mandy-1248321 Posted April 30, 2022 Share Posted April 30, 2022 afternoon all and ty for accepting me. my son collects Thomas and friends and he has been having problems with James, i followed a tutorial to clean the wheels etc as unfortunately due to high shedding dog there was a fair bit of hair around the wheels, anyways what i have noticed is the copper strips on the back of the tender are snapped so i was wondering if anyone knew where we could buy a replacement. i have attached a pic of the strips and its the bit which touches the wheels that is snapped. many thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Going Spare Posted May 1, 2022 Share Posted May 1, 2022 The replacement part you need is X8774 but this has not been available for quite some time, the tender design having been changed in 2016.There is no direct substitution of another pick-up assembly as the type fitted to James was not used on many other locos.If the damage is causing erratic running, I would suggest you take/send the tender to a model shop that undertakes repairs in the hope that a piece of phosphor-bronze strip can be fashioned to replace the damaged one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
new lad on block Posted May 2, 2022 Share Posted May 2, 2022 Hi Mandy, most of the tenders used in the Hornby Thomas range were the old school tenders.James also used the old school tender.Later version thought did have two wires connecting the loco and tender.Even thought the tender is a schools one I am not sure if internal components are the same.Others on the website may be able to assist if you can swop internal components from early Hornby School class tenders.I also notice that the both rear tenders wheels have no traction tyres fitted.As viewed from from underneath the rear wheel on the right should have a tyre. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Going Spare Posted May 2, 2022 Share Posted May 2, 2022 The only way of using earlier components would be to replace the entire drive unit - motor and wheels - as no smaller components are interchangeable - and this would do away with the tender wheel pick-ups that are causing you the problem but would reduce the number of wheels that are collecting electricity from the track. However, that again would probably best be left for a professional repairer to undertake as it is not entirely straightforward. Replacement traction tyres for the two grooved tender wheels are supplied in pack X8030.If the tyres are missing, and from your report of fluff, etc, around the axles, it is likely both the loco and tender need a complete check-over and service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mandy-1248321 Posted May 3, 2022 Author Share Posted May 3, 2022 afternoon all, apologies for late reply i didnt realise i had some replies so ty for taking the time to reply grinning i did shall i say "service" the engine and removed several large amounts of fluff hair etc from the wheels. My lad is 22 nearly and watches all the youtube videos re thomas the tank and how to modify his engines and we came across a great video showing me how to do this step by step :) hes collected thomas for nearly 20 years now as he has cerebral palsy and brain damage so he doesnt have a social life and Thomas is his world so spends all his money on Hornby thomas and the blue track thomas, so i would like to get james running for him. I did buy him a few good years back and cant quite remember if he ran back then or not. I spoke to a lovely guy today at a place called peters spares and he has suggested maybe sending him in to be looked at and going from there. i did say to hubby about tyres so i will order him some of them. when we places the tender which i think is correct lol, on the track theres is nothing but when we apply a little pressure on the top he starts to spin but as soon as we let go he stops. i did get him running round the track yesterday but now there is nothing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Going Spare Posted May 3, 2022 Share Posted May 3, 2022 Unless you have other locos needing tyres, I would not order any - just ask Peter's Spares to give James a full service and they will replace them as a matter of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mandy-1248321 Posted May 6, 2022 Author Share Posted May 6, 2022 ok i am apparently a super mam :) i stripped james down and replaced all wiring, cleaned the armature as there was a fair bit of gunge / hair in there, and have replaced his springs and bushes. his tender is now running :) BUT i need some new wheels as i have notced a couple are slightly dinted / pitted. i did clean the wheels and have also polished them this is when i noticed the pitting. i cant seem to find the james ones but was wondering if anyone knew if there was any compatible ones please. many thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Going Spare Posted May 6, 2022 Share Posted May 6, 2022 Peter's Spares have pack X8745/5P which contains 4 black disc wheels and their axles. This is officially for a class 86 electric loco 4-wheel drive unit but the wheels will fit the driven axles on your James tender drive unit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mandy-1248321 Posted May 7, 2022 Author Share Posted May 7, 2022 Peter's Spares have pack X8745/5P which contains 4 black disc wheels and their axles. This is officially for a class 86 electric loco 4-wheel drive unit but the wheels will fit the driven axles on your James tender drive unit.ty very much for this i really appreciate it :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Going Spare Posted May 7, 2022 Share Posted May 7, 2022 CORRECTIONApologies - wrong pack number given above.Correct wheels pack is X8475/5P. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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