mode operation of this locomotive is
much simpler than operation of original Proto-Sound engines. For your own safety and
that of your equipment, please read the instructions before you operate this engine.
WARNING: DO NOT LIFT THIS ENGINE BY ITS HANDRAILS.
THEY CANNOT SUPPORT THE WEIGHT OF THE ENGINE.

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Table of Contents
Initial Lubrication 3
Basic Operation 4
Throttle 4
Operation Buttons 4
Volume Control 5
Proto-Sound 2.0 Operation 6
Activating Proto-Sound 2.0 Conventional Mode Features 6
Freight Yard Sounds (PSA) 7
Tips on Using PSA 8
SpeedControl 9
Lock into a Direction 9
Reset to Factory Defaults 10
Automatic Sounds 10
Maintenance 11
Lubrication and Greasing Instructions 11
Light Replacement 12
Self-Charging Battery Back-Up 13
Troubleshooting 14
Compatibility 16
Transformer Compatibility Chart 17
Additional Features with DCS Remote Control System 18
Safety Precautions 20
Service and Warranty Information 24

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Initial Lubrication
Use motor oil (10W-40 or 10W-30) for lubrication. Apply oil sparingly, using
a toothpick or similar applicator. Before beginning, please be sure to have
several toothpicks and cotton swabs handy to apply oil and clean up the excess.
Familiarize yourself with the location of the oiling points (see Fig. 2 on page
12
) before beginning. Apply oil before operating and after every seven
hours of operation.

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Basic Operation
Throttle – Throttle up the power to your track. Give enough power so that
the engine’s headlight shines brightly. Then put the engine into motion by
either firmly pressing the Direction button on your transformer or remote once
or dropping and advancing the throttle to put the engine in forward.
Operation Buttons
Use the operation buttons on your transformer or remote as described below.
Horn/Whistle - To sound the horn, firmly press the Horn/Whistle button. The
horn will sound for as long as you continue to depress the button. It will stop
when you release the button. The horn has four different endings, depending
on whether you hold the button for less than three seconds, three seconds, four
seconds, or five seconds or longer.
Bell - To sound the bell, firmly press and release the Bell button. To turn the
bell off, press and release the Bell button again. The bell will continue to ring
from the time you turn it on until you press and release the button again to turn
it off.
Direction – Your train is programmed to start in neutral. The first direction
after neutral upon start-up is forward. Firmly press and release the Direction
button to allow the engine to move forward. Just as you must stop your
automobile between forward and reverse, this engine will not go directly from
forward to reverse; it goes into neutral between directions. If the train has
been moving forward, the first press of the Direction button will put the train
from forward into neutral, the second press into reverse, the third press back
into neutral, and the fourth back into forward. To prevent accidental
high-speed start-ups, this engine is programmed to restart in neutral each time
the track voltage is turned off for 25 seconds or more.

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Volume Control
–To adjust the volume of all sounds made by this
engine, turn the master volume control knob located under the engine
clockwise to increase the volume and counter-clockwise to decrease the
volume (see Fig.
1).
Proto-Sound2.0
Volume Adjustment Knob
Figure 1. Proto-Sound 2.0 Volume Adjustment Knob

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Proto-Sound 2.0 Operating Instructions
This manual contains the operating instructions for Proto-Sound 2.0 in
conventional mode only. Instructions for accessing DCS command mode
features accompany the DCS Remote Control System equipment.
Because Proto-Sound 2.0 is an all-new system developed by M.T.H.’s own
research and development team, it operates differently from original
Proto-Sound. Most Proto-Sound 2.0 features are automatically enabled, and
the reset state has been eliminated, so there is no need to program features as
with original Proto-Sound. Although the new system is easier to operate than
original Proto-Sound, you should read these instructions thoroughly before
using Proto-Sound 2.0 features in order to prevent harm to yourself or your
equipment.
Activating Proto-Sound 2.0 Conventional Mode Features:
Proto-Sound 2.0 features are activated by sequences of Bell and Whistle
button pushes described below. Please read the full descriptions of each
feature before using it. To use these buttons to activate features rather than to
blow the whistle or ring the bell, you should press the buttons for a shorter
time (1/2 second); you may need to practice your timing to make this work
smoothly.
Feature to Be Activated:
Passenger Station Announcements
Speed Control On/Off
Lockinto a Direction/Unlock
Reset to Factory Defaults
Button Code:
1 Bell, 2 Whistles
1 Whistle, 2 Bells (from Neutral only)
1 Whistle, 3 Bells
1 Whistle, 5 Bells(fromNeutralonly)

