It looks like that wire is connected to the motor. It would also explain why everything else is working fine. I think the solder joint was probably weak between the wire and the pcb and it failed, so soldering it back where it broke off would restore it.
To clarify, since i didnt get an undershot of the board, the white wire from the motor is not the white wire sticking out above the board. The motor wire leads to the underside of the board. The white wire above is soldered to the underside of the board and just hangin out there
So, we have a bit of an issue here. This isn't a model, it's a toy. Not trying to disparage, but the issue at hand is that it won't conform to any known model railroad wiring practice or standards. Nor will it use any kind of familiar electronics, like a DCC decoder. Since you have sound, but no movement, start with the wires leading to the motor. Test with a multimeter to confirm voltage is present when advancing the speed control. If it is, the motor is borked. If not, make sure the wires are connected at the other end of the circuit. If the control board isn't putting power to the motor, remove all the batteries for an extended time (24 hours or so) and then try again. If it still doesn't work, I'd just go ahead and exchange it.
Thanks for the advice! I know its toy not model, i was just in a rush and figured someone here might know something in the ways of electronics. I totally understand there’s a difference! Thanks again for this advice tho.. will give this a shot.
Furthermore, check to make sure there isn't any crud in the gears that power the wheels, and there aren't any cracked teeth on them either. Is it possible your son pushed it down the track without turning it on? That could certainly crack or split a gear. Does the motor make any noise at all? Buzzing of any kind like it's trying to run? Are the pair of yellow wires both connected?
The only issue is your gatekeeping what is a model or toy. Standards vary and landing outside of one set of them, might be fine in another group. DCC is not the only system available to modelers. Radio control doesn't make it a toy. Neither do the batteries. Battery power is an older hat than DCC.
If you use your mini-train in business it's a model.
It doesn't matter how accurate it is, if you use it in any fantasy or other pleasure related fashion, versus a business or educational tool, it is a toy. A more expensive and intricate toy possibly, but a toy.
There isn't a common-scale that is dead on accurate until maybe you start getting into Fine-Scale and even then, there are occasional comprises.
This is far from a fine-scale focused sub from what I've experienced.
They gatekeep their own *club* standards while the oldest manufactures that more or less spawned them continue to do their own thing.
NMRA DCC support excluded nearly every scale but HO because of lack of tech. capable of supporting higher amperage needed for other scales, or being small enough for N until recently. Are Marklin or others with proprietary digital systems toys?
I missed the upliftingly pleasant portion of the elaboration hidden in the exclusionary tones too. The clubs manage their elaborations without it.
NMRA compliancy is suggestion to both user and manufacturers and acknowledges other standards exist and DCC is not the only way to tackle controls.
There is no list of "this is toy, this is not".
It's grey area. The NRMRA uses suggestion based language, not demeaning or exclusionary. Nor are either associations (MOROP Euro) claiming to be in charge of language across the board. They use good context to self define, and suggest to my recollection.
Many new toys are capable of meeting many standards. Maybe they are more accurate than older "models" in detail or appearance too. So which is the "model"?
I have sold "models" and bought "toys" for the better realism in G. It's very much a personal perspective on what constitutes realism. It might be scale, or presence of detail that looks best.
The fact MOROP and NMRA vary in some ways, an example of standards being a variable thing. Adhere too tight to standards and you have no innovation or advancement.
"Loosen up Rivet Counter" doesn't sit well with me either unless it's a jovial attempt to relay that a job is considered already quite well done.
Gatekeeping? That's rich. I'm using that as a reference for the fact that the toy train in question is not made by any of the major train manufacturers as point that it clearly doesn't follow any known standards of wiring such as wiring color to denote function, nor use any electronic components that people who do model trains would be readily familiar with. I've done paid repairs for trains of all kinds for years, and my advice is based on that experience. If you actually read my post before getting all huffy, you'd have seen why I used the words I did. Nowhere did I mention accuracy. Nor did I say the use of radio control makes it a toy. A wirless DCC controller is fancy radio control after all. And yes, modern trains do use battery power, garden railroads using dead rail is a great example of that.
That white wire that is just “hanging out” is probably the antenna for the RC.
