Bachmann pancake motors Help!

The serious answer is you might be able to find a working engine with a bad body or useless paint scheme at a train show (or eBay) and just swap the body.   I don't think anyone makes and actual replacement for these "motors".

I use the term motors in parenthesis because my smart-@#$ answer is you'd be better off sticking a real pancake in there than one of those old pancake drives. :p

Drop them and move on. The bodies from my old Bachmann pancake drives locos were mounted on newer all wheel drive chassis long ago. I have only one old pancake drive loco left. It's an old Bachmann 0-6-0 that's a rusted up wreck. It's motor burned out long ago.

PiedmontRR

Hi Everyone,

 

I am looking to restore 2 of my old Bachmann locomotives.  The engines quit.  They had the pancake motors, powered truck the electrical pick up wheels were the back set of trucks.   The locos are  a bq23-7 diesel. and an F9.   I want to make these run analog again.  They just quit so I should replace them and not the whole unit.   Is there anyone that can help me with that?    Although I am a proponent of the newer DCC related stuff, this older stuff just might not make the transition so easily.  Bachmann can't help me they don't have parts.   It would serve BACHMANN  well to clarify their lifetime warranty policies because as time moves on, they change stuff around and parts are no longer available.

My locomotives are late 1980's early 1990's models.   If you can help me, please message me back.  It's imperative to get these locomotives operating again.  I use them in train shows with my club.

Gee, anyone else take issue with the manufacturer that parts for 30 year old products are no longer available.

Think for a moment.

This is your 3rd post concerning pancake motors, the other two posts went unanswered.,(all on the front page btw)  The proper way to bring your post to the top is to "bump" it, not keep reposting the same question day after day hoping to get some help.

Your previous posts went unanswered because that is old, unreliable technology that is not worth repairing, and no one bothers keeping a motor in stock that is designed to fail after 10 hours use. They are train set quality and are disposable. Throw them away and upgrade to good locos, or throw some money away and replace the pancake motors with good motors.

The only hope for those old engines to to remove the motors and gears if you want to keep them as souvenirs, and make dummy engines out of them.

They were the cheapest of cheap junk Christmas train sets when they were new and your only hope of repairing something that old is to find another one at a train swap meet and hope it still runs.

Even at a swap meet one of them is not worth more than $2 or $3.

PiedmontRR

 It would serve BACHMANN  well to clarify their lifetime warranty policies because as time moves on, they change stuff around and parts are no longer available.

Seems to me that Bachmann's lifetime warranty is pretty clear.  At http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/service_2010.php they say:  For items more than one year old, there is a nominal service charge for repair or replacement (prices subject to change):

Now if you really want to make a test case out of this, you could send your locos to them with your $15 plus the warranty card or proof of purchase (you did save those, correct?) and ask them to stand by the warranty.  Of course since the warranty also states that they can repair or replace at their option, you won't get your locos back, but maybe you'll get back something better.

Or maybe not.

don7

Gee, anyone else take issue with the manufacturer that parts for 30 year old products are no longer available.

At the large company I used to work for we called this the "evergreen warranty".  Customers thought that any malfunction their purchased product had was our responsibility, even if it was 30 years old.

maxman

don7:

Gee, anyone else take issue with the manufacturer that parts for 30 year old products are no longer available.

 

At the large company I used to work for we called this the "evergreen warranty".  Customers thought that any malfunction their purchased product had was our responsibility, even if it was 30 years old.

All to common

" It would serve BACHMANN  well to clarify their lifetime warranty policies because as time moves on, they change stuff around and parts are no longer available."

Years ago I read that a "lifetime warranty" legally lasted 7 years. That aside, these were throw away engines, poor running right out of the box. 

 Piedmont, I repaired a pancake motor once, it all so died. When i got into the hobby all i had was the cheap pancake engines. All most drove me out of the hobby.

  My self, I would find a better power frame and make the Bachmann shells fit. Or send them into Bachmann and see what they send you in exchange.

  to the site as well.

                Cuda Ken

Find yourself a couple Athearn Bluebox locos ,a GE 4 axle U boat for the BQ-27 and a Athearn BB -F-7 for the F-9.You make have to file the corners on the U boat chassis but the F should just about be a perfect fit.

I've dealt with Bachmann's service department on several occasions, always found them to be very friendly, helpful and they have always honored their warranty with items I've returned.  I wouldn't be surprised if there is something in their warranty discussing user attempted repair voiding their agreement---but I'm not sure about this; however, I'm not one to return a 30 year old item expecting it to be repaired or replaced.  

I do agree with those who recommend the locomotive be stripped and used as a dummy for display purposes.

Wayne 

PiedmontRR

My locomotives are late 1980's early 1990's models.   If you can help me, please message me back.  It's imperative to get these locomotives operating again.  I use them in train shows with my club.

Seems to me it would make more sense to replace the pancake motors with a better motor, rather than trying to find another low-quality pancake motor. You can even get self-powered trucks now with a can motor built in.

