Dan Stuettgen said:
What can be done to the 2nd gen Bachmann frame and motor to make it quieter, short of replacing the entire frame and motor assembly.
Dan S.
Actually, nothing can be done. They are so noisy because the the gear shafts are anchored in the plastic chassis which acts as a drum head and accentuates the sound. The newer generations have the gear shafts anchored in a metal gear box. JMHO
Two Parts:
Greg, Looked over your Bachmann Loco progression, looks very good, not worth nit-pickin’.
Joe, (and Dan),
I started making replacement drives for the Big Haulers twenty years ago, just to solve the complaints you are making today. The drives I make that are current are stronger, quieter and will last longer than anything else I know of (in fact, Gauranteed for as long as I am alive).
Also make a conversion for the 4-6-0 to a 2-8-0, pretty slick and very functional.
More info, and questions answered 623-936-6088 [email protected]
Barry
Thanks Barry, in this case “nits” are welcomed if you have them!!
Glad it’s mostly right.
Thanks guys for the pretty impressive documentation on the big haulers. The photos really help a lot to document the history of this engine. One thing that I was noticing while viewing the photos, was that one of the generations had Brass bearings on the axles, which to me seems to have been a great idea to allow them the run smoother, but the next generation version these were eliminated. I had noticed that as I have Drivers from a couple different engines and one set has the brass bushing/bearings, where as all the rest don’t have them.
I wonder it Bachmann will ever get it right and come up with a good drive system for the big hauler. Maybe they should go back and look at the one used in the Spectrum engine. Other than the one bad gear on the axle, the rest seems to work very well. Good speed and gear ratio, quiet running, and smooth operation. At least the 4-4-0 and 2-6-0 that I have after replacing the drive gear do all of these.
One thing that I would like bachmann to do on all future engines is to make the axles and drivers like the ones on the Spectrum engine. The square holes in the drivers for the square ends of the Axles make it so easy to re-assemble the drive train after having to make repairs without the need of a wheel quarterer.
I am still fighting one of the Delton engines, trying to get it re quratered properly.
Dan S.
Remember that there were variations in the “generations” themselves, so small things can be changed.
Also remember that the big hauler is a low cost entry level model. I would imagine that it will never be a top quality loco all in all.
Greg