How to access Accucraft livesteam K37 rear tender interior

[Loggerman]

Hi guys,
I need a bit of help, I have a new Accucraft livesteam K37 with RC installed by Mike at Chuffed2bits, this was done about 8 years ago, but due to ill health and getting older I have never got round to actually running the loco, (which, incidentally is absolutely gorgeous) I've decided to sell it but need to change the rechargeable batteries which I assume are in the huge rear tender, but how do I get into the rear of the tender, there is no mention of accessing it in the K37 instruction manual, I've tried to get hold of Mike but I think he has taken a well earned retirement and is unavailable. Help needed, please. Dave

 

[PhilP]

You normally remove the coal-load..
You may have to remove a piece front the front of the tender first.

PhilP

 

[Loggerman]

You normally remove the coal-load..
You may have to remove a piece front the front of the tender first.

PhilP

Hi Phil, many thanks for getting back so quickly. I've removed the coal load which reveals the gas tank and water tank but that still does not give me access to the large space at the rear of the tender under the hut like structure, I wonder if this part with the hut on it just pulls off or if its fixed in any way, desperately trying not to damage anything.
Cheers Dave

 

[maxi-model]

I have been told by Strikalite that Great Little trains, in Coventry, have taken over Mike's business "book". Amazing Little Trains Ltd. | Midlands | Model Railway
Same skill sets as Mike. Coventry not a million miles from Warwick. Strikalight can do you replacement battery packs, if you need them.

Dog house comes off by removing those 4 small hex head screws on the tabs at its base. Check under the cab floor, above the pony truck for the batteries. Lay loco on side on something soft. Mike had a habit of placing batteries & RX for RC there. The tender would not be a good place for electics, as yours is a steamer not electric (they made both types, with mostly common components) as it's used as a warm bath for the gas tank and water reservoir for the boiler. There should be a hand pump in there. Have you still got the pump's handle ? He did my K -28 some 12 or so years ago. Are you sure you need to replace the batteries ? Fosworks do a dead battery "kick starter" if smart charger won't read. Max

 

[maxi-model]

Accidental duplication deleted. Max

 

[Loggerman]

Hi Phil, many thanks for getting back so quickly. I've removed the coal load which reveals the gas tank and water tank but that still does not give me access to the large space at the rear of the tender under the hut like structure, I wonder if this part with the hut on it just pulls off or if its fixed in any way, desperately trying not to damage anything.
Cheers Dave

I have been told by Strikalite that Great Little trains, in Coventry, have taken over Mike's business "book". Amazing Little Trains Ltd. | Midlands | Model Railway
Same skill sets as Mike. Coventry not a million miles from Warwick. Strikalight can do you replacement battery packs, if you need them.

Dog house comes off by removing those 4 small hex head screws on the tabs at its base. Check under the cab floor, above the pony truck for the batteries. Lay loco on side on something soft. Mike had a habit of placing batteries & RX for RC there. The tender would not be a good place for electics, as yours is a steamer not electric (they made both types, with mostly common components) as it's used as a warm bath for the gas tank and water reservoir for the boiler. There should be a hand pump in there. Have you still got the pump's handle ? He did my K -28 some 12 or so years ago. Are you sure you need to replace the batteries ? Fosworks do a dead battery "kick starter" if smart charger won't read. Max

Hi Max,

Thanks for your reply.

Yes, there is a little hand pump in there along with gas tank etc. the Doghouse seems to be held on with 4 screws/bolts coming up from under the rear deck.

The tender on the K37 is huge, there is a large area at the rear under the Doghouse which is where I think Mike installed the Rx and batteries, there is a plastic tube running the whole length of the water/gas tank with 2 servo leads protruding from it which connects to the 2 servos in the cab. I think the top rear deck with the Doghouse lifts off to expose the large space underneath but I'm not sure what holds it in place, no visible screws/bolts etc.

I keep looking at this beautiful loco, its definitely a work of art.

My partner, bless her, who normally does not take much interest in any locos I may have no matter what scale they are in absolutely loves this big beastie and wants to put it on display in our lounge, although it would have to be an exceedingly strong cabinet!

 

[Loggerman]

Hi Max,

Thanks for your reply.

Yes, there is a little hand pump in there along with gas tank etc. the Doghouse seems to be held on with 4 screws/bolts coming up from under the rear deck.

