One of my locomotives is acting up. I am wondering if there was something I was supposed to do for it as far as regular maintenance, as I have not done anything with any of my locomotives. The engine is a Bachmann DCC equiped (not spectrum) 70 ton GE. It is just this one that is giving me problems, though, none of my others have any trouble.
Thanks for the help,
sfb
Too little info, is it acting up in the way of erratic running or is it spontaneously bursting into flames?
Not easy to answer then… [:D]
But to be serious, most of the problems with B-mann DCC equipped loco´s is the decoder AND the fact that those locos need some running in before smoothing out.
I have one of the 70 toners and it’ s a rough rider.
You can improve it by first doing as noted above and running if for a good hour to break in.
Also changing the decoder to a digitrax, or NCE should help smoothe it out. The one that comes in the loco is bare bones and cheaply made.
Sorry, by acting up I mean the best I get when I try to run it is maybe a hum and the slightest movement, to then have it stop. If I have to replace the decoder, would it make sense just to retire to loco and get a new one (not Bachmann)?
Anyhoo, back to the original question: is there any regular maintenance I should be doing for my locomotives?
Thanks,
sfb
You should lube the gears once a year and lightly oil other moving parts.
Clean the wheels on a regular basis.
If the loco still runs erratically, either the wire connections are loose or broken on the pickups or where the wires connect to the decoder.
Rich
If you still have the original instruction sheet, check to see if there is a section on regular maintenance. Some of them that I have, it is in the “fine print.”
Good luck,
Richard
What exactly do I need for that and where do I get it?
I use two Woodland Scenics products for this purpose: Gear Lube for the gears and Medium Oil for the other moving parts. Both come in plastic bottles with needle nose applicators which makes for a quick and easy job.
Rich
How do I get to the gears? Sorry about all the dumb questions[:$]
sfb
Depends on the engine in question. Most engines will have a worm gear on the drive train assembly, so you have to remove the shell to get at it.
There are also gears in the trucks on a locomotive so those need to be lubed too. Usually, there is a plastic cover on the underside of the truck that can be removed to expose the gears.
Rich