Do brand new locos and passenger car sets generaly come pre lubricated?? Im breaking in my new purchase, K-line B&0 Pacific (blue) with matching passengers cars.
It seems to me, apon listening to the loco and cars, that they are very tight. The loco sounds tight, but i have no way of checking if it is, and apon turning the passenger cars upside down and spinning the wheels, they shurly do not spin freely. Should passenger car wheels be lubricated regularly the same as engines???
Do engines need to be lubricated at any ofther spots other than the drive rods as illustrated in the manual??
Also, what kind of oil???? Is this stuff in this needle pen good to use??? It looks convinient!! (sp?)
http://cgi.ebay.com/O-HO-OO-and-N-Gauge-Train-Bearing-Oil-Pen-Refillable_W0QQitemZ180058727898QQihZ008QQcategoryZ69819QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
---Joe
Don't forget the white lithiam grease on the gears. Also a drop of oil on the axles where they meet the wheels. I try and lubricate about twice a year.
laz57
Good question, Joe. I had always wondered about this same thing, and I just asked the same question about a RMT BEEP two weeks ago because it was my first.
After reading Dick Teal's Book, http://kalmbachcatalog.stores.yahoo.net/10-8327.html , one of the things he said was that in all of his years of repairing trains the ones that needed the lubrication were the ones ran for commercial or museum displays.
If I understood Mr. Teal correctly, his answer for a new modern engine would be to not lubricate right out of the box.
I do put a very small drop of oil on some of my heavily ran passenger cars and my old Marx cars always need some light oil.
Celebrating 18 years on the CTT Forum.
Buckeye Riveter......... OTTS Charter Member, a Roseyville Raider and a member of the CTT Forum since 2004..
Jelloway Creek, OH - ELV 1,100 - Home of the Baltimore, Ohio & Wabash RR
TCA 09-64284
I picked up a MTH handcar, Friday my son put it on the track immediately, I noticed it was a little jerky in about 4 minutes or so, then it froze. Long story short; Put some oil on it the next day, let it set for 3 hours and it run, not great but runs. Took it back and exchanged it with a better runner. Conclusion;
I think it got hot, possibly disfigured a couple of teeth on the drive gears. I think it is a good idea to lub all new stuff LIGHTLY, then I agree with Laz. Twice a year if used, less offten if setting on shelf.
Don
COOL, so will that oil pen be good for the driverods and axles??? Im looking to buy some ASAP, as i really feel the passenger cars wheels are tight, and in fact, i can actualy see them dragging breifly instead of turning at some points around curves.
As for the grease, ive never heard of this.... in fact what gears??? LOL. Needless to say i only run trains once a year and dont look much at the underbody, so im still fairly a newbie.
All else said, boy am i having a blast with this new loco! My son is loving it as well!!
Dbaker.... is had a problem with my pacific this morning as well... it was running, kinda slow.... and then all the sudden, it stopped, and sounded as if it was going through the shut down sequence..... it did this a few times.... i didnt know what to think of it. Thats when i started thinking about it not being broken in well, cause it was running slow for a long time. Thought it may have heated up and shut itself down....
I shut it down for 15 mins, started it back up and havent had the same problem since. We shall see, maybe just a temp gilth in the program and needed to be reset?
^^^ HAHA, watch it, this is a family friendly forum... LOL!
Anyone know who carries, or where they got their oil pen from???? Id rather buy one from a hobby shop here in the states rather than on ebay.
Try searching Google under "needle oiler" or "oiler pen" or some combination. Or, go directly to http://www.micromark.com/.
Remember to use plastic-compatible oils and greases where plastic is involved -- either directly (you generally don't need it on plastic) or where it may be dripped on.
In toy train lubrication, less is generally more.
I like LaBelle lubrication products. The plastic-compatible ones are clearly marked.
So i just purchased a general maintnance kit by lionel with the oil, grease, track cleaner and eraser. This will do for me for now i believe.
As far as greasing the loco, does anyone have a illustration of where i need to apply???
I think i need to do something. Im still having a problem with the pacific, and it keeps stalling at lower speeds. After it stalls, it tends to stall even at higher speeds.... Im thinking that the board is overheating.... is it possible it is doing this because the loco is too tight or there is too much rolling resistance??? Some of the wheels are pretty tight, and they are 18" passenger cars rolling around 0-42, so im sure that doesnt help.
God bless TCA 05-58541 Benefactor Member of the NRA, Member of the American Legion, Retired Boss Hog of Roseyville , KC&D Qualified
I always inspect a new engine to make sure the factory did it right. They are always good with gears. I do like to put a drop on each motor shaft bearing no matter what. These bearings see alot of RPM and side loads.
For axel points that conduct electricity such as lighted passenger cars and sound tenders, I like to use Atlas conducta-lube available at shops that deal in HO. I also like Atlas regular oil because the needle is smaller in diameter than Labelle or Lionel. Otherwise, I use a toothpick.
