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Post by backshophoss on Jun 28, 2013 1:32:48 GMT -5
Will start this off with a "cautionary" tale of sorts,  PLEASE,PLEASE DO NOT USE ANY KIND OF AUTOMOTIVE GREASE(or PRODUCTS) as power truck LUBE!!!! The pic that follows is a pair of GP-9 trucks(Athearn) soaking in 70% rubbing alcohol to remove that type of GUNK and debris it attracts,this is after the 1st scrubbing!! Attachments:
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Post by backshophoss on Jun 28, 2013 18:46:03 GMT -5
The second part of this "tale" is Please store your models
is such a way as to stop/slow down the dust/dirt that finds
it's way into just about everything,the model involved was from a
member who passed on,the models were stored possibly in a
garage/shed until turned over to the club for use.
Today's finely made drives(Kato,Bachmann Spectrum,Athearn
Genesis,etc)cannot handle grains of sand,dirt,fine dust that
maybe a fair condition athearn drive could.
Find a safe place to store Part Sheets and Instruction sheets/
booklets as the Exploded views will help when cleaning/
overhauling locos.
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Post by backshophoss on Jun 30, 2013 20:07:35 GMT -5
OK,Here's the supply list,this is stuff you can get at Wal*mart,
or the local supermarket,Walgreen's or CVS store,
the "store brand" stuff will be fine for this.
1-2 pints of 70% Isopropyl (rubbing)alcohol
1pkg of the "disposable"(cheap) 24oz containers,
the "deep" dish kind(for soaking parts over night)
1 pkg of "Q-tips" for scrubbing out parts full of "crud"
1 OLD(retired) toothbrush,soft,for scrubbing parts
1 roll of the blue "shop towels" for drying out/cleaning parts
1 pkg of alcohol wipes/swabs for cleaning wheelsets and
track when at the layout/setup/club.
A motor tool with a wire brush will help with polishing
wheelsets,contact points(more on that later)
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Post by backshophoss on Jul 22, 2013 18:50:11 GMT -5
This was a power truck in the past,now used as a dummy truck due to damage by the (automotive) grease used along with fine sand ! Attachments:
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Post by backshophoss on Aug 18, 2013 17:41:13 GMT -5
At this point,we're at the underframe and motor mounts, start by checking over and cleaning up casting flash on older Athearn models and polishing the area where the trucks and frame touches(swivel points)  Wear safety glasses when using a motor tool!! With a wire brush,polish the swivel points to remove any crud,rust,and corrosion,it should look almost mirror like (IE shiny ) As you pull the truck gear boxes out of alcohol bath and dry off,use the wire brush to remove any rust and corrosion off the metal. Power and DCC commands work better when the surfaces are CLEAN!! |
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Post by backshophoss on Aug 20, 2013 14:45:08 GMT -5
This is how the pivot point should look after clean up, Athearn GP-9 underframe used for example. Attachments:
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Post by backshophoss on Aug 20, 2013 14:48:30 GMT -5
Here's an other example,Athearn SW-1000 underframe Attachments:
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Post by backshophoss on Aug 20, 2013 14:57:40 GMT -5
This is an example of a full underframe cleanup, an unpainted SW-9 underframe, removed casting flash and casting "rot"(corrosion,powder like) Toward the end of "Blue Box Loco" production in the US,casting flash was common Attachments:
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Post by backshophoss on Aug 26, 2013 22:58:43 GMT -5
This will be a good time to take a close look at all the
gears in the drive as well,some of the athearn and life-like
axle gears have cracked over time or due to factory use
of a machine not setup properly to set the wheelsets on the
axle gear.
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Post by backshophoss on Sept 22, 2013 20:44:46 GMT -5
Now it's time to wire the motor,if needed,test and do brush/
brush spring replacements now.
Wire color code,for JST plugs/Hard wire standard decoders:
Red,Track power +
Black,Track power -
Orange,Motor + (top of motor,athearn)
Grey,Motor - (bottom of motor,athearn)
Blue,Lights common(+)
White,Front Headlight(Fof)
Yellow,"B" end Headlight(For)
Green,Purple,Aux fuctions(ditch lights,beacon(gumball).
or strobe lights.
Have a soldering iron handy with a good tip,solder,
and a 3rd hand or clamping type pliers(or a Hemostat)
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Post by backshophoss on Aug 1, 2014 1:42:18 GMT -5
Had a couple of Athearn P-42's stored away for a while,did a Hardwire DCC conversion using
the DHAT harness (Digitrax,now discontinued harness),but at the time I did the conversion,
didn't know what to use for Headlights(Minitronics solved that for me with 14 volt bulbs :-))
After moving earlier this year,found where they were hiding and with the State Fair coming up
soon enough,started to finish them off for that run with the Superliner set
Stored for a few years,started off with oiling all the bearings and put them on rollers
to "break'em in".
After a hour's time on the rollers,over the last few days their amp draw was down to .19-.22 Amp
at 2/3 throttle,and seem to be OK to run together whem MU'ed on the test track.
Planning to do a test run with the consist at the setup this weekend,then install the Headlight
some of the detail parts,and check if the ATSF F-7's(Athearn "heavys") will MU with them.
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Post by backshophoss on Aug 15, 2014 0:18:51 GMT -5
Got them to run at the setup wtih a freight consist,but had to figure out a support to keep the wires/decoders away from the drive,wound up using a part of a cable tie as a support started with AMTK 93 1st |
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Post by antoniofp45 on Aug 7, 2015 20:47:24 GMT -5
Excellent reference and tutorial. I'm sure I'll find it helpful as I have a small fleet of older run HO LL Proto 2000 diesels that are going to need a thorough going over. I plan on installing LokSound and TCSWow sound setups in them. I'll start first with my E-units and then on to the hood units, such as this SCL GP9, which I'll be using for local passenger and freight turns.  Thanks for posting this thread! High Greens  |
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Post by backshophoss on Aug 7, 2015 22:08:02 GMT -5
The P2K's are almost Blue Box Clones,but space may be tight depending on how the weight is shaped. Check the axle gears on those units,they are prone to splitting  Walters now offers replacement wheelsets #920-584494,MSRP $7.50  |
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Post by antoniofp45 on Aug 10, 2015 10:48:17 GMT -5
Thank you. I'll order those gears from my LHS. High Greens! The P2K's are almost Blue Box Clones,but space may be tight depending on how the weight is shaped. Check the axle gears on those units,they are prone to splitting Walters now offers replacement wheelsets #920-584494,MSRP $7.50 |
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Wear safety glasses when using a motor tool!! 
