Being that my wife is now joining me in the train roon, she loves steam and wanted an old steamer with sound. Arrived today and it seems the lead truck derails seeminly when ever or wherever it wants, One turnout in perticular( found why, will fix it tomorrow ) However it also derails on straight track, curves and such.
The lead truck seems to have plenty of movement side to side, and up and down with no binding whatsoever. wheels in gauge.
Kinda thinking it is to light, perhaps some soder wraped around the axles to add weight, but thought I would post here to find if this is a typical problem with a Bachmam Spectrum 4 6 0 .??
We also went with a Digatrax duplex controls, she love that, gets down walks beside her engine, doubt if I ever get to use it[bow] LOL, but she was willing to let me program with it, then she snached it back. [(-D]
Did you check to see if perhaps the truck itself needs to be swiveled 180 degrees? Also when it is “parked” are both wheels firmly on the track?
I ask about the first one as I had run into that problem before with 4 wheel pilot trucks, somehow they get turned around and it changes the position of the truck on the bolster.
I had a similar problem with a Mantua pacific locomotive and it turned out there was a very very slight burr on the groove or slot that the lead truck’s screw went through. I don’t have a Bachmann engine handy so I do not know if they use a similar method. The old AHM Rivarossi engines sometimes used a spring to create tension on the lead truck and sometimes it was off center or poorly adjusted
The problem might actually be with the drive wheels. if they are slightly off quarter or have too much side play, they may make the locomotive “hunt” from side to side and that could cause side pressure on the lead truck. Since there is not much you can do about them, it might be that a modest amount of weight added to the lead truck would help, and wrapping solder around the axle would certainly give it the lowest center of gravity I can think of.
This is not a known problem based on my experiance. I have two of these they run fine with no mods.
I also run on several other layouts who’s owners have Spectrum 4-6-0’s, again, no problems. Nor have I read or heard anything like this being a common problem.
Sounds like you know what to check, wheel gauge and track would be my first thoughts.
I avoid extra spring pressure and extra weight if possible, but extra weight on a lead truck would be the best fix if no other problem is found.
I actually remove the lead truck springs from many locos, it actually makes them pull better in many cases.
Do you have other small steam simialr to this loco? If not, a check of your track may be in order. Small steam s often the most demanding in terms of trackwork quality.
Don’t take this the wrong way but it may be the track-work, steam is much more sensitive to irregularities in the track-work. If, for instance the track is not perfectly level, the driver wheels will pick it up just enough to allow the pilot wheels to pick any irregularity in other places including an almost perfect joint.
I agree with rrebell. Steamers are just fussier than diesels, so if this is the first steamer on your layout, get ready for some track improvements. When I started to dual-era my layout, my 0-6-0 found small hiccups that none of the diesels ever had a problem with. And then, I had to repeat the process when I got a Hudson. Guess which 2 engines I now use to test my trackwork.
John… I’ve had my B’mann 4-6-0 for well over two years now, but when I first got it the lead trucks would climb the rails in a turn. I finally thought the problem was that it need a bit more weight on those front trucks and I added a small amount of lead weight there, and have never had that problem occur again. Bob
Well John, you’re going to have to play a bit of Sherlock Holmes here and get yourself “eye level” with the track and see exactly what is happening when you are running it. Take it down as slow as you can reasonable get it and start watching it closely. Sometimes you even have to shine a flashlight from the opposite side of the engine to see exactly what is happening. Run it in “both” directions.
Did you also check the “guage” of the drivers as well and make sure you have no wobble there either? Bachmann’s QC appears to be pretty decent anymore, especially compared to some of the others, but that doesn’t mean a “boo-boo” couldn’t slip through now and then.
Also make certain that the lead truck wheels are actually “turning” and not just sliding along the track…
It seems that any front pilot can be lightweight on any model.
It also seems that Bachmann is noted for simply adding a front pilot to a 0-6-0, and or a trailing truck to the 0-6-0 to get a 2-6-0 or 2-6-2. Don’t know if the Spectrum is a different model, though. The SPectrums are usually the cream of the crop at Bachmann wiht fewer problems. BOTH the added pilot and added trailing truck seem to need a wee bit of extra lead weight applied to them to help keep them on the track as they are typically a little light. The slightest irregularity in the track work, even miniscule, or a rather finicky switch can set one off the tracks.
Funny thing is I have had no problem with my Spectrum SY Mike I bought last CHristmas. The lead truck seems to stay on track, doesn’t mean I won’t run itno some problems with it though and have to add a tiny bit of lead weight.
Thanks to all that posted above, I got a bit from all and is greatly apprieciated by my better half
Found a few gliches in my track work that none of my previous rolling stock had problems with, thought my track work was flawless[:-^]LOL a bur on the inside of a rail, misaligned plastic joiner (now stryine and glueed) and a switch point that needed a bit of sharping.
I did not realize steam was so sensitive and a friend brought over his triplex, doubt if I ever purchase one of those LOL. but found a few other problems with it. Gads I love big diesels LOL
Of course the wife is really getting into this, asked me what is a mallet, was going to tell her it was a great big hammmer, but didnt
Thanks again, for the information, [C] or [B] your choice.