My SD38 is Back in Service

Several months ago, last year sometime actually, the LED ditch lights on my GT SD38 inexplicably went out and would not come back on.  Not having any idea what I was doing, I tried in vain to get them working again.  Failing at that, I put the engine away in it's box and stored it in my cupboard.

I pulled the SD38 out again just this week, to take another crack at getting the ditch lights working again.

Here it is earlier this week.  The headlight at the top of the cab work, but not the LED ditch lights.

Here it is on the bench, opened up.  I'm looking at this as a bundle of wires, as I don't know or understand anything about wiring.  The lighting was all contracted out for the LED ditch light installation almost 9 years ago.  I've lost track of where the fellow went that did the work for me back then.

Anyway, after staring at this wirey mess for a minute or two, I took the bull by the horns and jiggled the wires.

And also somehow in all this I managed to knock off both of the cab's sunshades.

With the wires jiggled, I placed the engine on the layout track, and the unthinkable happened.  I tried the lights, and they worked.  Imagine that !

Here we go, with the shell back in place, couplers re-installed, powered up, and the lights actually still working.  But I've still got to replace or repair those sunshades.

I've always really liked this engine, so I'm happy to have it back in service.  As I was running the SD38 around the layout for the first time in 8 or 9 months, I thought I might as well have it drag the CMX track cleaner car around and get the rails shined up.

So, not much else going on here this past week, but at least I got that much accomplished.

Have a good week out there.  Happy Canada Day next Wednesday.