I have four Athearn steam locos, two x 2-8-2s and two x 4-6-2s.
After spending considerable time getting these engines to track properly and to be able to pull a decent load, they have over the past twelve months developed the following problem which is converting them into expensive dummys.
Both of the 4-6-2s and one of the 2-8-2s have had the drive gear split on the driving axle due, I believe, to the force fitting of a plastic gear onto a steel axle.
When the first gear ctacked and slipped, Athearn was able to send a replacement. However, it seems that the problem is so wide spread, Athearn have run out of parts and have no timeline as to when replacement parts will become available from their overseas (Asian) supplier.
I’ve also two x 2-8-2s belonging to friends sitting on my workbench with the same problem.
I’ve over Can$1000.00 tied up in what are fast becoming dummy locos and no help from the manufacturer. Happy camper? No way!
I’m not an Athearn guy yet but yes I just spotted a identical complaint posted on www.trainorders.com a membership paid forum on Oct 15 and yes, no parts on hand.
Up until that time I thought Athearn had a pretty good record and I just bot the Challenger.
Do they have the locos in stock? In order to maintain their creditability I would think they should
exchange the units with proof of purchase. That’s the honorable & professional thing to do.
In effect since they can’t deliver, they have defaulted on their warranty which says" We warranty
against factory defects provided we don’t find any signs of unusual wear or customer abuse".
www.horizonhobby.com bot these guys out. Wonder what their take on the issue is?
Out of four Athearn light mikes, I have one that I run every now and then, It’s detailed out as an L&N J-3. I’ve got a huge amount of time in it getting it to track and pull reasonably well on 24" curves and 2.75% grades. I gave up on a second, detailed out as a Southern Ms-1, which had all the same work done to it to resolve the tracking and pulling problems, but to no avail. It and the other two, both of which had tracking and pulling problems, have been broken up for spare parts. I now run BLI mikes and am very happy with them thus far.
Have Fun,
Tom Watkins
I had an Athearn 2-8-2 that had a pinched wire in the locomotive boiler. Athearn said that they test all of their locos with DC only because they “have no way to test with DCC”. Before I knew the problem was a pinched wire, I wanted to send it in for a repair- it was obviously a defect in materials or workmanship since it would not work with a decoder. Athearn said that because it worked fine with DC it was not defective!
I found the wire myself and it works OK now, but I’m not interested in an Athearn Challenger, or any new Athearn for that matter. I’ll take a Lionel, thank you, since I can at least give them the benefit of the doubt.
Roger
This problem is new to me, but I am concerned because of the Challengers that are coming in might have the same type of design. I do have an Athearn Mikado, but never used it. It had some problems from the first day I looked at it and it has been in the box since that time.
I would ask all of us as a group to start email letters to Horizon / Athearn and see if they will respond to this problem and order parts remade. They purchased the Athearn line and should now be responsible if they want to sell us the Challengers!!!
Parts are generally available for models for five years or more and Athearn should respond to our requests.
I’ve got a light 2-8-2 that I ‘sort of’ detailed to a Rio Grande 1200 series, but it’s such a light runner that I only occasionally use it in helper service. For the life of me, I can’t find any place to add weight, and now with THIS problem being reported, I think I’ll just store the little sucker. Besides, I’m not a big fan of non-tender pickup, any more.
Tom
Athearn has no locos and no parts, and don’t know when they will be getting any more, but they are trying. I have two 2-8-2’s and one 4-6-2, and one developed the cracked gear. NWSL lists the replacement gear (it’s the same gear in both locos), and I got one and now they all three run great again. I like them and am well satisfied. One note of caution, because of the large brass section in the center of the axle, the “standard” NWSL quarterer will not work on these wheelsets. I built a jig for mine.
All I did with all three of my engines was add a little weight (plenty of room in the boiler housing) and they run great and pull fine now; never had a hint of a tracking problem. The 2-8-2 needed the help a bit more than the 4-6-2. I feel these locos are excellent values, and there isn’t too much competition for the Pacific at present either. Cracked gear issues have been around for so long, and is such large quantities, I am surprised anyone is intimidated.
It is great to know that a part is available, but can anyone fix the problem without the too you had to build to quarter the drivers? I too own the NWSL quartering jig, but since it cannot be used for this engine, can you describe how you built the needed tool? Maybe show a picture so some of use could do that also.
I have one Athearn Mikado, and after reading this thread about gear problems, I will sure avoid them from now on until there’s some indication that Athearn is taking, or has taken, corrective action to replace faulty models. I haven’t ran my Mike for some time, so I will have to check it out. Another problem with the Mike that was brought up when it as first released had to do with the umbilical cord for the decoder being too stiff and causing the tender or locomotive to derail on curves. The recommended solution to that problem was to very carfully cut off some, but not all, the shrink wrap that was around the wiring so it could flex more. Cracked gears seems to be a problem with some Bachmann products, too. Maybe they came out of the same factory in China? It should not be necessary to invest in replacement gears from another company in order to correct a problem in manufacture – Athearn should make good on their warranty and replace all models with cracked gears. Using NWSL replacement gears and having to worry about special tools for re-quartering is an unsatisfactory answer.
