I currently have five engines, all pretty new, not much run time on any of them. Thomas, Toby and Gordon all worked fine right out of the box, but I have trouble with James and Henry.
James can't go up any sort of incline and Henry seems to rattle/shake alot from side to side. I've heard some mentions about some engines being finicky when they were new. So I wasn't sure if I should just try to let them break in and hope they get better, or contact Bachmann for repair/replacement.
ya, im having trouble with my percy. i got him about a month ago, and havent ran him much. the other day i was running all my trains because theyve been sitting in the yards for so long. and whn i ran percy, he was sort of making a grinding noise. and when i backed him up, his rear end was angeled off the rails, like in the air. any advice? i paid $40.00 for him, and dont want it to go to waist.
Do you mean the grinding as in his motor working? :P Percy tends to make a sound like that. Mine runs fine.
As for James, I have been though a lot with him. He plain sucks on hills... :-\ I would add weight to his boiler and cab. I'm currently trying to figure out how to mold weight so I can fit as much as possible inside him. I added some without molding it and it seemed to help. I need answers as well. I've never had a problem with Henry. He was the only engine I bought off of eBay. He runs great in my opinion. Is this one you are talking of the Deluxe Henry or the old one? I would think he should run fine.
Deluxe Henry, I wasn't aware there was a difference though between the 2 versions. Some of the rolling stock I've gotten off ebay says Deluxe and some doen't. I just thought they updated the package art at some point.
I don't know if it is a difference either. I have the original. Maybe it will just stop after he gets broken in. They say for the first 500 miles on a car you shouldn't go over 50 mph. :P
Thanks Percy,
James seems to be my biggest issue at this point. I just got Mavis and Salty and both are running great out of the package. Is this a problem with everyone's James? Mine can't even make it up a slight grade difference, like if there's a spot that dips in the table. Are you guys just talking about going up a pier set? I do have an elevated section on the layout and the others seem to do just fine.
I wonder if adding weights will help or if I should just contact customer servie. Not even sure how the warranty would work/or not work since I bought him off ebay like all the others I have, also came in the "James' Freight Set", not sure if that matters or not.
I got Gordon in a set and he runs fine. James is a bad engine in terms of pulling and traction. I would add weight though I did it myself and little result. My previous layout was made of doors and going from one door to another made a slight grade/dip. He couldn't go through with 3 coaches.
I have 2 grades on my current layout and he will not go up the hill with 3 coaches (maybe he could with 2 coaches, maybe not). Even his wheels won't spin in places with 3 coaches. I wonder if this proves I added enough weight. I could only add it to the inner part of the cab. The boiler was almost completely filled with the motor. Alone he runs great, but what engine doesn't. I need an answer as well with James. It is angering me. :P
My James won't make any incline and I'm not talking with cars either, just him (and tender).
Wow, did you add any weight? Do the wheels even spin? How steep is the grade? Sorry for the many questions, but it all can affect him.
my gordon gives me problems and thomas does sometimes