Hi Stationmaster12,
              I have a #773 Williams by Bachman Hudson. It is a fine locomotive. Smooth running good puller. It is well balanced.
              I do not have any switches on the loop that I run this loco on. This rest of my layout is under construction. It navigates 031 tubular track with a substantial amount of cab over hang. No derailments.
              I would highly recommend this WbyB loco.

                                  Enjoy...671

Note for 3rail,

             Is this true? As long as we do not cut the wires to the motors, you cannot tell or verify that we did or did not violate our contract with you on our warranty commitment? We can then falsify our warranty with you. We could simply  create a wiring harness that would "plug into existing wiring" and then remove this wiring and claim a "warranty" item with the company for reparations. Why would an honest person do this?
                                   I am very upset...671 ?

Hi ASQTec,
         I do not agree with your standard operating procedure of just taking the loco out of the box and run it.
         I own 10 plus WbyB locos, each one came with a parts identification list, a warranty card, a maintenance sheet. All of the loco maintenance sheets stated that the loco was tested and lubricated at the factory. Light oiling BEFORE use at the indicated areas is required then every 10 hours after light oiling again. At 25 hours disassemble trucks and grease.
         My experience with WbyB locos has been varied. I.E. #2056 sem-scale Hudson..port side drive rod screw loose and smoke unit failure within one hour of use. 671 S2 Turbine..smoke unit non functioning ( no conductivity through smoke unit open circuit ). GP-9 Alaska...wiring too tight at band around motor to control board. True blast sounds in 2056's tender and true blast sounds in Great Northern Berkshire tender not functioning. All of these problems I made needed adjustments and repairs. But as with my experience these locos are not "turn key" operators.
          Are you aware, that, wiring the motors in "series" does void the warranty?
          Good maintenance practices should "Pay Off" in the long run. I have my original Lionel 671 S2 Turbine from 63 years ago, it has a few scratches, but it runs Like New because of maintenance.

                                 Hope this helps...671

I own two W by B  GP38. These locos are great runners. What I have done with new locos is this.
First I visually inspect the unit, checking for correct wheel gauging, wire connections, moving part clearances. Next apply small amounts of lubricant to all bearing and bushing surfaces. I then remove the body from the frame and inspect all internal components. I then remove the two drive motors and add lubriplate white grease to the gears. At this time I apply very small amount of plastic safe synthetic oil to the upper and lower motor armature shaft to bushing areas.
At this point I assemble the loco without installing the body shell. I then run the loco without any cars attached to check operation of motors lighting and sound effects. I will run the loco forward and backward for about five minutes in each direction. All the time I am running the loco I watch closely for any signs of binding or rubbing of wiring and moving parts. I constantly feel the motors for any excess heat being produced. If the motors start to feel too warm I will turn off the loco and let it cool off. These toy machines have all new mating surfaces which require "Break-in" or a "Wear-In" period. The moving surfaces actually rub and polish each other. this is why monitoring of the temperature is important. These newly mating parts are generating heat, that, in excess could scorch and damage these surfaces. This would shorten the life of theses surfaces. Heat is a sign of friction. After an hour or two of run time I then attach some cars and have fun.
                                     Hope this helps...671

jp,

     I think that I have found the cause of the high coefficient of drag. The center rail electrical pickup has a very high tensioned spring pushing down on the pickup roller. ( Two per car ) This appears to be causing the unusual amount of drag ( rolling resistance ) on the cars.
     I cleaned the rollers with electrical contact cleaner and then used Teflon lubricant.
The rolling resistance  decreased slightly. This did not disturbed my electrical conductivity due to the extreme force created by the too strong roller springs.
     I need to find softer springs to replace OEM springs. 

                              Thanks...671

     I have the four passenger set of these cars. My challenge is that they do not roll on the track easily.
     I have oiled all of the friction points, this did not " loosen up " the rolling resistance.
     The trucks have "live axles ( Wheels and axles rotate together ). I believe that the excess drag is created by the center section of the axle passing through the center portion of the truck.
      Post war Lionel trains used solid axles with the wheels rotating in the axle not with the axles.
      Has anyone had experience with what I am describing? Did you find a solution to this challenge?
       Can the axles and wheels be changed out to a more original design? Wheels spinning on the axle not with the axle.

