Traction tires missing on my 675 steam locomotive

Certainly seems like traction tires go on center axle. The 0.001-inch difference in driver diameter is probably within the manufacturing tolerance of the flanged and grooved wheels. How about a picture?

MELGAR

usually the traction tires are at the end or cab side rear of the engine !

what is the engine item number if mth or 6- if Lionel engine! so we can help you how about a picture of the wheels in question! 

A Lionel 675 from the 40's and into the early 50s doesn't have/never had traction tires - they came with nickel rims over Baldwin cast drivers, and the last run had drivers with spokes and no nickel rims. MPC made steam engine drivers for small Hudsons/Pacifics with grooved areas in the tread for traction tires since they didn't offer Magnetraction at the start of their production, but those traction tires (if memory serves) tended to go on the rearmost/flanged driver on the engineer's side of the chassis.

Thanks all, the engine has Baldwin  spoked drivers, as MTN mentioned. Photo to follow...

Lion L 226E posted:

As MTN posted the Lionel Post-war 675 in your photo did not have any type of traction tire.  Neither did it have Magne-traction.  Nevertheless, it was and is a very smooth running engine and can pull several modern era freight cars.  Not bad pulling post-war rolling stock either.

Thanks all. I learn something every day around here. Guess I'll just have to ease her along till she gets up to speed. She sure blows nice smoke rings though!

Lion L

675/2025 was not issued with traction tires. They were not used back then. Slippage upon starting is normal. 

What kind of transformer are you using?  Maybe you need more wattage output?

If the drivers are slipping the engine is getting enough voltage - a light hand on the throttle to limit the driver slipping is one of the things that can be done. I worked on a 2332 GG-1 (another engine that has nickel rims that are prone to slipping) and lightly scored the driven wheels with an old X-Acto blade and that helped a little with slipping. I'd suggest cleaning the drivers and the track, and make sure that there's no excessive grease on the gears to make things slick. If you wanted to try a thin layer of Bullfrog Snot on one of the flanged drivers you should be able to increase the pulling capability of the 675.

Lion L 226E posted:

... the center wheel is flat with a groove near the inside edge...

The wheel with no flange and the groove (middle drive wheel) has a slightly larger diameter...

Is there a groove on the center drivers? There looks to be a traction tire on one of them. Can't tell from picture. Is there a traction tire stretched around the center driver - with no groove? Just wondering.

MELGAR

Seventy years ago, when I was a wee one, I put  thin strips of electrical, not friction tape,on the flanged drivers of my 2025/675 steamer so it could go up an Over/Under (trade name) pier built layout. With no overlap of the tape, it worked beautifully and the loco could pull a half dozen freight cars or three car 2400 coaches up the grade with no problem.  The tape lasted a good long time and those "traction tires" worked like a charm. 

For a while a product was available named Bullfrog Snot or something like that, it was some kind of liquid latex that you painted on the driving wheel rim as an aid to traction.  If you're absolutely desperate you could find some and try it on ONE of the rear wheels.  (On sharp curves especially, one wheel has to be allowed to skid.)  As Goody says, a thin strip of double-sided tape could be another option. 

Personally I despise rubber tires.  I would limit slipping through skillful use of the throttle, just like a real steam locomotive engineer!

These 675s as mentioned never came with traction tires . Have several just like yours and they pull postwar cars very well with no slippage.Make sure the wheels are bone dry along with track as a slick film will cause slippage.

Grampstrains posted:

MTN posted:

A Lionel 675 from the 40's and into the early 50s doesn't have/never had traction tires - they came with nickel rims over Baldwin cast drivers, and the last run had drivers with spokes and no nickel rims. MPC made steam engine drivers for small Hudsons/Pacifics with grooved areas in the tread for traction tires since they didn't offer Magnetraction at the start of their production, but those traction tires (if memory serves) tended to go on the rearmost/flanged driver on the engineer's side of the chassis.

Acutally, Lionel started using traction tires in the mid sixties.cnter

On some of the inexpensive starter type diesel and steam engines Lionel made you can find traction tires since they were much cheaper than installing Magnetraction, but they were not found on the better quality steam engines such as 671/681/682/2020, 2055/2065, 646/2046, 736 or 773. 675/2025s from the late 40s/early 50s did not come with traction tires - they initially had 226-E Baldwin wheels that are described in service manual pages as plain end wheel/plain center wheel & tire assembly for the non-geared wheels, and gear end wheel/gear center wheel & axle assy with no mention of traction tires. The illustration in the Greenberg Repair and Operating Manual has the gear center wheel & axle assy showing what looks like a gap between the tire assembly and the center of the wheel. I looked in my parts stash and found a geared Baldwin driver/axle and it looks like there's a gap between the tire and the center of the wheel like the engine pictured above.

traction tires on a 675...i had to look and make sure it was not april 1st...