I recently purchased a couple of very nicely detailed Athearn and Atlas locomotives and was wondering what kind of usage I can expect out of them before they need to be replaced. They probably only run for an hour a week…sometimes a bit more and sometimes a bit less. Are they built to run for a certain number of hours before parts start to fail?
well… [:-^]
Let’s say that with my motive power, they will be replaced when it’s time.
I had a old Bluebox cow and calf pair that ran for decades and was still running well when I sold it years ago.
Then there is the old Tyco or Bachmann Standard… ugh.
YES! Exactly 2.5 hours and then…KABOOM!
This is a strange question. Are you serious?
My Dad’s post-war Lionels - still running strong despite quite a bit of abuse. My Tyco’s - all worn out before I was even done with them. Weak points seem to be plastic gears and rubber traction tires. I have an Athearn Blue Box loco which is about 8 years old and showing no particular sign of wearing out yet. I would’t judge by my Tycos.
Jim
With proper maintenance your locomotives should last for years to come…I have a Athearn GP7 that my wife got me back in '75…I had to replace the motor…Most of my Athearn Blue Box locomotives are 10 or more years old and seen hundreds of hours of club use.
I guess the real answer would be…it depends on how you take care of 'em. I’ve got some 25 year old Bachmann’s and Life-Like’s that run just fine today and I’ve got some others that aren’t worth a fart in a windstorm (can I say that?) and not because I’ve mishandled them…go figure.
I’ve got a couple Athearns from the mid 80’s that still run great. With proper care and oiling you should get hundreds and hundreds of hours out of them.
[#ditto] As long as you don’t bounce them off the floor, they should outlast you![(-D]
That’s why I don’t let the cat in the train building anymore.[;)]That and the hair…
I just reactivated a Tenshodo die-cast 0-6-0T (1890s Baldwin prototype) that I have owned for over 50 years - it has seen regular, frequent service during all that time and still runs like a Rolex. The key, I believe, is regular, frequent inspection and maintenance. (The brass worm and gear, running in an enclosed space, may also have something to do with it.)
That 0-6-0 isn’t the only ancient teakettle on my layout, but it is the oldest. The others are brass, many never imported into the United States. All of them still run reliably.
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
I would think that a nylon or whatever-they-use quality plastic gear set should last a very long time as well. I’m not sure between brass or plastic which should get the fussiest treatment over time, perhaps the plastic…then again…anyway, I can see that giving the gearing a solid cleaning every 30 hours of running or so would be a smart investment. In fact, I feel/fear that the rods will give way long before the gears…wouldn’t you say, Chuck?
-Crandell
I have a John English Pacific and a Tyco 0-6-0T, both from the '50s and both still run fine. I can’t find a picture of the switcher, but here’s the 4-6-2.
Wayne
Hi Ulrich
Well if they where made in the fifties and sixty’s and you could still get spares the chances are they will out last you.
However this modern stuff doesn’t seem to stand up as well.
The key thing to getting long life is to look after it and maintain according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Also purchase quality locomotives to start with both the brands you mention are so I am told good ones so that is a good start.
Loco’s do from time time to time have catastrophic failures this is when you really find out how good the brand is by the spares availability.
regards John
Well, umm that is a tough question. I have a few Bachman locos, and half of them were junk when new, but the others still run beautifully. From a company like Athearn, the models would last a long time.
I did a little endurance test awhile back on a Proto 2000 GP9 and a GP7. They both ran for 541 hours and 35 minutes over a 27 day period and covered around 16245 scale miles. Do a search for the great Proto 2000 Endurance Test. The only mechanical problem I had with them was broken gears on the axles, a common problem that Walthers fixes for free. They were replaced and those two loco’s still see regular action on my layout. With proper maintenance they should last for at least 15 years or more I would guess before you need to start replacing parts.
Good Morning,
Lots of good answers here already, and I sure agree with most all of them.
If you take care of them, and are running them only a couple of hours a week, the typical Atlas and Athearn locos should last for an extremely long time - with 20 years or more not all that uncommon.
Of course the key to longevity is “taking care of them”. To me that means: lightly lubing them every 20 or so hours of run time, keeping your track clean, avoiding jack rabbit starts and extended full power running, having them labor trying to pull extra heavy trains, and of course, handling them carefully and as little as possible.
ENJOY,
Mobilman44
Beautiful job on the John English, Wayne. [tup] You should send that photo to Dan at Yardbird Trains. He has a customer photo gallery.
Agree’d strange!
Must not be too serious… no follow up post.
My best guess:
All the way to the end of the track.
[:-^]
Longer than thereve been fishes in the ocean Higher than any bird ever flew Longer than thereve been stars up in the heavens