Time to hotrod a few HO diesels engines. I have one dash 8 that Darth Santa Fe had help me with and it pulls like a mule. It has a
Mashima motor and I love it.
There are some Blue Box Athearn's I will be picking up for fair prices that are new. So I thought they would be a good starting point.
Before I get (you are wasting money, you are stupid) and other comments I am doing this for the sear fact I want to. If you look at my icon you may understand. 69 Charger R/T with a 440 with a GMC 6-71 Super Charger. Did because I wanted to.
Now for the questions!
1. Where do I find the Mashima motors? I looked at Tony's Trains and did not see them listed.
2. Drive shafts? Like to find a supplier that has more than one length in a kit or what would you make yours from? Like to use as much of the stock Blue Box drive train as I can.
I may want to make them DCC later, so I need to install the motors so they are not grounded to the chassis. For now, I am enjoying DC again.
Cuda Ken
I hate Rust
cudaken wrote: Time to hotrod a few HO diesels engines. I have one dash 8 that Darth Santa Fe had help me with and it pulls like a mule. It has aMashima motor and I love it. There are some Blue Box Athearn's I will be picking up for fair prices that are new. So I thought they would be a good starting point. Before I get (you are wasting money, you are stupid) and other comments I am doing this for the sear fact I want to. If you look at my icon you may understand. 69 Charger R/T with a 440 with a GMC 6-71 Super Charger. Did because I wanted to. Now for the questions! 1. Where do I find the Mashima motors? I looked at Tony's Trains and did not see them listed. 2. Drive shafts? Like to find a supplier that has more than one length in a kit or what would you make yours from? Like to use as much of the stock Blue Box drive train as I can. I may want to make them DCC later, so I need to install the motors so they are not grounded to the chassis. For now, I am enjoying DC again. Cuda Ken
Ask and ye shall receive. Proto Power West: http://www.ppw-aline.com/re-power.htm
Andre
I remotored several Athearn diesels for myself and about two dozen brass steamers for a friend using Mashima motors - good motors at a reasonable price. For the Athearn diesels, use brass bushings from NorthWest Short Line (Part 1152-4) to increase the diameter of the Mashima motor shafts from 1.5mm to 3/32". You can then use the stock Athearn drive line parts., which will be a press fit on the bushed shafts. Here's a good view of an installation in an Athearn switcher - you can see the bushing between the ball on the Athearn driveshaft part and the motor:
Depending on the particular situation, you can shorten some of the Athearn components as required, or use ones from larger Athearn locos, where extra length is required. If you need to shorten the motor shafts, use a cut-off disk in your Dremel and run the motor at medium speed while making the cut, using light pressure to do so. Ensure that you don't get any cutting residue in the motor, and chamfer the cut end slightly to allow easy installation of the NWSL bushings.
This Athearn U-boat used the stock Athearn driveshafts, shortened to accomodate the dual motors:
I mount the motors in silicone caulk, although I'm not too concerned about isolating them from the frame, as I run DC. With a little care, this method should work for DCC. When you get your motors, hook them up to some test leads and run them at medium speed. Tap the motor case lightly with the handle of a small screwdriver as the motor runs, listening to the motor noise. In some cases, the motor will run noticeably quieter and smoother after a few taps, while in other cases, the opposite effect will be had - in this case, continue tapping until the motor returns to a quieter state.
Wayne
You can get the motors from A Line or Walthers. The newer black motors are even better than the tan one used in your DASH 8, which is already a great motor. The price is a little high ($35-$38 per motor!), but considering it's the best motor in the MRing market, I guess it's nottoo bad.
The A Line driveshafts are copied from the Athearn ones, so that's one choice. NWSL also makes driveshafts with a ball and socket design, which are better than the A Line ones. If you're also looking for flywheels, NWSL is the best choice. A Line flywheels are kind of poor in my opinion.
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Here's the A-Line page from Walther's on repower kits.
http://www.walthers.com/exec/search?category=&scale=H&manu=A+Line+Product&item=&keywords=repower&instock=Q&split=30&Submit=Search
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
Hi,
so you are planning on hot roding a couple of diesels, 12 wheel drive and like the U boat 2 motors, eh. Man that should do well in the old quarter mile.
Doctorwayne-that is a wonderful job you done with the U-boat, truly impressive. How does it run? Have to ask that question because there are no flywheels.
Cudaken-please keep us posted on your progress and how the engines perform after the motor swap. Also how do these motors compare to those from Kato and Atlas? Very curious and hoping you will report your findings.
Thank you
Frank
"If you need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm."
Darth, would you happen to have the walthers part number for the black motor? Can I use a bushing to mate the stock athearn flywheels to the new motor? I would rather use a hex head flywheel and drive shaft.
You would be proud of your handy work on the Dash 8. It will pull 40 50 foot cars up my 1.5% garde. After that it will spin the wheels. I would add some weight but I am afraid I will cause the drive shafts to start to slip on the motors shaft.
How heavy do you think I can go with out spining the shafts?
Hum, 2 motors!
da_kraut ....Doctorwayne-that is a wonderful job you done with the U-boat, truly impressive. How does it run? Have to ask that question because there are no flywheels.
....Doctorwayne-that is a wonderful job you done with the U-boat, truly impressive. How does it run? Have to ask that question because there are no flywheels.
Thanks Frank. I built three of those U-boats, and they run just fine without the flywheels. With a decent throttle, flywheels aren't missed on most locos. The units are over-powered, and I probably could have gotten more pull from them with only one motor, but more weight. The motors each power one truck with no connection between the two, other than electrically. Each unit weighs 33 ounces, and has a measured drawbar pull of 8.3 ounces.
They run well with one another, and also with my remotored Athearn switchers, but I got rid of them because they're too modern for the late '30s era of my layout. Now I gotta get up the will to part with the rest of my diesels.
cudaken wrote:Darth, would you happen to have the walthers part number for the black motor? Can I use a bushing to mate the stock athearn flywheels to the new motor? I would rather use a hex head flywheel and drive shaft.
This page has all five of the motors A Line offers: http://walthers.com/exec/search?category=LEM&scale=&manu=A+Line&item=&keywords=motor&instock=Q&split=30&Submit=Search They come up right after the motor cradle weights. You may be able to use some brass tube cut to length and pressed onto the shaft to get it up to the proper 3mm Athearn uses.
You would be proud of your handy work on the Dash 8. It will pull 40 50 foot cars up my 1.5% garde. After that it will spin the wheels. I would add some weight but I am afraid I will cause the drive shafts to start to slip on the motors shaft. How heavy do you think I can go with out spining the shafts?
Wow, I didn't know it had that much traction! Good to know it's still running. The shaft couplings are connected to the brass tube on the motor's shafts with plenty of super-glue, so I don't really know how much they can handle, but I'm sure you can add a few more ounces of weight to the engine without having to worry.
Darth, sorry I missed read your posting. I thought Walthers had the Mashima motors. Yes she is a puller. I enjoy it about 6 to 8 hours a week.
Picked up 3 new engines today, all are RTR Athearns. SD40-2 War Bonnet, Reo Grand SD-50 and a Bloody Nose Dash 9. Depending what I think of them, they may come under the knife.
Ken