Usa Trains 44 Ton Switcher

Madman

Madman

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So I just purchased a USA Trains 44 ton switcher from a seller on Ebay. It had sustained damage due to dampness, but I was assured it still ran.

The damaged electronics don't really bother me as I intend to rip them out and convert the loco to battery power.

What experiences has anyone had with these little gems ?


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Thanks Greg. Your blog info was very informative. Hopefully I don't have to do the repairs to the axles, but I have the tools if the problems comes up.
 
Be sure to check them, easiest way is to put it on your back, one thumb on each wheel on the same axle and turn them in opposite directions, any movement, and one or more of the axles are cracked.

It's VERY unusual to NOT have at least one cracked axle.

Mine also had traction tires, I replaced them with solid wheels and dumped the sliders. The additional contact of the non-traction tire wheels offset the loss of the skates.

Greg
 
You are welcome Dan, good luck.

One small thing, if I may, my web site is not a blog where people post in chronological order with very little effort on the blog's owner. It is a full fledged web site with hundreds of pictures and about 650 individual web pages, and it did take a lot of work.

Blogs typically are just a chat site, my site was created to help people and share, and give back in the way people like George Schreyer gave to me.

Lewis Polk used to use the word "blog" and "blogger" to denigrate people on his web site and it reminds me of those bad years where many people had their heads in the sand and no critical, even though constructive, comments were allowed.

Thanks, Greg
 
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Sorry. Not being as tech knowledgable as some of you younger guys and for sure my kids and grandchildren, I usually go down the wrong path.
By the way, I've just tried again to download the Railmodeller program. They keep sending me to the APP store. Once there I am lost. Maybe someone here that has a Mac would be able to shed some light on how to download an App. I have done it in the past without any issues.
 
Greg Elmassian said:
When I went there it told me to update my system to the new OS.

What do you get when you go there?

Greg
Click to expand...
Greg, have Bookmarked your Webb Site great stuff. You appear to be pretty much like many of over here that get fed up with pretty much most of what Society thinks we should like. I watch BBC iPlayer as there are no ads, OK limited content. But as I only watch when I want to now, no just loafing on the Sofa wasting time watching Carp on the Box.

Love the Page Turner Vid, most amusing. Hopefully no Guinee Pigs were hurt in the making of that Vid!
JonD
 
OK, received the switcher in today's mail. Motors run fine on the bench. I need to open it up and take a gander at the innards. I found four screws, two each located near the end beams. However I don't see any more screws. there must be some because the body doesn't want to lift off the chassis. I checked under the air tanks and the fuel tank, but there are none there. Anyone have a clue about the location of more screws ?
 
chris m01 said:
My 44 tonner has given years of great service. Here she is showing off about five years ago -
Click to expand...

Looks like they can haul quite a load.
 
They are great little locos, but were not too popular so USAT ended the production.
I use the motor blocks for 'motorising' my helper passenger cars.
They are almost exactly the correct wheelbase for the Bachmann or LGB 1:22.5 scale passenger car bogies.
 
I did find the screws. They are difficult to get to as the trucks hide them. I used my LGB screwdriver, which has a long slender blade, to gently coerce it through the wheel and the side frame of the truck. It's not a perfect straight shot though as the screwdriver is being forced at an angle. Turning the screwdriver, I found the phillips head of the screws way, way down in the hole. Once I had them loose, the hoods lifted right off.

The design don't make sense to me from a manufacturing point of view. The trucks must be assembled to the chassis before the hoods are installed, so I'm wondering what sort of screwdriver the factory uses. Possibly a flex-shaft design, but to me it still seems like a poor design.
 
Thanks for that Dan. When I repainted my 44 tonner into Jamaica Railway Corporation colours I tried and failed to get the lid off. I'll have another go now.
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I ordered four new axles with gear and wheels, Duh, from USA Trains. Called their parts department and spoke with Mike. He was very helpful with some pointers about the installation. I ordered all of the wheels without traction tires. Looking at the ones on the existing wheels, they seemed like the type that wouldn't hold up well to long term use.

Nice paint job Phil.
 
Here is my 44 Tonner in my first post.

A firm favourite now with (hopefully) fixed cracked axles and Digitrax DCC fitted. A good performer.

Tony




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So, Greg, you think the traction tires are the culprit, in the cracked axle mystery ? Just as an experiment, I took a different approach to rehabilitating the broken axles on the loco I purchased. I figured why not give it a try, I have new axles on order. It's how we learn. So I pulled the wheel/axle assembly out of the gear and cleaned the grease off everything. Next I put it all back together. Then I placed the completed assembly in my drill press vise and drilled 1/16" holes through the gear shoulder, into the steel axle and out the other side. Next I pressed 1/16" brass rod into the holes and cut the excess off flush with the gear shoulder.

All seemed good until I checked for wobbly wheels. Holding the axle ends I spun the assembly. I noticed a slight eccentric movement in the gear. I know what happened. The splits in the gear shoulder were the problem. They created just enough room for the axle not to sit perfectly straight. If you look carefully at the photos, you can see what I mean.

So has anyone had experience with the performance of replacement axles ?


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I am glad you have shown the pictures...

I have been wrestling with the concept of 'cracked axles'..
Shirley, that should read 'split gears'? - Which is also a problem with some Bachmann units.
 
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