Hey guys, I’m new here, but I’ve been reading the forums for a while and they’ve been super helpful for me.
Recently I’ve bought several new locomotives. Trying to model modern Union Pacific.
For a while I had been buying slightly used, and sending loads of them back for various issues with packaging for shipping, or problems the buyer didn’t disclose. The usual eBay stuff. Kept a couple that ran well and have worked well for me.
I then decided to try some brand new locomotives. The most recent ES44ACs from Intermountain and Athearn Genesis caught my eye. However, both of the first two units I ordered, one from each manufacturer, have had bad wheel squealing problems.
I did the usual stuff. Used lube only where I could confirm the squeal was coming from. The Intermountain was running very rough at one point, then smoothed out a bit, and was quiet. But then the squealing came back, as well as some lurching at low speeds, and I decided to send it back. The Athearn just arrived today, and it’s squealing even worse. Just did the same dance of trying to track down which parts of the wheel trucks were squealing, a ton of trial and error, with only a slight improvement, followed by a complete return of the original squealing.
Bought a used Atlas GP40 recently as well, which is ALSO squealing very badly. I spent hours yesterday basically lubing every single part of the locomotive I could access, including EVERYWHERE on the wheel trucks, in an attempt to chase it down. No improvement AT ALL.
Needless to say, I’ve grown very frustrated. The one loco I own that is not squealing at all is a Kato Dash 9. I did have to lube it when first receiving, but it’s been quiet and smooth ever since.
Looking for some advice. Do I keep sending these brand new units back until I get one that isn’t squealing? Am I likely to get lucky and get one that’s quiet, or are they all likely to behave the same way? Do I keep these and keep