# remote control track and 3472 milk car



## dipdog (Jan 8, 2012)

I have another question about an old lionel set that I am trying to bring back to life. 

I have a milk car, no 3472, and a section of remote control track. I also have an automatic dump car, no 3469, and an NYC box car, no x3464. The wiring on the milk car had fallen apart (one of the wires separated from the coupler), so I opened it up and spliced/soldered some new wires. 

When I run the cars over the the remote control track, they uncouple when I hit the uncouple button on the track control. When I center the box car over the red dot on the remote track and hit the uncouple button, the magnet pulls down and the little man pops out. When I center the dump car over the red dot on the remote track and hit the unload button, the dump car tips over like it's supposed to. But when I run the milk car over the red dot on the remote track, as soon as the front coupler passes the red dot, with no buttons being pushed, the coupler pulls down to touch the track (the track that's past the red dot) and holds to the track (so that the little man pops outside of the car and stays popped out) until the front coupler has passed over the track. If I pick up the car and turn it around, the same thing happens to the other coupler. 

Any ideas why this is happening?


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## bigdogjeff1 (Sep 11, 2010)

as far as the remote track sometimes the red button pops up some to interfere with cars. so push down on the red area with a little pressure and you may here it snap down a little then try your car again i had this happen before.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

The Lionel 3472 Milk Car is electrically operated by the sliding shoe pickups, so the magnet in the center of the track should have no effect on them. If they're staying engaged, it sounds like the track is wired wrong or the control is sticking. The car may have also been wired incorrectly.

Here's the Maintenance Manual for the car: Maintenance of Lionel 3472 Milk Car


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## servoguy (Jul 10, 2010)

If a car has electromagnetic couplers operated by sliding shoes, one of the couplers will operate when the unload button is pressed. That is because the unload button makes one of the auxiliary rails hot and the other one ground. The uncouple button makes both rails hot.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

My version with the plastic doors (1950 style) has magnetic couplers, not coil couplers. The 1949 3472 had magnetic couplers as well. The 3462 was the one with coil couplers.


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## dipdog (Jan 8, 2012)

What was happening was that there was a draw on the circuit or a short circuit or something (the lights would dim) when the front shoe passed the red circle (as it made contact with the back auxilliary rail, with no buttons pushed), then the little guy would pop out and stay popped out as the other shoe passed the red circle. If I picked up the car, turned it around and ran it with the other end going first, the opposite would 
happen. The little guy would pop out and stay popped out as the front shoe passed the red circle, and then the lights would dim as the second shoe passed the red circle. And each time I'd see a little spark as the shoe contacted that back auxilliary rail

I opened up the control box for the track and noticed that there were four separate plates, one soldered to each wire. They make contact with each when you push one of the red uncouple/unload buttons on top. But the plates were not straight. The bottom ones were bent out a little, so that they never made contact. 

Anyhow, I'm assuming something might be wrong with the remote control box, so I'm going to try replacing it. There was some sort of black round metal bead that fell out while I was messing with it, I think it was separating the plates somehow, and when it fell out, the whole thing stopped working altogether (even the uncouple won't work now). So I'll have to replace it anyhow. 

I did want to make sure of something though. Is it correct to say that the dump car and box car (and all of the couplers between the cars) work off of the magnetic portion of the track (the red button) and the milk car works off of a totally different part (the auxilliary rails)? In other words, is it possible that the box car, the dump car and all of the magnetic couplers between the cars could have been working correctly on the magnetic portion of the track, which was working, while the milk car was not working because the auxilliary rails were not working correctly? I'm just trying to trouble shoot if it was the track that was broken, or the milk car. I'm thinking it was the track. I'm pretty sure I wired the milk car back together correctly.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Yep, the bead that fell out keeps the contact strips separated. It's actually not metal. 

Here's some information on wiring the RCS/UCS tracks, should help you figure out what you have. RCS/UCS/6019 Remote Control Sets


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## dipdog (Jan 8, 2012)

That is really cool, thx!
It's the UCS. And I guess the fourth plate in the controller was supposed to be bent after all!


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## dipdog (Jan 8, 2012)

I bought a new remote for the UCS, and the milk car works now (although I noticed that it works when either button is pushed, not sure if that is normal?). Looking back on it, and after looking at the diagrams, I figured it must have been the remote since the auxilliary rails were activating even when the buttons weren't being pushed (looks like there shouldn't be any electrical current through them until the button is pushed down). 

I also had one of the two switches in the circle tested, and I was told it wasn't working right. So I had it repaired. 

But it's still doing the same thing that I've noticed it doing in the past. In the past it kept drifting into the wrong position. At one point, I even saw it smoking. Now, after being repaired, it immediately swings into the turn position, regardless of what position the other switch is in (my layout is a simple oval with a circle inside it on one end). If I try to open it, it just buzzes back into the same position, even if I unwire the remote. Is there something simple that I'm missing? I have one of the insulating pins in the inside rail of each arm of the "y".


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## dipdog (Jan 8, 2012)

Never mind, sorry; put the insulating pin in the wrong rail  Need to read the directions first before writing in!


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## servoguy (Jul 10, 2010)

You will need to tell us what switch you have. What is the number? 022, 1122?


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## dipdog (Jan 8, 2012)

It's an 022, but everythings working fine now. The problems in the beginning of the thread were likely insulating pin on wrong rail (doh!) and bad remote for utility track


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