First off thank you for all your American Flyer tips on the several topics I have posted. Flyer is the second frontier for me after postwar Lionel and the forum has been quite useful. I’ve learned a lot!
American Flyer motor brushes…I’m looking for a good source for the Flyer brushes for the diesel engines, brushes that are mounted on their own leaf spring. Specifically, the brushes (in this case for a Flyer 371) that are square, mounted on a copper leaf, left/right paired, and concave to meet the armature drum. Some parts dealers look at me like I have two heads and I have no idea why. This is common Flyer territory, right?
Are all those left/right paired brushes for the diesels and GP7s the same part? I don’t have other diesels myself to compare, but in the K-line repair book sometimes different diesels list different numbers for these pairs of same-looking motor brushes; all these Flyer diesel motors look about the same design and dimensions to me.
I also really need a pair of brushes for the 314AW whistle tender I’m working on; mounted on a leaf too, but the originals are round not square like in the 371.
On some dealer sites I see these 314AW whistle tender brushes as “not available.”
In my recent experience, the brushes on the American Flyer diesel unit are part of a complicated assembly process. To get at them, you have to remove a whole bunch of parts including a pair of springs and a plastic plate that holds the brushes in position. The brushes are mounted on copper “fingers” as I call them. Be careful not to break the the plastic plate that holds the brushes. The cutouts in this plastic plate are very near the edges and can easily break. When I first pulled my diesel out of storage, I was forced to recall how my fat
In my experience, Portlines is quicker than RFG, a lot quicker, but check the calendar posted on Portlines web site. They are closed for relatively long stretches from time to time while attending trade shows.
Yes I’m well aware of that brush/brush finger/spring/plate assembly. They couldn’t design something better than that? Geez.
Trust me I’ve said to myself a couple of times once these engines were cleaned and tuned up I don’t want to go back in…unlike Lionels which are tons easier to work on. That’s why I want the new brushes and fingers.
Thanks for the heads up on the source for Flyer brushes. That kit seems really expensive for just two brushes and springs but that must be the way it is, I’ve seen those kits before and hoped to find cheaper…
…I also marveled at the miniature size of the S-I-T brushes, which are almost like little pencil leads!