Hey
Im wondering whats the best way to fix, split gears on proto gp9’s? call walthers? replace with atherans? is it an easy task to do?
Thanks
Everyone
Prior to Walthers buying the P2K line, I had 8 units with split gears. I called Life Like, explained what I had, and they send me completed axles with wheels and bearings for FREE!!
Now, I would try the same route. If Life-like can help me, I bet they can refer me to somebody who can. When Walthers bought the Proto line, I’ll bet they assumed responsibility for all the warrranties.
I recommend using the phone for this, and not e-mail. Companies seem to respond faster to a voice than a type image.
If your luck calling LL does not pan out, use the Athearn gears. The easiest way to replace them is pop the lower gear box covers of and slide out each wheel assembly one at a time, gage the wheels after the gear change, put the wheel and gear sets back in, then snap the covers back on. Should take you about 10 to 15 minutes is all. Good luck.
so far with my P2K GP9 no gear problems yet. shoudl i expect it or was it jus ton some units they made? mine’s less than a year old.
ctcbound,
Walther’s has promised to support the LL products and honor the warranties. Before the Walther’s take-over I had problem with a P2K GP30 and got the new axles and gears from LL in less than 72 hours.
After the take-over, I purchased new side frames for my P2K E8 from Walthers. They even found the part number for me!
Word has it that they are currently out of stock on new replacement gears/axles for the 4-axle locos. Sent them an e-mail at their customer service address (listed on their site) or give them a call (1-800-4 TRAINS). An order for new axles has been placed and delivery is expected soon. Get your name on the list.
If you can’t wait, or if one of your LHSs has a supply on hand, the Athearn units will work fine. I’ve used them with out problems. Just be sure there are no burrs on the gears before you install them.
The installation is easy. Remove the cover from the bottom of the truck with a small thin screw driver or flat-bladed knife. Remove the old axles, install the new ones. You might want to clean things up while you are in there, to ensure there are no particles or dirt. Then lubricate with a SMALL amount of white gear grease and snap the cover back on.
I ran mine, forward and back, for about 40-minutes as a break-in, though I don’t think it was really necessary.
Hope this helps.
Most likely you will not have any problems. The split is caused by the model getting too cold, the gear shrinks faster than the metal axle.
Just called Walthers.
Very nice people to deal with.
Sending out full replacement parts for all my locos for no cost.
The lady they should be in by April.
Walthers is handling this problem very well in my opinion.
Keep up the good work.
I’ve been in touch with Larry at Walthers regarding this. They were out of stock on the replacement parts for a long time, but the shipment is expected in Milwaukee on or about April 27th. If you contact Walthers and provide the number of Geeps you’ve got with this problem, they will pre-order the parts and ship them to you when they arrive.
From what I understand, the Athearn parts are cheap and they just drop in, if you’re in a real hurry.
heres a how to on repairing split axles in a bachmann n scale 4-8-2 this should work for you as well ctcbound.
http://2guyzandsumtrains.com/Content/pa=showpage/pid=47.html
hope this helps
tom
While we’re on the topic of broken Gears in protos, Does anyone know why my SD9s and 1 of my 3 GP7s have cracked gears?
From Larry, the guy who’s been answering the mail at Walthers:
“The only locomotives that we have seen afflicted with spilt geared axles are those that use the 584408 axle, i.e.: BL, E8, FA1 & FA2, and the following GP series; 7, 9-II, 9-III, 18, 20 30 and 60.”
So, Jay, your SD9 is an oddball. Still, if it has a problem they will probably supply the parts free of charge.