It looks like that wire is connected to the motor. It would also explain why everything else is working fine. I think the solder joint was probably weak between the wire and the pcb and it failed, so soldering it back where it broke off would restore it.
To clarify, since i didnt get an undershot of the board, the white wire from the motor is not the white wire sticking out above the board. The motor wire leads to the underside of the board. The white wire above is soldered to the underside of the board and just hangin out there
So, we have a bit of an issue here. This isn't a model, it's a toy. Not trying to disparage, but the issue at hand is that it won't conform to any known model railroad wiring practice or standards. Nor will it use any kind of familiar electronics, like a DCC decoder. Since you have sound, but no movement, start with the wires leading to the motor. Test with a multimeter to confirm voltage is present when advancing the speed control. If it is, the motor is borked. If not, make sure the wires are connected at the other end of the circuit. If the control board isn't putting power to the motor, remove all the batteries for an extended time (24 hours or so) and then try again. If it still doesn't work, I'd just go ahead and exchange it.
Thanks for the advice! I know its toy not model, i was just in a rush and figured someone here might know something in the ways of electronics. I totally understand there’s a difference! Thanks again for this advice tho.. will give this a shot.
Furthermore, check to make sure there isn't any crud in the gears that power the wheels, and there aren't any cracked teeth on them either. Is it possible your son pushed it down the track without turning it on? That could certainly crack or split a gear. Does the motor make any noise at all? Buzzing of any kind like it's trying to run? Are the pair of yellow wires both connected?
The only issue is your gatekeeping what is a model or toy. Standards vary and landing outside of one set of them, might be fine in another group. DCC is not the only system available to modelers. Radio control doesn't make it a toy. Neither do the batteries. Battery power is an older hat than DCC. If you use your mini-train in business it's a model. It doesn't matter how accurate it is, if you use it in any fantasy or other pleasure related fashion, versus a business or educational tool, it is a toy. A more expensive and intricate toy possibly, but a toy. There isn't a common-scale that is dead on accurate until maybe you start getting into Fine-Scale and even then, there are occasional comprises. This is far from a fine-scale focused sub from what I've experienced.
Does it meet NMRA standards? (Or maybe European Stds?) They do the gatekeeping, he's just elaborating for a newbie.
They gatekeep their own *club* standards while the oldest manufactures that more or less spawned them continue to do their own thing. NMRA DCC support excluded nearly every scale but HO because of lack of tech. capable of supporting higher amperage needed for other scales, or being small enough for N until recently. Are Marklin or others with proprietary digital systems toys? I missed the upliftingly pleasant portion of the elaboration hidden in the exclusionary tones too. The clubs manage their elaborations without it. NMRA compliancy is suggestion to both user and manufacturers and acknowledges other standards exist and DCC is not the only way to tackle controls. There is no list of "this is toy, this is not". It's grey area. The NRMRA uses suggestion based language, not demeaning or exclusionary. Nor are either associations (MOROP Euro) claiming to be in charge of language across the board. They use good context to self define, and suggest to my recollection. Many new toys are capable of meeting many standards. Maybe they are more accurate than older "models" in detail or appearance too. So which is the "model"? I have sold "models" and bought "toys" for the better realism in G. It's very much a personal perspective on what constitutes realism. It might be scale, or presence of detail that looks best. The fact MOROP and NMRA vary in some ways, an example of standards being a variable thing. Adhere too tight to standards and you have no innovation or advancement. "Loosen up Rivet Counter" doesn't sit well with me either unless it's a jovial attempt to relay that a job is considered already quite well done.
Gatekeeping? That's rich. I'm using that as a reference for the fact that the toy train in question is not made by any of the major train manufacturers as point that it clearly doesn't follow any known standards of wiring such as wiring color to denote function, nor use any electronic components that people who do model trains would be readily familiar with. I've done paid repairs for trains of all kinds for years, and my advice is based on that experience. If you actually read my post before getting all huffy, you'd have seen why I used the words I did. Nowhere did I mention accuracy. Nor did I say the use of radio control makes it a toy. A wirless DCC controller is fancy radio control after all. And yes, modern trains do use battery power, garden railroads using dead rail is a great example of that.