Gear noise in a MTH Premier Triplex

Hello guys and gals..........

since you bought it secondhand , perhaps the first owner didn't put any fresh grease in it.  I would try Red & Tacky #2 and put in the gearboxes,coat the worm gear with your fingers and fill in the teeth and do the same on the axle gear using the wooden flat stick and put grease on the between the teeth (not too much) but just enough to coat the teeth of the gear then reassemble the gear boxes and turn the motor flywheel by hand few times to spread the grease around both ways( forward and backwards) if it feels free, no binding then put the boiler back on and test it on track and if its fine then run it for few mins at low speeds forwards and backwards. that should help quiet it down.  hope this helps.........

the woman who loves toy trains

Tiffany

It doesn't have a worm gear it has three gears stacked on top of each other. The center gear is polymer and red n tacky is not good for it. A good friend of mine has been a lubricant salesman for a long time and knows his grease and doesn't recommend it with the polled gear. I loaded the box with labelle's white lithium that's plastic compatible.

Hi Ralph, I never used Red and Tacky but from what I read from other posters it's a good product for all toy trains. That said Libelles White Lithium is also a very good grease.

 

As for your grinding gears, did they have grease in them when you first opened the housing? Do they look to have any slop where they seat? Is it possible that one of the motors have a bent shaft, or could a bearing be wearing out.

 

I have a drill that had a grinding sound when I bought it twenty-five years ago and it still has that same sound. Believe me when I say it saw plenty of action around the house in that time. What bothers me is that you said your Tri-Plex ran quite when you first bought it then the sound of the gears went south. That tells me that it's probably not ment to make alot of noise.

Yeah there was plenty of grease in it. The noise is more of a whine than a grinding noise. I tried shimming it and everything else I can think of with no luck. Maybe once it gets more miles on it it will quite down a bit. But keep the thoughts coming. Thanks, Ralph

A whine? I know this is out in the land of grab a little smoke, but could the sound be coming from the speaker? Or could it be the smoke generator?

Turn the sound all the way down and do you hear the whine when it is in neutral?

Hello guys..............

this is the first time i ever heard of MTH using plastic gears in their trains as i bought alot of mth premier and railking trains in the past before settling down with the imperial challenger i have now and all of them had metal (bronze) axle gears and steel worms including the imperial challenger so i was assuming that your triplex would have metal gears in it.  I would NOT use red and tacky # 2 with the plastic gears.  I had H.O. and N scale trains in past and they all used plastic gears so i been using "labelle # 106 white grease with teflon in it and is safe to use with plastic gears for many years with good results. 

the woman who loves toy trains

Tiffany

You mentioned that the noise was more of a whine. Several months ago I purchased a new Williams ten-wheeler that had a marked whine. The gears were lubed with Red n' Tacky #2 with some positive effect, but the whine really toned down by externally lubricating the bronze motor shaft bearings with some Mobil 1 5W-30 oil.

OK.....I also have the Triplex and love the locomotive.  It makes a sort of "whine" when in reverse but not much noise at all when in forward.  Ralph...with you being a MTH service center and trained ASC service rep.....well.....can't you get any help from MTH??  Don't get me wrong, nothing the matter with posting here for help but it just seems natural with the qualifications listed that you would have the necessary connections at MTH...??

 

I hope you get it fixed to your satisfaction because it certainly is one of my favorite locomotives!!

 

Alan

In the triplex is the first time they used a plastic gear. I think. I had gotten a new one from MTH but it did the same thing. When I talked to the tech he said yeah it wasn't a good design and the only thing to do was run it and eventually quite down. Does anyone have one that did the same thing. Thanks for all the ideas. Ralph

Actually this forum has helped me with a lot repairs. And it gives me a heads up to be prepared if that problem comes up. There are alot of great guys on here with a lot of knowledge. I've been a MTH tech for only 3 years so far and still have a lot to learn I appreciate all the thoughts. Ralph

I own a Premier Erie Triplex that has the same gear noise that you describe and it is coming from the front set of drivers. It is definitely not a sound caused by the smoke unit or sound system. I'm also a very experienced MTH tech and I've had that front driver assembly apart twice, checked all the gears and bearings and I still get some noise. I own another Triplex and it is definitely quieter. I've decided that the problem is really not worth pursuing any further unless someone else has some break-through solution. It is just possibile that if one were to replace all the gears and bearings things might improve, but the expense and aggraviation don't seem to warrant that effort.

 

Eric Hofberg

TCA, LCCA

MTH ASC Tech   

hello chug..............

tell me are the gears plastic ?

the woman who loves toy trains

Tiffany

Tiffany,

 

It has been at least 3 years since I last worked on my Triplex and I honestly don't remember. I think most if not all the gears were metal. I must add that the gear noise is not all that noticible with the sound level at 30% or higher.

 

Eric Hofberg