05-14-2017, 12:34 PM
Hi All,
It's been a while since I've posted here but i've not been idle. Aside from redesigning part of my layout , redoing the track work etc. I've also finally given in to my weakness and taken my first careful steps in owning steam locomotive models. The first commercial plastic one I've bought is a Bachmann Spectrum 4-8-2 light Mountain. While I've already learned these were released a few times, with some technical differences/improvements in each. I think I might have one from the first or second release, and the PCB in the original tender almost appears as a non DCC version, but it does have a plug. In any case, I've swapped the tender for a long Vanderbilt type with two 3 axle trucks to more accurately represent the way they would have looked in service with the SP prior to them receiving the skyline casings.
I still have work to do on the detailing to make it a little more SP. Yes I know I could have tried to get an Athearn Genesis, but part of the fun for me is kit bashing/detailing, and it being my first steamer, I decided to go careful with the expenses and buying a loco for 50 USD is a lot better than 200+ USD. I've already rewired the tender and replaced the original bulbs for warm white LED's, and installed a Loksound V4 decoder with speaker in the tender.
However, to make a long story short. The loco isn't the smoothest runner I've seen. This may be because the engine has been sat in a box for years (allegedly it was brand new, but discovered during a clearcut) and all grease has dried up. So the first thing I did is to open up the cover for the axles and removed old grease and re lubricated it. This hasn't really made an improvement and I'm getting the impression that the drive is binding a little bit. Not enough to stall it, but just enough to make it move in a somewhat jerking/ irregular fashion at low speeds. I've also checked pickup wipers are free and not jamming in the spokes etc..
So anyone with experience with these engines (DCC or DC), what have you done to improve running characteristics?
Many thanks for your further tips and tricks in taming this otherwise nice model.
Koos
It's been a while since I've posted here but i've not been idle. Aside from redesigning part of my layout , redoing the track work etc. I've also finally given in to my weakness and taken my first careful steps in owning steam locomotive models. The first commercial plastic one I've bought is a Bachmann Spectrum 4-8-2 light Mountain. While I've already learned these were released a few times, with some technical differences/improvements in each. I think I might have one from the first or second release, and the PCB in the original tender almost appears as a non DCC version, but it does have a plug. In any case, I've swapped the tender for a long Vanderbilt type with two 3 axle trucks to more accurately represent the way they would have looked in service with the SP prior to them receiving the skyline casings.
I still have work to do on the detailing to make it a little more SP. Yes I know I could have tried to get an Athearn Genesis, but part of the fun for me is kit bashing/detailing, and it being my first steamer, I decided to go careful with the expenses and buying a loco for 50 USD is a lot better than 200+ USD. I've already rewired the tender and replaced the original bulbs for warm white LED's, and installed a Loksound V4 decoder with speaker in the tender.
However, to make a long story short. The loco isn't the smoothest runner I've seen. This may be because the engine has been sat in a box for years (allegedly it was brand new, but discovered during a clearcut) and all grease has dried up. So the first thing I did is to open up the cover for the axles and removed old grease and re lubricated it. This hasn't really made an improvement and I'm getting the impression that the drive is binding a little bit. Not enough to stall it, but just enough to make it move in a somewhat jerking/ irregular fashion at low speeds. I've also checked pickup wipers are free and not jamming in the spokes etc..
So anyone with experience with these engines (DCC or DC), what have you done to improve running characteristics?
Many thanks for your further tips and tricks in taming this otherwise nice model.
Koos
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