                                Thanks...671

gmaneis,

            The Trainland/Trainworld Website has the same transformer Z 1000 @ $77.99. Do a little research, see if this is for you.

                                  Hope this helps... 671

Hi gmaneis,
                MTH ( Mike's Train House ) has a Z 1000 transformer @ 100 watts output.
I have read several favorable writeups about it.
                Wholesale Trains on line has it priced at $79.23. You may want to look into this transformer for your power needs.
                 I do not have one yet, but I am considering one. ( Currently using two Lionel ZW and one KW. ) These have an initial voltage output of approx 6volts. The WbyB trains like to start at a lower voltage. The 6 volt makes the locos sprint start instead of a nice gradual acceleration.

                                 Hope this helps...671

johnreid,

             I have the same style passenger cars in the Green Color.  The roof vents are standard right handed screws... Righty Tighty, Lefty Loosey. The vents on my cars were very,very tight. So tight that they slightly buckled the roof.
             I was able to remove/loosen them by very carefully using small flat billed pliers. I took my time and turned the vents counter-clock wise. At about 1/4-1/2 turn I was then able to turn the now finger loose vent-screws.
             Once the screws are removed the roof can be remove to access the lamps. I re-tightened the screws only using my fingers.

                                Hope this helps...671

Dom,

     Go to a posting "TRUE BLAST TWO PROBLEM" dated March 20th, this may help.
               
                                            Good luck.....671

Hi Everyone,
                 I just received my brand new #773 W by B  loco from Wholesale Trains ( On Sale  $259.99 w/ free shipping ). It looks GREAT !
             It has Spoked Drivers, Fire box glow, Two cow catchers...one has a coupling for double heading, Seuthe smoke unit #5 size, Larger motor than the 671,2056 and Berkshires. The motor is horizontal mounted with drive shaft to a transmission box driving the center drive wheels, drive force is transferred to the other drivers via the drive shaft rods.
             The Loco is tethered to the Tender vie a Four wired plug. This is for motor control. The Tender is a Berkshire tender ( Heavy Cast ). The four wires appear to be a little stiff. I needed to pull some of the extra wire from the Loco to create a upward loop in the wire to allow for flexing. Sound is the standard "True Blast"
              The Loco/Tender combo can handle 031 curves, the Loco cab swings quite a bit on this size curve. I do not know how it would handle an 031 switch. My guess is that the switch motor box might need to be mounted to the inside of the curve section of the switch.
               The Loco is a smooth runner, it has high speed at low power settings. I have it pulling five W by B Madison Car at eight volts power setting. Ten volt settings seems a little too fast. I will add a few diodes in series to slow it down.
                All in all     a very nice loco  .......671

   I am considering purchasing the WbyB Golden Memories # 773 Scale Hudson. In the Williams description of the Loco it states that it needs 042 curves minimum. Does any one have experience with this Loco; I am very interested in knowing if it could definitely navigate 031 curves.

   I have some 031 curves on my layout, I could change the track sizing at a great effort. If the Loco can handle this size curve even if it has a large overhang that would be OK. If it is physically impossible for this Loco to handle that size turn, I would like to know in advance of purchasing the 773.

   Would anyone like to review the 773? How does it pull, how smooth is it's operation, smoke, sound, etc.

                           Again, thank you in advance,

                                         671

Hi Simbo1,
               Go on line for Trainland or Trainworld, they are both the same owners but different locations here in New York. They do a mail order business. One is in Brooklyn the other in Lynbrook. The smoke unit cost me $26.99 US
               I used the Seuthe #5 ...6volt unit. It is working fine. I also use LGB smoke fluid. It seems not to sputter like the Bachman oil, and give a Little more smoke.
               Remember to install two diodes in series two reduce the voltage to the smoker. This brought my voltage down to a maximum of 6.5 volts at higher throttle settings.
                Hope this helps, anyother questions, feel free to ask.....671

Mister Lee,

        Go to the "Parts and Service" section of this website. There is a telephone number that you could call for an answer to your question.

                              Good luck...671

Tom, Go to the Ma And Pa Junction site. Under Williams by Bachmann parts they have a GP 9 shell listed.  C N ..$20.00

                              Hope this helps...671