Athearn is well aware of the problem, and was trying to line someone up to make new wheelsets last time I talked to them (post-Horizon buy-out), and they will be glad to fix your loco if you so desire. But, they said it might take a year (this was several months ago now). The problem isn’t the materials, it’s that the manufacturing tolerances on the gear and axle sometimes added up and over stressed the gear and it cracked. Tighter tolerances cost money, and someone figured wrong. I believe these were made by Samhongsa and they have a big backlog apparently. Running your model isn’t going to cause it to fail, it either will or it won’t depending on the tolerances yours has and temperature changes. To test it thoroughly (read - invite failure), put it in the freezer. Plastic shrinks a lot more than steel does. Mine was delivered and left outside when it was about 5 degrees and I think that’s what did mine in to be honest.
I chose to go the route I went because I lack patience. I would not suggest anyone who doesn’t have a pretty good working knowledge and repair history of steam loco models attempt a self repair.
I made the jig from a short piece of 2" x 4" x 3/8" lexan with grooves cut in it to match the outside of the drivers and the space between the drivers and the brass bushing on the axle. I made four plates from 0.065" steel with ‘V’ notches cut in them to fit the gap between the drivers and the axle bushing. The two inside plates hold the axle. You have to calculate where to locate the ‘V’ notches in the outer plates taking into account the axle diameter and where the center will be, and then the radius of the crankpins on the wheels and the diameter of the crankpins so the crankpins will hit the two sides of the 90 degree outer ‘V’ when the quarter is set correctly. The jig and the calculations are long gone, as I only made it for the first one, and really didn’t plan on needing it again. Fortunately, the two later ones I got are fine.
Athearn is well aware of the problem, and was trying to line someone up to make new wheelsets last time I talked to them (post-Horizon buy-out), and they will be glad to fix your loco if you so desire. But, they said it might take a year (this was several months ago now). The problem isn’t the materials, it’s that the manufacturing tolerances on the gear and axle sometimes added up and over stressed the gear and it cracked. Tighter tolerances cost money, and someone figured wrong. I believe these were made by Samhongsa and they have a big backlog apparently. Running your model isn’t going to cause it to fail, it either will or it won’t depending on the tolerances yours has and temperature changes. To test it thoroughly (read - invite failure), put it in the freezer. Plastic shrinks a lot more than steel does. Mine was delivered and left outside when it was about 5 degrees and I think that’s what did mine in to be honest.
I chose to go the route I went because I lack patience. I would not suggest anyone who doesn’t have a pretty good working knowledge and repair history of steam loco models attempt a self repair.
I made the jig from a short piece of 2" x 4" x 3/8" lexan with grooves cut in it to match the outside of the drivers and the space between the drivers and the brass bushing on the axle. I made four plates from 0.065" steel with ‘V’ notches cut in them to fit the gap between the drivers and the axle bushing. The two inside plates hold the axle. You have to calculate where to locate the ‘V’ notches in the outer plates taking into account the axle diameter and where the center will be, and then the radius of the crankpins on the wheels and the diameter of the crankpins so the crankpins will hit the two sides of the 90 degree outer ‘V’ when the quarter is set correctly. The jig and the calculations are long gone, as I only made it for the first one, and really didn’t plan on needing it again. Fortunately, the two
i own 3 4-6-2’s and 3 2-8-2’s. so far, 3 of them have developed a problem where the motor makes noise (you can hear it turning fast) , but the drivers barely spin, or dont turn at all. i am guessing that this is a cracked gear problem. i really know nothing about steam so i havent taken them apart yet t find out exactly what the problem is.
i was very disappointed by the Athearn Genesis steam. but i am sure that the Challenger will be much, much better.
No replacements, no parts. What’s an inexperienced modeler recourse? There’s a few honorable things left that Athearn can do. Recall all the shelf stock and Refund. It’s the professional thing to do. What really amazes me is all the time it took to post it’s flaw here and on other forums.
Had I been aware of this unresolved issue two weeks back, I may have been so quick to buy the Challenger.
Again their warranty" We warranty against factory defects provided we do not find any sign of unusual wear or customer abuse" and this came e-mail to me from Athearn.
A year is just a little too long to wait for a resolution.
loco3, I understand your frustration. I once had a Key Brass N&W Class A (a $1200 jewel) out of action because of failed insulation on one driver. They had never had the problem before. They finally got me a replacement driver from the Far East but it took 8 months.
I posted about this issue at least 6 months ago on the Atlas Forum, and got some suggestions on the fix, and that’s where I found NWSL had the gear. I had looked and missed it. There were posts about it before that, too.
I suggest you CALL (not email) Athearn. Over the years they have been pretty good guys in my opinion. They are not going to refund anyone’s money, but they will take care of your loco I believe. They are/were trying to rectify the problem. They fixed or replaced locos until they ran out of parts. They did not forsee the problem. They made a mistake.
The only perfect person died 2000 years ago, and look what they did to him.
I missed your Atlas post. Back than Steam was not an active subject and your post just didn’t jump
out and bite me in the butt.
Sure, a refund for a modeler is a pipe dream but a resolution should not be. The 2-8-2 and the 4-6-2 were two years apart in the manufacturing both with the same problem. There’s a ton of those
still on the shelf and maybe 900 hours from now today’s new buyer will have a fix. Perhaps the
the market has to adjust to compensate current buyers for the added risk…
I’m not a crusader, just a rehabilitated steam guy trying to climb the grade.
Burned too times by steam before. If only they could run like a diesel