There are a lot of things that can 'go wrong' with a loco to make it run
poorly. The first thing is to define poorly.
You almost need a checklist to go through.
Are the wheels dirty.
Are the pickups dirty - they can collect junk causing intermittant pickup.
When was the drivetrain last lubed - including the trucks, gear tower and
motor bearings.
While converting a loco to DCC the other day, I noticed that the wire I was
using (both AM and stock) on the pickup was causing the pickups to pull away
from the backs of the wheels. The wheelsets have a lot of side-to-side play
to help with tight curves. You can have a lot of intermittancy here.
The other loco I was doing had grease in the truck but it looked a bit dried
out. I don't know how old the unit is, but I may have to flush the trucks
out and give them a fresh lube job.
One unit had a bad universal which wouldn't let the truck swivel too well.
Don't know if it was factory or a home repair, but I was able to fix it.
Ken
On 5/24/06, Tom Hawley <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Edward Davis" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> . . . . . .I also have other AM models that run poorly. . . . . . . Would
> I
> be better off having the motors replaced on the poor running diesels, ?
> > > > > > > >
> The first step is to determine for sure if the motor is the problem. I'm
> in
> the process of fixing for a customer an AM Trainmaster that he said ran
> erratically. I'm replacing the wheel-wiper pick-up springs. They show
> signs
> of over-heating, probably shorted. I haven't tested it yet, but I think
> that's going to do it.
> < < < < < < <
> AM doesn't list motors in their catalog.
> > > > > > >
> AM does list motors on the web site and says, I think, "specify for which
> locomotive."
> Tom Hawley -- Lansing Michigan
>
>
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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