Is there a Battery Cable to support the sound in the Lionel 6-82806 Union Pacific FEF-3 #844? The sound keeps dropping out as the engine goes over my #5 Atlas switches, especially the double slip switch in the inner main line. There is no mention of a battery cable in the instructions. The footprint of the tender's center pick-up rollers hits the dead zone of the switch. It sure could use a battery cable for sound support. Getting into the tender is also a problem. It does not separate bottom from body shell.
The engine also has to be run at speed step "110" or higher to get the engine to go over the double slip switch with the smoke "ON". The engine can make it across the switch with the smoke "OFF" at speed step "45". When the engine stalls in the dead zone, it only takes 1/8" movement forward or reverse, to get the engine moving again.
The engine has been back to Lionel for service twice so far. I hate to send it back a third time. I have only run it three times, always packing it up for return and repair. The rear pick-up roller has a very short arm that may be able to be replaced with a longer armed pick-up roller, thus increasing the engines center roller footprint.
My new Lionel 6-84116 Legacy K-4 #5432 had the same problem, (stopping on #5 switches), so I put the longer arm pick-up rollers from the tender, onto the K-4. Then I put the short arm pick-ups from the engine on the tender. The K-4 now runs at speed step "10" instead of "110" over my #5 switches (with the smoke ON). Switching from short to longer arm pick-up rollers added a full 1/2" to the K-4 footprint for the center pick-up rollers.
Is anyone who uses Atlas O Century Track having problems with engines stopping at #5 switches?
