I’ve been fixing a very nice Bachmann Spectrum 2-6-0 which looks hardly used. Unfortunately the gear was split and someone who didn’t have the instructions tried to fix it. Broke several parts of the baseplate, but nothing tragic and I got the gear done.
However, I noticed as I was putting the wheel bearing covers back on, that the front axle (which hadn’t been touched) was sprung, and the others were not. Then I remembered there is supposed to be a tiny spring on top of each bearing. Duh!
I got a lead from FB that “miniature compression springs” are fairly easy to find. However, I suspect the loco doesn’t need them - especially if it has the front axle sprung. [Does anyone know the diameter of the springs?]
If you have one of these locos, and you do an experiment for me? I want to know if the springs are fully compressed if the loco is on level track. If you slide a screwdriver under the front axle on one side, does the axle go up, or does the whole loco go up a little and the front axle goes down to stay on the track? Same for the center and back axles.
Many thanks for any help! [Wow, we do have a great choice of emoji now!]