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RailKing Dash-8 Operating Manual

COUPLER PROBLEMS

REMEDY

The ProtoCoupler won’t let the engine uncouple on the 
“Fly”.

The power required to fire the coupler open when the
engine is on the “Fly” may be greater than the
ProtoSound system is capable of providing.  As a
result, you may experience times when the coupler
won’t fire open.  Unfortunately, the only solution is to
stop the engine and fire the coupler in Neutral.  If that
doesn’t resolve the problem, try lubricating the coupler
knuckle and rivet as explained in the ProtoCoupler
Operation section.

I can’t get the coupler to arm or fire open when I press
the whistle button.

You may be pressing the whistle button too quickly.
See the third remedy in the horn section above.
Another possibility is that ProtoSounds has been
programmed to turn the coupler function off.  See the
section entitled “Using RESET to Program
ProtoSounds”

Only one coupler will function when I press the whistle
button.

Only one coupler can operate at any one time.  Use
the coupler selection switch on the bottom of the
chassis to choose which coupler you want active.

DIESEL START/CAB CHATTER 

REMEDY

Sometimes the diesel start sounds don’t occur when I
first turn power on.

Occasionally the diesel engine start up sounds may
not occur when power is turned back on within 5
seconds of being shut off.  Wait 10 -- 15 seconds
before repowering.

Sometimes the Cab Chatter sounds don’t play.

The Cab Chatter sounds only play in neutral and
ProtoSounds may be programmed to turn the sounds
off.  See the section entitled “Using RESET to
Program ProtoSounds”

LOCKOUT PROBLEMS

REMEDY

I can’t get the engine to run after I power up the
transformer.  It sits still with the diesel compressor
sounds running.

The engine is locked out into the Neutral position.
Follow the unlocking procedures in the Lockout
Section.

The engine won’t lock out into Forward, Neutral or
Reverse even after the short horn blast sounds.

You are waiting too long to turn the throttle back on
after the short horn blast sounds.  The power must be
turned back on immediately after the short horn blast
sounds or the engine will go back into RESET.  See
the lockout procedure in the Lockout Section.

VOLUME PROBLEMS

REMEDY

 When I try to run the engine, the diesel volume is OFF 
or very low.

The diesel volume has been programmed at a reduced 
volume or to be silent.  Go to RESET Feature 6 and
adjust the volume.  See the section entitled “Using
RESET to Program ProtoSounds” for more
information.

When I try to set the diesel volume, it resets itself to
the original volume after I selected the new volume.

You are trying to set the volume with a poorly charged
or dead backup battery.  See the section on Battery
Backup for more information.

When I try to set the Diesel Volume to O Volume, I still 
hear the cab chatter sounds.

When the diesel volume is set to O, you will hear the
Cab Chatter sounds because setting the diesel volume 
only controls the sound of the diesel engine itself.  All
other sounds, including Cab Chatter, the horn and bell
will continue to play at the volume level set by the
manual volume control knob located on the bottom of
the chassis.  See the section entitled “ProtoSound
Volume Adjustment” for more information.

The sounds seem distorted, especially when the
whistle or bell is activated.

The overall ProtoSound volume has been set to high
creating the distorted sounds.  Try turning the volume
control knob located on the bottom of the chassis
counter clockwise to reduce the overall volume level.

Summary of Contents for RAILKING DASH-8

Page 1: ...ives rolling stock and accessories The locomotive is equipped with either an electronic horn or the ProtoSound Digital Sound and train control system which contains several deluxe features that are si...

Page 2: ...ontrol Functions 25 Locking The Engine Into Forward or Reverse 25 Unlocking The Engine 25 Locking The Engine Into Neutral 25 OIL LUBRICATION INSTRUCTIONS 27 TRACTION TIRE REPLACEMENT INSTRUCTIONS 28 L...

Page 3: ...nce the engine is placed on the track the throttle on the transformer can be advanced You will see that only the engine s lights come on and that only two dings of the ProtoSound bell occur followed b...

Page 4: ...that contains the standard forward neutral reverse states found on most reverse units However as described earlier when power is first applied to the track the reverse unit begins in RESET or what see...

Page 5: ...whistle button is depressed only one single bell chime will be heard each time the whistle button is pressed If you don t want to configure or change your locomotive using any of these programmable f...

Page 6: ...Turn the throttle to 8 volts or less any higher voltage will arm the ProtoCoupler and press the whistle button The bell should begin chiming To turn the bell off press the whistle button again If you...

Page 7: ...select either the front or rear coupler Simply slide the switch toward the direction of the coupler you want to make active SQUEAKING BRAKE SOUNDS ProtoSound equipped engines feature the ability to pl...

Page 8: ...ake sounds will likely continue playing even though the engine has come to a complete stop This annoying effect can be eliminated by simply practicing with the brake feature In no time you will quickl...

Page 9: ...d in more detail in the following sections ACTIVATING FREIGHT YARD SOUNDS Your ProtoSounds equipped engine features an operator controlled freight yard sound set Once activated this easy to use featur...

Page 10: ...d get your engine into the neutral position not RESET Once in neutral set the transformer throttle at 8 volts or less and press and hold the whistle button for at least three seconds You will hear the...

