MTHTrains PREMIER 4-4-2 ATLANTIC E-6 Operating Instructions Manual

PREMIER 4-4-2 ATLANTIC E-6

STEAM ENGINE

OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS

This Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steamer features a die-cast boiler and tender and
operates on O-31 track. This Premier Steam Engine contains state-of-the-art electronics
with many built-in automatic features for incredibly realistic 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 21), and is compatible with most other 3-rail 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.

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Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steam Engine

Table of Contents

Set Up 3
Basic Operation 4

Transformer Controls 4
Throttle 4

Volume Control 4

Proto-Sound 2.0 Operation 5

Activating Proto-Sound 2.0 Conventional Mode Features 5
Passenger Station Announcements (PSA) 6
Tips on Using PSA 7

Proto-Coupler® Operation 8
Speed Control 8

Lock into a Direction State 9
Reset to Factory Defaults 9
Automatic Sounds 9

Maintenance 10

ProtoSmoke Unit Operation 10
Lubrication and Greasing Instructions 12
Locomotive Traction Tire Replacement 13
Locomotive Light Bulb Replacement 14
Self-Charging Battery Back-Up 17

Troubleshooting 18
Compatibility 20
Transformer Compatibility Chart 21
Additional Features with DCS Remote Control System 22
Safety Precautions 24
Service and Warranty Information 28

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Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steam Engine

Set Up

There are a couple of simple steps you must take before operating this Premier
steamer.

1. Although the engine was lubricated at the factory, you should lubricate all
side rods and linkage components and pickup rollers to prevent them from
squeaking. Use light household oil and follow the lubrication points marked

“L” in Fig. 6 on pg. 12. Do not over-oil. Use only a drop or two on each pivot
point

2. Prime the operating smoke unit with smoke fluid before operating. Add
15-20 drops of smoke fluid through the smokestack (see Fig. 3), then gently

blow into the stack to eliminate any air bubbles in the fluid.

3. If you choose not to prime the unit with fluid, turn the smoke unit switch
located under the engine to the OFF position (see Fig. 4). Running the
engine without a primed smoke unit may cause damage. See the

“ProtoSmoke Unit Operation” section of this book for more information on
smoke unit maintenance.

4. Place the engine on the track, then insert the reverse unit plug that extends
out of the tender into the receptacle at the back of the boiler cab (Figure 1).

WARNING: DO NOT CONNECT THIS ENGINE TO A TENDER
FROM ANOTHER ENGINE; IT MAY CAUSE SERIOUS DAMAGE.

Look at the bottom of the engine and tender where each will have a
color-coded stamp. If they match you may connect those two pieces; if not,
don’t.

5. Connect the draw bar between the
engine and tender. The draw bar hole
located farthest from the tender is for
applications such as display. The second
hole is for normal operation on O-31

track.

At this point, you are ready to begin
running your engine.

Figure 1. Connect the Tender to the
Engine

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Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steam Engine

Basic Operation

Throttle

– Throttle up the power to your track. Give about 10-14 volts or
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 whistle, 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 whistle 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.

Volume Control – To adjust

the volume of all sounds made by
this engine, turn the master
volume control knob located
under the water hatch on the

tender clockwise to increase the
volume and counter-clockwise to
decrease the volume (see Fig. 2).

Proto-Sound 2.0

Volume Adjustment Knob

Figure 2. Manually Adjusting the Proto-Sound

2.0 Volume

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Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steam 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.

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Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steam 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 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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Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steam 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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Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steam Engine

Proto-Coupler® Operation

This locomotive is equipped with a coil-wound Proto-Coupler for remote
uncoupling action. Because the Proto-Coupler is controlled through the
Proto-Sound 2.0 microprocessor, it does not require an uncoupling track
section or modification to your layout to function. You can fire the coupler
from neutral or while in motion. Use the code shown below (and in the chart

on pg. 5) to fire the coupler.

Rear Coupler:

To fire the rear coupler, press the Bell button once followed immediately by
three pushes of the Whistle button. The sound of the liftbar and air line
depletion will play, and the knuckle will be released.

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 whistle 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.

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Premier 4-4-2 Atlantic E-6 Steam Engine

Lock into a Directional State:

You can lock your engine into a directional state (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 state, even if
the engine is kept without power for extended periods of time.

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 whistle
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.