I’ve just bought a new Kato SD40 loco in N scale and test ran it for the first time. It seems to run smoothly, but the model makes a screeching sound as it goes down the track. Obviously, that’s not desired. [:)]
My other Kato diesel doesn’t do this, so the question is, is this something that needs to wear in or is it a sign that I need to perform some maintenance? Could it be that part of the motor is rubbing against something inside the chassis?
Any ideas would be appreciated.
I had a simular problem with an HO scale Bachmann Loco a while back. Although it is a different gauge than what you have, the problem may be the same. In my case, it turned out to be some plastic flashing on the drive shaft. Simle fix: Disassemble the body and clean up the flash. That noise drove me crazy and after I put an exact to the flash, the noise vanished.
Had a similar problem with three Bachman’s that I bought all at the same time several years back. They screamed like crazy until after the first hour when the smoke leaked out and they stopped running…
I’d suggest taking it back to the store if you can! So far I’ve owned four Bachmans and all four died early deaths. The best one lasted a full day before it died.
Mark in Utah