Page 11: ...e following operator controlled events control FYS s actions and sounds Event 1 Forward While the locomotive is running in forward or reverse FYS is activated by the operator pushing and holding the b...

Page 12: ...nce realism FYS has disabled the reverse phase so that it doesn t power the motors causing the engine to move backward Upon entering reverse FYS confirms to the operator that it has entered the revers...

Page 13: ...erwise the engine will just sit still until you increase the transformer throttle setting on the transformer TIPS ON USING FYS FEATURES FYS is a unique feature of ProtoSounds that is completely contro...

Page 14: ...ns To disable FYS see the section on programming RESET functions on page 28 of this manual Tip 5 It is not necessary for the squeaking brake sounds to be heard to play the FYS sounds for example the b...

Page 15: ...s should temporarily recharge the battery If the garbled or distorted sounds are reduced then your battery charge has worn down You can give your battery a full charge by leaving the engine ON in NEUT...

Page 16: ...stem and a remote control RESET option Option 6 allows you to control the volume level of the engine sounds remotely from the transformer Turning the volume adjustment knob clockwise will increase the...

Page 17: ...advance one feature at a time through the available options An air release sound is heard each time the throttle is advanced In addition there are special sounds to tell you what RESET position you ar...

Page 18: ...ou 50 volume pushing it a third time will give you 25 volume and pushing it a fourth time will give you no engine sound The microprocessor will immediately play the sound level each time the whistle b...

Page 19: ...rammed for a bell button Simply turn the throttle off and then on again to Lock In the new setting To reset the computer to its original factory default setting no separate bell button operation repea...

Page 20: ...NG FOR HORN IN NEUTRAL OPERATION If you are operating your engine with a separate bell button and want to blow your horn when your engine is in neutral you will need to program ProtoSounds to do so as...

Page 21: ...ed to play randomly by the unit s computer there is no guarantee that you won t hear the same message repeated twice or more times If you don t want to hear the Cab Chatter sounds they can be turned o...

Page 22: ...r throttle off and then on again to lock in the new setting PROGRAMMING FOR FYS OPERATION ProtoSounds is equipped with a RESET setting to turn off the Freight Yard Proto Effects FYS features This is e...

Page 23: ...t the engine s electronics have failed To activate the Remote Lockout Control setting go to RESET Feature 40 See the section entitled Using RESET To Program ProtoSounds on page 17 Once in Feature 40 p...

Page 24: ...eck each RESET feature one at a time To reset all the RESET features back to their original factory settings enter RESET and go to Feature 18 See the section entitledUsing RESET To Program ProtoSounds...

Page 25: ...THE WHISTLE BUTTON After about one second you will hear a short horn blast QUICKLY TURN THE THROTTLE BACK ON AGAIN Your engine is now locked into Forward or Reverse and it will remain so until you unl...

Page 26: ...nction operates you may hear one of the three different NEUTRAL activated sounds To unlock the engine from the NEUTRAL position follow the process to unlock the engine in the Forward or Reverse direct...

Page 27: ...Grease cannot be added to the internal gearing until the body is removed from the chassis which is held in place by four Phillips screws The screws are located on each end of the chassis as seen in F...

Page 28: ...well as poor traction especially on elevated track sections Finally dirt and oil build up can prematurely wear out the neoprene traction tires TRACTION TIRE REPLACEMENT INSTRUCTIONS Your locomotive i...

Page 29: ...e the truck sides to the truck blocks and then reassemble the chassis to the body Replacement tires are available directly from MTH Electric Trains HEADLIGHT REPLACEMENT The Dash 8 locomotive contains...

Page 30: ...epressed fully the ProtoSound circuit may not recognize the signal Try pressing the whistle button slower taking approximately 1 second to fully depress the button BELL PROBLEMS REMEDY When I press th...

Page 31: ...e transformer It sits still with the diesel compressor sounds running The engine is locked out into the Neutral position Follow the unlocking procedures in the Lockout Section The engine won t lock ou...

Page 32: ...completed This will guarantee that the system check will have been completed since the startup sounds take longer than 2 2 seconds to play If the problem persists we recommend that you operate the thr...

Page 33: ...ssenger station sound effects and operation is as realistic as possible ProtoSounds disables the reverse unit state whenever FYS is enabled This way the engine never goes into reverse as the operator...

Page 34: ...the transformer whistle button until you hear a soft warbled bell sound RESET OPERATION DEFAULT CLANKS CLINKS 6 Engine Volume Full Volume 1 Clank 5 Clinks 10 Coupler ON OFF Coupler ON 2 Clanks 0 Clink...

Page 35: ...ard Lionel 1033 U A 5 16v 90 Watt Standard Lionel 1043 U A 5 16v 90 Watt Standard Lionel 1043M U A 5 16v 90 Watt Standard Lionel 1044 U A 5 16v 90 Watt Standard Lionel 1053 U A 8 17v 60 Watt Standard...

Page 36: ...aging including its foam and plastic wrapping material so as to prevent damage to the merchandise The shipment must be prepaid and we recommend that it be insured A cover letter including your name ad...

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