I've read engines should be lubricated every 20 hours but I think it depends on the engine. 20 hours seems right for postwar and it's what I go by. But new stuff with lifetime bearings and tighter tolerances may not need it as frequently (there is really no such thing as a lifetime bearing..they assume you'll toss it or sell it before its time).
I have a Postwar Lionel #60 Trolley. It is being powered off a new ZW and is running a bit sluggish. I know I need to get it lubed, but can't find where to apply oil or grease in the manual I have, I think it was published by KLine, it is blue with gold lettering.
Any how, where do I lube the trolley and with what?Many thanks,Brent
Almost every Lionel engine (if not all) I have has lubrication instructions near the back of the manual. This includes the NYC Century Club Fs, the GP7 / 9 series, Jr Berk and Lionmaster Hudson.
The consistent recommendation is grease on the gears and oil on the axel ends - tenders too. On the GP7 / 9 series, they also recommend to remove the shell and put a drop of oil on the motor. There is a small opening on the top exactly for this.
The first MTH set I ever bought also had the same recommendation, but I have not bought any other MTH locos or sets since.
I also put a drop on all rolling stock trucks where axel meets truck. I usually check the smoothness and freeness before and after doing this. Sometimes I see a difference and sometimes I do not. I certainly see no harm in doing this.
I use the Lionel oil and grease - the one 92Hatchattack mentioned in an above post.
When one weighs the risks of running a non-lubricated locomotive against spending a few minutes to put some oil and grease where they belong, the choice seems obvious to me. Lubricate those locos when you get them.
Jim
Modeling the Baltimore waterfront in HO scale
jaabat wrote: When one weighs the risks of running a non-lubricated locomotive against spending a few minutes to put some oil and grease where they belong, the choice seems obvious to me. Lubricate those locos when you get them.Jim
Jim, I would like to change your quote to:
When one weighs the risks of running a non-lubricated locomotive against spending a few minutes checking to see if the manufacturer or previous owner has properly oiled and lubricated the unit, the choice seems obvious to me. Check those locos when you get them to see if they are properly oiled and lubricated. If not, use the proper types of oil and grease and follow the manufactures instructions.
I remember as a kid, putting a wee too much oil on a engine and started a small fire. Probably wrong oil, wrong place, derailment, etc., etc,. There was a small burn spot on the board after the fire about the size of a quarter. I don't think my folks ever knew or I would have been .
That's cool, Buckeye. The reason I suggest it is many times, these locomotives sit for months and even years before someone buys one, and takes it out of the box to run it. Running it without even flipping it over is asking for trouble. I've bought brand new Williams and Lionels that had completely dry gears and bearings. Williams even states in each product sheet that comes with their locos that they do not oil their locos because it could get on the paint and ruin the paint jobs.
There should be a little screw on the bottom side of the steamer. The main drive wheels,to the left or right of the drive wheels.
It kinda looks like i need to take 4 screw off t get the bottom plate off, or do you just insert the grease through the screw holes???
The kit i ordered should come in tomorow, so i will be taking it apart them.
You should see the word grease where the screw is. I don't think you need to take off the plate. I have a K-line B&A Bershire and thats all I have to do. Check the instruction book. Hope this helps?
Yes, i do see the work grease by the screws... this is good info thank you. Unfortunatly the instruction book says nothing about greasing the gears though, only about the lubrication of the drive rods... so i will just wing it...
how much grease goes on??? just a light coating??? to i have to turn the wheels by hand to rotate the gears and hit all the spots???
I just open up the screw and add the grease till it fills and comes out. Then replace screw and let the engine do it by itself as it goes around the track.
Thanks for the help!!
I just did the oil/grease job. I found on the passenger cars that the metal that touches the axles(the electrical picups that hit the axles to ground to the ourside rails) was very very tight on the axles and was giving me great rolling resistance and noise. Now, this is probaly a no no, but i oiled all the spots, and my grinding and squeking noises have disapeared, as well as the fact that the cars roll much much easier. And lucking, this seems to have had to affect on the lighteing to the car.. no flickering, no bad news yet.
On the engine, i pulled the 2 screws and filled them with grease. I was not able to hit the brass bearings with the tool i was using, and will be picking up a needle oiler to do so. I also kit all the drive rods with some oil. Now as far as the grease, i have no idea it this help, but i can without a doubt tell you that oiling the rods quieted down a lot od grinding noisees.... My quess is the loco was very dry from the factory, or do to sitting on the shelf for 2 years.
Now, the engine and cars seem much smoother... much quieter.... only thing i really worry about is being a little overly generous with the oil on the passenger cars..... will over oiling pick up a lunk of garbage and grime???
Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.
Get the Classic Toy Trains newsletter delivered to your inbox twice a month