Trail will only go backwards! Help

[WarrenW]

I assembled my O-27 gauge track in an oval and placed the train on it. My controller has 2 wires only. I held one to the center track and one on the outer track. The train only goes backwards. Even if I switch the wires, it still goes backwards.

The controller has a dial for the speed and 2 other buttons. The top button makes the train go faster but do not know what its for. The other button below it has a up/down arrow and it does nothing. I thought it may change the direction of the train but does not.

Can anyone suggest what to try next? I'm sure I'm doing something stupid and wrong!

Thanks

Warren

 

[WarrenW]

Nevermind, I found a switch on the bottom of the engine and now I can switch directions with my transformer. I've got to figure all this stuff out!

 

[Union Pacific]

I am not in O but....
get a DPDT switch and wire it between the track and transformer it will help no matter how small the layout.

thanx, Ben

 

[60103]

This is O-27, running on AC. I bought a DPDT switch 50 years ago and it didn't do me any good.
Reversing on tinplate trains is usually a "sequence" reverse. The engine moves onward one step in the sequence every time the power goes off. Sequence is usually Fwd-stop-rev-stop-fwd... or fwd-rev-fwd... Lionel had a lever on the loco (I think Warren found it) to cut out the sequence. This is handy for displays or if you have dirty track or if you don't like backing up the train every time you stop at a station.
I suspect the buttons on the transformer are whistle and direction. The whistle button puts a DC component in the power that operates the whistle and adds a bit to the voltage. The direction button cuts the power when pushed. (I don't like it because it stops the train dead and then reverses it at full speed.)