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Subject: 
Re: Super Chief will be ready for prime-time: a trick to make it work.
Newsgroups: 
lugnet.trains, lugnet.lego.direct
Date: 
Thu, 24 Oct 2002 11:01:21 GMT
Viewed: 
1705 times
  
In lugnet.trains, Paul S. D'Urbano writes:
Hi Ben,

In lugnet.trains, Reinhard "Ben" Beneke writes:
Dear all,

a German Afol posted the (maybe only his?) solution to the wheelblock • trouble:
http://f24.parsimony.net/forum61776/messages/53196.htm
(only in German)

He found out, that most troubles were caused by wheels that touched the • wheel
blocks in 12 o'clock position. And of course that is the more the case the
more load is resting on the wheel block. So the wheels might spinn free
without load, but with the superchief above they cause trouble by friction.

I think I've observing the same thing with my wheel blocks but I'm a little
confused with where you describe the trouble occurring.  In the pictures you
provided I couldn't quite tell where the Dremeling was done but this is
probably just me missing something obvious in the images.  What I found is
that with any wheel set I have, if I hold it upside down, I can push down on
the wheels so that they rub against the wheel well.  I would describe it by
saying it rubs at the 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock positions, if you imagine
your clock as the wheel of an upright train.

That is more accurate description. But that is the point: the wheel touches
the frame. Of course any rotor should only be in touch with the none-rotating
system via its bearings.

To be honest, as a trains newbie, I can't quite tell if my Santa Fe Kit has
a problem or not.  I've built the whole train, two locos + five cars, and
with a single motor and a sufficiently high power setting I'm able to get it
to run my kitchen table track designs without stalling or obvious slipping.
The tracks designs I've used all have switches, tight turns, and • cross-tracks:
http://www.brickshelf.com/cgi-bin/gallery.cgi?f=27331

I would say, you are very lucky: I have heard about about a behaviour like
this only 2 times before. Most Santa Fe trains of this length suffer under
real trouble (slippage, stopping in curves, torn magnets).

The problem is in the turn-switch-straight-switch-cross-switch-turn sequence
in the center.  Adding my MOT train engine on the front helps it do this
more smoothly.  I haven't yet tried adding the motor to the second 10020 but
expect similar acceptable performance.  On the other hand, I can turn the
controller up to full power and not worry in the least about the train
losing control.  As a newbie I don't know if this is normal for a
substantially sized train or if this is a clear sign that there's a big
problem.  I know with a single engine, full power would send it flying off
my kitchen table and into oblivion.

I can't tell from here, but of course any heavier train slows down a bit. No
idea, if yours could be faster (because their may be still a very few none-ok
wheel sets among lots of good ones).

Again, as a newbie, the only wheel sets I have are from the MOT kit and the
Santa Fe Kit.  I don't have any original 9V wheel sets to compare to.  I'm
not a mech. engineer, but I'd suppose in an ideal world you would never want
your wheels rubbing on the wheel wells in any circumstance.  Of course, in
the real world there may be some compromises made, especially in toy design,
where a certain amount of non-ideal behavior is acceptable.  If you (or
others) could check original wheel sets from "way back when" and find that
there's no way to push the wheel such that it rubs on the wheel block, then
I think we could conclude we know what's changed.

On old 9V blocks I only noticed rubbing wheels against frames when they were
really worn out. A freind of mine has a train in a shoop display under
permanent drive. Every few months he has to replace the wheel blocks. They
wheel blocks use a needle bearing (= a sharp tip at the end of the metal axle
runs in a fitting slot in the siding parts of the wheel blocks). Where the
needle is drilling in the plastic, there will allways happen some wear. the
more the longer it runs and the heavier the load is.

We'd also have a very
simple test for folks to tell if their wheels deserve replacing.

I think so... (lots of speculating in this thread.)

I can't say how thrilled and amazed I am with these Santa Fe
sets.  They're just beautiful (Mr. Mathis you're amazing!).

Agree. It was not the intention of mine to harm TLC. I think a open word in
this newsgroup may instead help TLC to find out about a problem as son as
possible, and therefor it should help them hopefully to get satisfied
customers (which of course get addicted to trains as we are).

Leg Godt!

Ben

P.s.: Klaas Meijaard wrote me yesterday and told he had a clear evidence why
it is the frame, which is wrong shaped. He will post pictures as soon as
possible, but he ist still busy with cleaning up his house after the Legoworld
in Zwolle....
So I am highly interested in the results of his investigations.



Message has 1 Reply:
  Re: Super Chief will be ready for prime-time: a trick to make it work.
 
(...) What is kind of weird is that I don't think (and I could well be wrong) that the needles at the axle tips are actually doing anything, bearing wise. I've looked at both black and grey wheelsets and it looks to me like all the bearing action is (...) (22 years ago, 24-Oct-02, to lugnet.trains, lugnet.lego.direct)

Message is in Reply To:
  Re: Super Chief will be ready for prime-time: a trick to make it work.
 
Hi Ben, (...) I think I've observing the same thing with my wheel blocks but I'm a little confused with where you describe the trouble occurring. In the pictures you provided I couldn't quite tell where the Dremeling was done but this is probably (...) (22 years ago, 24-Oct-02, to lugnet.trains, lugnet.lego.direct)

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