Large Scale Central

Replacement parts for Bachmann

Unfortunately I have not been able to run my Bachmann steam engines very much, but hopefully I am approaching that time quickly. But I keep reading about all these gear failures, Climax dead after only 30 minutes, etc., and parts availability is dropping, etc. So should one stock up on certain parts while they are still there? Things like delicate parts like the Shay hose hangers, steps? I did buy 2 of the 440 D axel and both my 1st gen Shays have the metal trucks ready to go. What are the common issues for the K27, C19, 2nd gen Climax, 3 truck Shay and 2662 engines? What should I look at getting while getting is available?

The later issue models you list are generally thought to be quite reliable. I have all you mention, my favourites being the Climax and K-27. Certainly the die cast truck Shays, the C-19, 2-6-6-2, reworked Climax and 2-6-0 are good runners. They learnt their lessons with the earlier models - usually poor drivetrain designs and some sketchy wiring. The PnP board on these later models, including the K-27, make battery and dcc conversion a synch.

If anything stock up on fragile detail parts. Max

How old was the Climax? Early ones, yeah, 30 minutes sometimes. You need the skip shaft (or make one). I still have a big handful of new slip shafts right from Irv in Bach Service. The engines would twist up, usually snap the yoke off the end of the center gearbox.
K-27’s? Geez. If I tell you, Bob won’t be happy. I have two. They have the only two BBT drives ever built, all PRC electronics removed or bypassed, and they work great at 30:1.
You know the interesting part on Shays is everybody wanted metal gears in metal trucks. The innards are identical…wheels, axles, bearings, gears, bulkheads, motors. Different housings and pickups. Hooks becoming a problem, I gave up, cut the hooks off of one of mine.
4-4-0, 2-6-0, 2-8-0, I used machined Delrin NWSL gears. Good luck. Check the latest Bach catalog to see what they are even producing. If you want 4-6-0’s you’re in luck!
TOC

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Thank you, Dave, for coming out of “Retirement”, if only to offer your thoughts and suggestions, along with memories…!!!
Fred mills

Yeah…laid up a bit, thought I’d czech in.
Funny, some places just aren’t there any more, others seem full of people who want you to think they are brilliant, but two lines in and you realize they haven’t a clue.
Gonna have another run next Friday.

TOC

The NWSL gears work well on the knurled axles. Bachmann now supplies axles and nylon gears as as a spare for the 4-4-0 & 2-6-0, which have a ‘D’ axle so the NWSL won’t work. They supply a brass gear axle for the 2-8-0.

Does anyone know if NWSL is still making the large scale gears under the new ownership?

uh…I have done dozens of the 4-4-0 and 2-6-0. Yes, they are D axles from the geared portion outwards. the axle is round at gear AND for oillite bearings in side of gearbox.

They were still shipping gears late last year for my last order anyway.

If I have any choices to replace with non-Bach parts, that’s what I do.

If I can figure out photos, I have scrapped gearboxes and axles, i can show you “round”.

Now that’s older units. No idea what they threaded up in newer versions.

Good to see you posting Dave.

Super easy on this new software. Drag and drop will work, as will the old method of posting the URL of a web saved photo. No tags needed.

Like the others, good to see you Dave!