Old Time 4-4-0

[Old John]

Has anyone on the forum ever take the tender apart on the 4-4-0?  What are the pit falls aside from the springs between the trucks and the brass pick up plates?  I couldn't find any diagrams for this engine.  Thank you in advance.    John

[mots]

John try this
http://www.bachmanntrains.com/home-usa/dwg/dwgs/11751.pdf

mots

[Old John]

Mots,

Thank You very much, it's just what I needed, I can't explain how I missed it, but I did,
again Thank You - John

[sharriso]

More information and pictures here:

http://www.visi.com/~spookshow/bach440a.html

Read somewhere you can use solder paste to attach the springs to the trucks to keep them from flying.

Shawn and Sally Harrison
   1850s B&O

[Old John]

Shawn,

Thank You, I've  rebuilt the the tender pickup assembly and motor, runs like new.

As for solder paste, I use a product called "Noalox", it's designed for lubricating electrical switch gear, repels water and doesn't hold dust. It's a great conductor, I discovered it years ago for my G Scale layout.  Using a small paint brush I painted the Noalox on the 4-4-0 tender axle stubs, spring seat on the trucks and on the contact plate the springs ride on, works great. I also "paint" the rail joiners (which is what I used it on G Scale to keep dirt and water out) for improve conductivity, I don't solder any more.

Again thank you all for your help,  the engine had been the victim of a flood, bought it very cheap and thanks to your information it runs like new.

[Desertdweller]

John,

I'm glad to hear your loco is running well.  They are a bit of a bear to get back together, aren't they?

Les

[Old John]

Les,

My advice is not to take the motor out of the tender, as the tender shell is actually the frame for motor, getting the 3 pole motor and 2 magnets and the weight back in is a bear, also the motors from the early generations are NOT inter changeable with later or current generations!  If the motor is bad spend $20 and buy the tender and motor  from Bachmann.

[Desertdweller]

Sounds like good advice!

Les

[railtwister]

Read somewhere you can use solder paste to attach the springs to the trucks to keep them from flying.

Careful!

Due to the fact that most solder paste contains acid for cleaning the metal to be soldered, and thus is highly corrosive, I would not advise getting it near anything electrical or in places where it can't easily be washed off completely.

Bill in FtL

[Old John]

Bill,

Your point about solder paste is well taken, but "Noalox" is not a solder paste, it is a conductive lubricant intended for electrical gear, designed to keep out dust and water.  I bought a 1/2 oz tube many years ago at Lowe's, and after having used it on G Scale layouts for joining track, I'm now using it on my N Scale - with all the use over the years, I still have over 3/4 of the tube left.  The "Noalox" worked great during reassemble of the 4-4-0 tender trucks because it held the pickup springs in place while attaching the trucks to the tender - no fly away springs.

[sharriso]

Sorry -- it's not solder paste.  I use Wire Glue (Anders Products).  Not real "sticky" but is conductive and holds thing together fairly well.

On the tender wheel "axles" I use Neolube (Micro-Mark). 

[Old John]

Shawn,

Would that work on rail joiners to hold tracks together as well as conductivity?  Where do you get it?

[sharriso]

Test it first.  Wire Glue takes a long time to set and its adhesive qualities are not that great.  Since most electrical components don't move or take any loads it's OK.  (The on-line reviews vary a lot.)

I got mine from ThinkGeek (dot com).  It's available at several other on-line stores.

[richg]

Solder paste is used in a lot of electronic production facilities.
I have used it. There was no acid in the solder paste.

Below is a link for adding a TCS decoder.

http://www.trainbuddy.com/Reference/decoding%20Engines/N440.htm

Rich

[Old John]

Rich.

That link was great, and I printed it out for later use as I have five of these engines.  One word of caution, the unit he was working with was a "later" or current production run locomotive and tender, if the locomotive plate on the bottom says "Hong Kong" it is an earlier version (like the one I had worked on) and the motor doesn't lend itself well to removal from the tender to do the kind of work described in link.  Thanks again - John