Lionel Shay cherry switch adjustment

Sometimes you just need to loosen the mounting screws on the switch and reposition or bend the switch actuating tab. And sometimes the switch is bad. 

Thank you CJACK.  I'll give it a try.

It was a broken wire to the first lead on the cherry switch.  Re soldered it works great.!!!

do you have to take the shell off to get to this?  what does it look like?  I had this problem on one of mine and I sent it in to be fixed.  came back fine, but would rather do it myself next time.  do the legacy units have this switch as well?  thanks

I'm pretty sure that most Legacy locomotives generate the chuffs from the flywheel, I think Jon Z. mentioned that recently.  I looked at the parts list for my Legacy 2-truck Shay, and there is no cherry switch listed.

thanks grj

John, his is TMCC.  I would do what Chuck stated.  It will work.  The cherry switch is very cheap.  The shipping cost more than the switch.  I would order a few to justify the shipping.  The same switch is used in TMCC and the early Legacy with modular boards.  In TMCC N/C fires the chuff pull up, in Legacy, N/O does the job.

I know Marty, I was answering the question above my post about Legacy. 

A vast majority of the time I just have to bent the lever slightly to get them working again.  Most that I've looked at have very little room to move the switch, so bending the lever is my usual fix.  A shot of contact cleaner for good measure is added.  If that doesn't do it, it's replacement time.

WB47,

  Yes my Shay is TMCC and very easy to get to, just take off the back truck and loosen the big screw holding the switch to the frame.  A little tight but I did get the soldering iron in and holding the wire with a pair if tweezers worked well.

hey this helped me a lot thanks.

my elk river shay tmcc had the chuff come and go then went to a single chuff when it cared to!

amazing a whole $1.50 part and it chuffs again as it used to guess I got my moneys worth out of the original cherry switch.

the tether was breaking apart so at same time ordered it and another 8 traction tires for it is running nicely now.

a side issue on this how large a radius curved track is needed so the side drive can run to the outside of the curve as it sure isn't 0-54 as the rods come out of the universal joints.