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 Posted - September 29 2015 : 10:39:25 AM
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unlike their diesel locos which i consider great value,kit bashers dream locos,their steam locos are a different kettle of fish,the first pacifics,being a mish mash,forever breaking down etc,you would have thought,that the genesis range would be a lot better,user friendly.yes they are smooth runners,that is until the gears split,then the fun starts,getting the body off,thanks to darths great detail of how to remove,it might be feasible someday to actually get it apart,but with my hands/eyes doubt it,shame when a couple of well thought out screws could have made it a great loco,my opinion only
just glad i got mine for a song,under $30,ran nicely for while then just stopped and motor carried on,so it will most likely be a shelf queen till i get inclination to do it
luckily nwsl make the offending parts as athearn do not stock them even though they know its a problem
Edited by - catfordken on September 29 2015 1:41:15 PM
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Posted - September 29 2015 : 11:37:44 AM
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| This is exactly why my steamers are almost all Riverrosi or Mantua models. I like to tinker and these have relatively easy to access parts.
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Posted - September 29 2015 : 11:43:27 AM
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agree totally,making it harder for self help is a loser for the manufacture,people will not buy more they will buy less if they have any common sense,simplicity is the name of the game,spare parts are my other niggle,lots of money,lost by not stocking them,loyal customer base is something that is long gone today
Edited by - catfordken on September 29 2015 1:41:50 PM
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Posted - September 29 2015 : 2:26:44 PM
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I totally agree with you on this, Ken.
I got my Mikado in a disassembled state, given to me after a serious tumble
off a layout.
One of the trickiest puzzles I've done in a while.
And now you say I have split gears to look forward to.
Sweet!
Evan
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Posted - September 29 2015 : 3:45:33 PM
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oops,what can i say,wish mine was looking like that at the moment,half way there,my advice is before you assemble check it first,would hate to see you assemble it,run it for awhile then for it to crack gears
catfordken
if you cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel,try turning around
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Posted - October 01 2015 : 3:59:54 PM
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When you said "old", I thought you were referring to the 1961-66 Athearn Pacific, 0-6-0 Shifter, and 0-4-2T "Lil' Monster"....
They were part of the "blue box" line, and were very simple and rugged !! I'm pretty sure Irv got them from Varney...
The Genesis Steamers ran smooth as glass - when they ran! 
Carmine - CEO, Engineer, and Chief Bottle Washer
Pacific Belt RR, in HO Scale, Since 1975! 
Edited by - pacbelt on October 02 2015 09:58:15 AM
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Posted - October 01 2015 : 4:28:39 PM
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quote:When you said "old", I thought you were referring to the 1961-66 Athearn Pacific, 0-6-0 Shifter, and 0-4-2T "Lil' Monster"....
They were part of the "blue box" line, and were very simple and rugged !! I'm pretty sure Irv got them from Barney...
The Genesis Steamers ran smooth as glass - when they ran!
Originally posted by pacbelt - October 01 2015 : 3:59:54 PM
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Well out of all the 6, 0-4-2T's, the 2, 0-6-0 switchers and the first 3, 4-6-2 Athearn old blue bow locos I bought, all had split gears. I have gotten lucky and now have 2 4-6-2 drives that have NWSL gears in them.
frank
toptrain
" It's a Heck of a Day " !!!
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Posted - October 01 2015 : 4:31:25 PM
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My newer 4-6-2 and 2-8-2 also had bad gears that Athearn refused to replace. I haven't bought anything new of Athearn's since it happened. One of the 2-8-2 I redetailed into a PRR L2sa. It sits in a box. Occasionally used for a roundhouse scenic piece.
frank
toptrain
" It's a Heck of a Day " !!!
Edited by - toptrain on October 01 2015 4:34:00 PM
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Posted - October 02 2015 : 09:28:23 AM
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quote:My newer 4-6-2 and 2-8-2 also had bad gears that Athearn refused to replace. I haven't bought anything new of Athearn's since it happened. One of the 2-8-2 I redetailed into a PRR L2sa. It sits in a box. Occasionally used for a roundhouse scenic piece.
frank
Originally posted by toptrain - October 01 2015 : 4:31:25 PM
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 Athearn... I guess they haven't learned from when they last made steam locos in the 50's.
-Steve
"A lot of modellers out there who go to these train shows see broken HO stuff and go, 'This is useless' when, in reality, they can still be used for modeling whether it's as a prop on your layout or a cool project to make something old new again."
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Posted - January 21 2016 : 7:27:09 PM
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Ken.
Not sure if you've given up on the Athearn 2-8-2 or not.
I came across the original review for it in Model Railroader mag.
a little while ago.
Removing the boiler shell goes against all common sense.
You do have to almost break it to get it off.
But, once it is partially up, you will see a screw below the sand dome
Loosen both sides, and it's easy after that.
Evan
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