DJH GB-1 worm drive

[ianLMS]

Giod afternoon,

I picked up a used DJH GB-1 gearbox but it is missing the worm drive.

I emailled DJH and waiting for a response but wondered if anyone knows of a suitable replacement. I tried a comet and HL worm but they are too thick and cause the motor to sit at an angle. 

 

Thanks

Ian

[ianLMS]

Update: DJH have replied but unfortunately, they do not sell the worms seperately. They believe the HL one is probably the closest so will take another look. Moving the motor mount holes slightly upwards should solve the issue. 

[Brit70053]

Hello IanLMS, I encountered this situation a good while ago and by chance found that one of the High Level brass worms was a good and direct replacement for the DJH Nylon one which had been damaged. I can't recall the specification (Pitch/ ratio etc,) but Chris at High Level was very helpful and I'm confident he would come up with the appropriate solution for you now.

Best of luck with this, the DJH GB1 is a good gearbox in an appropriate Loco and its a pity the manufacturer can not supply a replacement worm.

 

Regards,

                 John 

Edited February 7, 2023 by Brit70053
Correction

[ianLMS]

Thanks for the reply John. I got an email from DJH who found a worm drive and i duly paid the £15 they wanted for it. It arrived today so have yet to test it or compare it to a HL one. It does look very similar to the HL one though!

Edited February 10, 2023 by ianLMS

[ianLMS]

Tested the new DJH worm against the HL one and its definately smaller and works nicely with my Mashima motor i will pair it with. 

[Brit70053]

Pleased DJH were eventually able to supply a suitable replacement worm, though that price seems 'eye watering' to me for such an item. A sign of the times we live in I suppose.

           I hope the regenerated gearbox works well in your loco ianLMS.

 

               Regards,

                              John

[Chas Levin]

Yep, glad to hear you got it sorted; in my experience DJH are very helpful about spares but they are a little careful about the gearboxes. As I understand it, they used to sell the gearboxes as a kit, to be built by the customer, but they were getting back quite a few that had been poorly assmebled and for which they felt obliged to provide refunds, so they stopped selling them as kits and now only sell the assembled version, where there's no doubt about what the warranty does or doesn't cover. A little frustrating for us as customers, but I can understand it. I suspect that policy may also extend in the usual run of things to gearbox componetns, but it souds like you got there anyway... I certainly agree with Brit70053 that Chris at HL Kits is extremely knowledgeable and helpful with these sorts fo things though, shuld you require help in the future.

[Brit70053]

I hadn't heard of that explanation for the discontinuation of the Gearbox Kits by DJH. I had constructed three of these some years ago and recall little difficulty with assembly. They certainly offered an economic way for the modeller to acquire fine gearboxes compared to the prices asked for the ready assembled product back in the day. Of course there is no comparison with the current prices for their ready made gearboxes, but I know these are regarded as good value for money, though now well out of my league, hence my more recent reliance on High Level products.

 

            Regards,

 

                                  John   

 

 

[Chas Levin]

10 hours ago, Brit70053 said:

I hadn't heard of that explanation for the discontinuation of the Gearbox Kits by DJH. I had constructed three of these some years ago and recall little difficulty with assembly. They certainly offered an economic way for the modeller to acquire fine gearboxes compared to the prices asked for the ready assembled product back in the day. Of course there is no comparison with the current prices for their ready made gearboxes, but I know these are regarded as good value for money, though now well out of my league, hence my more recent reliance on High Level products.

 

            Regards,

 

                                  John   

 

 

I may be mis-atributing (please excuse me if that's so) but I think it was Tony Wright who offered that explanation and he,as you may know, has worked quite closely with DJH over the years. If it wasn't him, I would have read it on his thread.

It's frustrating for those of us who would like to build them, but I can understand their point of view... realities of business etc.

[Brit70053]

One of those two scenarios is very likely to have been where the explanation originated. I try to read 'Wright Writes' most days, but sometimes contributions flood in at such a rate that if you miss for a day you are likely never to fully absorb all that has been posted while you 'blinked'.

Like most of RMWeb, Tony Wright's topic is absorbing reading and educational (in multiple senses) I know of his association  with DJH, but don't think that leads to any unworthy bias to their products, particularly the gearboxes, use of which Tony advocates wherever suitable. As said, these are now out of range price wise for me, and the cost of a replacement worm for IanLMS is indicative of the current financial reality.

 

Regards,

                      John

[ianLMS]

I tend to buy HL gearboxes for my kits but i wanted to try the DJH one after watching Tony Wrights Right Track dvd. It is saved for when i decide to take the EM/P4 plunge!!!

[hayfield]

On 10/02/2023 at 22:11, ianLMS said:

Thanks for the reply John. I got an email from DJH who found a worm drive and i duly paid the £15 they wanted for it. It arrived today so have yet to test it or compare it to a HL one. It does look very similar to the HL one though!

 

 

Ouch !!!!  

 

I do appreciate good quality gears are expensive and commercial P&P has to be paid for, having said all of this it all depends on how much the gearbox cosy you as they are very expensive to buy