B_Kosanda
Member
I never would have thought this was the problem with my sound-equipped Kato AC4400. The sound produced by the speaker was very muted and distorted. I thought the decoder was shot. When I opened up the locomotive to begin replacing the decoder, I was surprised to see metal filings stuck to the speaker.
I guess I should not have been surprised. This speaker rides about 1/8" above the track and has a very strong magnet. Any magnetic debris was attracted through the grid on the bottom of the loco. I never suspected this could have been the problem. Now here's something I never saw in the installation manual! I had done some grinding on a part of the track to clean up some excess solder and to try to even out a rail joint. I assume this loco did a nice job cleaning up the filings. There's a leeson here somewhere...
Bill
I guess I should not have been surprised. This speaker rides about 1/8" above the track and has a very strong magnet. Any magnetic debris was attracted through the grid on the bottom of the loco. I never suspected this could have been the problem. Now here's something I never saw in the installation manual! I had done some grinding on a part of the track to clean up some excess solder and to try to even out a rail joint. I assume this loco did a nice job cleaning up the filings. There's a leeson here somewhere...
Bill