Tired Rubber Tires?

[Anonymous]

Howdy folks
I have a pair of Lionel Budd cars from 1977. The powered #8766 has rubber traction tires that seem to have stretched to the point of not staying in place any more. It reminds me of a Corvair fanbelt...once it flips off, even if it still looks good it'll never stay on again. Is it time to replace the tires or is it possible to run without them?

Bruce Webster

[dougdagrump]

I would replace them, you could probably run w/out them but it might cause a lot of slippage. I bought a used C-420 that the previous owner didn't use the traction tires and it seemed to me that it would ride much rougher/harder across switches and crossovers. Whether this would have any long term impact on the electronics I can't say but it did ride harder.

[Anonymous]

Thanks Dougdagrump,
I see your point on the rough running aspect. The wheels are grooved to hold the rubber tires and removing them would effectively give you 2 flanges on each wheel...the one you want inside the rails and one shallow flange outside. That shallow flange could cause major headaches over switches and such. Guess I'll look for replacements tomorrow.

Bruce Webster

[cnw1995]

I've cut my old traction tires off an trainset 2-4-2 that is run on 027 track. It still works without a new pair (which I've never figured how to put on...) but as you might guess, doesn't pull much - gives me an excuse to add a helper.

[iguanaman3]

Some people have been having good luck with laying a bead of silicone rubber in the groove of the wheel and letting it cure overnight. I haven't tried it but it sounds perfect for those MPC diesel wheels which never seem to be quite round enough.
Neil

[trigtrax]

I have the Amtrak set of the Budd cars and I swapped the rubber tire truck for a postwar Geep magnatraction unit. It made an amazing difference in the performance of that set.. LOL!! Runs like a real Lionel now [(-D]

[Anonymous]

Good morning folks
Thanks for the really useful tips. I cut the old tires off and was surprised to find no adverse effects of doing so....short of a little more running noise. This is totally tollerable compared to my 2035 ( The Growler!) I probably will replace the tires in the future if they aren't difficult to install or maybe try the silicone trick. Unfortunately the Magnetraction refit, while doing away with the grooved wheels, would be kinda moot since I'm running on Altas nickel silver rails. Anyhoo, since I have a temporary fix I can move on to wiring the motor to the light pickups in the dummy so my #5 switches don't trip the E unit. Have a great weekend all!

Bruce Webster

[lionelsoni]

When the rubber tires fell off my Railking Big Boy (which is admittedly a pretty heavy locomotive), I didn't replace them and can't tell the difference.