I just picked up some Genesis steamers from a friend
lovely models but some of them don’t run, although I was well aware of this when I bought them. This is particularly strange as the locos look like they have hardly been run, and haven’t even had the parts bags opened.
The problem is that the plastic gear on the main driver of 4 of them have split, and just rotate around the axle. I have managed to repair one temporarily with superglue, and have it working great, but would like to replace the plastic gears for a more permanent repair.
Can anyone tell me the part number for the gearset so I can contact Athearn.
At one of the last postings, Athearn was out of the drive gears for both the the Genesis 4-6-2 & 2-8-2.
They didn’t know when they would get a supply in. This gear thing is a wide spread problem.
I emailed NWSL and the reponse is below with the part number.
Athearn Genesis 2-8-2 and 4-6-2 gear is still available.
This NWSL precision machined upgrade axle gear for these excellent Athearn steam
locomotives is not injected molded (like the original axle gear which has proven prone
to splitting). NWSL machines these precision gears from aged delrin to provide you
with the life and fine operation these excellent models deserve. Installation requires
removing original broken gear from the driverset, installing (pressing on) the new
gear and reassembling the driver wheel to the axle in same location (quarter). #2147-6 $9.95 HO Athearn 2-8-2, 4-6-2 axle gear21T SG x 11.5mm OD x 5.0mm ID
I have used the NWSL gear and as usual for things from NWSL, the fix is great. Be aware you will need a NWSL puller, AND that the NWSL quarterer does NOT fit these wheelsets. Large center axle bushing that the gear fits on makes it a no go situation. You need to build a jig.
I would definitely bug Athearn first and see where this situation stands. They were working on getting some wheelsets (from Samhongsa I assume) last time I talked to them.
You could try using witness marks to reinstall the driver exactly correctly, but you better have good eyes and be real careful. REAL careful. After pressing the driver off, the fit isn’t that tight, so I pressed mine back on with the help of a very little blue Loctite. Did the same thing with the gear.
I didn’t keep my jig. Then, I liked the darned little thing so much I got three more. So far so good; but keeping my fingers crossed.
I haven’t had a problem yet with my Genesis 4-6-2,.Right now it’s a nice looking engine and it runs well,but reading the posts on this forum makes me wonder When it’s going to die on me not IF.Do they all have a problem with splitting gears?
I think the ones I have problems with all came from boxes marked with the ‘MR product of the year’ award label. I do have a couple of others which don’t have cracked gears.
Running them will not cause the gear to split any more than letting it just sit. And, all of them do not appear to develop this problem. It looks like a couple of batches of the earlier gears were the culprits. Apparently, when some thermoplastics age they shrink; some more than others. In this case some of the plastic gears shrink too much, and the stress builds up and presto - you get a cracked gear. In addition to the differences in machining fully cured (aged) plastic versus casting the gears, I would think the machining operation itself would tend to relieve stresses in the material. I work in an industrial environment, and I am here to tell you, ten bucks for ANY machined gear is nothing short of a world class deal.
I’ve talked to Athearn several tumes about this, as I have 18 of these models sitting om a shelf in my repair shop with the cracked gears. As mentioned above, this is a fairly widespread problem. According to Athearn, it wasn’t so much the plastic that was used aging. It was the actual assembly of the gear onto the axle. A couple of the presses used put them on at a slight angle, stressing the plastic big time.
Athearn has been working on this problem, but has had to go to another mfr to get the replacements made. They will be offering a complete axle with the gear and drivers already installed and quartered.
My last talk with them, after the holidays, they indicated a few more months.
