I have an old athearn bluebox sw9. Or sw8. Dates to the 70's. So very generic. Got it years ago at a trainshow. It runs once it warms up. But a cold start is very slow takes alot of power throttle almost wide open to get it moving after a minute or two it runs better and responds to the throttle as you would want for a switcher. I have gone over it cleaning it and all the flash and such off the gears. Fresh grease and oil. How can i get past the slow high voltage start until it is warmed up issue ?
only thing i can thing of is weak or depleted magnets.
Wolfie
A pessimist sees a dark tunnel
An optimist sees the light at the end of the tunnel
A realist sees a frieght train
An engineer sees three idiots standing on the tracks stairing blankly in space
DC or DCC? In DCC, you can adjust the start voltage.
Either way, if you can do continuous running, let it run around in circles, both in forward and reverse. Do that for half an hour each way. That should loosen it up a bit.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
I'm assuming you oiled the motor bearings.
I could see it being a dirty commutator. Maybe. Or maybe the motor bearings don't quite line up, and when they get a little warmer they expand and provide clearance. The same could happen if you have too little endplay in the motor shaft. That's pretty unusual. Until it happens to you.
Ed
Weak magnets are a good guess and there was a discussion on the forums years ago about the after market magnets that can help out old motors. I think MicroMark sells the magnets
http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/88/p/120264/1383917.aspx
A dirty or rough commutator is indeed another possibility and a bit of cleaning with a light oil which is then removed may help. Are the brushes worn or dirty?
Another possibility with motors of that era is that the brushes have excess tension and are in essence trying to hold the commutator in place.
Whether it contributes to the problem or not it is always a good idea to improve the electrical contact to the motor by NOT relying on the infamous Athearn copper strip but rather use wire. At the very least the contact spots involving the copper strip should be cleaned with electric contact cleaner spray and swabs.
Do you have an ammeter? I wonder if the amperage starts high and then goes down. That could suggest a physical cause such as high brush tension, or less than ideal gear alignment. But if the amperage stays the same then my hunch it is in some way an electrical issue related to the motor itself.
Dave Nelson
Dave,
Here's a clickable link to the magnet replacement thread:
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Wolfie,
I would most certainly say it is the Armature shaft bushings/bearings, inner and outer that need to be lubed. When cold they create more friction, so the motor need more current to overcome that friction, once warmed up, it will lossen up. They are hard to get at.....I would recommend LaBelle #107, plastic compatible synthetic lube that comes with a fine point needle applictor built in. Put oil on the inner/outer shaft at both ends, while turning the motor by hand. 70's motors are not ancient. The ones without flywheels are the ancient ones........I have a few that run perfect to this day......just takes a little PM:
You can easily get at the motor shaft bushings/bearings in this set up......all original, magnets, brushes, no need to replace any of that.
Take Care!
Frank
It had not run in a decade until I overhauled it. It did get all the cleaning and lube work that has been suggested. It was the converted over to dcc. Yes i did electrically isolate the motor from the frame with electrical tape. The Layout does have an ammeter in line with the main power bus. So I can watch it spike high amp then back off as it warms. Runs about .8 amp when warm.
I never checked the brushes or springs for tension. Will do that. Will also look for miss alignments in the drive train.
Well, I knew I was getting old, but it must be official now.
I was selling those "ancient" locos when I worked in the hobby shop as teen and young adult.......
About 10% of the rolling stock on my layout has 20 years on that "ancient" loco....
Sheldon
I have a a b a set of all metal vanery F3 that i restored to operation. They were my grandfathers first ho back in 65. Or 70. Not sure. Might be a little earlier. Oldest locomotives on the layout.
Looking through old Varney catalogs at HOseeker:
In 1950, the F3's were metal.
In 1955, the F3's were "special impact Polystyrene".