I recently received 2 aristocraft engines on ebay, one rio grande U-25B, and one SP black widow FA-1. The U-25B has the tips of the axles slightly bent, causing it to rock back and forth. The FA-1 has a crack in the part of the gear that secures the axle to the gear. Because it is cracked in just one axel, it probably won’t make much of a noticeable difference, but it will put more stress on the other gears, creating a higher risk of the other gears getting cracked, or stripped. Anyway, this brings me to my question. Where can I find aristocraft replacement axels, gears and parts? I can’t find anything on ebay, and my local train store dosnt have much in the way of g scale. Help!!
Thanks,
Nathaniel Nagel
Nathaniel,
Is the gear split like the one below (note this is an LGB loco)?
I have heard - but not tried - you can place a metal band around the gear over the split to hold it all together.
Eric
Eric, that is an interesting solution, one that I will look into. It would have to be a rather small metal band to fit into the place I circled in the picture. I also put a q-tip by it so you could judge the size. I was thinking, would other brands of axle/gears work? USA trains uses what looks like the same axle and gear setup in their deisels. Wonder if that would work?
-Nathaniel Nagel
Nathaniel, your photo didn’t show. Maybe you could make a collar out of a sliver of brass tubing? That’s where I’d start. Then you could cut / file / grind it down slowly to fit. As for other brands, I won’t hazard a guess. It would have to physically fit, have the same number of teeth, and be materially strong enough to do the job. I am sure there are other things to consider, too. Alternatively, if you have access to a 3D printer, maybe you could make your own?
You can buy replacement 2 axle motor blocks from Bachmann now. They have a slight difference in mounting, as they are the newer versions, that do not have the fragile axle tips in the journals.
If you go this way, there are tips on my site about the mounting, very simple.
Greg
I will look into the tubing solution. Sounds like a great option. I have recently been thinking about buying a lathe to make my own axles as well. I also received a refund from the ebay seller I bought the black widow from. I will probably purchase a new one and look at selling the one I have as is.
I have not had the best experiences with bachmann, but I will look at it. Thanks.
Aristo and Bachmann made in same factory, by Kader…
Bachmann selling Aristo eggliner, which has same basic motor block.
Also, does your motor block have axle tips protruding into the sideframes, or is there a screw securing the wheel to the axle?
Greg
I dunno, Greg. He said the axle tips are bent, so maybe his has axle tips. Oh, I’m in for a phone call now!
Often, I find on the USA versions, with same spec axle gears, a cracked gear sleeve allows the axle to move around making it look like the tips are bent. Flip it over and apply power, see if the wheels run true.
I pull the wheelsets, pull the wheels out, find a nice brass tube, cut and press it on with a socket in a vise. Then press the wheels back in with the same vise and a couple of big nuts or small sockets.
I don’t recall the size, just grab a handful of tubes and check. Champher the end before you press it on.
I HATE this lack of spell check.
Nathaniel, I found a cheap and easy way to repair the gears. Dismantel the axel from gearbox and remove axel from broke side.Then take sewing thread and wrap the broken part tightly with thread.The idea is to wrap the plastic from the center to the end and back. Then tie the ends together. Then coat the strings with liqluid cement or cyano. Give it time to dry and then replace axel. Check wheel gauge before reinstalling This works on all manafactures gears. I have done it on my own besides some of my club members.
Bob Rys fixitbobbe@cox.net
Bob, so in concept and appearance, this is like a decorative rope lash on railing in a seafood restaurant, where the line wraps around the railing and then is fixed in place with some sort of adhesive. When making the ends fast, do you want this under tension, or are you relying on the drying glue to tighten the lashing around the gear as it dries? Really clever idea. Eric
That kind of fix has been used to fix the USAT split axle problem also, although I have seen fishing line and epoxy glue.
You can convert old style 2 axle blocks (with the axle tips) to the new style (no tips). You need a couple of spacer blocks to mount the replacement motor block from Bachmann. These spacers are sold by camarillopacific.com
Greg