New to the hobby! I have a question!
As my Engines go around they don’t go around smoothly. They sputter around. Slow down, speed up. And if I don’t have the throttle on its maximum they will sometimes even stop. In which case I have to give them a tap or a push. Checked all my connections and they seem to be fine.
Can anyone give me some suggestions as to what it might be.
Transformer?
Engines themselves? there cheap!
John,
[#welcome] to the forum! Good to have you aboard! [:)]
Indeed, it could be a combination of any of the following:
John, what kind of transformer are you using? One that come with a train set? Is the locomoitve from that train set?
Unfortunately, you can’t skimp on quality if you want your locomotives to run well. But even the best locomotive won’t run well if the track and/or wheels are gummed up and need to be cleaned. Rest assured, you DON’T have to spend a googob of money in order to get a decent locomotive.
We’d be glad to steer you in the right direction if that is what you want us to do AND you can fill us in on a little more details about your layout and what you’d like to accomplish.
Tom
Sounds like a classic case of dirty track. If you check around the forums, there are several threads on getting rail clean and keeping it clean.
I’ve had the same problem, mostly caused by dust on the rails. I’m running high-quality locos with a top-of-the-line power supply, which is not a cure-all by any means.
[#welcome] to the Forum!! Good question. tstage has made the bacis answer, but even the cheap transformers with train sets “should” be ok for a while. And, granted the engines in sets these days are pretty cheap as well, but the engine by itself should go round and round by itself without stuttering in fits and starts.
You might want to double check that you have the track pieces put together properly with the rail joiners snuggly slipped in between each piece of track. Hobby shops carry three foot pieces called ‘flex track’ that can reduce the number of rail connections, but you still have to put the rail joiners on correctly. Make sure that the bottom of each rail is “in the slot” on the joiner.
If you plan on tacking your track to a piece of plywood, and leave the track in a certain configuration, you may want to solder the rail joiners to the track. That’s how most modelers make absolutely certain of the electrical connections on their layouts.
And, if additional funds are available, start researching for another, better engine for your “pike”. I prefer steam myself, but diesels are out there aas well. You get to decide! That’s part of the fun of model railroading. Welcome once again.
My transfomer is a Tyco Master Pak 897
it’s at least 10 years old. Do they have a lifespan?
Engine is a Life-Like Diesel that I picked up at a hobby shop for like 20 bucks.
Could it be just dirty track? Track doesn’t seem to be that dirty with naked eye.
Funny thing is…it was running smoother up until a few days ago. Never quite that smooth though.
John,
The easiest thing to do is to take a clean rag and some isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol and wipe down your track with it. If it’s dirty, you’ll see black streaks on your rag.
Once the rag no longer picks up any dirt, use a Q-tip and the alcohol and clean the driver wheels, too. You’ll need to rotate them in order to get all the way around the wheels. Once that’s done, then run it again on your track to see if that doesn’t take care of the problem.
Tom
The thing with Life Like is that they have three different product lines. The el-cheapo line, and the premium quality Proto 1000 and Proto 2000 lines.
If you got one of those el-cheapo line Life Like diesels with a pancake motor (i.e. only one truck on the engine is powered, using a flat, direct-geared motor housed in the truck tower), that would be your problem. Those never run well, and should be avoided like the plague.
The higher-quality P1K and P2K engines from Life Like are more expensive, but they have all-wheel-drive mechanisms that uses worm-reduction gears and flywheels, which are far more reliable and smooth running.
Check your engine and see which type you have. If you got the el-cheapo with a pancake-motor-powered truck, throw it in the garbage and get something better.
You guys are great!.. Thanks for the info.
LongIslandTom…That’s exactly what I have one of the el-cheapo Life Likes
Can anyone reccommend a good transformer?
JohnT14808…Can you reccommend a good steam engine?
Are you running this on a loop of track on the floor? Because if you are, then carpet fibers, hair etc. will get wound around the axles and give you serious problems in fairly short order.
HD
Johnottr:
You might want to check your local hobby shop and see if you can get a better diesel than that Life-Like. Look for something from Athearn, Atlas, Proto1000/2000, or Kato.
The other day, at the Trainland store here on Long Island (where I am), I purchased two Proto2000 Alco S1 engines, each for $29.99. They are some of the nicest locomotives for the price I’ve ever found-- All-wheel-drive, DCC ready, smooth-running, nicely-detailed shells with wire grab irons.
