Hi all,
I ran one of my engines -#681 on an outer loop for my layout to test it (it is under construction). I ran it w/room lights out to simulate nightime. I noticed sparking on the wheels here and there-engine ran great-My 2056 does this as well-anything to worry about-it is all mostly new 031 tubular track w/some old mixed in.
Thanks
TOm
Hi tom, don’t worry, they all spark. Especially the oldtimers, since they use more power.
The brightest sparks are on the middle rail and you can get them a bit less by sweeping it over with a bit of oil on a rag.
But you’ll never get it away completely.
My first guess is dirt. Since your track is mostly new, when was the last time you cleaned the wheels and rollers on that engine?. Each of those little sparks could be leaving a little mark on the rail, which only accelerates the problem.
Thanks for the info, guys. I will clean the locos wheels
Tom
northern,
You will also see some sparking as the loco crosses the non-derailing control rails on non-derailing switches. This is normal as the sparks occur as the wheels complete the non-derailing circuit. This happens regardless of where the switch is set as the solenoid attempts to energize even if the switch is properly aligned for the route being traveled.
Regards,
Roy
I keep my track meticulously clean, and my 681 has always done this, even though I replaced the entire pickup assembly.
New pickup rollers on postwar engines can help things a whole lot, though. I swap them out on all my postwar engines. At less than $5 a set, it’s cheap insurance against problems.
You should also check to make sure your roller roll freely. A tight roller can make things worse. If they seem tight, bend the brackets out a hair. If they still seem tight, put a very, very small drop of oil on each side.
Hi
Like everybody are saying is normal…
Sometime I see sparks on the connectingrods, happend after the wheels was oiled.
Andre.
How can I extend the length of track for the non derailing feature on a mth realtrax switch.Right now I have inserted apin between the the non deraling track and insulated track. Is there a better way of doing this? felix
Oh the sweet smell of ozone. What would O gauge trains be without the sparking and O three? Brings back memories of Christmas’s years ago. But I can do without that lead tinsle shorting out the tracks.
Charlie
My 2025 runs great but also sparks some. I was talking about it with a guy at Charles Ro and he told me a lot of times, it’s the brushes.
Jim
my honest opinion, these guys covered just about everything…except the obvious ‘disguise’…don’t run with the lights turned out…LoL
ok…it’s too early for me to be posting…sorry for the idiocy there…
A funny note must be there too… We are not discussing politics here[;)]