The Locomotive Not Running?

Getting a Locomotive Ready for DCC Conversion

And Good DC Running

Getting the most out of a DCC conversion requires your locomotive to run well on DC Analog first.

Basic maintenance procedures should be followed for older locomotives, clean the wheels and pickups. Lubricate the
moving parts lightly, with the recommended oil or grease, as well.

The Instruction sheet that is packaged with the locomotive is a good guide to lubrication points and general
maintenance and also for the disassembly of the basic parts.
The service sheet is another good way to see how the locomotive is assembled and will give you the part numbers for
any parts that you may need
With a non runner a few simple checks can be carried out. Firstly make sure the wheels and pickups are clean. One
technique to clean the pickups is to use a piece of card soaked in alcohol (or some other solvent) and slide this
between the wheel back and the pickup (see below). This can usually be done with the body in place.

Apply power from a train controller to the wheels and see if the motor is turning or the lights (if any are fitted) come
on.
Applying power directly to the motor brush holders (Non DCC Only!) is also a way to see if the motor is OK.

Quite often locomotives are over oiled or a wrong kind of lubricant has been used on them, WD40 or similar
lubricants are often used by inexperienced modellers. This dries to a non conductive layer which is hard to clean off
pickups. Excess oil finding its way into the motor brushes also will have a detrimental effect on the running of the
motor- often requiring the motor to be stripped down and thoroughly cleaned. WD40 inside a motor is normally a
disaster! –This will require a thorough cleaning.

Some locomotives have pickups on the shafts (or axles) of the wheels, sometimes the pickups are hidden by a cover
plate or even a bogie cover. Clean these as well. There are some conductive (expensive) coatings that can be used
sparingly to aid in good conduction between the axle or wheel back and the pickup.
If the motor is still reluctant to run smoothly after cleaning the wheels and pickups plus contact areas for the pickups
A clean of the motor brushes and motor commutator may be required, clean all excess oil out of the motor while you
have it apart.

Above –an example of a

very dirty commutator.
Remove the brushes
and motor back-plate,
clean out any oil residue
and clean the
commutator with a
cotton bud. Sometimes
an amount of build-up,
caused by arching
between the poles,
needs to be cleaned with
some very fine wet and
dry paper #600 of finer.

Right- the commutator

after cleaning
 Left- Brushes from the
motor. The Left brush is
in good clean conditions
the right brush has a
spring that has lost its
tension and will not give
a good transfer of power
to the commutator –I
would replace this brush.

Right –the motor body has a bit of oil residue that

needs cleaning.

The commutator also shows some arcing at the gaps

between the poles.

This is quite common, for the best performance from

your motor this should be cleaned up as well

Below –a close view of the commutator with the

discolouration from the arcing. Note also the clear
nylon washer on the motor shaft. You must be careful
not to lose this as it stops wear on the motor.
When reassembling the motor a small amount of grease
on this shaft will ensure good silent running from the
motor

The motor shaft sits inside a sintered brass bush attached

to the motor Back-Plate.

I use a silicone grease for this shaft.

The magnet that surrounds the motor can be put in turned

180° this will make the motor run in the reverse direction –
so this should be avoided if not desired.
Mechanical problems are a little
more difficult to fix. A common
fault with earlier locomotives is
missing teeth on drive cogs. The
good news is that they are
inexpensive and most reputable
brands carry spares for these.
The small cog that is part of the
final drive is often damaged.
This can be, quite easily,
replaced. The first step is to use
a small screw driver as a lever –
twist the screw drive against the
chassis and the wheel will shift
on the axle. There is no need to
take the wheel completely off.
Repeat this with the centre
wheels and this will give you
enough room to take the cog out
and replace it with a new one

These drive cogs are held in place by the wheels, other cogs are held in place with a
small circlip.
A close visual inspection will reveal if any are damaged, although sometimes cogs are
behind each other.

Another source of mechanical trouble is the drive gear components. With tender driven
locomotives it is very frustrating to see the drive wheels locked up and the tender drive
still pushi
ngt hel ocomot iveal ongme rrily
. Ofteni t
’sonl y a component out of place. In
the case of the locomotive below a careful visual inspection revealed a component
pushed out of place and causing enough pressure to lock the wheels in one direction.

The picture to the right - shows the valve gear

component has slipped out of its notch, hardly
noticeable visually, but enough to lock up the
drive gear. This clicked back in place easily and
solved the problem.
Putting the pickups in again after cleaning or a DCC conversion can be a difficult and often frustrating task. Guiding
the pickups behind the drive wheels and through the valve gear components often needs three or four hands!

In the locomotive pictured above, the drive gear is still in place and needs to be lifted up with one hand to allow the
front light and pickups to slip back into place. The pickups are quite difficult to fit behind the wheels at the same time
and tend to push out over the wheels. Note the additional wiring has been held in place with CA , keeping it clear of
any body mounting points and screws.

A solution to this is to use some plastic strips fitted in place between the wheels and the chassis resting on the axles.
Having reassembled your locomotive after the service and clean it should run very well.

Problems that may not be apparent are partly burnt out motors –one pole may be not operating causing stalling of
the motor or magnets that have lost strength. Some magnets can be remagnetised or replaced by Neodium magnets
(smaller and more powerful) Mostc asesit’
sbe t
tert
or eplac
et hesec ompone ntswi thor iginal
si ftheyareav ai l
a bl
e.