Hi everyone, I got an Athearn Challenger, Greyhound, the 3983 if I don’t remember incorrectly. The problem I got with it is the volume, I can not get the volume down. I can’t find a CV for the sound volume and the manual speaks of a screw on the tender under a hatch. I have found and opened the hatch but in there it’s just a small hole, I can’t find no screw and the sound is driving me crazy, i can’t run it until I fix it.
So do anyone of you know how to lower the volume on these babes?
Magnus
The manual states that CV52 is for the volume. Have you used a light while looking into the hatch for the screw to modify the volume? The manual says to use a micro-screwdriver, so the screw is probably very small.
Don Z.
My challenger blew my scale eardrums [}:)]
Use a #0 Phillips screwdriver, perpendicular to the tender deck, under the 2nd hatch.
Mine doesn’t say that. It says that is for Bell type. I have been checking under the second hatch and all I find is a very tiny hole. I don’t even have a screw driver that small! I guess I’ll have to invest in that since I guess that it is down there somewhere.
Thanks for the help guys.
Magnus
I wonder if you have a different, maybe an early, release of the locomotive, Magnus. If the hole under the second hatch is as small as I think you are describing, it is merely the pin hole for the retaining pin under the hatch…is that what it seems like to you, something a mere 1.5mm across? So you do indeed have a different version, which understandably makes tracking down the master volume, the mechanical one, a bit of a challenge.
Would it help to get a magnifier and some strong light to have a look down any hatch that can be removed?
I’m going to have to check for that. I do not think it’s an old one since Caboose got it in after I ordered it in July. I ran it today despite of the volume and what a machine. It must be one of the best engines I got when it comes to running qualities. Just a shame that it looks so plastic. Still, it is a handsome devil.
I also tried my Reading T1 today for the first time, could go probably about 2 feet before derailing each time. That was a disappointment. It seems that the truck is all screwed up.
Magnus
Magnus, don’t despair about the Northern. My Niagara gave me fits when I first introduced it to my previous layout. I have always maintained that the one wheel arrangement that will humble the HO modeler is the 4-8-4.
As before, look for dips, especially near and in curves. Northerns don’t like the dips, and they aren’t very keen about kinks at joins where the curvature is not maintained. If you have tight curves for that model, but fail to get the joins to conform precisely to the rate of curvature, you can expect to have your deficiencies pointed out to you. [:D]
Oh, I forgot…the trucks. Remove both and feel their bearing surface, both on the bolster and under the boiler across the screw hole to ensure that they are smooth. Also look for any flashing that might be preventing the truck, under weight bearing, from pivoting and sliding sideways as designed to do. Check the coupler pin for height…always a surprise when you find it is quite a bit too low and hangs up on frogs. Also, and I learned this with the Niagara, you may have to either tighten, but more likely to loosen, the retainer screw so that if can flop a wee bit more to allow it to manage the tracks.
-Crandell
I will start to check on it tomorrow. I hope that I can just loosen the screw. I use 36" curves and that ain’t where the problem is. It’s everywhere, literally. The front truck creeps over the rails on perfect level straight track. It just won’t stay on the tracks. When I look at the wheels they look kind of bent at the flanges so I think that is the problem. I will have a shipment from PCM in about a week anyway so I’m going to ask them to send a replacement truck because that one seems to be no good. But first some experiments.
Thanks for the help,
Magnus
Lillen,
If you need to remove the Athearn Challenger tender body, do a search for this topic:
Tsunami Heavy Steam sound decoder for Genesis Challenger. Do a search for this topic