# How do you guys improve low speed performance?



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

As the title days I have Bachmann spectrum athearn blue box and atlas yellow box engines most are gp18's and 38's plus 60's

I have one engine that responds to 5 scale mph while most only starts to move at 35.
Is there anything I can do to improve them or is this normal??

Track is clean and wired every 3 ft transformer is a tech2

Wheels are clean brushes all look great so..

Thanks in advance


----------



## [email protected] (Jan 30, 2012)

5 mph is hard on the medium-grade equipment. My Bachmanns and Athearns grunt pretty well.


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

That's what I'm trying to figure out my grunt speed is lame.

I read that athearn link about improving them and read about clipping the spring to the com??

Does it really work?

My f7's are the ones that run great forgot about those lol

To explain my situation I set a train on my track and I hear it hum and light is barely lit

When I apply power I don't get anything till around 35 or so.

I guess this is resistance from the motor and can I improve this by decreasing resistance??


----------



## [email protected] (Jan 30, 2012)

Could be a curve in your transformer output as well.


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

I would have agreed with that but my brand new 80 ton Shay I got last week responds like my f7

I wish one of you guys were closer or I could send one and let you take a look at it


----------



## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Post a video of the two showing the difference.


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

Ok I can do that later show exactly what I'm talking about..

This is why I like this site do much always advising and helping.


----------



## sstlaure (Oct 12, 2010)

I find the cheaper locos don't like to run slow. I've got some old Cox and Bachmann ones that are loud and only go with higher voltage inputs.

My Athearn Genesis and Walther's P1K/P2K all run real nice and quiet and have excellent slow-running.


----------



## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

my favorite loco the 2267 does great at low speeds I can get as low as 35 on the controls. with 8 or 9 freight cars hooked up to it, the little tyco steamer on the other hand can't pull more then three or four cars at low speeds...


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

Well my atlas yellow boxes do the same but this Bachmann non spectrum is just crazy... Setting zero it still crawls lol


----------



## shaygetz (Sep 23, 2007)

Every loco I get goes to the bench first, where I run it propped up off the table, in both directions, for a half an hour each way. Some add jeweler's rouge to that but that is too much like work to me for all the cleaning you'd have to do afterwards.

After that it is run on the layout pulling and pushing a full train for awhile. All of this seats the gears and bearings. In the end, you'll find that it all is in the drive and motor...cut quality in one or the other and both will fall short. A good transformer with pulse power is also imperative.


----------



## Rangerover (Feb 8, 2012)

Just my take on these older analog engines, we all know the kind that either run fast or stop. There is no slow or creep! Perhaps a few in analog, but for the most part, no! I think after a number of DCC conversions, I've found all kinds of motor's, pancake, can, 3 pole, 5 pole, capacitators, flywheels or no flywheels, 2 wheel drive, 4 wheel drive, 6 wheel drive. The older drives with poor gears, drive shafts, elastic bands. Electrical wiper pickups on 2 wheels, 4 wheels, 6 wheels, all wheels, and axle pickups. And of course the rubber tire traction wheels. 

Power packs that come with train sets, the Tech's, and many other's, some very good some very poor. 

All I'm trying to say is there are so many varibles in this hobby, but trying to run these old analogs the way a newer Atlas, Proto, Athearn, Kato, or Bachmann, to name a few, out of the box loco's, it can't be done without adding someting like a remotor, adding wipers, a new drive train. But this can be an expensive overhaul! But I have done a few in the last 7 years. I was quite shocked when I reentered this hobby upon retirement 7 years ago at the price of loco's and rolling stock (I used to buy the $9.99 loco's 40 years ago only when I could afford a new one). I never dreamed I'd be willing to spend $400.00 for a loco, but the DCC bug bit me right in the behind and now I don't mind spending on a trouble free, nice detailed loco in DCC with sound and I can program cv's to crawl at a snails pace yea even through switch's, crossings, turnouts. LOL some things you can't do in analog, so I don't mind spending money on a $100.00 loco or even converting some good running, pass the stall test to less than 1 amp loco's, life is good, it's all good these days compared to the frustrations of the hobby long ago! Jim


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

Ok no video yet.... But I put a few trains on and tested

My shay started at 5
Santa fe f7 Bachmann was moving at 0!
My atlas illinois central started at 10 
My blue box gp 60 demo was at 30
My blue box Missouri that sanded oiled and cleaned started at 20

So I'm thinking everything is normal but could use more cleaning


----------



## Southern (Nov 17, 2008)

You say the shay started at 5, F7 at 0.

where or how do you come up with these numbers? Are you getting them from the transformer?


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

Yes sorry ...just turning the dial and recording the numbers

Why is that wrong?


----------



## Southern (Nov 17, 2008)

No No there is no wrong


----------



## [email protected] (Jan 30, 2012)

Thanks, Yoda...


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

So basically I'm being paranoid and my old dc is fine for what it is?

Reason being is I want to start converting to dcc


----------



## Southern (Nov 17, 2008)

The numbers on mine are just numbers 0 Thure 100. They are not scale speed. I think but I am not sure they are just the % of power out put to the track.

This is DC, right?


----------



## Southern (Nov 17, 2008)

Others are going to have to tell you about the DCC stuff. I am still stuck it the 1960's


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

Lol same here and yes dc


----------



## NIMT (Jan 6, 2011)

DCC will make all of the start, stop, climb, crawl, and toot toot's change!
The numbers on the DC throttle are just reference points they really don't mean anything!


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

Stop yelling at me!Lol

Just trying to get a feel of what I can do and can't do


----------



## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

well to answer the question I put 5w30 on the gears and ran forward 5 min, reverse 5 min (slowly) and that resolved the initial issue of the loud squealing noises it was making...it also helped on the low end


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

So what about this pearl tooth paste stuff?

I'm gonna try that link about bb athearn see what happens


----------



## [email protected] (Jan 30, 2012)

Villa Ridge ain't that far from Louisville...


----------



## JohnAP (May 4, 2011)

Shay,

What % power/speed do you run for that 1/2 hour?


----------



## shaygetz (Sep 23, 2007)

About mid throttle, giving it enough to push past any minor binds without over working it.


----------



## [email protected] (Jan 30, 2012)

I joined a club that has a mall space full of track, HO on one side and N on the other. I pulled 22 cars today, with the little Athearn switcher. Some of the cars have problems. I had never had enough room to pull on them hard before. I will drag-test all of them now.

 I made Conductor. We'll start with something easy, The Polovtsian Dance #2 from Alexander Borodin's Prince Igor, with me...


----------



## New Berlin RR (Feb 11, 2012)

[email protected] said:


> Villa Ridge ain't that far from Louisville...


is this another hobby store, and if so where is it at?


----------



## Grabbem88 (Feb 24, 2012)

No clue what he meant but I'm over 7 hrs away..

Well tore my gp60 down hard wired it and tossed that metal clip used some of my rc grease in the gears clean everything with a buffer pad clipped the springs

Conclusion... It runs faster but low speed doesn't start moving until around 20 which is better than 35 before I shaved the frame bumpers/ stop and this thing is whisper quite now

So all in all I'm happy ier.


----------



## norgale (Apr 4, 2011)

When I bought my only NEW engine in thirty years it was an Atlas with the Seminole Gulf logo on it. I was very surprised at how well it ran even on cruddy track that hadn't been cleaned. It doesn't have a very high speed at full throtle but it sure will creep around on very little throtle. Very good puller too. It will haul ten passenger cars no sweat. pete


----------

