[Tyrell54]

I recently purchased a 322 for parts. The locomotive wheels had been changed along with the reverse unit. The tender has all brass wheels and a very small knuckle coupler installed. Does anyone know what this stuff is? It doesn’t run so I can’t tell if the thing replacing the reverse unit does the same thing. Why were the wheels replaced and how could it run with metal wheels on both sides of the tender. I am curious and interested in why these modifications may have been made. Thanks in advance to anyone with knowledge of this stuff.

 

[AmFlyer]

Tyrell54, welcome to the MTF! That engine was converted to scale wheels a long, long time ago for operation on scale profile track. The drivers on both sides should be insulated. The tender wheels are insulated on one side on the front truck and on the other side on the rear truck. The device inside the engine is an ancient selenium disc bridge rectifier used to allow direction control of the engine with a DPDT slide switch on a DC power pack. The original Gilbert universal motor was retained. The engine should run with DC on the track. The VA rating of the power pack should be at least 40VA if you want to try running it. The only marginal item after 60 years would be the selenium disc bridge rectifier. I do not recognize the brand of the fixed scale coupler on the tender.
I would not part this engine out, I think it is a nice piece of S scale history.

 

[Tyrell54]

Tyrell54, welcome to the MTF! That engine was converted to scale wheels a long, long time ago for operation on scale profile track. The drivers on both sides should be insulated. The tender wheels are insulated on one side on the front truck and on the other side on the rear truck. The device inside the engine is an ancient selenium disc bridge rectifier used to allow direction control of the engine with a DPDT slide switch on a DC power pack. The original Gilbert universal motor was retained. The engine should run with DC on the track. The VA rating of the power pack should be at least 40VA if you want to try running it. The only marginal item after 60 years would be the selenium disc bridge rectifier. I do not recognize the brand of the fixed scale coupler on the tender.
I would not part this engine out, I think it is a nice piece of S scale history.

AmFlyer, thank you for the information. I actually bought this for the SIT unit. I am building a 322 with a half speed can motor and need some parts for the smoke unit. As rough as this thing looked, the smoke unit is pristine with an intact bellows. It should smoke up a storm with the half speed motor. I will reassemble it as a display piece as I have no dc power source. Thanks again, Mark

 

[Tyrell54]

Meant to add the photos

 

[AmFlyer]

That SIT unit looks brand new. The most recent set of three pictures shows this is a 1946 322. They are not real common, but also not that expensive.

 

[mopac]

Tyrell, those metal wheels on the tender probably have insulators on one wheel on each axle.
It would short the engine if both wheels conducted current. Here is how you can check them out.
Do you have a multimeter? Put meter on ohms. You will be checking for continuity. One probe to the
axle, the other probe to one of the wheels. Then check the other wheel. I bet you will get a different reading on each wheel. LOL, I sure hope so.

 

[mopac]

Yes, the driver wheels have been changed.

 

[Tyrell54]

Tyrell, those metal wheels on the tender probably have insulators on one wheel on each axle.
It would short the engine if both wheels conducted current. Here is how you can check them out.
Do you have a multimeter? Put meter on ohms. You will be checking for continuity. One probe to the
axle, the other probe to one of the wheels. Then check the other wheel. I bet you will get a different reading on each wheel. LOL, I sure hope so.

Yes, the wheels on one side are insulated with fiber washers and bushings, at first glance I didn’t see they were only on one side. Thanks