The tender on the K37 is huge, there is a large area at the rear under the Doghouse which is where I think Mike installed the Rx and batteries, there is a plastic tube running the whole length of the water/gas tank with 2 servo leads protruding from it which connects to the 2 servos in the cab. I think the top rear deck with the Doghouse lifts off to expose the large space underneath but I'm not sure what holds it in place, no visible screws/bolts etc.

I keep looking at this beautiful loco, its definitely a work of art.

My partner, bless her, who normally does not take much interest in any locos I may have no matter what scale they are in absolutely loves this big beastie and wants to put it on display in our lounge, although it would have to be an exceedingly strong cabinet!

Hi Max,

Thanks sooo much for the info regarding "bringing dead NiMH batteries back to life" I really didn't know that was possible, but thanks to you I've visited the Fosworks website and lo and behold they sell a charger which hopefully will do the job, at least its worth a try, so I've got one on order, if it does work it will save me having to replace the rechargeable batteries and an awful lot of work in trying to access that mysterious space below the Doghouse.

Thanks again Max and I will let you know how it all goes 0nce I get my new charger.

Cheers
Dave

 

[dunnyrail]

Hi Max,

Thanks sooo much for the info regarding "bringing dead NiMH batteries back to life" I really didn't know that was possible, but thanks to you I've visited the Fosworks website and lo and behold they sell a charger which hopefully will do the job, at least its worth a try, so I've got one on order, if it does work it will save me having to replace the rechargeable batteries and an awful lot of work in trying to access that mysterious space below the Doghouse.

Thanks again Max and I will let you know how it all goes 0nce I get my new charger.

Cheers
Dave

Not sure a Smart Charger is what you need, I commented the other day about how I brought a NiMh back to life with a Fosworks supplied circuit that includes a massive heat sink, a bulb and circuitry. Not sure it is listed on his site, I just got lucky in that he offered me one to sort out a couple of dodgy batteries that I had. I used Araldite to attach the lump of ply on the board. It had a screw hole that was used to secure to the workbench but this got trashed after being knocked hence the ply. No heat is generated in the board, just the Heat Shrink (the long squarish thing) The bodgy soldering and wires were my first repair to the board.

 

[maxi-model]

Taken a couple of pics. My Accucraft K-26 live steamer, it has a dog house, although it is empty. It is highly likely that the batteries and RX are inside the doghouse on yours, same one and size as mine. I do not think Mike would have put them inside the tender, lots of water sloshing about. I offered up a AAA cell to it to check if it were feisable to put in a 6/8 cells AAA pack to drive the RX's and servos. Also to hold the RX too (high up so minimal restriction of signal to RX. Yes & yes. Is there sign of the RX's "tail" (ariel) ?

One thing that did occur to me was there are some sizable areas under the tender to stow the batteries and RX. If you cannot see them in the dog house look here. But then you would be looking for an exterior wire linking them to the switch and socket, you would not want to drill a water carrying tender. Mike was not afraid of using strong double sided "Gorrila" tape to attach battery packs and RX's to loco chassis. My K-28, like yours, has the servos in the cab but the RX and batteries under cab floor. No reason to not put them in my locos dog house in the tender, there is space. As mentioned previously there is a certain commonality of components between the Accucraft 2-8-8-2's. They might not all be in exactly the same place but they are usually common parts.

As Jon say, it is the recovery charger you need to start with, not a regular smart charger. If in doubt speak to Steve at Fosworks. Hope you get it all sorted. Max

 

[Loggerman]

Taken a couple of pics. My Accucraft K-26 live steamer, it has a dog house, although it is empty. It is highly likely that the batteries and RX are inside the doghouse on yours, same one and size as mine. I do not think Mike would have put them inside the tender, lots of water sloshing about. I offered up a AAA cell to it to check if it were feisable to put in a 6/8 cells AAA pack to drive the RX's and servos. Also to hold the RX too (high up so minimal restriction of signal to RX. Yes & yes. Is there sign of the RX's "tail" (ariel) ?

One thing that did occur to me was there are some sizable areas under the tender to stow the batteries and RX. If you cannot see them in the dog house look here. But then you would be looking for an exterior wire linking them to the switch and socket, you would not want to drill a water carrying tender. Mike was not afraid of using strong double sided "Gorrila" tape to attach battery packs and RX's to loco chassis. My K-28, like yours, has the servos in the cab but the RX and batteries under cab floor. No reason to not put them in my locos dog house in the tender, there is space. As mentioned previously there is a certain commonality of components between the Accucraft 2-8-8-2's. They might not all be in exactly the same place but they are usually common parts.