And Away We Go...Those old pancake motors can be replace with old desk top computer motors taken from the CD Rom. Check this out:

http://www.modeltrainforum.com/showthread.php?t=10492

Old desk top computers are a found gold mine for such goody's such as the DVD drives contain can motors that can be used in certain loco's. Even smaller can motors seem small enough for N gauge or other motor driven projects like a motorized scrubber for your homemade track cleaning cars. There is also an abundment of tiny screws washers and nuts that we pay .40 to a buck a piece for and free for the taking.

Bachmann is not the only one who doesn't have parts for 20 to 50 year old stuff. If they have run that long hey you got your money's worth. I don't know how many people know this, but to keep parts for these old $10-$20 loco's in a bin is taxed every year by the IRS, that's right kiddies, they have to pay a tax every year on their inventories, all company's and business's do.

But like has been said, is it really worth it to rebuild this. I know I have old stuff from when the kids were little, my old Tyco Chattanooga comes to mind, and how it lit up their faces at Christmas time and we all had a good time. But it might be better to just put it in a nice display box and leave it at that!

Jim

Those pancake motors really weren't made to be reliable. They were only made to be cheap so they could sell a lot. I still run some on my layout now and then, since it can be kind of fun to keep the cheap stuff running.

Bachmann still makes the F9 with an upgraded chassis, so you may just want to replace the entire engine if you don't feel like repowering. It's all wheel drive and has a quality can motor, as well as a heavy metal frame. They're smooth running and reliable.

The BQ23 is a very unique engine, and Bachmann's is the only non-brass model in existance. You may be able to fit their modern B23-7 chassis in there to keep it running well. Again, metal frame, all wheel drive, and a quality can motor (with flywheels!). With the prices you can get modern Bachmann stuff for, it may not be much more expensive to get the better drives than to repower with the cheap pancake motors!

Here is what happened,  I am having a computer issue with one of my computers and something isn't working well with this site and that computer.Yes my computers are about as old as the locomotives, and have a Dorito for a chip  but these still run pretty good for what they are worth.   I clipped one of the old motors out of the F9 that still worked and put it in the BQ. The F9 is a lot easier to replace than is the BQ.  I do not want to throw these away as everyone suggests, but I will take the modifications under advisement and look into that.  Perhaps I might even be able to make it work DCC, but I will have to fiddle with it to find out.  The BQ works again for the moment, pulling 26 pieces of rolling stock on a flat surface. Some of the rolling stock by themselves weigh over 4 ounces per car.  It's not lighting up, but the GOW bulbs are toast anyway, the locomotive is running again, and should stay that way until I can stick a new motor in it.  

Thank you to everyone who replied. 

Mike

I have an old Bachmann switcher with a pancake motor. I run it every once in a while just to smell the smoke!

Dave

I posted this on your other thread on the same subject. The BQ23 uses the same pancake motor used in the GP40. The truck cover with side frames are interchangable. You should be able to find plenty of these around with the pancake motor.

Bob

 Mike, I sure understand not wanting to give up on something you like! See the red Charger in my icon? It broke in half from rust! Yep, I saved it!

 One thing you need to do if you want stop smoking the pancake engines is cut down on the number of cars you are pulling! Yea I know with the traction tires they can pull a lot, but I would keep the cars down to around 10.

 I would all so look into getting a better engines and use it has a helper for the pancake engines.

 I don't know if these you help you with your Bachmann engines, but I have around 15 Life Like (need to check) engines with flapjack motors. I gave away some but I still have some. One of the guys here will be able to chime in and let us know if the motors can be used.

 I don't know what your skill level is, pancake engines sounds like you have just sort of got started. But, then again you said your cars weight 4 oz so I guess you are weighting them to NMRA standers. But I have to ask, are you tuning the trucks of the rolling stock so they are free wheeling? Less work, the less smoke!

 Cuda Ken

I got started with trains in 1980 and then i stopped in 1994.  I am just now getting back to them with the 1994 technology.  I have oiled everything that should be oiled where it's supposed to be oiled.  It's a gradual process with the rolling stock.  I have a lot of older stuff,  Some Bachman, IHC, Lionel HO, Pemco, Life Like- Walthers,  Tyco  and Athearn stuff.   My Tyco stuff is some fine running equipment BTW, weighted and Kadee couplers applied.   I don't usually run a lot prototypical because kids are attracted to stuff they recognize.   Hence the Tyco and Life Like stuff.   The Bachmann stuff back then, sometimes the paint jobs were good, sometimes they were not so good.  But in any case, the BQ runs great now, and yes I run it with a helper, an Athearn GP 38  or something else.    I have some pretty cool rolling stock now all in the process of being fitted to magna- matic couplers.   

    It takes alittle time and a little money to weight and convert those things to something usable.   This is where I'm at, and it rolls on from there.