MilesWestern
Active Member
Yes, we should. Bring your camera next time.
Yes, we should. Bring your camera next time.
That article doesn't really help me, since its more about repowering steam then brass. it is an E44. The current truck setup isn't that great, although i do have a few motors lying around i can use.
Actually, I think the primary problem with most old brass locos, judging by the article, seems to be a bad gearbox and a loose universal joint. Replacing the bad gearbox and joint with a North West Short Line gearbox (which is smaller) and a double universal joint seems to fix it.
lol, you haven't seen this thing's guts. Maybe the gearbox is bad, but once you take a look at the motor itself, it the problem becomes apperent. it looks like a brick, and it runs like one to (not referring to the locomotive itself, which does, in fact, look like a brick)
I can't seem to find a picture of it, but only the end axles of each truck are powered, and their is a really weird truck tower in it. instead of a worm gear, there is a regular gear connected to another one that goes down into the truck. I don't know how it turns the wheels.
I think i'm going to remotore it before I make any calls on it's gearboxes, although those will certainly get looked at.
Athearn Genesis SD45-2? If so, I can't really believe that it ever ran badly...
If not...well, ok then.
Hey, got any ideas as to why my Kato SD45 has decided to stop working after I accidently nudged a boxcar on my way past?
Then why don't you just replace the MRC decoder? I know a place where you could get another decoder at a good price and they ship globaly.
well thats the problem.
I PAYED FOR A LOCOMOTIVE WITH SOUND. I'm not going to write it off and buy another decoder, since i would have just wasted my money. I could have gotten the same locomotive for only $100 and put my own decoder in it.
I shouldn't have to buy another decoder, sound or otherwise, because athearn fielded a flawed product. they should have atleast tested the thing before they shipped it off to market. from what i've read in search of a solution, all SD45-2s are having this problem (looks like i should have done more research) Now i love athearn's stuff, and they really are feeling the pain from this MRC nonsense, since apperently i'm not the only one. MRC better REALLY get their act together with this.
Premium models should not come to me running like a 30 year old locomotive with a pancake motor in one truck.
however, i still have other locomotives that need decoders. which place is it?
The best solution appears to be to just buy a Bachmann E33, but thats to expensive, and at that point, i'd rather just have the E33. I do have an older Athearn motor off a C44-9W and some PPW motors that i haven't installed in some projects yet, so we'll see.
Perhaps i can just get the E33's frame, and trucks. I'll have to take a look at th drive train, and see how i might build that. all i'd need to do is cut some off the frame, and move the E44 underbody details to the new frame.
as far as the spare PPW motor goes, its probably going to head off into my Metroliner EMUs so that i can modernize those 30 year old models. Its original motor was spitting sparks off the commutator! beautiful, but probably bad!
here is a picture from earlier in the thread
ALSO, I GOT MY SD45-2 TO RUN!
yes, i'm happy. I just set CV5 to 32 just to mess around, but sure enough, I was able to get it to roll on 2 with 28 speed steps. I should experiment with 128 speed steps. CV2 is set at 6.
I just worry that maxing out the top voltage (MRC decoders go up to 32 instead of 255) might not be good for the decoder. we'll see.
the athearn one probably just needs to be rebuilt or cleaned or something. It runs OK now anyway, just alittle bit louder then similar motors.
:woot1::wave7::woot1:Not layout related, but i made EAGLE SCOUT tonight! woot!