Just rec’d my three truck Shay. Looks great. Is it normal for this unit to run slow when first out of box. Seems slow to me compared to other steamers. Thanx
It’ll stay slow, now and forever. Shay’s were designed for heavy hauling on steep grades and rough track. Their top speed was maybe 20 MPH on a good day and with the wind at your back. Your model (Bachman I assume?) is designed the same way.
They may be slow but they sure are neat to watch!! [:D] [tup]
Vampire,
Thanks much. You’ve put my mind at ease especially after the $ is spent. Being a newbie do not know what to expect some times after receiving suggestions on so many subjects. This is sure a learning Hobby. Again thanks.
Jaymineco
Jaymineco,
Vamps right. Shays were meant to run sloooooooooow and steady. When you’re movin’ tons of coal or logging up and down steep grades with tight turns, a Shay is the friend you want to be with. [:)] How slow will she crawl…?
Tom
Hi Jaymineco!
they are right!
The shays are the work horse of heavy moveing of things!
a good web sight on them is:http://www.shaylocomotives.com you can get info on shay that were built and info on some still in use, it is a great sorce of info on them!!!
take Care.
Russ
AND downhill with a full load of log cars behind the engine [:D]
I’ve got two Roundhouse 50ton two truck shays I bilt from kits,they are slow but look good hauling log cars up or down grades.
OLE’IRISH
(JIM)
It will be slow but not forever. Shays were not designed to go that fast. The model you have is probably designed the same way.
Matt
jaymineco,
I don’t know where you live but in Cass, WV, there is the Cass Scenic RR, where you can take an excursion on 'ol #6 - a 3-truck Shay. Along with the link that Russ has given you, locate the Spring issue of Classic Trains. There’s an article on the Cass Scenic RR’s #6 on pages 46-51.
Hope that helps…
Tom
If you like SLOW take a look at the Bachman Climax. I have a Shay and Climax and they both run about the same speed. Great for double heading. The Shay is detailed nice but the Climax is better. Both are great models.
don’t worry, all that grinding noise is normal…8-D
do give it some plastic compatible oil on the moving parts tho.
i own all three sloooooow movers climaxes ,heislers and shay s \when i bought them i thought they were defective . untill i emailed the manufacturer they said thats how they operated . my first shay was bought at cass rr.
20 MPH with a Shay, wow, it must be on nitrous.
going slow is kinda the point. They were designed to have maximum tractive effort and to operate over rough track/ steep grades, speed was not a real concern. Looking from the left side things are kinda boring, but viewing all of the “monkey motion” on the right side you really don’t care that your only going 8 MPH downhill with a tailwind.
Normal operating speed for a Shay was 5 to 8 mph. Normal high speed was 12. They would go up to 15 mph, but when you exceeded 12 parts usually started flying off, and they sounded like they were going about a hundred.