First: Reason why I keep them: This is what I grew up with. These were my grandfathers and he gave them to me.
They dont run. Light comes on and that's it. I know it's a pain in the rear and lost cause to just keep using power torques.
1: Tyco - I have a few 2-8-0s that have a tender driven motor. I have heard you can use a Bachmann 44 ton switcher. But is this just removing the shell and lights and dropping the tender chassis on it?
2: Super Alco 630. I want to replace the motor. Someone mentioned using a Bowser c628/c630. But can I use a Stewart Hobbies instead?
3: Tyco 2-8-2 Cambelback (not power torque) Anyway to replace the motor in a 2-8-2 Camelback? Just found replacements for this online.
You could pull out the motors and gears, turn them into dummies, and keep the pickups for lights and/or sound instead. Without motors, there would be plenty of room for a speaker and decoder.
The power toques on the Alco are bad. I would prefer the Alco to run if possible.
Sounds like they are all Tycos - though I dunno about a Camelback - sure that's not a Mantua and already have a half decent motor? I never heard of a Tyco camelback with a powertorque motor.
The PowerTorque thing - if they spent half as much on actually making the product as they did on coming up with such a bad marketing name for them, they wouldn't be so disposable. Mel - those are the all in one power trucks on those locos, there's no way to fit a replacement motor like the Mabuchi to them, not without constructiong a whole new frame and using someone else's trucks - which isn't a bad idea.
Even making them into dummies isn't the greatest - they have plastic wheels on one side and metal wheels on the other, so one truck picks up on one side, and the other truck picks up on the opposite side. power dropouts would be frequent.
I don't see why the Stewart Alco chassis would be a whole lot different from the Bowser one - assuming the Tyco shell fits over either one. Probably need to come up with some way of mounting it, neither chassis will have the lugs as used to mount the power truck and the front idler truck. Need to do something about that big open slot in the pilots, front and rear, and find a way to mount couplers.
The tender drive steamers - those are the worse of the bunch (unless that C630 is the same vintage - you can tell if the power truck is all plastic, the early 70's version like the one I had have the metal bottom plate, those are pre-Consolidated foors. After Consolidated Foods took over Tyco, they really cheapened it all. Repowring the tender, that would likely be using the individual trucks out of the dual motor version, which aren't the greatest to begin with. It would be remarkable if the spacing of the full 44 tonner chassis was close to the tender trucks.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
The Camelback is a 2-8-2 Tyco. I found the replacement for it and the complete instruction booklet online.
Amazing find.
The 2-8-0s are a train show find. There were 2 Cattanooga's and another one. But only one ran. I have found info on the Bachmann 44 ton working in the Tender. The problem is, what do I need to do to make it fit? I came across several who knew someone else who had converted tenders. But it is supposed to fit right on top. Not sure how to mount.
The Alco 630 is the power torque one. I have been told a Bowser 630 or 628 would work. Not sure what would need to be done to the chassis to do this. But if a Bowser would work, wouldnt a Stewart Hobbies as well. IHC could aslo work but I dont want to deal with IHC problems too.
There are some videos out there on the power torque motor. Google Tyco power torque, and you decide what you want to do.
Mike.
My You Tube