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TRACTION TYRES ARGHHHHH


paulprice

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I'm not happy, what's the point of traction tyres on Farish Locomotives........

 

One of my Jubilees has suddenly decided to shed its traction tyres, I'm not happy its bad enough having the engine in the tender and now this....I can't be the only one??

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I've had all of my Farish tender drives shed tyres at one point or another, some of them several times, and one shed two sets in one day of exhibition running. They're not particularly difficult to replace on the Farish tender drive units, thankfully they're only tender wheels with no motion to remove to get the replacement on. Just like the old traction tyre fitted models from the likes of Lima and Hornby, I've always seen traction tyres as a consumable item and always keep a stock of spares where available.

 

Edit ~ Just checked my spares box, Jubilee traction tyres are item 379-420 per pack of ten.

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I've had all of my Farish tender drives shed tyres at one point or another, some of them several times, and one shed two sets in one day of exhibition running. They're not particularly difficult to replace on the Farish tender drive units, thankfully they're only tender wheels with no motion to remove to get the replacement on. Just like the old traction tyre fitted models from the likes of Lima and Hornby, I've always seen traction tyres as a consumable item and always keep a stock of spares where available.

 

Edit ~ Just checked my spares box, Jubilee traction tyres are item 379-420 per pack of ten.

I think I will get an order in for some spares, hopefully the days of tender drives are finally numbered,

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Hi guys,

 

Just for some balance, my Dapol A3 shed a tyre a week ago, It will be out of action until I can put aside an hour to replace it.

 

Peter

Rather you than me, I'm glad I model the LMS, as it means if I have to use some RTR I only have to worry about this happening to my Jubilee's and Scot. I know the Black Five is tender powered but I refused to buy one after the 3 I looked at in the shop either shed tyres or refused to run

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I've got loads of Farish tender drive as well as loco drives with traction tyres and never had trouble in this way with any of them.

 

I'd check for track kinks and bumps that might dislodge them, oil on the track (which can cause them to stretch, or the loco to slip which can dislodge tyres) and never ever drag the loco along the track (again stretches the tyres).

 

HTH,

Alan

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All of the above apply, and I'd add overloading them to that list, as this is what I believe to be the cause of excessive tyre wear in my case. When running on the club layout my tender drives are frequently subjected to loadings of 12-13 coaches and upwards of 40 wagons (and before anything is said, these loadings are lower than the prototype for the location modeled), my most frequent tyre shredder is a black 5 that carries considerable extra weight to help it shift the larger freights.

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I guess I better get some or order then, the biggest loading on my layout is 10 coaches, I guess the gaps in the rails at the board joints (my layout is portable) may have an effect. Is it just me or is modelling sometimes a lot of effort :)

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One thing that does for tyres is oil.  I bought an "ex-showcase" Dapol A4 on the e-site only for it to shed both tyres fairly quickly- the tyres were slippery and almost circular in section, and the rims swimming in oil.  It needed a trip to DCC Supplies for a replacement wheelset.

 

Les

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

I know someone who tried it but struggled with the small wheel diameter and gave up.

 

Speaking of giving up, at out debut exhibition this weekend all my Jubilees lost tyres, at least my Scott, kept hers hang on now I've checked, she has lost one :(

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  • 1 year later...

.

MAKE YOUR OWN 'N' GAUGE TRACTION TYRES FROM HEAT-SHRINK TUBING

 

Best, and cheapest, replacement is heat-shrink tubing.

It's sold for electrical insulation.

Choose a tube that's slightly smaller than the required diameter, and use a steel straightedge and scalpel to ensure you get the required width.

As heat-shrink tube is thinner than the original tyre depth, I usually apply two tyres on each wheel.

Do NOT apply heat, as it's not necessary and ill-advised to actually 'heat-shrink' the material; indeed, the temperature required would melt the plastic parts of the locomotive. In any case, the tube is 'elastic' enough to give a tight fit.

You won't get quite as good traction as given by the original rubberized tyres, but should still be able to haul a realistic number of carriages.

Heat-shrink tubing also has more resistance to oil contamination, which (over lubrication 'contamination' of the tyres) is the usual cause of traction tyre degrading and failure.

Don't waste your money on Bullfrog SNOT: it's a nightmare to apply and gets all over the running gear, especially on steam locomotives.

 

Hope this helps,

Rick

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One cause of shedding tyres is one I've mentioned before- the curse of the push-button call-on.  

 

If a call-on is set to a constant voltage then that voltage has to be enough for high resistance Farish diesels to actually move.  That in turn means that the lower resistance modern motors take off like a rocket.  

 

BUT when they take off they slip due to the sudden start and the weight of the train (you just need to look at videos of real steam locos slipping explosively when the driver opens the regulator too quickly for the weight of the train)

 

AND when they run onto the dead "stop" section they then skid due to the weight of the train now pushing the engine.

 

Both of these cause traction tyre failure if done too often.  To avoid it the call-on needs to be driven.

 

Les

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I fully agree with Les - with traction tyres a lot more care in driving needs to be exercised - people who have been used to spin starting their trains from a standing start will need to learn to drive them again and sliding them down a re-railing ramp onto the track is a no-no as well

 

Regards,

 

Alex

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I agree with Les.

 

Take appropriate care and you will lose very few traction tyres.

 

I would also add that locos should never be pushed "dead" along the track and personally I avoid any solvent based track cleaners like IPA (just use a track rubber).

 

Amongst all my Farish steam locos I have had to replace about three. I have packs of replacements in a drawer unopened!

 

Sod's law if I didn't have them.....

 

Roy

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  • 4 months later...

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