I just bought a 2360 and brought it back to life. Well almost! It runs great in one direction but very slowly in the other direction. What would cause this?
Thanks,
Darrell
Bad or missing thrust bearings in a motor. Look for substantial vertical motion of the motor armature from one direction to the other.
A worn idler-gear shaft. Look for cocking of an idler gear under load in one direction.
Thanks Bob,
Looks like the thrust bearing is the problem.
Darrell
Be sure and look at the motor brushes also. If one is shorter than the other and or both are well worn that could cause it. Make sure both motors start up at the same time or very close. If one is slower than the other look there first. There is no idler shaft with verticle motors. Are both worm gears greased and trucks cleaned and lubed?
Roger
Roger, I was referring to the idler spur gears that link the axles together. They turn on short stub axles pressed into the truck casting. In my experience those axles can wear unevenly, allowing a gear to get out of alignment running in one direction and not in the other.
Thanks Bob, point taken. I had over looked those.
Roger
Thanks for all the replies! This 2360 has been a learning experience for me. It wasn’t the thrust bearing after all. An idler gear in the truck was crooked. The magnets were causing the wheels to be to close to the truck on one side thus causing the gears to mis-align. Furthermore the truck casting is disinagrating. It’s coming apart like an old pot metal casting! I removed one of the magnets, and now she’s running fine. I’ll soon be in the market for a new truck!
Darrell
I suspect that there’s no brand of trains that is immune to zinc pest. It famously killed Dorfan. I’ve had a number of cases with K-Line trucks and some piggyback vans; and MTH replaced a bad big-boy casting for me. I’ve had to replace some prewar Lionel wheels; and I have a replacement on hand for when the motor in my '60s 773 finishes disintegrating.
Postwar GG1s are notorious for magnets rubbing the wheels. There is a fairly simple fix: You insert a washer of suitable thickness behind the affected wheel to take out some of the end play. Rather than pull the wheel, cut a gap into the washer just a tiny bit narrower than the axle, so that you can force it on but it won’t fall off. If you do this and replace the magnet, try to reproduce the original orientation.
I just finished patching together another K-line truck. I have a bag full of broken trucks that I’ve replaced. They each have a half-dozen castings; and different ones break on different trucks. I got lucky and had the parts to put together a truck from the scraps.