Cathurga

Hey all, It seems that the model I have is the R1072 version, and the service sheet indicates that the parts I need are: X9822 Coupling Rods/Screws...or Screws pack X8427 either of which are unavailble since being discontinued in 2018... I have trawled the net and not found any of this sort. Do you think if I had to ask Hornby direct that someone would have a few of these lying around as spares, they would respond? I might get on to some other forums in the hope that I can find oneof these little screws, or is it possible that there might be a suitable replication SOMEWHERE? It seems a shame that apart from this, the model is in good order and would need to be scrapped. Thanks again all...

Thank you all so much for the input. I managed to determine that it is a Chinese made unit, and from the posts made by yourselves, it seems that the no-shoulder 1mm threaded screw is what I need. Now to find someone who has stock! Thanks also for the info about the pics, I try not to splash other people's pics around, but at least a moderator would keep me in check! Once again, many thanks all! Andy

Hey All, Really sorry if this is in the wrong place, or whether it warrants it's own topic, but I have done a few searches to try and find the answers. I am trying to repair my son's Flying Scotsman (dont know model numbers, but its the tender driven version). There is a connection from the valve gear that connects on the middle wheel, along with the main rods. I have no screws for it, and need to get some, but I don't know which ones to buy. They have options for large, medium, small shouldered screws, as well as one with no shoulder. It seems to me that it would be the no shoulder option, as the screw seems to 'trap' the tiny arm thsat rotates on its own axis. The arm seems to have an elliptical hole and where it connects to is not round, so it stands to reason that a no shoulder screw is required. I have a pic that I copied of newmoddeller site, but am reluctant to use it without permission. Anyone have any idea? Any responses will be greatly appreciated. Andy

Hey all, I have been doing some searching and trying to resolve some issues, particularly with some of my 0-4-0 and 0-6-0 locos. When setting the back to back at 14.55mm I notice that there is a lot of space between the inside of the wheel and the chassis, which causes the loco's to 'waggle' their way down the track. I know that there should be some space but it irks me that it's not as close as it could be. Is it sensible to shim them, and does anyone know where one might get this shims? I used to use a lot of tamiya ones for RC cars, but if someone makes ones that are purpose made, I'd rather use that. Cheers, Andy

Fishman, yes that's kind of what I meant. The Hornby decoders seem to play nicely with a loco that's been designed from the ground up to be DCC run. Converting ringfield/XO etc typ locos have some pitfalls, mainly related to amp draw, chassis isolation and ease of conversion. Lais, AE, Zen, Hornby etc etc all with their own idiosyncrasies .....

Thanks chap, I was going to exclude Hornby as although the seem good in a DCC ready environment, they don't always play nice in hardwired environments...or so I've read. Mike suggested DCC concepts and I see the Dapol ones seem to be high amp capable, will be doing some research.

Glad to see others have successfully done this conversion, as I have two of the Strathpeffer kits winging their way to me now. One is going to go into the tender of a Stanier 8F loco and the other is going to a horrendous Class 37 diesel that should be thrown away, but its great for the kids to use and with the conversion and a decoder, the cost will be a lot less than buying a 'sacrificial' loco. So, my question, as others have pointed out, is what decoder to get. My plan was to see what sort of amp draw these motors give. I am assuming the motors being sent to me with the kits are the slim 6V ones, so less volts is going to require more amps.... I have sent my Select Controller away for FW upgrading and I understand (open to correction) that I will be able to adjust CV values in order to ensure the loco's dont go as high as 'warp' speed or 'ludicrous speed' (Spaceball's reference). What decoder did you use Mike? With regards to tender drive loco's having the wheels slipping on the loco, surely it would be doing that regardless of what type of motor was driving it? All things being equal, as long as the wheels and linkages are all lubed and not bent, surely this is independent of the drive function? or am I missing something obvious?

I'm not sure if it's allowed to be discussed in depth, or on this section but I am trying to ge a few bits and pieces, and am having problems finding a retailer that has all I need so I can get it in one place. Any recommendations on a stockist that keeps good stock. I would prefer to support a shop, online or not rather than go to eBay and expect to have to shop at a multitude of shops.

Excellent! Thanks for the responses! I have received the loco and have had a cursory look at things. It's clear now that it does have the pickup bogey, and the insulated wheels are quite apparent, and outside of needing some cleaning, it looks to be quite serviceable. There are a few decent videos on cleaning and servicing these locos so that will be my first activity. Will try to get it running well on DC and make sure everything is functional and then look to convert to DCC. I believe the sapphire decoder is probably my best bet regardless of the stall speed. Since the magnadhesion system is going to be superfluous, I may remove the magnets and add them to the main magnet, I've see reports that this helps 'boost' a failing older magnet.

Dredging up another older thread, but thought to keep everything on the same topic, maybe others can benefit. I have recently acquired an old 37 and am going to run it DC for a while, and then eventually convert it to DCC. I have a few questions in both regards. I would like to service it after an initial, cursory inspection and will clean and lube it, hopefully it will run decently. I have noted that the Service Sheet 92 is the correct one. It has the 4-wheel powered bogey with the double worm drive, and the second bogey is acting as a pickup and is wired to the powered bogey. I am going to avoid removing the main magnets as I am not sure how to have them seperated and apply a keeper, so will just polish pickups, wheels and try to clean the comm as best possible, in-situ. Will lube as best possible. I am running mostly new track so not sure whether the magnatraction system will be of any benefit, but will leave it in place. My first question is regarding the pickup bogey..from what I can see, the pickups are connected to the rear axles and I cannot see how both wheels can be in contact with both tracks, and yet have a single pickup on the axle, surely this is a short circuit? Are one set of wheels insulated in some way? On one of my tender drive loco's, the one side of the wheels has insulation in the form of a plastic hub. Is this setup the same as that? The second question is regarding the stall amps on one of these loco's, has anyone measured it? I am going to try and standardise on guagemaster decoders and am acutely aware that a high stall speed is likely to let the magic smoke out. I will test it while in DC format, but was hoping someone else had some previous experience. Thanks and regards

They are very useful if you have a CD Can motor conversion on a ringfield motor. Most of the CD motors are 6V so limiting voltage out of the decoder is likely to limit speed and save the motor

A week is like a lifetime in the eyes of my 6 year old, but I'll try explain to him that the firmware is critical! :-)

The one I'm getting is the one from the 'Eight Freight' set and it is indeed the one related to the 145 service sheet. At this point I am most keen to do a swap to a CD motor rather than try getting a 5 pole version going.

96RAF, thanks for that, will download the manuals. I'm going to need a DC controller while the Select is sent away, will find one on eBay. Do I need a transformer to go with the DC controller or can I use the Select transformer with the analog controller? (And I will remove the DCC points clips before using the DC controller)

Excellent, thanks for the feedback. As an IT person, I generally remain a V or 2 behind the curve but it seems there is merit to sending this back for a firmware upgrade.