As Jon say, it is the recovery charger you need to start with, not a regular smart charger. If in doubt speak to Steve at Fosworks. Hope you get it all sorted. Max

View attachment 328158View attachment 328159

Hi Max,

Many thanks for the pics, yes, your K26 is very similar to my K37 although the K37 is quite a lot larger with a bit more space to play with.

But I have very good news, following your post regarding reviving flat/dead NiMH batteries, the charger/devise came today from Fosworks and after using it for just 1 minute (that is what they recommend) hey presto the dead batteries will now accept a charge, connected up my smart charger and they are now fully charged and working perfectly in the loco, what a result, I'm so pleased and its all down to you Max, only downside, I recently disposed of a whole load of dead/flat NiMH battery packs ! ! !

I still have not found the battery or receiver but they must be in the tender somewhere because the 2 servo connectors emerge from the tender, still, not a problem at the moment because everything is working fine.

Thank you for all your help and info, you've saved me from a whole lot of aggro.

Cheers,
Dave

 

[dunnyrail]

Hi Max,

Many thanks for the pics, yes, your K26 is very similar to my K37 although the K37 is quite a lot larger with a bit more space to play with.

But I have very good news, following your post regarding reviving flat/dead NiMH batteries, the charger/devise came today from Fosworks and after using it for just 1 minute (that is what they recommend) hey presto the dead batteries will now accept a charge, connected up my smart charger and they are now fully charged and working perfectly in the loco, what a result, I'm so pleased and its all down to you Max, only downside, I recently disposed of a whole load of dead/flat NiMH battery packs ! ! !

I still have not found the battery or receiver but they must be in the tender somewhere because the 2 servo connectors emerge from the tender, still, not a problem at the moment because everything is working fine.

Thank you for all your help and info, you've saved me from a whole lot of aggro.

Cheers,
Dave

There are some functions with the Smart Charger that I do not fully understand.

On occasion the Red flashing will continue for some considerable time then the steady Red charging. This could be refreshing a dud battery.

Other times I get a flash flash short delay then flash flash again and again of the red light. Think this could be when I am using the larger charger to chart AAA batteries, if that occures I then use the smaller one and all is good.

 

[Loggerman]

There are some functions with the Smart Charger that I do not fully understand.

On occasion the Red flashing will continue for some considerable time then the steady Red charging. This could be refreshing a dud battery.

Other times I get a flash flash short delay then flash flash again and again of the red light. Think this could be when I am using the larger charger to chart AAA batteries, if that occures I then use the smaller one and all is good.

Hi Dunnyrail,

Not sure about your charger functions, but mine shows constant red initially when charging and then changes to green which I assume is fully charged although instructions do state that it can be left on charge and the charger will automatically switch to trickle charge as and when necessary but I normally disconnect when fully charged, I'm not sure just how smart the charger is.

Your railway is absolutely stunning, well done, an awful lot of hard work to create such a lovely layout.

 

[Fred2179G]

I can add that Accucraft used to fully seal the back of the tender, making access very difficult. The original C16 had zero access to the empty space unless you took a power saw to the floor.

Accucraft uses lots of little M2 bolts, like the ones holding the doghouse. On your pics 0871 and 0872 I note a set oh bolts around the perimeter of the back deck and a joint against the wall at the back of the coal. I bet those bolts release the deck, giving you access to the space below.

Do use a proper M2 socket. The paint will chip off and pliers will scratch the deck. Be prepared to touch them up when you reinstall them.

 

[dunnyrail]

Hi Dunnyrail,

Not sure about your charger functions, but mine shows constant red initially when charging and then changes to green which I assume is fully charged although instructions do state that it can be left on charge and the charger will automatically switch to trickle charge as and when necessary but I normally disconnect when fully charged, I'm not sure just how smart the charger is.

Your railway is absolutely stunning, well done, an awful lot of hard work to create such a lovely layout.

Many thanks for your comment on my line.

All my Smart chargers have been purchased from Fosworks, though I believe similar ones are available elsewhere. The startup routine is to flash red green red green quickly then follows a steady red till fully charged where the light shows steady green. But as I outlined earlier different routines can apply depending on the state of the battery I believe. Another on thought is for the charger to do the flashes red green red green then nothing. Left for some time eventually the red steady charge light comes on to complete charging with the steady green.