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New 2-4-4-2 barely runs

Started by John Tumolo, July 27, 2020, 08:32:23 PM

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John Tumolo

I just received my new 2-4-4-2, and when I placed it on my dc only layout, it barely moves.  VERY slow, forward or reverse.  The other odd thing is, BOTH front and tender lights are on when moving forward.  I don't see anything fouling the wheels, no hidden foam pieces like in other locomotives from Bachmann.  All other Bachmann locos equipped with dcc have always run without a problem on the layout, this is the first one that doesn't.  Any ideas?   

efehser

Lights first: As programmed from the factory both lights are on, with the light in direction of travel at full bright and the other dimmed. Since I run DCC this is something I immediately changed as it is a diesel era lighting scheme.

As far as running quality I honestly don't know, as again, I run DCC. Unfortunately the 2-4-4-2 uses the new style board that doesn't have a plug to where you can bypass the DCC. Several solutions come to mind, but none are particularly easy or necessarily cheap. Removing the board and hardwiring would only be effective for motor control, as resistors for the LED lights are built in to the board.

How dedicated to DC control are you? A good quality DCC starter setup can be had for not a lot of money, and can essentially plug in to a properly wired DC layout. And most don't require a degree to operate.

John Tumolo

The good folks at Bachmann have been in touch, and after I try a phone call with service tomorrow to see if something can be done here, I will need to send her back to Bachmann for repair/replacement.  As far as going to DCC, I'm still a bit of a Luddite-I love this hobby and I don't want to be aggravated by computer stuff.  I fully understand a negative and positive wire attached to rails and a rheostat moving right for faster, left for slower.  I have been around layouts with sound, and find that after about 10 minutes I am tired of the noise.  I'm assuming that DCC or DC, the problem would still exist.  Stay tuned................. :)

jterry618

Having a similar problem.  Brand new 2-4-4-2, just took it out of the box this morning.  Not using DCC.  The lights come on bright forward, and flicker in reverse.  The wheels moved about a quarter turn and stopped.  They haven't moved again. 

Is there a simple fix or does it have to go into Bachmann for servicing?

Jeff Terry

John Tumolo

Well, this ended poorly.  After discussing the running problems with Bachmann service, I tried the fix they suggested-lube the locomotive and try running in.  I ran it for appx. 15 minutes in each direction, but still the same problem-while applying power, engine starts nice and slow, when increasing power moves slightly faster, but then while turning the rectifier all the way up, just gets a bright light but moves no faster.  Service dept suggested returning it to the place of purchase, as I would have to pay to mail it back to Bachmann, and on top of that they had no replacement locomotives to send to me.  Sent it back to the vendor, who called me and said it ran.  I said yes, it does but it should do more than crawl.  They said they would open another one and test it-if it ran better, they would mail that one to me.  Apparently, the next one didn't work any better, or they simply gave up as I just received notification of a refund to my credit card.  I guess I wasn't meant to have a 2-4-4-2 after all.   It's a shame, as I really liked the look of the locomotive, and I'm just confused as to why my 2-6-6-2 runs great, and her little sister turned out to be a bust. 

efehser

Very strange, as my 2-4-4-2 matches the performance of the 2-6-6-2 quite nicely. I still can't help but feel that running it on DC power is most of the problem. Not a knock on you, just the nature of the beast. With no way to bypass the DCC, at least easily, there is no way to check this.

John Tumolo

Quick note to Jeff Terry re: new 2-4-4-2 that moved 1/4 turn & stopped.  I had exactly the same thing happen when my 2-6-6-2 was new-turned out that the rear set of drivers was the problem.  Directly from the factory, the brass piece which acts as a bearing for the driven axle was mis-aligned-there was no free play from side to side, so the wheels were locked in place.  When I removed the 3 screws holding the cover in place, I could see the brass piece wasn't seated where it should have been-it just needed to be turned a bit and dropped into the slot in the frame.  It has worked fine ever since.  Just see if all of your wheels have a bit of free movement from side to side.  If not, you might have the same problem.