HO engines keep derailing

[wfletcher]

So I went out and got a tidy track and tidy wheel cleaner.  Last year I had no problem with keeping my engines and cars on the rails.  All of the sudden 2 of my trains engines keep derailing and not always in the same place.  It could past that spot 3x or on the first time and then derail.  I checked all of my connections between sections and no issues.  Got re-railers every 6' which do not help and are sometimes the point of derailing. 

On a separate issue my trains also just suddenly stop and a very light finger push will start them again (DC & DCC).

I always get great answers here and would like to thank you all for your support up front.  Because sometimes I get so involved with your answers and fixes I forget to write back right away (apologies). :-)

[jward]

WHich specific engines are derailing? DO they derail going forward, backward, or both? Are they derailing on curved track or straight track? What radius is your curved track, specifically where they derail?

[wfletcher]

I am using ez-track.
I have all 3 radius 48" and down.
They derail straight and curved; no higher incidence for either.
I have 2-8-2 DCC steam and a Penns diesel 4x4.
the 2-8-2 only runs on the 48" radius.
These have been set up since last year.  Last year I had to de-railing what so ever.  The only difference is I cleaned it and did not press heavily to bend rail joiners.  All joiners are on and straight.  No track is bent nor rising.  Everything is flat.

[Ken Huck]

I don't have any EZ track  nor that particular engine.  I did have the same problem with a
brass caboose.  Turns out, the screw for the rear truck was backing out enough to 'drag' over
crossings and closure rails causing it to derail.

HTH

Ken

[jward]

I am using ez-track.
I have all 3 radius 48" and down.
They derail straight and curved; no higher incidence for either.
I have 2-8-2 DCC steam and a Penns diesel 4x4.
the 2-8-2 only runs on the 48" radius.
These have been set up since last year.  Last year I had to de-railing what so ever.  The only difference is I cleaned it and did not press heavily to bend rail joiners.  All joiners are on and straight.  No track is bent nor rising.  Everything is flat.

By 48" I am assuming you are measuring diameter to the outer edge of the roadbed?  The traditional method of measuring curve radius is from the center between the rails across the circle to the other side. Center to center. Divide that number by half to get your radius. In this case, I would assume that 48" would actually be 22" radius. Bachmann does not make a 48" radius track in HO. I don't think anybody does. Please don't take what I said there the wrong way. I am only trying to explain how things work so you'll have a better understanding of what you have.

Given that you mentioned "all 3 radii" when Bachmann makes 7 different radii of curves, I am going to assume you mean the most commonly used ones:15", 18" and 22". Of those three, the 15" is the most problematic. Alot of locomotives don't like curves that sharp, and I advise trying to avoid them. I suspect your 2-8-2 has a problem with that radius. as a matter of fact, the entry in the Bachmann catalog specifically states "Performs best on 18" radius curves or greater." Keeping it to the wider radius curves should improve its performance.

As for the PRR diesel, you really didn't tell me anything about it. IS it an F7? a GP40? a GP35? Or something else. Bachmann has made many different diesel locomotives in Pennsylvania rarilroad paint, and most of them were the 4 axle locomotives I assume you are referring to. These come in various lengths from about 4 inches to about 7 inches. This also affects their ability to run on those 15" radius curves, with the shorter ones doing much better than the longer ones.

This is why I personally advise against the use of those curves. The operational problems you are likely to run into are not work the extra track you can squeeze into your space.

Moving on, there are some problems to look for. Do you have an NMRA standards guage? This tool will tell you if your track or wheels are out of guage. wheels or rails that are spread too wide or too narrow will cause ALOY of problems.

Since you said your locomotives appear to be derailing at random, I'm going to assume it probably has something to do with either a wheelset being out of guage, or on the diesel something interfering with the movement of one or more of the trucks. I am guessing here because, you didn't answer the questions I originally posed, as I had asked them. Your answers would have dona alot to point me in the direction of your problem. Bachmann diesels are unique in the way the trucks are mounted. They have a pivot point above the worm gear, on top of the truck assembly. The ability to pivot can be adjusted by turning a screw that holds the truck to the chassis, and serves as the pivot point. If the screw is too tight, the truck cannot pivot the way it needs to and it will derail. Find this screw, and loosen it a quarter turn or so. If it was too tight, this should solve the problem. If it wasn't too tight, loosening it a little shouldn't degrade performance further. In other words you have nothing to lose by trying.

[wfletcher]

Checked a lot of track and wheels with gauge.  Everything good.  Steam is nolonger derailing.  Wondering if it might have had something to do with cleaning? 

[trainman203]

Must have been bad vibes in the zodiac.

😂😂😂

[jward]

Steam is nolonger derailing.  Wondering if it might have had something to do with cleaning? 

It depends. WHile the build up of crud on the wheels can affect freight cars, particularly those with plastic wheels, one would think that a locomotive would experience electrical contact issues long before enough dirt would build up on the wheel treads to cause derailments. Locomotives depend on good electrical contact between wheels and rail, and anything that interrupts that contact will cause the locomotive to run erratically.

Which wheels specifically were derailing on the steam locomotive?