I have been having trouble getting my engine to run correctly. Quartering it seems to be the problem. When the rods bind, I reset them. The engine jerks forward, but in reverse it is smooth as can be even at 2 scale mph. Once or twice it ran smoothly in forward, but later went back to jerky forward operation. I have readjusted the rods many times but nothing seems to work. What am I missing?
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I’m confused, quartering a wheel has nothing to do with rods being adjusted, ……are you talking about the eccentrics? ……if the little tabs on the end of the eccentric cranks ( the part that goes into the wheel ) are broke off, it can make keeping the eccentrics in time a real chore. Best to post up pictures of your locomotive, and use a pencil or something to point at what you are adjusting ……
Pat
Yes it is the eccentrics, and yes the little tabs are there. When I try to readjust I make sure the tabs are in place before tightening down the screw. However, if that is not done correctly the rod(s) will bind.
By the way, I mis spoke on the engine, it is lettered for the DM&N but MTH 0-6-0s I am sure were lettered for different roads, sorry for my mis thinking.
What happens if you detach the motor and roll the engine back & forth on the track?
I will try that next. Thanks for the idea.
You have a bad motor .. the worm gear gets pulled down when it goes forward hence the bind .. when you go reverse it moves away so it runs smoothly.. I fixed a bunch of these issues on this engine .. unfortunately at the time mth was out of stock and motor was discontinued I had to pull worm gear off of existing motor and put it on a known new motor problem solved every time .. hood this helps .. Vinny
Hi if your motor is bad and you cannot get one from mth the motor doctor can repair your existing motor can be rebuilt he does excellent repairs!! Lionel
Train Repair (themotordoctor.com)
Alan
Thanks for your lead on a motor repair. I worked with the engine again yesterday, and again the eccentrics. I did note a problem with one side that the crank was coming down way low to the point it was hitting the deck on my bridge, and I think elsewhere. I re-adjusted it and it appears this time it ran smoothly in both directions. I will be running it again today to make sure it is running like it should.
I'll comment later.
Thanks to all.
This afternoon I had a chance to double check my work on the 0-6-0 and the engine did run smoothly in both forward and reverse, so I believe I finally got things fixed and running correctly. Here's hoping.
Thanks to ALL for your input and suggestions!
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