[dcsullivan81]

Hey everybody, awhile back I picked up a locomotive off ebay (I know, but it was cheap) in hopes of painting the shell and giving it to my son. At first the train worked on the track, then stutteringly, and now just the headlamp works. I took off the shell and I can tell that no matter what, the electrical motor would not spin. I was wondering if this was of a case of either cleaning/replacing the brushes on the motor or replacing the motor? As a follow up to that, if I have to replace the motor, should I got with a Kato HM-5 because of the double shaft configuration or something else?

Picture of the train and shell, appears to be baldwin sharknose, but the brand on the bottom reads "Roco made in Austria", I thought they just did european stuff?

Picture with the shell off, axles have been removed because I wanted to see if the fault was in the friction of turning the wheels. Also is a heavy coverweight like that normal?

Also was concerned with the ground wiring (goes from terminal to my thumb, is that where it should be, between the metal chassis and the motor?)

Sorry for all the questions, I am a newbie when it comes to this hobby.

TIA for all the advice

D. Sullivan

 

[Dennis461]

You get what you pay for.
Buy a new one from a hobby shop.
Your son will appreciate it.

That loco looks like it was slapped together by a hobbiest and you'll spend too much time getting it to run, then you've got to paint it.

 

[DonR]

Yes, a heavy weight is normal, it is needed
for traction.

Here are some tests you might try.

You say the light burns. That means the
trucks are feeding power to the innards.
Have you tried turning the motor shaft by
hand. It should have little resistance. If
it does, the lube in the gearing may have
gelled and is stalling the motor. The motor
would get hot if this were the case.
If it turns easily, then the problem may
be electrical.

Use a pair of wires and try feeding power
directly to the motor tabs.
Use your volt meter set to DC to
check the voltage on the wires to the motor?
Turn up speed control about half way...
put your probes on the motor tabs. You should
see about 6 or 7 volts.

If this motor uses brushes see if they are clean
and making contact with the armature.

Let us know what you find.

Don

 

[dcsullivan81]

Yes, a heavy weight is normal, it is needed
for traction.

Here are some tests you might try.

You say the light burns. That means the
trucks are feeding power to the innards.
Have you tried turning the motor shaft by
hand. It should have little resistance. If
it does, the lube in the gearing may have
gelled and is stalling the motor. The motor
would get hot if this were the case.
If it turns easily, then the problem may
be electrical.

Use a pair of wires and try feeding power
directly to the motor tabs.
Use your volt meter set to DC to
check the voltage on the wires to the motor?
Turn up speed control about half way...
put your probes on the motor tabs. You should
see about 6 or 7 volts.

If this motor uses brushes see if they are clean
and making contact with the armature.

Let us know what you find.

Don

When I try turning the motor (disconnected from the axles, so it's not the gearing I believe) I only get about 1/4 turn before some resistance. Was thinking of popping the caps off the motors and seeing what was causing it.

 

[flyboy2610]

When I try turning the motor (disconnected from the axles, so it's not the gearing I believe) I only get about 1/4 turn before some resistance. Was thinking of popping the caps off the motors and seeing what was causing it.

That's not normal. You should be able to spin the motor by hand without much resistance. I would pop the ends off to see what's going on in there. It not like you're going to void the warranty.

 

[DonR]

If you get difficulty when turning motor
shaft by hand it is possible that the
gearing is 'jammed' has a broken gear..or it might be just
gelled lube. I'd check that, then if ok
it is possible that brushes are worn.

Don

 

[dcsullivan81]

Pardon the sawdust, Pinewood Derby is Saturday. Looks like the contacts brushes are toast, figure I will just replace the motor.

 

[OilValleyRy]

So FYI two companies made Sharks back in the day; Model Power which are junk, and Roco which are pretty good. Normally anyway.
I was going to suggest just replacing the motor outright once gearing was eliminated as being the cause.
As to a suitable replacement... In this case it's hard to say because you want to keep that weight, so the motor casing diameter is important. A flywheel or no flywheel will matter only for smooth slow speed; which your son may or may not be doing?

EDIT: If nothing else, hang on to those plastic casing caps. If you opt for a more compact motor, those could serve as "mounts" for the overhead weight with just a bit of JB Weld or something holding them in place.

As to paint stripping the shell; there are suggestions in the painting section of the forum. I recommend Scalecoat Wash Away; although it's not something kids should be able to get at. I'll let you investigate that area of the forum rather than repeat that info here.