Turn off smoke on a 290

I'm no expert, but running a Flyer steam engine on its back to clean wheels has never been an issue...and I've never seen a post war vintage loco with an on- off switch for the smoke unit. I think those came later...

Mark in (wet today) Oregon

Frank.

On the Gilbert steam locomotives, there is no switch to turn off the smoke unit. These locomotives have a nichrome wire wire wrapped around the wick material and they are quite hardy. Many times they have been run for hours with no smoke fluid and suffer very little harm, remember they were manufactured as toys  in the 40s and 50s and were not a high maintenance item. When the wire does burn out it is more a result of just many hours of use. Running upside down will do no harm.

Ray

Frank, back to your original task, cleaning the drivers. The way I do it for all engines without Pull-Mor is put a paper towel on the track, soak it with spray cleaner, hold the paper towel and lower the engine lightly onto the paper towel. The drive wheels will spin, completely cleaning them. This works since the power pickup is the tender wheels.

If the white insulators need replaced that is a big job. It requires pulling the drive wheels to put on new insulators and reinstalling the driver tires. Then the drive wheels need to be reinstalled on the chassis and properly quartered.

Unless the insulators are broken (rare) they do not need replacement. More often they are loose and need to be pegged and reglued as done by the factory. Tires on those engines are vulcanized to the metal rim and after 60 years become hardened or chipped. Unless there is enough missing to affect smooth running they are best left alone. Original wheels if you can find them are the best bet for replacement.

Rich

290 and 300 do not have traction tires.

@RoyBoy posted:

290 and 300 do not have traction tires.

Again, I'm no expert, but as far as the post war steamers go, I can't remember seeing traction tires on any of 'em...290, 300, 302, 310, 312, 320, etc. ( I mention these since I actually have them...) 🙂

Mark in Oregon

AF traction tires are thick and they are vulcanized onto the rim. They are not removable like modern traction tires.

As a general rule of thumb, steam engines factory equipped with knuckle couplers will have traction tires (326, 336 and so on). AF called them pull-mor power.

Generally, steam engines that came factory equipped with link couplers do not have  pull-mor traction tires. The numbers you quote were originally made with link couplers.

Are there exceptions? Of course.

Hmmm. The 300 started throwing sparks all over from the drivers (I think the rear ones) and shorted the transformer I was using. I flipped it over in a cradle and hooked my test leads to the tender and it ran fine. So what is the problem?I

I have the AF repair guide but now I don't think I was reading it right.

Frank

A good photo of the underside might be helpful...

Mark in Oregon

I am guessing that one or more of the driver tires is loose. They need to be re-glued to the white insulators. The engine only shorts when it is on the track. If it is off the layout with power wires connected to the tender wheels it will run without shorting.

Ok. I was not visualizing it correctly. I found a YT video of a guy pulling wheels on a K5, when he disassembled the wheels into 3 pieces, I finally got it. The hub, the piece that attaches to the axle (or stud), the plastic insulator which attaches to the hub and then the flanged wheel or tire (saw it referenced both ways. No rubber traction tire. The Pul-More was a little confusing. On Lionel, I think it refers to a certain type of motor.  On AF it is just a mod to the wheels with an addition of a (rubber) traction tire vulcanized to the flanged wheel.

It looks as if all 4 are loose. From what I reread and then observed on that video and a couple others I just need to really clean it with alcohol and then carefully apply superglue around the rim, press and hold the flanged wheel to the insulator for a few seconds or more and voila, it's fixed.

I also got the #290 tender apart and sprayed my usual electric/electronics cleaner on the reverse unit and let it sit overnight. Worked a treat!

Thanks!

That is great! Now you are an experienced veteran of steam engine repairs. It is correct Gilbert used PULL-MOR as the branding for the rubber traction tire inserts, not for a type of motor.

@ftauss posted:

Ok. I was not visualizing it correctly. I found a YT video of a guy pulling wheels on a K5, when he disassembled the wheels into 3 pieces, I finally got it. The hub, the piece that attaches to the axle (or stud), the plastic insulator which attaches to the hub and then the flanged wheel or tire (saw it referenced both ways. No rubber traction tire. The Pul-More was a little confusing. On Lionel, I think it refers to a certain type of motor.  On AF it is just a mod to the wheels with an addition of a (rubber) traction tire vulcanized to the flanged wheel.

It looks as if all 4 are loose. From what I reread and then observed on that video and a couple others I just need to really clean it with alcohol and then carefully apply superglue around the rim, press and hold the flanged wheel to the insulator for a few seconds or more and voila, it's fixed.

I also got the #290 tender apart and sprayed my usual electric/electronics cleaner on the reverse unit and let it sit overnight. Worked a treat!

Thanks!

Frank, my suggestion on the repair of the wheels would be to use 5 minute epoxy, super glue can set a little fast, just a suggestion.

Ray