Clean the track and the wheels, and check your rail joiners to make sure they have a tight fit.
LongIslandTom
Wow…I bought the Proto 2000 Alco S1 like you suggested. All I can say is…it wasn’t my trackwork. It’s gliding across the tracks like it’s on ice. Thanks for the recommendation.
Now for my new problem. The couplings on the Proto are different then all of my rolling stock. What’s up with that?
[#ditto] on the Proto 2000 S1s! [tup][tup] I have three of them and they are fantastic: both operationally and detailed! I bought one of them from Trainworld for the $29.99 that Tom mentioned. I would have bought the other two but they were out of that particular line. It’s not a steamer, but it’s a great early diesel. Smoothest locomotive I have on my layout! [:)]
Caution: Even though the Proto 2000 S1 states that it is “DCC-ready”, you still have to isolate the motor from the frame BEFORE installing a decoder in it.
It’s a fairly straightforward operation. One of the fellas here on the forum (rrinker) has put together a very handy “How-to” pictoral on his web site converting this particular locomotive to DCC. With DCC and the right decoder with Back EMF, this little puppy of a switcher absolutely crawls!
John,
Just read your newest post. Welcome to the club of better “locomoting”! Sweet, huh?!? [:)]
Indeed, the Proto S1s are just wonderful! The coupler differences you are refering to are called “knuckle” (prototype) and “hook-horn” (non-prototype) couplers. The horn-hooks is what manufacturers used to put on their locomotives and rolling stock. Now, when you buy a kit, you’ll often see BOTH types included.
John, you can purchase the knuckle couplers from Kadee to outfit your rolling stock. If you don’t want to do them all at once, you can change them a car at a time. Make sure that you keep on car as your “transition” car - i.e. a knuckle at one end; hook-horn at the other. This one will always be used to transition between the two types so that you can continue to run your trains.
For a good transformer: one word - MRC! The Tech IV series is their newest. All control speed and direction. And some include the ability to control momentum and braking, as well. Their Model 9500 power pack has built-in volt and amperage meters that are handy for identifying problems more easily.
For a good steamer: How much do you want to spend? Do you want a freight or a passenger steamer? The freights have smaller drive wheels for better traction. The passengers; taller driver wheels for speed. There are a number of very good steam locomotives on the market and some can be had for a very nice price. (Trainworld is a terrific place to find bargains.)
John, the size of your layout and what you want to accomplish on it will be
There’s the problem. L-L uses a tiny truck-mounted motor that doesn’t run well at slow speeds(or even at high speed). Buy an Athearn for $20. They have a motor w/ dual flywheels and all-wheel-drive and all-wheel-exectrical pick-up. Likfe-like has 1 truck drive and one truck electrical pickup. My L-L’s do the same thing. That’s the way they are.
you can find used Athearn “blue-box” engines for $20.
try the MRC powerpack
and if you still have troble
check the rail joiners
K
Johnottr:
Congratulations on getting an excellent engine! I’m glad I’m able to help a bit.
Personally, I think it’s a disservice for the manufacturers to sell crap like the pancake-motor-driven engines, because most beginners would start to think that ALL model locos behave so atrociously! I’ve known lots of people who grew disinterested in model railroading because of a bad experience with the starter set they got.
Listen to Tstage’s wise words on the couplers. Convert your freight cars’ couplers to the Kadee type as soon as you can, because those are a lot better than the stock horn-hooks. I usually get those Kadee bulk-packs of 20 pairs for $20.
Now that you got a righteous-running engine, I hope you will enjoy running your trains as much as I do mine. [;)] Remember, in the future if you want to buy engines, think Athearn, Kato, P1K/P2K, Spectrum. Good luck!
Caution: Even though the Proto 2000 S1 states that it is “DCC-ready”, you still have to isolate the motor from the frame BEFORE installing a decoder in it.
I have no idea what this means. I have the S1 running straight from the box. Did I have to do something to it first?
Thanks to everyone for all your help!
Johnottr:
Right now you are running straight analog direct current (DC).
DCC (Digital Command Control) is more sophisticated, in which you install a computer chip in your engines so you can control each engine independently (also requires you to wire up your layout with a digital command station).
Until you are ready to build a layout to run more than one train, you don’t have to worry about DCC. Just enjoy your P2K S1! [:D]