While I’ve hard wired and fitted DCC decoders to Athearn BB locos before the reference to the brand name “Pearl Drops” has lost me.
Is it a tooth paste or a tooth power ???
The use of common US brand names like “Homesote” and “Strathmore Board” is fair enough as we are modelling the North American prototype but had me scratching my head for a while. [^o)]
If you decide to do the “pearl drops”, Do remember to clean grease oil from the gears then reassemble. Add Pearl Drops to the worm as you spin up the drive on test track. You will note that it thickens and tries to jab, add drops of water and more pearl drops. I spin up both directions a couple dozen times. Do remember that when disassembling to clean that you have set wear patterns on those gears and the placement and orientation of each gear is critical. I find it only helps a little after a lot of work. The gears aren’t the grind, it’s more the motor/ brushes in those BB chassis. Turning the commutator and polishing, checking or flipping brushes, clipping springs, shimming the shaft end play as well as proper lubrication of the motor will do more for better running. I prefer Labelle w/ teflon grease others have good luck and results using ATF. If you want an exceptional ruuner for the BB chassis, repower w/ a good can motor, A-Line, PPW etc.
If you can’t find the tooth polish, (powder or paste), you can also do it with some 600 grit sand paper. Pull the gears out, wash them to get the old lube off, then use a piece of folded sand paper and swipe it a few times between each gear, also lay the gear down on a flat piece of sand paper and rub it around a few times, then wash them all again, reassemble everything and lube with fresh grease (I like Labelle’s Teflon grease) and then just run the loco in both directs about 5-10 minutes. Athearns require a break-in period, they don’t perform at their best until about 20 hours of running so, the best thing you can do is just run them.
If you want to upgrade the drive, a good option is to replace the motor with a can motor, the Helix Humper motors from Aliance Locomotive are a good option. Their “complete Kits” come with everything you need for a particular loco and at an average price of $32 they’re a good buy. http://www.alliancelocomotiveproducts.com/
Yes, Pearl Drops is a name brand in the US, but similar products are probably available worldwide. The Pearl Drops brand was heavily advertised so mention tooth polish to someone who grew up here and they will likely respond with Pearl Drops if they are old enough to remember the commecials. Another option are reguar toothpastes marked as ‘whitening’ since most of those contain a mild abrasive. Not as good as an actual tooth polish but it will do the job.
This whole process may sound hokey to some, but it really does work. I had an Athearn S12 that si installed an Ernst slow speed gearset in, and after going through the whole run in with tooth polish process, each truck even with the extra reduction sets in it, would roll rather than skid if tilted (naturally, before the worm was installed). The principle is that the mild abasive instead of lubricant will gently wear the mating surfacesof each gear into perfect mesh, you then thoroughly clean it out and replace with proper lubricant and the end result is a very smooth and quiet running gear train.
EmpireStateJR, Thanks for the link, if I had put the brain in gear I should have thought of looking before I asked the question, [banghead], but then I wouldn’t have received the others tips.
fiatfan Tom, Spearmint O.K?? [:D]
boqp40 Bob, Thanks for the tips, Regarding the “Athearn Growl” I don’t actually mind it too much, far cheaper than installing sound. [:-^]
The great thing about the forum is that when asking a question I generally end up with a lot more information than I actually asked for. Got t be good!!
By the way to say that your Alco C-415 is [8D] is a large understatement.
rrinker Randy, thanks for your tips. Yes the power of a successful advertising campaign when a brand name can replace the name of an actual product, it only gets confusing if you live where that brand isn’t marketed.
I have used whitening toothpaste for the final “cut and polish” to repair shallow scratches in a Perspex canopy, the task also required lots of “elbow grease”.
Once again thanks to all, your answers and time are much appreciated. [tup]
Actually, most tooth “pastes” may have micro particles in them (not sure about gel types), which is why the old advice about using a bit of toothpaste to polish up a glass watch crystal is valid. Pearl drops may use a larger particulate size, as I remember the gritty feel of it when I used to buy it in the 1970s. The advice on using very fine abrasive wet/dry sandpapers, such as 400 or 600 grit, is better with respect to cleaning the motor parts. Less mess, less fuss and use your airbrush to blow out any dust created, followed by alcohol to catch what isn’t blown out. I have reduced several BB motors this way and lubes them with a drop or two of transmission fluid (Dexron 2, I believe). Cedarwoodron