I purchased a Bachmann Spectrum steam loco from an eBay vendor a bit ago and it was either damaged already, or got damaged in transit. I contacted Bach;mann to see if they could repair it, but they indicated that I had to have purchased it from a ‘real’ vendor in order to perform repairs. Is there anyone that does repair work on these engines?
Thanks!
Michael Moe
Engine repair is not difficult just tedious at times. If you tell the forum what engine you have and what the problem is I believe you can get step by step instructions to do it your self, save a lot of money and gain a new skill.
Great comment, ndbprr!
I’ve dealt with Bachmann and can’t say anything bad. They will fix it for you but not under warantee. The second option is you can tell them what part is broken, and for a reasonable cost, they’ll ship you the required part.
Fergie
I know a few guys in St. Louis at there hobby shops that fix them. Also a few guys in Evansville IN fixes them in there hobby shop. if you need the address e-mail me.
That’s right. Bachmann WILL fix it. You’ll just HAVE to pay them. lol
As you’d expect for a loco of undetermined origin…owner-wise.
First of all [#welcome] to the forum, mdmoe! Post back with the model of the Spectrum Steamer and specifically what the problem is and people here will be able to give a much better answer to your problem.
yep! Kinda like buying a used car privately and then taking it to the deralership and expecting warranty service. The warranty is like voided… ???
Thanks to all of you for your responses. No, I can’t blame Bachmann for not accepting the loco under warentee. Here are the specifics:
Bachmann Spectrum Pensy K-4 Pacific
Item NO. 84114 Pre-war Pensylvania K-4 Pacific
When the the loco is running on the track, it rolls from side to side as if the wheels were not round. The headlamp burns bright.
If it’s rolling like that, the quartering may be out - on a steam loco the right hand side wheels are a quarter-turn ahead of the left. If one or more axles have this slightly out it can cause lumpy running and a noticable roll. It either needs a quartering jig or a lot of trial and error to sort out - I’ve fixed a couple with this problem but it took a while. Good luck!
If it runs like that, I’d say the seller was dumping it because of damage he had caused in the past.
Bachmann will still repair or replace it, but it will cost you $25. Check back with their web site or phone them and ask about repair of out-of-warranty items.
Unfortunately, you may have gotten gypped by the e-Bay seller. Buyer beware is always the mantra when dealing with e-Bay sellers.
there are books that u can read they sell them @ bowsers, and MR i was thinking to get one myself just to know how to repair my older engines and not have the need to send 'em off with the risk of damage in transit
Bachmann sells some parts but usually you have to buy a group. In the case of their SHAY I needed a drive shaft U-joint and had to purchae a whole new truck. The price was only $15 and now I have extra parts if I ever need them. If your engine had the parts list included it may show the items you need. Contact them and they may sell you a new drive at a good price. Their warranty repair usually results in them shipping a new engine.