steam engine question...........

[Anonymous]

hi guys, hope everyone is well. i was wondering if anyone might know where i could an exploded view of an Mehano 4-8-2 steam loco? i just recently purchased a really nice used one from a friend, its dirty, and needs a good once over, but the loco looks great, all parts and accessories are intact. im wanting to completely dis assemble the loco and clean all gears and arms and such, then re lube all parts and re assemble. it looks kinda complicated, but im sure i can handle it, just would be easier with some info or views of it. thanks for all of your help........[:)]

steve

[Anonymous]

I cannot help you with a exploded diagram, however I can remind you of Mr. Murphy...

His laws include:

The one smallest most important screw will bounce into the next room and disappear forever to rust under the house.

Failing to dedicate a space soley to the job will render the engine and it's componets into various other repair jobs around the house and never again will see light of day.

Label, mark and check again everything. As you go... Try to find a "Part's Bin" or tray with many small "Drawers" for all your nuts, bolts wazoo's etc. Label each one.

Use a leger pad to track your progress step by step... Murphy is famous around the world for this law:

- hmm, did the watzit go on first or was it the whatchamacallit? Or is it dependant on the thimigig that needs to be assembled 3 steps ago?

Best of luck and enjoy your new engine.

Lee

[nfmisso]

Steve,

To add to Lee's suggestions, set you video recorder up on a tripod, and record the teart down process.

[Anonymous]

Both above are excellent suggestions but I would take pictures along the way at each part of the process as pictures will be your illustrations that you're looking for.

If possible make this a "one evening" or "one afternoon" project which simply means, allow yourself enough time to do the tear down/rebuild in one go. I've torn down a Mehano 4-8-2 and you shouldn't find it too complicated. If possible do not disassemble the drivers from each other.

Another trick you may want to try is as you tear down a section lay out the assembly in order of disassembly and when it comes time to reassemble you'll know exactly what part will be next in line.

Hopes this helps

[Anonymous]

A loop of masking tape stuck to the desk/work surface so that the sticky side is up is a great way to hold all those little screws and springs and so on. If you stick the loop to a piece of paper, you can make notes adjacent to the specific part...

And I would second all the other suggestions about a clear space, doing it all at once, taking pictures etc, etc....

Good luck!

Andrew

[Anonymous]

thanks to all of you guys, your suggestions really worked, as of now ive got a nice restored 4-8-2 locomotive that runs great.

steve[:)]

[Anonymous]

Really?! Congrats!

[Anonymous]

I just have one other suggestion to add to others who would attempt to take any locomotive apart. Attach to your worktable's underside, a large white cloth which can spread across your knees so that anything you drop will be caught and easily seen by you. I learned this the hard way with a dark floor. Good for you Steve.

[Anonymous]

Scottydog,

I have a large plastic sheet under the workbench. It is like 6 feet on a side and is white in color. It has saved me many times already. I can hear where it hits.. My old home had concrete and a million holes for it to bounce into.

I am curious, what did you use to clean the engine Steve? Did you find any particular difficulty anywhere? Maybe something that you might wish did diffenetly? Let us know how you did your engine maybe we can all learn.

[Anonymous]

hey guys, heres how and what i cleaned my old 4-8-2 with...... first i removed all the connecting rod screws, they werent very hard to loosen. i did them one side at a time, front to back, labelling them as i removed them. i stuck the tiny screws, along with the corresponding push rod to the tape and marked it. once i had removed all the push rods, i removed the shell from the steamer. then i removed the weight from inside, , then the wheel sets, again in order and marked them and set them on the sticky side-up tape, noteing the position of the counterweights on them for each side.i then removed the cab, which slid up off the boiler. then i removed all remaining parts such as, worm gears, trailing truck, and guide trucks. after i had everything off of the body, i mixed up a warm water and murphys oil soap combination. i sat the body and all plastic parts in the mixture for around 15 - 20 minutes. then i used a 1/2" wide bru***o scrub all parts thourghly. then rinse the parts in warm water and dry with clean towel. as for the wheel sets, i did the same thing, but after they soaked in the solution, i dried them and took a bright boy to the treads of the wheels, restoring the shine to them. thats pretty much how i did the major restoration on my old 4-8-2. by the way, i took a picture with my digital camera before i ever began this process, just in case i was in doubt. hope this helps someone else faceing the same challenge, it really is worth it, my 4-8-2 looks and runs as if it is brand new. be sure and remember to re lube all gears and such.

steve[:)]