Bondyz Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 Hi all. I am very new to model railways myself and for Christmas I bought my son a second hand Thomas train to go on my layout. When I put it on the track it kept derailing and shaking from side to side alot. I checked the wheels and found that the rear set of the 3 wheels are moving badly up and Down inside the chassis. I have taken the body off and took the underside off the chassis to have a look but as I said I'm a novice to this I'm not really sure what I'm looking at. I noticed on the front 2 sets of wheels there is 2 gold bits around each shaft I guess to hold them in place but there isn't any on the rear set but I doesn't look as tho there should be anyI removed the wheels and saw some springs underneath the rear shaft but I can't work out why the wheels are moving so serverly? I'm not sure of there's a bit missing or anything I was hoping someone might be able to help me resolve this issue as my son is devestated that his train doesn't work. Thankyou in advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new lad on block Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 Hi Bondyz, Others more mechanically minded than me may need to know a liitle more information about the Thomas locomotive in question.Does it have China on the Base either with or without a date or does it say 'Made in Great Britain'?Have the middle wheels got rubber bands (traction tyres) round?Are all the coupling rods as per photos?Photo, top one UK, early and late Chinese versions./media/tinymce_upload/ab1107e8e4d3117e33f40c02ef3a53b1.JPGView of chassis UK and Chinese./media/tinymce_upload/d8451e5db81370f8c4b2419a4f66d7b0.JPGYeh, one traction tyre missing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bondyz Posted December 30, 2019 Author Share Posted December 30, 2019 /media/tinymce_upload/67d1e8f8275f4aa20fb98b61f91f488e.jpg/media/tinymce_upload/d3b06e1ea5289303f3e4168ef8d7b359.jpgthanks for the reply it does say made in China on the base and does have traction wheels on both sides. I think its the middle one of the pictures you sent. It's the rear wheels that are moving up and down in the chassis itself just causing constant derailment and losing power due to jumping around so much /media/tinymce_upload/40f71e9c999e25746264d458d19b896e.jpgits the wheels on the left side of the last pic that's wobbling around.Thanks again. And sorry won't be able to reply again until tomorrow because of the 2 reply limit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkingthedog Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 The rear wheels are supposed to 'wobble' about. I am wondering if the quartering is out. On one side when all the connecting rod screws are at the 12 o clock position, those on the other side should all be at 3 or 9 o clock. Exactly a quarter different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Going Spare Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 It may be that the springs above the rear axle have lost their flexibility due to foreign matter (dirt, congealed oil, etc.) collecting in the channels in which they sit, or they may have been compressed to the extent that they are no longer applying downward pressure on the axle, allowing the wheels to "wobble". If that is the case, clean out the channels and, if necessary, try to extend the springs slightly. When the plastic chassis bottom is in place, the axle should be sitting immediately on top of it but you should be able to push each of the wheels gently upwards. It is correct that the rear axle does not have bearings. Both centre wheels should have traction tyres if the wheels have grooves to take them. GS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Howbi Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 The reason the loco is unstable is because one of the traction tyres is missing............HB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkingthedog Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 Those are not the OP's locos they are new kid's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Howbi Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 Correct...........just checking who was still awake 😛 😆.........HB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walkingthedog Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 I am just about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ruffnut Thorston Posted December 30, 2019 Share Posted December 30, 2019 The sprung rear axle was part of the Super Strong Pulling Power, or SSPP, design. Together with flangeless centre driving wheels with traction tyres. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bondyz Posted December 31, 2019 Author Share Posted December 31, 2019 Hi all thanks for the suggestions so far. I will try and clean out the spring holes this evening and maybe stretch the springs slightly if needed and see if that helps any. It has got both traction tires on the loco. It is the China made model I believe the middle one of the 3 pictured. Thanks again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
96RAF Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 If you stretch the springs too much then you run the risk of lifting the traction tyres off the rails and going nowhere. I think the official blurb used to say to pack the springs up with card washers, like the bits you find in a hole punch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Please sign in to comment
You will be able to leave a comment after signing in
Sign In Now