I have 2 HO F7 Diesel engines 1. One of my engines makes a grinding noise when going around the track. 2. The other engine headlite is on but it wont run at all. PS. I read where you can use a 9 volt batt. to clean the engine wheels , is that true.
Sincerly Gary D.
First off what brand are the locos? some locos have tell tale noises and quick fixes that other brands dont. All and all it sounds like they could use a good overall cleaning. remove the shells and trucks make sure that the motors are clean and the berings in the ends are oiled with a light weight oil such as 3 in 1 oil or better yet an oil made for R/C car motors with bushings. The grinding noise can be from a few different places but it prolly would not hurt to give the trucks a good once over. Carfully disassemble the trucks and remember where the little gears are placed (it is a good Idea to only disassemble one truck at a time) clean the gears in a little rubbing alcohol and then apply a small amound of oil o nthe gears again. Dont worry if you dont get all the gears oiled up really good the oil will spread to the other gears. It is actually better here to have very little oil. Make usre also to remember what end the worm gears come off of because putting them on backwards will make the loco travel the opposite direction.
With Athearn locos the chassis carries the current for the light and also for the lower mount on the motor. This is picked up through a pad on the truck and a bare metal spot on the fram of the loco. The pad on the truck is made of steel and is prone to rusting. The chassis is an Aluminum alloy that does not corrode that bad. Clean them both off and make the surface shiny and apply a little electrical contact grease (found in autopart stores) to the surface and reassemble the truck to the frame. Also clean the copper clamp under the motor and make sure that the little prongs that extend are able to touch the frame of the loco. Also make sure that the little strip of bare metal under the motor on the frame is clean and shiny and a little more of that contact grease would be good here too.
Reassemble the loco and test it before putting the bodies back on. If the one that does not run now still dont run make sure that the brushes are contacting the a
sounds like my trains
K
Take the shell off and with the power on give the flywheel a spin if it isn’t spinning. Maybe it’s a little locked up.
If it is spinning but the engine doesn’t move there is a problem with the driveline.
Its a bachmann engine