I have an old Aristo U25B in Western Pacific which is as noisy as a sound unit when going forward. I’ve been toying with purchasing a new unit and swapping the WP shell, however when I look up U25B’s I notice there are a plethora of stock numbers and prices for the same road name, etc.; at Train World for example. Is this because of upgrades that change the stock number? And would my old shell bolt up to a newer chassis?
Scratching my head, Rob
I would say it should. I don't have any of the newer units but do have several of the older ones. It would cost lost of money to retool all the molds just to make changes so it would only happen if it was absolutely necessary. All of the upgrades are in the electrical system and motor blocks. It would be easier to just buy 2 new motor blocks and order the wiring harness from Aristo but if you do buy a new one and swap parts I might be willing to buy what is left over. Can't have to many spare parts.
Thanks for the info, Rob
Just one note of warning, Rob. Because of the unusual truck mounting/pivoting design on the U25, I have found that unless you have excellent trackwork, the U25 with ball bearing trucks (later vintages) is more likely to derail. I have remounted my ball bearing trucks to minimize this effect, but personally, I still prefer the non-ball bearing trucks on the U25B. This is the only Aristo engine that I have experienced this problem with. My RS3 and my FA1/FB1 (which use the same power trucks) run superbly with the ball bearing trucks.
Ed
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