a gear in the rear truck went out on my Atlas U33C. but a few hours before that i was running it and it derailed and hit the floor[B)]. i had the shell off at the time it hit the floor. i carfully inspected it and nothing was loose or out of place. i ran it sucessfully for a while - then i went to back a 15 car train into the yard and it sputtered a few times made a terrible grinding.[censored]. took the shell off & took some stuff apart and discover the main gear in the rear worm housing was nearly rounded off. what caused it ? was it my fault?
Call Atlas and tell them about the problem. They are a top notch company and stand behind their products. I am sure they will send you the replacement parts. Don’t tell them it hit the floor though or they might charge you for the part.
James
i wasn’t gonna tell anyone abot the hitting the floor thing i just posted it here to see what you guys thought the problem was. also how difficult would it be to replace the gears in the rear truck? the exploded diagram has the part# for a set of gears
The fall could have jammed a bearing or something or knocked the gears out of allignment and then they ground down after running. I tear my locos apart all the time for maintanance and lubing.I havin’t found one yet that was a problem to rebuild.( I’m pretty machanical though). Good luck with it!
the gear thats out is really worn down so it needs to be replaced.
Once a gear gets misaligned it will become stripped within a matter of seconds. It doesn’t take much. As indicated above call Atlas explain what you’ve done, be honest as I’ve found dealing with most companies honesty goes a long way.
Fergie
so is honesty the best policy in this situation?
I would just call them and tell them You need the gear, I would inspect the rest of the trucks and take them apart, just to make sure nothing else is wrong. If it were me I would replace both worms at the same time. Just a thought.
i’ll just tell them i need a gear and give them the part# - still not sure if i’m even gonna fix it myself
I would be honest about it.
A while back I purchased a U30C that had a vibration in the motor. The only way you could get at the screws that secured the motor to the frame was to remove the fuel tank halves. Unfortunately mine was one that had the halves glued at the factory. All I did was tear the fuel tank up trying to remove it. Well, I talked with Mr. Rob Pisani and he promptly sent new fuel tank halves. Not only that but they were the right color!
Be honest! It pays.
Do what I do with Athearn – order the entire truck instead of fiddling around trying to replace a single gear. The price difference is not going to be worth quibbling over.
dont feel bad i droped my locomotive and it shaterd
I would be honest. What caused the gear to fail is very likely still there. You may need/want a new truck, or Atlas may know what other parts you will want to replace. Beleive me, they have had the same problem from the same cause before.
i know i could replace the entire truck if i didn’t have to mess with assembling the gears- it looks easy to replace a truck - disconnect the wires -remove it , connect the wires to the new truck , snap it in , remove the main gear cover install the worm gear and driveshaft and you’re done. thanks cacole, the motor is my atlas has a vibration too.
no need to order parts or anything now- i fixed it myself[:D] turns out a bearing in the worm housing was missing - found it on my desk/ workbench -a bearing was also missing from the other worm housing- found it on the floor so i reassembled it ,put a drop of hair clipper oil (i know i shouldn’t use clipper oil) on the each of the bearings ,a few drops in the rear gearcase and it’s good to go. THANKS everyone it runs quieter than ever now. the motor makes some vibration but that’s all.