As a relative newcomer to model railroading, when something mechanical comes along, I sometimes need help figuring it out.
I bought a Fleischmann locomotive that had obviously been out of service for sometime. I lubricated it up really well and it ran for a bit. Now the wheels will turn about 3/4 of the way around and then stop. If I turn them with my fingers, there is definitely a spot which binds. There is no obvious way to disassemble the gear train without destroying something. I don’t see anything that seems to be causing the binding. Has anyone else encountered this problem?
Another issue is with a Bachmann Old Timer I have set up on a display of ceramic houses. Sometimes the drive shaft doesn’t engage all the way and it sounds like a bee. I can usually get it moving again and it’s ok for a while. The big problem though is that the cars derail I’m using the Bachmann EZ track with no apparent rough spots between the rails. If I stand and watch the train, it runs perfectly. When I go do something else, it immediately derails.
Any advice to a frustrated train owner?[censored]
You didn’t say if the Fleischman is a steam or diesel model. There’s a lot of mechanism to bind up in a steam loco, especially in the side rods and valve gear.
The Bachman’s (non-Spectrum) are not exactly the best quality, which probably explains your motor disengaging problem. Check to see if it has a motor mount screw that may have worked loose a bit, but it may be the motor shaft spinning in the gear.
The last part about derailing when you’re not watching is according to Murphy’s Law. You’ll also see the same thing when you have people visiting and they watch it run.
On the german made loco, check each of the pens or screws on the wheels and see if one of them has worked there way out and is catching on the other side rods. As far as lubing up the loco, don’t get carried away. You also might have the wheels out of quarter, which means timing. How old is the loco anyway.
The train derailing though, you might have a car with wheels out of gage or a bump in the rails your not seeing, is it sitting on some kind of white fuzzy cloth that looks like snow in your little city scene?
As for the loco, I am not real familar with that loco, so I will let someone else step in on it.
Only a guess here…but my feeling is that an internal gear has jumped a tooth or two and is now out of sync.That could happen with highly worn gears and more likely after lubing as you said you did.Was the loco already well worn before being out of service?You’ll have to investigate this as it may be the case.Don’t get me wrong though,lubing isn’t the cause…it only accelerated the event a little as gears got more slippery.
I don’t know how old the loco is - I bought it used at a train show. It looks good cosmetically but I’m beginning to think it was gently used for a long time. I guess it’s time to either quit looking for low cost bargains or quit playing with trains. No choice here - gotta buy a couple of good locos for the village.
Thanks for the advice and observations.
I am not familiar with either of these locos but here is a basic check you can do: On the Fleischmann, first check the side rods for binding as has been covered above. Then turn the drivers on one side so all the crank screws/pins are pointed down at 6:00. Place the engine on a temporary track at eye level; now look at the other side. They should be either at 3:00 or 9:00.This is called quartered-25% ahead or behind the other side. If they are all at say 2:30 or 3:30 don’t worry about that as long as they are ALL the same. You may find one spun. You can try turning it back by hand but it probably will not last, my guess would be a new driver. Maybe somebody familiar with the idiosyncrasies of these engines will help out, as this one is not too popular here in the US. I have no idea what the parts situation is for this brand.
On the Bachman, you probably need a new shaft if it is spinning on a rod. Contact Bachman, for a flat fee they will fix it for you or may sell you the part you need.
Your cars wheel sets need to be checked with a wheel gage available from a LHS or online. Sometimes turning the cars around one at a time and running them will show which one is the troublemaker, sometimes not. Usually if you have bad track a steam engine will find it real quick. You did not say that the engine was derailing so your track should be okay but it would not hurt to take a another look at it.
You will find, as most of us have, the frustration level is in direct proportion to the quality of the equipment you have. It will drop dramatically with better quality equipment.
Jim