shortliner Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 Just discovered that Bachmann USA do the old style 44 tonner trucks with motor at US$15 each - if anyone wants to build 4 wheel critters - I ordered 2, and the international shipping is US $5.12 - great catalog of bits available at http://estore.bachmanntrains.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=66_68_194 they are on page 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
alcoRS1 Posted February 1, 2011 Share Posted February 1, 2011 very tempting Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
298 Posted February 7, 2011 Share Posted February 7, 2011 If you want a complete 44 tonner chassis, the nearly identical 70 tonner with a single motor is just $25. The 45 tonner chassis with it's nice side rods is $50. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortliner Posted February 10, 2011 Author Share Posted February 10, 2011 My powered trucks arrived lunchtime today - just what I wanted - great service from Bachmann USA Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Feather River Bill Posted February 11, 2011 Share Posted February 11, 2011 Gents... Have you all been happy with the running performance of the Bachmann 44 and 70 Tonners? I own a very loud 70 tonner and was a bit disappointed in the runnng quality. I almost bought the new 44 Tonner a few months back. The owner let me run it a bit and I still wasn't happy. There's lot's of vibration and corresponding noise. Any thoughts on soundproofing? Or will all small HO engines have this problem? Thanks! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollywoodfoundry Posted February 12, 2011 Share Posted February 12, 2011 Or will all small HO engines have this problem? No, not if they are well built. The Bachmann trucks are built to a price, about 2p as near as I can figure. They have a very poor reputation among any modellers unfortunate enough to have bought them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Gold Oldddudders Posted February 12, 2011 RMweb Gold Share Posted February 12, 2011 No, not if they are well built. The Bachmann trucks are built to a price, about 2p as near as I can figure. They have a very poor reputation among any modellers unfortunate enough to have bought them. I'm with you on this. I bought a pair of 44-tonners more than 20 years ago, and they ran like dogs. I'd given up on them long before I got to DCC a decade later. The motors are prone to losing windings and emitting smoke. More recently I bought a single-motor variety and that is somewhat better, being DCC-able and having a bigger and better motor. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortliner Posted February 12, 2011 Author Share Posted February 12, 2011 I'm surprised - I have several of the twin motor original variety and a couple of the single motor version - all run very well indeed - the only problem was a worm that had been fitted too close to the motor frame and allowed the motor shaft to move backwards and forwards, locking the wheels when running in one direction - After speaking to a very pleasant gent in the spares/repairs department at Bachmann UK - he said this was an occasional problem and explained exactly how to adjust the worm - Tap the shaft end with a small hammer basically' and move the worm a very small fraction of an inch - Instant cure, and all are very good slow runners. One demoed straight from the box moved 5" in 6 minutes on a PWM controller DC - Users should note that the single motor version needs a slightly larger minimum radius than the twin motor version - the bogies have less swing due to the cardan shaft drive. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
298 Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 It's true that they are built to a price, but for me as an introduction into US modelling they still wiped the floor with anything that came out of Margate or Italy. Another point I tried to make in my Steeplecab article for MR is that the chassis from the newer version can be used with the minimal of modification, something that is still rather alien to our american cousins but typical of the British modelling I cut my teeth on and more likely to tempt someone into building a GE Steeplecab. I'd still choose a Hollywood foundry drive for a custom chassis tho. Anyway, based on my experience I have found the following issues: Older type: Motor failing, although Nigel Lawton does a smaller replacement. Newer type: Poor pickups, can be fixed by polishing the wheel backs and soldering a thin phosphor bronze strip onto the original. Both: Truck undersides are too low and can foul magnets and turnout actuating rods, fixed by removing the keeper plate and sanding it thinner. Split axle gears splitting, fixed by replacing or filling with araldite and re-boring. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortliner Posted February 13, 2011 Author Share Posted February 13, 2011 Spare motors for twin motor version $10.00 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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