Proto 2000 GP9 sqwarker

[Anonymous]

I have a very nice Proto 2000 GP9 that sqwarks very badly when it is cold, or first fired up. It seems to get slowly quieter after about two or three minutes running.
Initially it also took almost full throttle on my DC controller to get it going. I have removed the many little diodes that controlled the directional head lights and thrown the original circuit board away and connected small 12V bulbs direct (No directional headlight control anymore which I am not worried about) which has improved this situation markedly. It now runs at a reasonable speed on about half throttle. Similar to some of my other (cheaper) locomotives.
The sqwarking annoys me though. I cleaned a lot of the original factory lubricant off the drive gearboxes and regreased with some Lifelike loco grease which quietened it down completely for a short time, but it is squeeking away the same as before now. It definately seems to be coming from the gearboxes both front and back.
Has anyone had this problem? If so is there a way to fix this short of replacing the mechanism?

[cacole]

I've never had any problem with Proto 2000 locomotives except their very first one, a BL-2 that had improper gearing. It sounds like the motor bearings may need to be lubricated, since you have already done the gears with minimal success. Since the locomotive contains a can motor, the only thing you can hope to do is put a very small amount of light machine oil at the point where the drive shaft enters the motor and hope it soaks into the bearings.

When I had to replace the trucks on my BL-2 because one developed an electrical short that melted the plastic, Life-Like sent me the new trucks at no charge. They told me that their locomotives all have a no-questions-asked lifetime warranty. Try phoning their toll-free number if you can do so from NZ, explain the problem, and they may send you a free replacement. If you can't contact them by phone, try e-mail or a regular letter.