# Help HO Chattanooga Tyco Steam Locomotive



## RailRoadX (Aug 14, 2017)

Can someone either suggest or offer help with a Tyco Chattanooga Locomotive (1980's vintage)?
Unit was having operational problems took the unit apart. Removed motor cover cleaned the armature and stator replaced the old brushes (still good and springs). Reassembled the unit and the motor only hums. Disassembled tested without wheels and motor worked fine. (Did notice secondary flywheel behind the main flywheel that rotates the main drive set had two "ground" teeth.) Reassembled with wheels only humming from the motor, retested without the wheels and the motor runs fine. Attempted to search for what was causing the binding when I turned the main gear with wheels in manually I noticed when I tightened up the chasis the wheels were locked, loose they did turn with little resistance. Am I missing something here? why does the motor work sans wheels but once the wheels are in place, it does not want to operate????????????

Broken down in TX.


----------



## Ace (Mar 30, 2016)

Without knowing the details, I'm inclined to suspect that your loco is just plain worn out with excessive wear on gears and bearings. Some of those items were not built for long-term durability and it may not be worth repairing. But you can try!

It would help a lot if you could post a photo of your project. Is it an 0-8-0 like this? Is the motor in the tender?


----------



## J.C. (Dec 24, 2016)

without a photo I would guess that you might need to shim the front of the motor to make some gear lash(worm is hitting gear to hard causing binding)if you can try it without tightening the motor down leaving it a bit loose.


----------



## RailRoadX (Aug 14, 2017)

*Chattanooga Steam Locomotive HO Class HELP!*

To Ace,

Yes, that is exactly it in your attached photograph. The power/tractive effort emanates from the tender. I purchased this set in the very early 1980's for my son, used it once due to a lack of interest and the whole set sat in the package, in storage and not in the attic or basement for storage. I am close to retirement and am getting back into the hobby of my youth that was in hiatus for about 55 years.

All of that being said, I cannot believe that this unit could be worn after "sub"-minimal usage! Can you tell me if I can purchase a replacement motor for the unit if tha is the case?

Thanks so much, it is very much appreciated!
RRX


----------



## Ace (Mar 30, 2016)

Since it hasn't had a lot of run time, but it's old, it may just need lubrication and adjustment. Since you've had the motor out, check that the wheels and drive train turn freely, lube as necessary. Sometimes old grease may solidify and need to be cleaned out before new lube is applied. Like JC said, the worm gear needs to engage the axle gears with slight play to avoid binding. Check for plastic gears and drive parts that might have split or distorted and caused binding. If the motor binds after you reassemble you need to look closely to figure what's interfering.


----------



## RailRoadX (Aug 14, 2017)

Please see my response. Still learning to navigate this site. Thanks RRX


----------



## RailRoadX (Aug 14, 2017)

To Ace and JC,

Why would the unit run prior to my disassembling it? The chasis was very difficult to loosen. The wheels and the main armature axle spin fine. I used the same brushes and springs. Cleaned and lubricated the entire motor and wheel set assembly. Just when I reassemble the chasis to the motor and wheels it binds but, it ran prior to me taking it apart.

You can turn the main gear on the motor by itself and when the wheels are on if it is loosely "buttoned"-up. and, the motor engages and runs without wheels electrically. However, on the slightest torque of the retaining screws the motor will not turn manually nor electrically, strictly hum.

Thanks,
RRX


----------



## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

So if the motor doesn't hum when yountighten the screws, this suggests metal to metal contact somewhere that is creating a short.

If you do need replacement parts Northwest Short Line is a good source.


----------



## RailRoadX (Aug 14, 2017)

*RRX*

CTV,

When I tighten the screws to the chasis the motor only hums. 
Originally, when I removed the screws that held the motor to the chasis they were really tight for electrical fasteners. That is what I cannot understand. It ran before I took it apart now after reassembly when the screws are secured it will not run only hum but if I remove the wheels or really loosen the chasis screws the motor runs fine. Nothing appears to bind, you can turn everything manually and electrically when the motor is free or screws in loosely tightened or, when finished and hand torque the fasteners, the vehicle only hums. Cannot determine where it is binding.

Scratching my head here in Texas.


----------



## DonR (Oct 18, 2012)

I understand the power train is in the tender.
When the motor hums but won't move is it
connected to the loco? Do the loco wheels
have free movement?

Something is changed when you 'tighten' the screws.

Secure the loco (tender) on the track with the shell off so it can't
move. Raise the power so the wheels are turning. Slowly
turn the screws. Fake a torquing like you do tightening engine
head bolts, a little on this one, a little on that one. At some point you should see something move and bind.

Unless it would otherwise cause a problem, adjust the
screws so the unit runs, then apply a tiny amount of
glue to them to keep them from loosening. 

Don


----------



## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

RailRoadX said:


> CTV,
> 
> When I tighten the screws to the chasis the motor only hums.
> Originally, when I removed the screws that held the motor to the chasis they were really tight for electrical fasteners. That is what I cannot understand. It ran before I took it apart now after reassembly when the screws are secured it will not run only hum but if I remove the wheels or really loosen the chasis screws the motor runs fine. Nothing appears to bind, you can turn everything manually and electrically when the motor is free or screws in loosely tightened or, when finished and hand torque the fasteners, the vehicle only hums. Cannot determine where it is binding.
> ...


Sorry, i misunderstood. It sounded like you were saying that when you tightened the screws, NOTHING happened, not even humming.


----------



## time warp (Apr 28, 2016)

What you've got there is a Tyco Powertorque motor. Using a one piece cast "block" and a slot car armature which turns at a very high RPM , which is reduced through the gearing.
These power truck assembled are set up "loose", plenty of play (slop) in the gearing which is the only way they will run properly.
Remove everything from the bottom up, and though I've no doubt you've checked, make sure that each gear spins easily as you reassemble it. First the lower transfer gear, second the large bull gear. Run it at LOW speed that way, fwd and rev, before moving on. Next add the lead wheelset that engages the transfer gear, tighten up the screws and run it that way before moving on. Be sure and look very carefully to make sure none of the gears are split. It is very common to have split gears or wheels on a Powertorque.
Also check the fit of the axles in the block as you go, they should almost fall into place. Theres no good reason for binding when tightening the bottom screws if everything's in place, and there are no adjustments that can be made either, due to the nature of the assembly. 
I've been through it the hard way with powertorques, and I do have some spare parts if you need. Don't bother trying to find any, the only source for parts are salvaging junk locos.
You will get it running, I have 9 locomotives running with them.


----------



## Shdwdrgn (Dec 23, 2014)

Similar to what time warp said, I have some experience with a loco kit I'm building which was missing a piece that held a gear in place, and the replacement I built wasn't quite right at first. In my case, it was the flat gear that meshes with the worm on the motor.

Definitely check to see if the motor runs in either forward or reverse. In my case it would run great in one direction and bind up solid in the other direction. The problem was my new holder wasn't strong enough, and when the worm turned in one direction it pulled the other gear up into the worm causing a friction bind. I had to build a new holder out of more rigid material to keep the gear from climbing and that solved my problem.

If you find that your loco will run in one direction but not the other, re-check any pieces that hold the gears in place, see if there's some unusual slop allowing a gear to move around. Additionally, you might remove the motor and try spinning the entire assembled gear train by hand, see if you feel anything binding up. If there are no other worms in the loco, you should be able to spin the wheels by hand as well. It just take a lot of patience to work through the whole system and figure out exactly what is binding.


----------



## B Lou (Jan 11, 2017)

Found this on you tube


----------



## time warp (Apr 28, 2016)

There you go!


----------

