I just got a great deal on a Bachmann Spectrum 80 ton 3 truck shay, without sound, DCC ready. This is my first shay, and I decided to buy it because its mostly metal and very detailed. I also wanted something small for a change, the historical look of smaller steam (not to mention practicality) is growing on me.
Anyway, I’ve tried breaking it in, running it forwards and backwards at various speeds for about an hour or two, as the instructions said. But I’m kinda surprised how loud the motor is grinding, especially in reverse, its worse at slow speeds too. Should I bring it in to the shop to have it greased? Or do all HO shays make this loud grindy noise due to all the gears?
Overall, I’m happy with my purchase. I got it brand new at half the retail value, the detail is impeccable, and it has a red firebox glow and bright headlight, along with back up light. Its West Virginia Paper and Pulp co. in case anyone is wondering. It makes a nice addition to my collection and I’m impressed that Bachmann made this thing so heavy and durable. It pulls like crazy too.
Sad to say you might have a cracked gear problem common to bachmann shays. You could try some lebelle greese on the beveled gears (the drive shaft gears that mesh with the trush wheels) but that might not help much.
Mine is very quiet.
NWSL offers a great metal replacement set designed specifically for the cracked gear problem.
I don’t think gears are the problem. If it “pulls like crazy”, then the gears definitely aren’t slipping.
Most older and non-brass HO Shays are noisy because they commonly use spur gear transmissions, which typically whine and sometimes growl a bit. Bachmann instead uses a dual worm and worm gear reduction, so even with all those gears, the drive remains practically silent.
My guess is your Shay is noisy due to poor bearings, which is a problem my Shay’s motor has. A little oil fixes it for a while, but it always seems to come back.
When I first bought my Bachmann Spectrum Shay a few years ago it had a high-pitched whine that no amount of gear-greasing could eliminate. Taking the boiler off looked formidable (so I could oil the motor bearings) Instead I flipped the engine over and let a couple drops of LaBelle #108 oil drip on the motor shaft between pulley and motor, then tilted the engine vertical to allow the oil to seep toward the motor bearing. This didn’t quiet the noise. I stored the loco for about three years, took it out and ran it and it’s quieter. A mystery I won’t question. Maybe the oil seeped in where it did some good. Anyhow here’s good instructions below for taking the boiler off and lubing the motor bearings, even under the bearing caps. Thanks to Russ.
At one of the switchbacks on the Alishan Forestry Railway (Taiwan) I got a real close-up (as in, right outside the window of the passenger car I was riding) of the gears of a 28 ton Class B Shay. When it started to roll downgrade the gear train clattered like a bunch of kids dragging sticks along a picket fence. They were covered with a thick, sloppy coat of graphite grease.
I’ve often wondered what they would have sounded like without lubrication…
Slightly (but not really) [#offtopic] - just about the funniest rail-related thing I’ve ever seen was one of the Alishan 18 ton Class A Shays with an empty boiler. The off-center weight of the machinery caused it to list like a sailboat beating into a stiff breeze.