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Passenger Station Announcements (PSA):
Your engine is equipped with a sound package of passenger station
announcements that you can play when you pull into a passenger station.
Each sequence described below will play as long as it is left on, randomly
generating sounds, but be sure to allow approximately 30 seconds
between the button pushes described below to allow the PSA sufficient
time to run through each sequence.
1.
To cue the sound system to play the PSA, quickly but firmly press the Bell
button once followed by 2 quick but firm presses of the Whistle button while
the engine is moving. As soon as you have keyed in this code, you will hear
the announcement for the upcoming stop and the bell will begin to ring.
2.
Press the Direction button or drop and advance the throttle once to stop the
engine. This will trigger the first sequence of PSA. The reverse unit is
temporarily disabled so that the train will not move as you use the Direction
button to trigger the sounds, and Proto-Sound 2.0 has disabled operator
control over the Whistle and Bell buttons until the full PSA sequence is
complete.
3.
After waiting about 30 seconds for that sequence to run, press the Direction
button again to trigger the second sequence of PSA.
4.
After about 30 seconds, press the Direction button again to trigger the third
PSA sequence.
5.
Again, after allowing about 30 seconds for that sequence to run, press the
Direction button one more time to trigger the fourth and final PSA sequence.
You will know it is the final sequence when you hear the “All Aboard!” call.
The bell will begin to chime and within a few seconds, the engine will start
and move out on its own at the current throttle setting, in the same direction it
was traveling when you began the sequence. Once the bell turns off, the
operator regains control of the transformer’s bell and whistle buttons and can
ring the bell or blow the whistle as usual.

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Tips on Using PSA
• You can terminate PSA at anytime by turning off power to the
track for 15 seconds.
• You do not have to be in Forward to use PSA. At the conclusion
of the full sequence, the train will pull away from the station in
whatever direction you were going when you activated the feature.
• You can use PSA even if you are double-heading with another
engine. If the second engine is not equipped with PSA at all, you
must remember not to leave the throttle at a high voltage level
once you have stopped the engine to run the PSA. Otherwise, the
engine without PSA will begin vibrating on the track as its motors
strain to move the train, since they cannot be automatically
disabled during the PSA cycle. If the second engine is an original
Proto-Sound engine equipped with PSA, you may choose to
disable it when used in double-heading operations, so you will not
experience competing PSA sounds. To disable PSA in an original
Proto-Sound engine, see the operating instructions for that engine.
• PSA can be triggered from Neutral. It will operate the same as if
triggered while in motion except that, at the conclusion of the
PSA, the engine will depart in the next direction of travel, as
opposed to the direction it was traveling before entering Neutral.

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Speed Control:
M.T.H. engines equipped with Proto-Sound 2.0 have speed control capabilities
that allow the engine to maintain a constant speed up and down grades and
around curves, much like an automobile cruise control. You can add or drop
cars on the run, and the engine will maintain the speed you set.
While the engine is programmed to start with the speed control feature
activated, you can opt to turn it off. This means the engine’s speed will fall as
it labors up a hill and increase as it travels downward. It is also affected by the
addition or releasing of cars while on the run.
To turn speed control on and off,
put the engine in neutral, then press the
transformer’s Whistle button one time then immediately press the Bell button
two times. Two horn blasts will indicate that the engine has made the change.
Repeat the 1 whistle, 2 bells code to return it to the other state.
You will want
to do this during the initial neutral upon start-up if you ever couple this
engine to another engine that is not equipped with speed control to avoid
damaging the motors in either engine.
Each time you shut down the engine
completely, it will automatically turn speed control on.
Note: When speed control is turned off, the Proto-Sound 2.0 system will limit
the volume in order to operate more smoothly at lower voltages. Full volume
is restored upon reactivating speed control.
Lock into a Direction:
You can lock your engine into a direction (forward, neutral, or reverse) so that
it will not change directions. To do this, put the engine into the direction you
want (or into neutral to lock it into neutral), run it at a very slow crawl (as
slowly as it will move without halting), and quickly but firmly press the Horn
button once followed immediately by three presses of the Bell button.
Two
horn blasts will indicate that the engine has made the change.
The engine will
not change direction (including going into neutral) until you repeat the 1 horn,
3 bells code to return the engine to its normal condition, even if the engine is
kept without power for extended periods of time.

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Tinplate Traditions 408E Electric Engine
Reset to Factory Defaults:
To override the settings you currently have assigned to the engine and reset it
to its factory defaults, while in Neutral press the Whistle button once, followed
immediately by five quick pushes of the Bell button.Two horn blasts will
indicate that the engine has made the change.
Automatic Sounds:
Certain Proto-Sound 2.0 sound effects automatically play in programmed
conventional mode conditions:
• Squealing Brakes play any time the engine’s speed decreases rapidly.
• Cab Chatter plays at random intervals when the engine idles in neutral.
• Engine Start-up and Shut-down sounds play when the engine is initially
powered on or is powered off for five seconds or more.