|
|
 Posted - March 03 2018 : 6:57:08 PM
|
Hey Y'all;
Need your help troubleshooting for a club member.
I'm drawing a blank on what to do.
Ralph managed to acquire an apparently never run 4-8-0 in D&RGW green and orange.
Two somewhat related things are happening.
1.) the traction tires, are 2 on fireman's side, are thin O-rings instead of a flat band. They look original as they nicely fit groove in driver tires.
2.) It does not like switch frogs. Guaranteed to stall no matter which side frog is on, left or right.
Close examination via the amazing macro setting on a handy dandy little Canon point and shoot camera shows it getting high centered, of all things, on the switch frogs. Club modules use Code 100 rail with mostly Atlas turnouts and a few Peco.
The high-centered situation happens on both sides though worse on traction tire side.
Which brings up that I don't understand why it also stalls when non-conductive drivers are lifted from rail during high-centering on switch frog while conducting drivers (assumedly) maintain rail contact.
It isn't shorting anywhere - we were using an external to the layout MRC power pack I sometimes hook up to the inner main and my industrial area: it is the one with the volt and amp meters. Current draw went to 0 when loco stalled on frogs. It would be drawing rather more current if it was shorting.
Locomotive picks up current from engineer's side (right rail) & tender picks up from fireman's side (left rail).
Some photos from today; are of engineer's side, the current pick up side.
Locomotive is facing opposite direction in following images.
“There are a thousand things that can happen when you go light a rocket engine, and only one of them is good.” — Tom Mueller, SpaceX, 2012
|
Country:  USA ~
Posts: 94 ~
Member Since: May 23 2017 ~
Last Visit: May 26 2020
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 03 2018 : 9:00:21 PM
|
* Does no one in your friends club know how Mantua-Tyco steam locomotives pick up electricity from the tracks? the right side of the locomotive picks up power from the right rail. The left side of the tender picks up power from the left rail. If a switch is bowing up in its center, either the switch, roadbed, or the table top is causing it. That you must find out for yourself.
frank
toptrain
" It's a Heck of a Day " !!!
Edited by - toptrain on March 15 2018 05:50:36 AM
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 7538 ~
Member Since: August 07 2008 ~
Last Visit: December 06 2025
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 03 2018 : 10:13:05 PM
|
You should be able to lift the left side of the engine completely off the track and have it still run as long as the tender's on the track. I wonder if the left point and its closure rail are properly energized. If, for example, the point is not getting power dependably, the tender would be sitting on the point picking up no power while the left drivers are on the frog.
If you have a short little 0-4-0T at the club layout, you might want to run it slowly over the switch and make sure the plastic frog is the only dead spot.
Carpe Manana!
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 2416 ~
Member Since: September 17 2013 ~
Last Visit: February 09 2026
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 04 2018 : 12:53:48 AM
|
quote:| * Does no one in this club know how Mantua-Tyco steam locomotives pick up electricity from the tracks? Originally posted by toptrain - March 03 2018 : 9:00:21 PM
|
The tracks have electricity? That's news to me.
“There are a thousand things that can happen when you go light a rocket engine, and only one of them is good.” — Tom Mueller, SpaceX, 2012
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 94 ~
Member Since: May 23 2017 ~
Last Visit: May 26 2020
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 04 2018 : 01:00:52 AM
|
quote:If you have a short little 0-4-0T at the club layout, you might want to run it slowly over the switch and make sure the plastic frog is the only dead spot.
Originally posted by scsshaggy - March 03 2018 : 10:13:05 PM
|
We do, a couple different brands, some do some don't. Ralph also had an ancient General and it did just fine while the 4-8-0 had issues. Harry has the Mantua bicentennial 4-6-0 and it does okay. I have a Tyco/Mantua 4-wheel plymouth diesel switcher (getting an On30 body) which does okay on the same turnouts tripping up the 4-8-0. I have a 1990s Mantua 0-6-0T which does okay and does better after I added a wheel wiper to I forget which side's aft driver. I have several Bachmann 0-6-0 and one of them has similar issues, one of them.
“There are a thousand things that can happen when you go light a rocket engine, and only one of them is good.” — Tom Mueller, SpaceX, 2012
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 94 ~
Member Since: May 23 2017 ~
Last Visit: May 26 2020
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 04 2018 : 09:01:13 AM
|
Back when I had one of these(looking for another one now actually) I bought a junker with the same style drivers and did away with the ones that had traction tires. That helped with how well the engine tracked and picked up power. I also replaced the brass tender wheel sets with nickle silver ones with an RP25 flange on them. With the new wheel sets in the tender, I made power pickups to get the tender 8 wheel pickup as the new wheel sets were metal on both sides vs brass/plastic on the original ones. Mike the Aspie
Still NT's, I have Aspergers.
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 308 ~
Member Since: November 17 2008 ~
Last Visit: June 05 2023
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 14 2018 : 5:45:32 PM
|
| I wonder if that rear wheel is the only one picking up current. I would clean all oil/grease from all the bearings on the right side of the engine and make sure shiny metal is present on all axles/bearings and bearings/chassis surfaces; then try it. If that works then you can lubricate with graphite. Good luck! OTTB
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 169 ~
Member Since: November 26 2009 ~
Last Visit: February 25 2026
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 14 2018 : 10:05:27 PM
|
| I've had one of those. Seems like it might just be time to do an overhaul. And, unless it's on a grade or a large consist, it should be able to run without traction tires. Doesn't seem like those 4-8-0s like tight curves.
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 2087 ~
Member Since: March 16 2013 ~
Last Visit: July 05 2018
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 17 2018 : 09:47:17 AM
|
I am concerned about that second driver. It looks like it is too low, and lifting the rear two from the rails. Would it be possible to ,ill out the slot in the frame where the second driver sits, so that everything sits level? That might cure any derailment problems, and should also improve pickup.
I have a Mantua 0-6-0 tanker that had the same problem with the center driver being liwer than the other two, and it wouldn't stay on the rails either.
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 609 ~
Member Since: December 22 2013 ~
Last Visit: February 25 2026
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
|
|
Posted - March 19 2018 : 10:52:25 PM
|
Could be the O-ring is causing it to lift a bit too much, as they tend to be thicker than the flat fires. Now, is it a 1mm or a 2mm thick O-ring? I bought some 1mm from China, couldn't find'em in the States. They have a lower profile. They work great on the old Tyco engines. Never tried them on this particular engine, I "think" I may have one of those somewhere, but never run it. No idea where it is at the moment. Good luck with it.
Jerry
" When life throws you bananas...it's easy to slip up"
|
|
Country: USA ~
Posts: 3974 ~
Member Since: January 04 2009 ~
Last Visit: January 11 2019
|
Alert Moderator
|
|
Home
Forums
Events Calendar
Forum Admins & Mods
Register
