My New Williams by Bachmann jh Box #41604 "O" Scale EF-4 Electric Rectifier Engine Has A Squeak!

I have a Williams Conrail rectifier, runs great, no squeaking.  I may add a Pennsylvania version in the future.  Has anyone made a Penn Central E4?

So what’s your question? Where is the squeak coming from? How about video to help diagnose the problem, if that was your intent in the post?

Also, some factual corrections.

Lionel was not losing money in the mid 1950s. That was still the postwar heyday for the company. (The oldest postwar baby would have been 10 in 1955.) The downturn came a few years later, beginning in the late 1950s.

The reason Lionel used four-wheel trucks for that locomotive is that Lionel was producing toy trains for kids for most of its line. Those trucks tracked better on tight curves.

Oil it, check grease, some harden, especially check.asap on a worm gear. They miss at the factories sometimes.  It may need a little break-in, give it a half hour or so each direction, (watch the motor heat on new too, tolerances may be tight until broke in.)

As you oil, try to slip a paper towel near bearings and flush oil acoss the bearing and into it.

Inspect for more black oil on one sample vs others. Watch that bearing, oil often until they shed aprox the same dirt level.

Lay the loco on its side and let gravity pull the oil 100% into the bearings (10min)

Flip.and repeat, stand upright on rag and let gravtity drip the oil down wheel backside for an hour/overnight. Wipe wheel backside well, run.

Look at wheel backs, axles, and trucks for scrapes and metal dust/dirt in excess.

@railbear601 posted:

In the last year, I bought this Engine New in the Box at a very decent price.  I like EF-4's as Bachmann and MTH made the engine wheel arrangement correct --- a "C" truck  (6 wheels).  Lionel back in the middle 50's was starting to lose money and brought the engine out in a "B" truck (4 wheels).  

The more likely reason - I am not sure about their financial shape when their "EF-4/E-33" came out - that Lionel used the 'B" Blomberg truck is that is what they used on almost anything - it's from the F-3 and fit Lionel's shortened/skinnier near-model. 

The Wms/WbB version uses incorrect truck side frames. They are some "generic" EMD side frames that show up often on some Wms diesels (kind of like Lionel's old "B" Blombergs). MTH used the correct "C" Tri-mount trucks. These trucks were common on early diesels and electrics. The axles were spaced unevenly due to each axle being powered and that early traction motors were larger than later ones and had to be staggered/offset.

The Wms locos is, however, a very presentable and mostly accurate model, thick handrails and EMD trucks and all. I bought the MTH version years ago because of the Wms trucks (and the MTH was going for a good second-hand price), but had the MTH version not existed, the Wms would have been OK.

Thank you all for answering.  I have contacted a gentlemen who repairs Williams by Bachmann Engines.  He will be selling me One Can Motor that fits this locomotive.  I have other Williams and Williams by Bachmann Locomotives that this gentlemen has worked on and also retrofitted some of my Diesels with Fly Wheel Motors.  Hopefully the new motor for my Electric Engine will solve its squeaky problem.

Sincerely yours,    railbear601