@jini5 posted:GGG yes it is ps3 the latest MTH restoration big boy in glossy paint. It wont run at all if the firemann/conductor side outer rail is not connected to ground via z4000/TIU.( DCS wont find the loco). I don't believe it is up to me to go into this loco and void the warranty. Rich at MTH reached out to me in an email but I have not heard back from him in a few days. Not sure where I am at with this. When I do get it to run it will not pull worth a s.....! I am comparing this new p3 loco to my p2 big boy. My p2 will walk up my grades at 5 SMPH with 7 Lionel 21" cars and a heavy diecast tender. This new p3 will barely if at all make it up the grade at 5MPH with only the diecast tender. So there are more issues with this loco. Hopefully MTH gets back to me. Looking like it will go back to my dealer probably for a refund. Not happy I waited over a year and find myself out of luck. This is why I don't care for built to order.
Adding to my post above........In regards to pulling power......I downsized my grades......I went from a 6 3/4 rise in 8' to a 5 1/2 rise in 8'. This now allows the restoration BB to go up this grade smoothly in as little as 3 Scale MPH. The steeper grade was making the wheels slip even with new traction tires. A few times I could even get it to stall. Keep in mind I am pulling 7 Lionel 21" cars and a heavy die cast AUX tender. I still have not pinned down my ground issue that I talked about in the first post of this thread. I still am not too certain about opening the tender due to warranty being voided. MTH has not reached out to me yet. It has been a few weeks. I guess I could just return it for a refund per the warranty since my dealer does not do repairs. Heres a few pics
